✅ How To Use a Laser to Measure Auto Body Car Frame Damage Collision Repair Equipment Universal DIY

[@radonvon3120]

Awesome I’ve spent hours looking for a way to measure my frame rails to factory spec but everything was expensive! This seems like a great work around ! Thank you for this amazing time saving video best thing I’ve seen in weeks 🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻

[@fix206]

Glad I could help! So far this is the best and cheapest way that I found the measure out the damage.

[@tinbutcher61]

Your video was an answer to a prayer !! I am restoring a 60's hot rod and I am mounting a unibody car to a new chassis. This is an awesome way to get a lot better measurement than using the old method. Thank you ever so much !!

[@fix206]

Glad my vid was helpful, once I learned this technic I knew I wouldn't go back to any old school method. This Is it !!!!

[@Texaca]

Excellent tutorial on unibody repairs, and also for using lasers, for taking and reading measurements, and for pointing out the mechanics of how cars are assembled ✔

[@fix206]

Thank you... I'll have more good content out pretty soon ! Stay tuned...

[@bluegreenish3394]

Thank you for explaining how the entire mesure process works please don't stop making videos keep them coming!!!

[@fix206]

More vids coming soon !

[@brianarrington4569]

@@fix206is this a vehicle that you purchase to fix and sell if so how much profit could you make on fixing this vehicle and selling it?..if it's for a customer how much can you make to fix the vehicle with so much damage?

[@malcolmsaysomethinggreatka2017]

In my life having been in the industry for years now, this guy is the meticulous I've come across. Getting your car done by him ain't a service but a great honor.

[@rustyshackleford4719]

Use a tram gauge to measure from side to side using bolt holes from fender and radiator support

[@fix206]

I do use a tram gauge mostly to check my diagonals, but a tram is pretty limited as to what it can be used for... But tram gauge and a laser are different tools that are being used for different tasks, so you can't really compare the two... It's like comparing a hammer to an ax...

[@petar443]

Why so many comments complain about using the laser? I think it's great. I really like your style. The laser have vertical and horizontal line. I currently study book called "Auto body repair technology" by J. E. Duffy and it clearly states that there are two major DIMENSIONAL REFERENCES : Datum plane and Centerline. So if you have the car on the frame machine and if the car is clamped (not resting on wheels and suspension). And the laser is true to the frame machine. Then the horizontal laser can be datum plane and vertical laser can be center plane. And then one can use these references even on HEAVY COLLISION vehicles. There is also a Zero plane which separates the car into three sections. if the center section(passenger cabin) is true(to the datum plane and center plane), then you can compare the front and rear sections with the center section to find heavy damage .I've never seen Arthur Tussik use 10000 dollers measuring system... I'm only just starting to learn auto body, so i find every bit of information interesting. good day! (drinks beer)

[@fix206]

Even though you're just start to learn about auto body, you are in a way much further ahead of the other so called "experts" because you're actually getting what's going on in the video. Arthur and alot other real experts have been using the laser measuring method for years with great results, because it's a great and very precise way to measure out the damage.

[@andrewhigdon8346]

