There are thousands of new tools made by hundreds of tool manufacturers. Some of these tools are extremely specific, some work on a variety of parts, others are straight out of a catalog, and a few are handmade, but all of them can make your life easier. Each month, STREET CHOPPER will feature a new tool that will help builders of all calibers, from garage to professional, get their bikes finished faster and with less hassle.
Have you looked at a World War II-era aircraft and realized how much of the plane's structure was built out of sheetmetal? If you have, you have undoubtedly noticed the dimpled holes that appear every few inches in said sheetmetal. These holes aren't there just because they look really cool; they actually help to turn those flimsy pieces of sheetmetal into a rigid part of the plane's structure.
Not that the splash guard for Jeff Davy's rigid needs to add to the structural rigidity of the rear of the bike; he was just adding a couple of dimples to make the one-off part look cool. We just happened to be at his shop, Devious Customs, and saw him building his splash guard. When he pulled out his set of dimple dies that he had picked up at G&L Aircraft and Competition, we decided that it was something we needed to show you all and add to the STREET CHOPPER Toolbox.
First, Jeff finds the center...
First, Jeff finds the center of the piece of sheetmetal he is working with and marks it with a dot from the tip of his Sharpie.
Next, Jeff puts a small dimple...
Next, Jeff puts a small dimple on the spot using a center punch.
Then over to the drill press...
Then over to the drill press to cut the proper size hole in the sheet metal with a hole saw.
The male and female dies are...
The male and female dies are lined up with the freshly cut hole and they are pressed together to form the dimple in the sheet metal.
After the sheetmetal and the...
After the sheetmetal and the dies are pulled out of the press, they simply lift apart to expose the dimple in the metal-easy as that.
Then the process is repeated...
Then the process is repeated using the smaller sets of dies on the outside edges after Jeff had bent the edges of the splash guard in the sheet metal brake.
SourcesG&J Aircraft & Competition1115 s. sultanaOntario, CA 91761(909) 986-6534