We “go behind the scenes” of the metal sheet shaping process.
October 2018
In Brandoli it frequently happens to create customized spare parts.
Our customers appreciate the precision and expertise applied in making complex body parts, two aspects that simplify the assembly phase.
We’ve therefore decided to share a number of photos of one of the many projects recently dealt with at Brandoli: the manual production of the rear part of a Ferrari Dino 246 GT.
An interesting case to “go behind the scenes” of the metal sheet shaping process a craft workshop like ours performs every day.
Photo: processing the rear panel
Point Zero: which tools do you need?
The equipment required to create a body, either complete or partial, is the wireframe in 1:1 scale.
It’s from the model (aka “filone”) that, in Scaglietti and in all the other body shops of the time, the bodies we restore today were created.
And the wireframe was also the basis for subsequent repairs.
This equipment is like a book for us: it tells us where the curves are, how they are made, it tells us at what point we have to bend the metal sheet.
Therefore, what is the secret?
We need to know how to interpret the curves.
Photo: Egidio Brandoli working with a colleague to create the side fender.
Shaping the metal
Let’s now enter the metal sheet shaping phase, which we can summarize in five stages:
- The use of the template to shape the metal sheets.
- The real manual shaping of the sheet with various hammers and pincers.
- The levelling by hand with an automatic mallet to give the shaped metal a smooth surface.
- The assembly of the various panels making up the rear portion of the vehicle, using the torch oxyacetylene welding technique.
- And the finish: fundamental stage for completing every portion of the body.
Our collection of tools – model, template, bender and various hammers – is the essential heritage and technical resource for constructing a part such as this one of a Dino 246 GT.
These tools, however, would be useless without experience.
That very experience made of subtle dexterity, of obsessive attention down to the minor detail acquired in lifelong learning that persons improve every day by working together.
Like us, in Brandoli, have learnt to do.
Roberto Brandoli
Photo: the Dino 246 GT repair completed and the wireframe used as a tool.
Do you need a spare for a Ferrari Dino 246 GT?
You can quickly check our online spare parts list here.
If you do not find what you are looking for, write us at spareparts@brandoli.it