When measuring the distance between the frame rails, regardless of the double crossmembers, it is very possible that one frame rail could move without the other moving at all, or even less than the first one. I am repairing a Chrysler Lx platform vehicle with nearly identical damage. Point of impact almost spared drivers headlight, did spare the hood and door, but folded the knuckle partially, pinching the tire from above, broke upper a arm, bent the strut, broke sway bar end link, and tie rod end, and bent the mounting bolt within its engine cradle mount it box, which was quite a feat to remove the bolt and correct the box. The front crossmembers consist of the bumper, which was under tremendous stress when I loosened the four bolts, the radiator under support, a U shaped piece which was bent, but easily correctable, and the upper cross suppor, which is a metal/plastic hybrid piece spanning fender tip to fender tip, and also support the radiator from the sides, and bolts onto the frame rails. Of the three pieces, the bumper seems to be maybe the strongest, and appeared unharmed. The rad support shows that the drivers frame rail bent in but may or may not have put enough pressure on that rail to move it, but I doubt it, as I bent the radiator under support with feet and hands, no machine. The upper cross piece is certainly strong, but by its feel and construction can’t be impervious to flex, bend, or the like. At first I thought the passenger fender and rail had not moved, but the hood always shut as if both fenders were off to the passenger side by 1”, and that same 1” repeated itself all over the place, like rotor face to rotor face from laser lines down the side showed the whole cradle had moved 1”, with drivers side showing 6” to the laser, and passenger side 5”. Point is, with the measurements made assuming the crossmembers were still true you can be led down a path of miscalculations and mistakes. I speak from experience. This car seemed to be a simple pull of the whole front end as one to the drivers side by 1”. I first fastened to passenger side from the firewall back a bit to hold the car in place. Then from drivers side pulled from three points behind the strut mount area, to in front, and half way from there to the end of the rail, and did so simultaneously, one pull with a 3 ton chain fall, which proceeded to pull both the full sized pickup and Suburban acting as dead weights backwards, with the 5500lb truck moving 1”. I could see and hear the whole front end moving, but regardless of how far past the correct point I pulled, it always went back to the post accident position. Moving and making it stay has been a battle of several points simultaneously, with different push and pull points, and stress relieving the areas of bend. Mind you, the bend was imperceptible, with no singular spot showing bent metal, but the hood would never close correctly, no matter what I did, yet the replacement fender fit in absolutely perfectly on the impact side, with no issues with shut lines with the A pillar or the door. Passenger fender how shown 3mm of movement towards the A pillar, which means that the entire front structure transferred the impact force such that it wrapped AROUND and applied considerable pressure perpendicular to the impact, pushing the passenger fender straight rear wards towards the A pillar base just enough to chip its paint, and shorted the gap from about 7mm to about 3mm. Incredible and unpredictable as to what these chassis are doing. The torsional rigidity in this chassis is also notable. Leveling the rear end, and putting the back lower control arms on blocks with thin sheets of shim to make it very level always moved the front end nearly the same. With the front end sitting on its frame behind engine cradle, jacking the right rear 3” would lift the right front off its jack stand by 1”, some 7’+ forward. That’s impressive. My full frame Suburban can’t remotely do that trick. Those crossmembers could be slightly deformed with showing any obvious cues. I have gone back to square one four times thus far with my endeavor, with the most important points being that the engine cradle bolt holes on the front frame rails must be exactly where the factory measurements show. I shouldn’t and will not rely in being able to shift the cradle around to correct fro non-centered frame rails, as any point of reference is down the toilet and alignment becomes a nightmare because the strut and upper Arms mount in the shock tower independent of engine cradle, so any shifting of the cradle to center it also affect camber on north sides, where perfectly even camber measurements side to side would mean the engine cradle might be centered, chassis wise, SAI and true caster will be off.

[@yazdair8040]

excellent, I never thought of an accurate way as what I learned from this video. Thank you

[@fix206]

Glad it was helpful! 👍

[@tawensan]

Best explanation I found... just bought a laser to be able to put in place a Miev front... thank you!

[@fix206]

Glad my explanation helped! Cheers

[@turboimport95]

You are showing side to side frame rails which is good, but where are the vertical frame rail measurements, where is the video showing the frame rail up or down measurements from datum line etc?? lets say both frame rails are moved, one is up and the other is down where you cant measure off of each other??

[@BrucePierson]

Very interesting video. The main limitation with a laser seems to be that it's hard to see in daylight, so it really works best indoors. Audio was still quiet, particularly at the start, so hopefully, your clip-on mic will sort out the audio level. You can always use Handbrake to boost the level if needed. It made a big difference to the short video I filmed on my iPhone. Looking forward to your next video. I'm sure it will have something interesting.

[@fix206]

I'll have some good stuff that I'll post in a few days... hope you'll like it. Cheers Bruce !!

[@justintime4466]

Great video with lots of good helpful info! Would be nice to see a video of what you do once you figured out rails or tower moved. Like where do you make the correction, where you attach to and pull in which direction 💪💪

[@fix206]

I am currently working on a car where I have to pull both rails and one of the strut towers back into place, it’s going to be a pretty in-depth video with explanation on the whole process, stay tuned for that...

[@fokai671sr]

Thank you! I like this tutorial and how you explained it! Very useful information especially when you don't have access to engine bay dimensions.

