Month: January 2019

Adhesive Bonding: The Game Changer 

Posted on by Cline Collision Center

Adhesive bonding for vehicles has been around since the 1960s. When done properly it is a very efficient way of bonding the vehicle. Some people are worried about the end result when choosing adhesive bonding, however, as long as the certified technician follows the exact vehicle manufacturer guidelines, there won’t be an issue. If a technician opted to guess the manufacturer guidelines, as you might have guessed this can turn into a disaster. Adhesive-only repairs should be done only when there is a written procedure from the vehicle manufacturer for that year, make and model.

The advantages to using adhesives during manufacturing include:

· Adding strength to a vehicle

· Reducing weight

· Reducing noise, vibration and harshness

· Adding to corrosion protection, extending the vehicle’s end of life

Adhesive bonding can be applied to many types of repairs. You can bond dissimilar metals or any other materials. There’s no worry of metals being sensitive to heat, as they can function in extreme temperatures. All of these advantages make adhesives a great addition to our shop. Training is crucial to the success of any body work but especially with adhesive bonding. This is why we send our technicians to ongoing education courses so that they can continue to perfect their craft. Adhesive-only bonding is used by all manufacturers on almost every vehicle. The windshield, for example, is adhesively bonded to the vehicle.

Rivet Bonding is another form of bonding that was brought to life by the new F-150’s. Body shops did not really use rivet bonding before the new F-150’s came out because they were not sure of its reliability, or really, how to do it. Once Ford brought out these aluminum trucks, body shops were forced to learn in order to fix these trucks. We all learned that the process is straightforward!

Rivets alone are susceptible to failing as the bonding of the two materials may allow for movement over time from repeated stress. Rivets and welds also break loose. The combination of rivets and adhesive corrects the weakness of either system being used alone, which gives manufacturers a no-heat bond that would damage many steels or other metals. This combination also makes it easy for us to restore vehicles to factory specifications, keeping up with the vehicle’s required engineering specs.

As with rivets, adhesives can be used with welding panels together also. Squeeze-type resistance spot welding can weld through many adhesives to form a strong, long-lasting bond. We use machines capable of weld bonding and have pulse energy in order to make a correct spot weld.

At Cline Collision Center, we are trained and licensed to perform whichever type of bonding is best suited for your vehicle make and model. Give us a call today to schedule your vehicle at 707.591.9909 for a free estimate!

How to Avoid Corrosion

Posted on by Cline Collision Center

People often worry that their vehicle will rust out after the auto body repair. Anytime one of our technicians needs to cut into the body of the vehicle, it is now different than when it left the factory. However, a quality trained and licensed technician, like ours at Cline Collision Center can put it back exactly the way it left the factory. Without proper schooling and training, we do not recommend taking on your own body repair. When repairing body damage to your vehicle it is crucial to not miss a step, in order to ensure a clean metal surface. Corrosion is not always visible, unless it causes the paint to blister or raise. Here are some helpful tips we use to avoid corrosion:

1.     Don’t forget to put on gloves and follow instructions for metal treatments and primers during the paint refinishing stages. Did you know that the oil from your bare hands touching the metal can interfere with the primer quality?

2.     Drill all necessary holes before you begin the refinishing process. Remember to clean each hole of flakes to make sure there is no metal residue hanging around during the refinishing process. That would cause galvanic corrosion to occur.

3.     Clean welds thoroughly and apply corrosion protection or primers according to the paint makers recommendations.

4.     It is critical that there is no water in the air supply when spraying, so be sure to check your filters often for moisture.

5.     Make sure there is no moisture surrounding the vehicle before refinishing. We know it sounds basic but read the instructions for every step in the process to ensure a corrosion free outcome!

Each vehicle manufacturer sends out what is called a TSB, which stands for “technical service bulletin”. This booklet explains to the technician how to make each repair, in great detail. TSB’s explain to a technician every single step required in order to replicate the factory construction process. Cline Collision Center follows each of the booklets to a “T” to ensure you’re getting factory specified repair completed.

Cline Collision Center is a 5-star auto body facility located in Santa Rosa, CA. We offer auto body collision repair, auto body refinishing, frame straightening, bumper repair, car painting, dent removal, dent repair, and are excited to offer a free detail with every repair. When you choose Cline Collison Center it will be like bringing home a brand-new car again. See you soon!

References: 

https://rts.i-car.com/collision-rpair-news/back-to-basics-corrosion.html