Cutting Body Panels MGB GT

Hiya,

Im looking for some tips if you can take the time guys

Im planing on cutting the steel panels on my MG to gain access to the sills, for this the procedure is to cut away the lower half of the front and rear wing (below the chrome seam which splits the wing in half)

Of course the professionals might use a plasma cutter but this doesn't fit my budget.

Please can someone suggest whether cutting discs, compressor and chisel, or tin snips are perhaps the best route for me?

Im happy to invest to a reasonable degree in tools that I will re-use, but a plasma cutter is certainly not on the cards, i'd never get that past "customs"

Kai.

Originally Posted by kai16181 Hiya, Im looking for some tips if you can take the time guys Im planing on cutting the steel panels on my MG to gain access to the sills, for this the procedure is to cut away the lower half of the front and rear wing (below the chrome seam which splits the wing in half) Of course the professionals might use a plasma cutter but this doesn't fit my budget. Please can someone suggest whether cutting discs, compressor and chisel, or tin snips are perhaps the best route for me? Im happy to invest to a reasonable degree in tools that I will re-use, but a plasma cutter is certainly not on the cards, i'd never get that past "customs" Kai.

use 0.8 or 1,omm slitting discs in an angle grinder will be the cheapest and quickest then change disc to a grinding wheel afer u have welded up

Hi
Wings on mgb bolt on, so unless the wing bottom is rusted unbolt it.
Disk cutter on grinder does make a very good job if you need to remove anyway.
Thanks Vpug

+1 for thin cutting discs.
Buy decent branded ones, use them carefully, i.e. don't rant them through the steel and they'll last pretty well and will cut through it like you wouldn't believe.
Avoid Silverline ones though, they're truly awful.

thank you guys, thats useful and works out cheaper than expected.

i watched a video of someone doing this job with a compressor and chisel, which made short work of the panels.

i'll look at what you mentioned, i've read though i need to be weary of having too high an RPM, most entry level ones i've looked at so far are about 900W.

would this suffice?

Kai.

Originally Posted by kai16181 thank you guys, thats useful and works out cheaper than expected. i watched a video of someone doing this job with a compressor and chisel, which made short work of the panels. i'll look at what you mentioned, i've read though i need to be weary of having too high an RPM, most entry level ones i've looked at so far are about 900W. would this suffice? Kai.

900w is the power of the motor not the rpm .the discs have the given maximum speed and size stamped on them and can be fitted to relevant grinder

The wattage won't dictate the RPM, a cheap 900W grinder should be fine for light hobby use.
Take a look at this thread for disc recommendations.

thanks bright spark/woz i appreciate the difference between the two, what I'm referring to is that i've seen posts referring to overpowering killing discs too quickly, and similarly the same thoughts on drill bits.

i guess I'm asking what power angle grinder would be best to suit cutting and sanding tasks on my car?

the cheap entry ones (about 900w - uncertain of the RPM) are about £15-20.

happy to spend more, but i specifically recall reading about a guy who had a Dewalt one that was just too powerful, so he opted for cheaper one.

What do you think?

Kai.

Like vpug said, you can unbolt the front wings but the lower section of the rears will have to come off. I've just watched my mate doing this job on a P-reg MGB Roadster, he cuts the front section off at the correct level for the repair section if the bottom of the wing is being replaced. On the back, most of the cars I've seen him repair have also needed the wheelarch and behind replacing, so he gets the lower quarter panel, cuts the old one off just below the chrome strip and welds the new one back there as it's good to hide the join.

I wouldn't use a chisel or tinsnips as you'll get a lot of distortion to the section of the panel that's staying. As others have said, angle grinder and 1mm cutting discs will do just great, and you can grind. Not expensive at B&Q and the like. Plasma cutter would be nice, but over the top for the job - mate I mentioned also has plasma cutter available, but I doubt he'd use it for something like this.

I'm doing quite a bit of bodywork restoration at the moment, and I've got three angle grinders. A grinding disc in my old B&D "Professional" that I paid £40-odd for, more than twenty years ago. I've got a flap disc or cutting disc (I alternate) in an Aldi grinder, and a twisted wire brush in the cheapo B&Q one. None were bought on anything other than price, and all have been perfectly adequate for the jobs.

Originally Posted by kai16181 thanks bright spark/woz i appreciate the difference between the two, what I'm referring to is that i've seen posts referring to overpowering killing discs too quickly, and similarly the same thoughts on drill bits. i guess I'm asking what power angle grinder would be best to suit cutting and sanding tasks on my car? the cheap entry ones (about 900w - uncertain of the RPM) are about £15-20. happy to spend more, but i specifically recall reading about a guy who had a Dewalt one that was just too powerful, so he opted for cheaper one. What do you think? Kai.

the reason discs wear out quickly people force them in to the metal and slow the disc down hence quick wear. the rpm must be kept high in order for the disc to cut eficiently as for drills the smaller the drill the higher the speed the larger the drill the slower the speed getting both speeds wrong will blunt the drill faster even if good quality