[@fix206]

That's why this laser really helps out a lot, because most of the cars are symmetrical so if you use a laser to go off of a good undamaged side then it's not that hard to figure out where the damaged side has to be polled to get back into it's original position

[@yv8817]

Hello. I liked u bodyrepair work.... Thank u for show points and steps .... I've got some questions.....about framework, frame(stapel), and measures of laser level. Sorry for my English, try to u understand correct 👍😂my questions.

[@fix206]

Евгений, если есть вопросы тo можешь писать на русском. Русский мой родной язык...

[@yv8817]

@@fix206 Спасибо Вам большое. Я сам из Харькова, был 10 лет назад студентом в штатах пол года, после как появилась семья в Украине, то ездил по Европе ( механик, стройка, электромеханика) но все больше рабочим, потом менеджером поставлял тепловизоры и разный КИПиА. Последние годы работал посезонно в Великобритании, поэтому ваше произношение просто супер, очень по американски, да и быстро для меня, так что прошу прощения за свой английский. Вобщем в межсезонье работал в малярке выготовщиком, и не маляр ещё.....но и не рехтовщик.....и на стапель надо только к кому то помощником чтоб научиться тонкостям и опыту как у вас. Я понимаю что это ролик 15 минут😂 а в жизни несколько дней и даже недель. Трудетесь очень мастерски ......если бы не война, то я собирался заняться кузовным ремонтом. Понравился Ваш стапель, и то что он портативный как пост....сейчас собираю информацию, хочу тоже собрать. Видел так же башню, с доработанным как у подъёмного крана стрела съёмным- элементом. Используете ли вы такого рода тяги для вытяжки вверх? Так же хотелось бы видео о вашем арсенале приспособ, ....каким вы пользуетесь ( заклепочник по алюминию), плазморез, используете всегда донор/оригинал или бывает и с Тайванью работаете......или лучше отказываться от таких работ? Как точки проверяете до/при постановке на стапель по горизонтали? А потом разбиваете вертикаль? Школа кузовного ремонта мне сейчас не доступна поэтому заранее извиняюсь за не корректные вопросы.... Смотреть вас очень приятно, только невсегда успеваю переводить, слова не все знакомые ..... Пока не буду наглеть и просить у вас размеры платформы, а буду просить ещё новых роликов👍 стараюсь подсматривать даже технику ваших движений и алгоритмы последовательности действий. А вот за решением не успеваю😁😁😁 не тот уровень языка. Желаю вам роста и новых вершин в Вашем деле! Если можно я вам ещё напишу со временем.... Сейчас главное чтоб у нас мир наступил, тогда можно будет и попробовать свой бокс организовывать. Понравились ваши методики ...... Ещё бы и опыта перенять. Сил вам и здравия! С УВ. Евгений

[@fix206]

Евгений, благодарю за коммент. Рихтовкой, шпаклёвкой и покраской занимаюсь уже лет 20... Стапельными работами начал заниматься совсем недавно, если честно то нюансов реально много и учиться мне этому делу не один год. Был я в Харькове последний раз лет восемь назад, жили там мой дядя, бабушка и двоюродный брат, но в связи с войной выехали из города и живут теперь где-то за пару сот километров, даже не уверен где точно. Материала на данный момент снято видосов где-то на 40 или больше, надеюсь что смогу ответить на многие из ваших вопросов в будующих видео, самое сложное это найти время для обработки роликов.

[@mobilemechmantim773]

More damage assessment videos like this please!

[@fix206]

You got it !! Every car I get with structural damage gets the full scope of measurements taken with the aid of a laser... Stick around and you'll see me use this method time and time again 👍

[@dwightlee6164]

Hi..when I read the replies below, I felt again that the world is wide. Don't try to response those wierd replies. It makes you exhausted. I am looking forward to watching your new videos. Enjoyed and learned a lot from you. Thank you!

[@fix206]

Thank you Dwight, I do believe that some folks are on here just to troll, others see you doing everything wrong just because it's not the way that they would have done the same thing, so by default that would make your way the wrong way. I've learned this laser measuring procedure a while back and I can't think of a better more precise way to measure out the vehicle for a regular guy like you and me that don't access to some fancy measurement system that can cost thousands of dollars.

[@urassisdragon]

Pretty slick! I will start using this. Have always measured diagonals either vertically or horizontally but this is more accurate!

[@vbnived]

New subscriber here . excuse my ignorance , what happens if the hit is on the A piller in front section or near tail light corner on which you had taken as datum point? what changes in measuring procedure we should make in this scenerio?

