Knee dent in top of new airstream

[silverhawk25]

I'm feeling faint. My husband was attempting to fix our Fantastic roof fan and put his knee on top of our 2007 Safari - it made an indentation around the seam. He tried a plunger to pull it out with no luck. He went to get an auto dent puller. Has anyone done this before? Any luck pulling out the dent. It is a very warm day here, and he thinks maybe that is why it dented so easily. Please help.

[nsteel]

If there isn't a crease it may come out with a suction cup dent puller, just wet the cup and the aluminum so it adheres better and pull away. It may also be better when the aluminum cools down and contracts then try it again

[Inland RV Center, In]

Originally Posted by silverhawk25

I'm feeling faint. My husband was attempting to fix our Fantastic roof fan and put his knee on top of our 2007 Safari - it made an indentation around the seam. He tried a plunger to pull it out with no luck. He went to get an auto dent puller. Has anyone done this before? Any luck pulling out the dent. It is a very warm day here, and he thinks maybe that is why it dented so easily. Please help.

No one must put any weight on the segments forward and rearward of the awning rail. Dents will then happen, every time.

Can you post a photo?

Andy

[Janet H]

So sorry to hear this. Remember that he probably feels worse about it than you do...

[codybear]

Originally Posted by silverhawk25

I'm feeling faint. My husband was attempting to fix our Fantastic roof fan and put his knee on top of our 2007 Safari - it made an indentation around the seam. He tried a plunger to pull it out with no luck. He went to get an auto dent puller. Has anyone done this before? Any luck pulling out the dent. It is a very warm day here, and he thinks maybe that is why it dented so easily. Please help.

Hi there silverhawk,

We're in Sacramento, had our a/c put in a couple of Summers ago, when the techs put their knees on top of our '64 safari..we called the folks at Camping World what they could do to remedy the problem..their reply was that we could bring the safari back in, and they could drill some holes to pop it back out..no thnx we said, we did not want any holes..as luck would have it, we had some really hot weather here, and wouldn't you know the aluminum expanded w/the heat of the day and the dents popped back most of the way back to the other way..the only thing you might watch for is any gaps that may be around the seams..during the Winter, when the rains came, we found that we had leaks..we had to order some trempro (vulkem) and seal the seams..it has worked for us..

[Shacksman]

There was a man at Mystic Springs this past winter useing an air powered suction puller. It was like this
Air Suction Dent Puller Sealey RE101
I didn't see it but a friend was very impressed with the job he did on dents.

[bjond]

only problem is it costs several hundred dollars and you need a good air compressor to create the vacuum. It didn't get rid of the sharp creases in the aluminum but he pulled many big dents back to the original shape, maybe 85 to 95 percent fixed.

[nilesrob]

We have a smilar problem, don't even know the source of the dent. We have been told the solution is to replace that panel, but don't really want to spend that much money on the problem.. Hate to look at the dent, though...

[Inland RV Center, In]

Originally Posted by nilesrob

We have a smilar problem, don't even know the source of the dent. We have been told the solution is to replace that panel, but don't really want to spend that much money on the problem.. Hate to look at the dent, though...

Today, a typical segment replacement costs $1000.00 to $1200.00 or there abouts, installed.

If you have some metal damage, get your insurance company involved.

Sooner or later you will have to pay the piper.

Better to pay the deductible today, instead of waiting for that to increase like so many other things have.

Andy

[silverhawk25]

Thanks to everyone for your replies and suggestions. My husband bought a $5 dent puller at the auto parts store and pulled some of the dent out yesterday. This morning when we looked out, most of the dent was gone, except for a small area. I guess when it cooled down it popped back into place. I just hope it doesn't leak.

[elolson]

Andy's quote is very close, I have had a bunch of panels replaced over the years at Oasis in Tucson and they run about a grand a panel on average. Just get it done.

[CJ of Okla]

We had a dent on each end of our roof on our 69. My husband bought a dent puller from Harber Freight for less that $10 and pulled them both out. The dent were there when we bought it in 2006 he pulled them out last month. Probably won't work for everyone but it was worth a try.

[juel]

After our winter ice storms left tree branches on my 76 Sovereign, I was depressed. One warm February afternoon I decided to wash the old boy. When the cold water hit the dents there was a VERY loud "pop" and the dents were history. I want to tell you I was jumping up and down screaming "oh my gosh" for several minutes. Surprised the police didn't show up. These were very large dents in the end caps too. Here are some before and after photos.

[nilesrob]

OMG! I got so excited at your post that I went running out to the driveway to hose down Wanda - only to realise she is in storage. Alas, I may try a dent puller - no harm no foul if it doesn't work.

[mustang]

I get a dent in mine right over the right side axle at the roof.When the sunn beats on it I hear poping then in the eve when the sun goes down popping again and dent gone

[Inland RV Center, In]

Originally Posted by mustang

I get a dent in mine right over the right side axle at the roof.When the sunn beats on it I hear poping then in the eve when the sun goes down popping again and dent gone

What you have is called an "oil can" dent.

Many Airstreams have them, but few people ever notice them.

They hurt nothing and cause no problems. Sometimes it may take years for them to quit, or years for them to start.

It has been suggested, that how the trailer may be parked, or loaded, can cause the oil can dents.

Fortunately, they are not permanent, and do not cause any creases in the metal.

Sometimes, a few rivets can be removed from the area, and let the trailer alone for a few days, especially in a hot sun.

Then enlarge the holes and install "Olympic rivets" with vulkem, of course.

That process has been known to correct the "oil canning" some of the time.

Andy

[bredlo]

Originally Posted by Janet

So sorry to hear this. Remember that he probably feels worse about it than you do...

And feeling worse by the minute. He's looking at this thread right now saying,
"HEY!!! It isn't embarrassing enough that I dented our brand new trailer, huh? Now you're broadcasting it all over the internet while I'm at the store trying to fix it! I SAID I'm sorry!"

[richinny]

does he think he's the first one to do this? he has a lot of company!

[welsht]

I'm looking forward to trying some of the remedies in the thread--thanks to all for the input.

I thought I would advise our latest experience resulting in a new dent. We traveled with our coach to Redlands, CA where my wife had been invited to judge the Redlands Horticultural and Improvement Society's annual flower show. As my bride is from Redlands, she has many friends and we normally park the rig on a very wide road adjacent a local high school. It is usually quite peaceful and simple even if the little darlings seem to drive at least twice the speed limit.

Being a hot day we had the forward and after windows open to allow the breeze to flow through the coach. Apparently the open rear window was too much for some of the little darlings to resist. The local weapon of choice is apparently oranges; launched from cars and trucks as they pass the coach.

Ripping the window screen and severing several of the curtain slides as they put a couple of oranges into the rear of the coach was not too bad as we can quickly and easily correct these deficiencies.

However, the little darlings blessed us with one last pass at an estimated speed of 75 MPH launching an orange that missed the window, but glanced off the street side about two feet above the panel joint. The resulting dent is about a foot in diameter and perhaps two inches deep. At least it doesn't have any 'sharp' edges although there is some evidence of surface stretching at the forward end. The remains of the orange stopped across the road about 50 feet past the point of impact.

The Sheriff advised that there had been quite a bit of local gang activity in the area that evening, but declined to do anything but issue a 'report number'.

Suction cups should be waiting for us when we arrive home, so we will give it a try in an attempt to gain a '50 foot' repair.

Any further comments on 'technique' will be much appreciated.

r/jw2