De-Eyebrowing Method

[DavidProehl]

Before I damage the perfect paint on my fascia, I thought I'd run this by everyone.

I need to straighten and reinforce my front fascia. In this DML article (http://dmcnews.com/Techsection/fascia.htm), it is advised to use a heat gun to soften the fascia to bend it straight before adding the aluminum bar. I bought a heat gun for this job, but now I'm concerned the heat will remove the paint as it softens the fascia. Am I being overly concerned?

Here is the process as I would do it (please correct me where I'm wrong):

Remove headlights and grill
Use heat gun on low setting (my gun's low setting is supposedly 750 degrees!) and blow at it from a distance as to not get it too hot.
Test fascia flexibility every 10 seconds or so until somewhat flexible
Wrap cloth around fascia and place plywood on either side of eyebrow area, securing with bar clamps just tight enough to hold them in place, careful not to crush or bend the inner lip of the fascia together with the top.
Allow time to cool
Remove clamps, boards, and cloth, and verify the fascia is straight. If not, repeat.


From that point I would follow the advice on the DML article.

Any changes to that process?

I remember reading in an old DMCTalk.com thread that also had some handy tips on how to keep clean when using the 3M windshield adhesive among others. Would love to see some of those tips again since they are now gone.

[DavidProehl]

I see this thread has had nearly 70 views, but no confirmation. I'm assuming the silence means I'm headed the right direction. I'll be gentle and see how things go.

[Bitsyncmaster]

I feel the same way you do. Damage to the existing paint is my concern also. I would be nervous about heating on the painted side. So to do it the way I would consider safe would require removing the fascia.

How many have done it heating the paint side?

[jackb]

I tried this with the fascia off, heating mostly from the inside but also a bit from the outside. It was very hot to the touch, but the paint never bubbled. Even though it was very hot (too hot to touch) when i tried straightening it with wood and clamps, it didn't move. So I put it back together with the eyebrows still there.

[Mark D]

I highly recommend taking the fascia off the car to fix the eyebrows. It's not that many screws to remove, and it will allow you better access to heat up the area above the headlights to straighten as well as prep the surface for the 3M window weld glue used to hold the eyebrow bars in.

When I did mine i used a heat gun on low setting to heat it slowly and evenly to prevent any paint bubbling and had no issues. If you want to see a full writeup with pics on removing the fascia and installing the bars there is info on my car domain page here:

http://www.cardomain.com/ride/3341459/1981-delorean-dmc-12/page-3

[DavidProehl]

http://www.cardomain.com/ride/3341459/1981-delorean-dmc-12/page-3

That is a great write up! Thanks! Exactly the kind of thing I was looking for. Yes, I'm starting to think I should probably remove the fascia to do this job properly. I don't like it, but I also don't want to risk ruining my paint. If only the whole car was stainless...

[steve6864]

Not neccessary at all to take teh fascia off.lay a clean towel over the spot and use the heat gun,With the headlights out obviously,have a spare piece of scrap metal ready.15 to 18 inches long,1/8' thick,width not crucial,but,at least 1 1/4".Use something like liquid nails and coat the scrap metal,especially the leading edge and reach in thru the haedlight hole and shove it into the eyebrow area.Now put weights on the towel and walk away.It helps to do this in bright sunlight as well,it won`t cool as fast.Used this procedure on mine 5 years ago and the eyebrows have not come back.Good luck.6864.

[vwdmc16]

right, ive also straightened mine while it was still on the car with the heat gun an a leather glove and a damp cloth.

[Byrne H&A]

Check our website for Eye Brow Minimizers.
No heat required, installation information provided, www.Deloreanupgradeparts.com
We have been machining this part and minimizing eye brows for 20 years.

[DavidProehl]

Check our website for Eye Brow Minimizers.
No heat required, installation information provided, www.Deloreanupgradeparts.com
We have been machining this part and minimizing eye brows for 20 years.

No heat required? Interesting. I just found a tutorial describing a no heat required process. It used Hervey's bars (no longer available) which looked like they were made from steel. I'm guessing since they don't flex as much as aluminum they were able to fix the problem by force.

Tutorial: http://delorean.bnebel.com/tiki-index.php?page=Eyebrow+Fix

[Bitsyncmaster]

I would think if you had a tight fit on the bars and could hold them there while the glue dries you would not need heat to fix the eyebrowing. Probably steel would work better for this.