[@pepepepeichon3284]

Best measurement tutorial ✔. Thank U

[@fix206]

I'm glad you liked it.. This is by far the most precise way to measure out the damage that I found thus far without having to spend thousands of dollars on overpriced equipment...

[@quickfixwhips]

This very useful as I am moving from light maintenance repairs. Simple explanation easy to understand.

[@fix206]

It really is a great technique, I spent all day yesterday utilizing it while pulling a couple of frame rails and a strut tower back into place...

[@lizardking8388]

Hi, love your work. Just one question. When you level the car using the laser, it is clear in your video that you are leveling the car from the front side to side and center and that you are also leveling the car from the rear side to side and center; but not so clear how you level it front to back. Do you just eyeball it with the thought that your side to side and top to bottom measurements will not be effected much if you are off slightly? Or are you actually leveling it from front to back as well and if you are, how do you choose your reference points on the car to level from front to back?

[@sergiogonzalez661]

Be sure you are on a level surface that would help, but besides that you are pretty darn good considering you say you are not a professional body man. And the stuff you build is incredible for someone at home. It’s crazy good

[@fix206]

Sadly but no surface is level, and even if it was you still got the suspension sag and uneven tire pressure to take into an account. So what I do is get the laser out (the key is to have a self leveling laser) and going off of a laser beam that is 100% level I rase the low side of the car with a jack until it's level. I appreciate the comment bro 👍

[@boostedjdmem1]

It’s nice to see Slavic people popping up on KZbin. Good information videos especially the diy frame rack. Used to also live in WA. Молодець !

[@fix206]

Спасибо брат, where in WA did you live?

[@boostedjdmem1]

Fix206 lived in auburn and two months ago moved to Spartanburg SC. Went to the local Copart here to check a few vehicles out, and here, just like Washington, lots of doctored up vehicles. Ви мабуть в Америці з детинства бо аксента почті нема

[@fix206]

That's funny I live in Auburn myself up on the west hill close to Military Road. And I went to SC late last year to pic up a project that I'll be posting a video on in just a few days here. В Америку приехал в 15 лет, и здесь уже 24 года :)

[@boostedjdmem1]

Fix206 I lived on the other side of the valley, by green river college ! Keep up the content ! It’s good stuff, definitely will be using your idea for the frame rack ! Stay blessed man

[@fix206]

I attended Green River back around year 2000 :) I'll have more good content out in no time. Thanks again for kind words !!!

[@istvanmeissler2238]

Thank you for a very informative video.

[@carlos92161]

Thank you for teaching us personally Jeremy and I appreciate it just a awesome video

[@fix206]

You are most welcome! I'm glad my video was educational for you 👍

[@4Buuski]

Can you use this method if the rear tires are on the ground?

[@fix206]

Yes you can

[@semihyilmaz4699]

Very informative. It is pleasure to learn from your videos. Thank you.

[@fix206]

It is my pleasure to teach you guys, thanks for watching!

[@DIYeverything513]

Your amazing. Great creativity and awesome videos you publish. Thank you

[@fix206]

Thank you very much!

[@nandito7021]

do you know there are assymetric cars aswell...and the points of reference that you used for measurements they gotta be exact in the same location for measuring.. for better measuring point reference just use alldatta they are very precise on measuring car reference points and they even give you the correct measument spects all over the car...and btw you have a 6mm tolerance on any measurement which you divide on -3 or 3

[@fix206]

I do know that there are asymmetric cars out there, but they are pretty rare, so this method works most of the time but as you've mentioned, it's not a 100% in all instances. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe alldata is a payed service? I don't do enough of these repairs to justify an alldata monthly bill :)

[@nandito7021]

@@fix206 yes it is a monthly bill that is not cheap but for a person that is doing car repairs like you i guess you can benefit from all the info that those companies offer with their service and if you know any other person that may be willing to split the bill that will help a lot the 2 of you. most of the cars they have a certain tolerance 6mm let me tell you why: car got hit on the front end and it sway to the left so you have 9mm left side rail sway to the left when you pull against the impact per say to the right all the electronic measurements equipment are gonna measure -0+ negative numbers will turn red from -4 and up and all positive numbers will turn red 4 and up if you havent pull enough the rail and is still in by more then 4mm that is not acceptable but if you over pull the rail by more then 4mm thats not acceptable either so -3 and below and 3 and below are the tolerance that you have on a car measurement.

[@rc51cbrguy]

Excellent video. Very well done.

[@fix206]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@bena9221]

Thank you for the education. I believe everyone wants to perform the right way repairs if they know and knew how.......thank for your information going to home depot to get the red and green laser today.

[@fix206]

Save yourself some money and just get the red one, that's the one I always use for this type of work. Green lasers are WAAAY overpriced, they are brighter but cost almost 5 times as much. The only reason I bought it was just so you guys can see it better in the daylight in this video. I returned it after filming was done 😂 😂 😂

[@marcoserbach3848]

Best explain video on YT! Thank you for sharing your acknowledge!

[@fix206]

You're very welcome!

[@ala8649]

This is gold seriously thank you

[@fix206]

I'm glad you found this to be helpfull... I use this technic all the time, sure am glad I've learned it. 👍

[@ala8649]

Is a cheap laser worth 34 bucks ?Because i was looking on amazon and thats the cheapest i could find and doesn’t come with a tripod. Anyway i have a question would this technique work on a car thats already fixed ? I took my car to a frame shop and i would like to check their work

[@fix206]

As long as the laser level you're looking at is able to self level that is al that matters. You can spend $450 on a high end green laser that would have a 300 foot range or a cheapy red one with range of 20-30 feet. End result is the same, I just put my level on my camera tripod or sometimes even on some stationary object in front of the car. You can use the technic to double check the frame shop's work and if everything checks out then you know they did good.

[@ala8649]

Definitely subscribing keep up the work 🤙🏻

[@fix206]

You got it brother.... I got more content coming, stay tuned !

[@fokai671sr]

Any videos coming as far as collision repairs?

[@fix206]

I'll have a lot more collision videos where I'll be using the laser as time goes on. Stay tuned

[@ivanskorup6523]

That is a great way to measure not only accurately but also a cheap method

[@fix206]

Exactly... It is cheap and accurate, that's why I think this method is awesome

[@juancarlosramirez7841]

Woooo trabajas exelente yo empiezo en este arte y es fascinante me encantaría tener un maestro como usted saludos 🤗

[@fix206]

Gracias Juan !!

[@akashahmed1108]

Very informative

[@fix206]

Glad you liked it :)

[@rockyx3290]

Which laser guide you are using? First you shown red and then green points?

[@fix206]

I left a link to the red laser in the video description, the green laser that I used was a Bosch brand, I don't recall the model because I returned it right after I got done with the video. Generally green lasers are more powerful and you can see them much better in the daylight then the red ones. And then I went ahead and bought myself a green laser that I'm going to keep. It is much better and cheaper than the Bosch one, here is the link amzn.to/3iLBoID

[@danielbarbos2981]

Can you measure the same way for an SUV body on frame? To check for frame damage

[@alexlo7708]

I think the car must stand firm on level base as well as the laser instrument. Your clip give me very good knowledge. Too pity my H civic was bumped on back and garage nearby my home just did repair work on changing rear bumper and coloring. But I noticed some of rear structure might be non correct. I noticed it when open or closing back trunk lid, it's not easily spring up or down. It needs some little force,unusual to before the collision. Poor garage that serviced me!!!!

[@fix206]

YOu should go back to that that garage and tell them to fix it right or give you your money back :)

[@masakiisago5402]

It is a given that cars should be symmetrical - at least in terms of body work. If you use two reference points in the engine bay to center up a car, how would you know if there was offset factory design in the first place?

[@fix206]

offsets are somewhat rare but I do use multitude of different points to determine where the true center is.

[@ivanhernandez1868]

I like it and I'm going to give it 👍 because I see that it has good content even though I've only seen two videos and subscribed thanks ... and blessings

[@fix206]

Thank you Ivan.. I'll have more good content out soon... stay tuned !

[@jorgerosales609]

Excellent video. How you got to level the car so the laser will be on same spot in both sides? My guess you had to play around with the Jack's to lift each side of the car until the laser was at the desire spot, correct? Thanks

[@fix206]

You are absolutely correct, no driveway or shop floor is 100% level. Therefore the vehicle would have to get leveled out with a jack first and then all of the measurements can be taken

[@steve6429]

Very nice video! 🎉

[@fix206]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@seanogreen7645]

Just a little good advice anytime you're dealing with special measurements always take two measurements before you take one cut without these Auto levelers on the lasers your line is only as straight as the installer is if you line it up crooked it would be crooked throughout

[@fix206]

For sure, I always take a ton of measurements, measure everything out several times before I make a pull or a cut of any kind, I hate redoing stuff so I always make sure to do it right the first time 👍

[@JamesBrown-xq9qd]

Hello, Question, if when you first place the level on those windshield corners and one corner is higher than another, does that mean you have raise the vehicle on the opposite side to level or does the level do that? Any help appreciated.

[@fix206]

No ground is level, and even if it was you would still have uneven suspension sag and different tire pressure would dictate the height difference from one side of the car to another. So when you use a self leveling laser, even if the body of the laser isn't level, the inside workings of the laser will compensate for that and still give you a perfectly level laser line. Once that line is projected onto the vehicle, it basically shows you which side of the car is low so all you gotta do is just jack up the lower side of the car so that the laser beam would hit the corners at the bottom of the windshield in the same way. And that's all you gotta do to get both sides of the car leveled out. Hope that was helpful

[@JamesBrown-xq9qd]

Fix206 Got it, that clarifies it. I am doing identical work on a F150. Was using the typical level but there’s no way to truly get center with all the different variations in the work area. Your explanation on side to side and up and down should be very helpful. I may reach out again if needed, hope thats okay. Your video is excellent. Thank you for doing it.

[@fix206]

Not a problem man... Let me know how everything tunes out

[@JamesBrown-xq9qd]

Hello, another question; I leveled and marked center on the front and rear windshields. I did need to raise the drivers sides to accomplish level. Once the center marks are made does the vehicle need to stay raised on the one side for all the measuring or can it now be lowered? I have to take to move the vehicle to another location for the work. Thanks so much for any help.

[@fix206]

@@JamesBrown-xq9qd you level your vehicle to the laser level, once you make any changes to the way the vehicle is leveled like lowering the jack that will throw things off especially if you have to move the vehicle from one area to another obviously it's gonna throw everything off and you have to start from the beginning.

[@medooo178]

Thanks 🙏 a lot, very efficient and cost effective method

[@fix206]

Glad you liked it, personally this is the only method I use to take these sort of measurements.

[@medooo178]

@@fix206 thnx again am really getting Great information from your videos, i just started an auto body repair garage with my friend and we need these kind of videos to start on the right foot 🌹

[@fix206]

Subscribe to the channel and I got more vids in the works with even more helpful info that you will find helpful... Cheers !!

[@f.c1658]

How do you consider the reference points if the concrete floor is not level?

[@fix206]

No ground is level, and even if it was you would still have uneven suspension sag and different tire pressure would dictate the height difference from one side of the car to another. So when you use a self leveling laser, even if the body of the laser isn't level, the inside workings of the laser will compensate for that and still give you a perfectly level laser line. Once that line is projected onto the vehicle, it basically shows you which side of the car is low so all you gotta do is just jack up the lower side of the car so that the laser beam would hit the corners at the bottom of the windshield in the same way. And that's all you gotta do to get both sides of the car leveled out. Hope that was helpful

[@f.c1658]

@@fix206 Thank you for the quick reply!

[@WayneStcroix]

How do you use a laser to measure a quarter panel pull and thank you for sharing your amazing work and video I have a 2008 Mitsubishi galant and I want to fix the frame on passenger rear hope to hear back from you to get some tips I'm not a body man but not scared to put in the work

[@fix206]

Just recently I've done few projects where I used a laser to measure out the damage on the quarter panels. I haven't posted in a while since I've been just swamped with work but I will have more videos out here before long with a lot of detailed description on how I use the laser for a lot of metal work that I do

[@liviubla]

Wow, so logic now after your explanation

[@fix206]

Appreciate that, check out my latest video that I posted just this morning, that whole video is basically about using a laser to figure out where the replacement parts should be placed on the vehicle...

[@precisioncollision4405]

If it got hit in the impact bar both rails will move but I’ve never seen the radiator support transfer the impact from one rail to the other. I would pull the left rail and look for a kink in the tie bar.

[@fix206]

Everything got pulled out and the car got done some time ago... Wife's been driving it for months... all is good !!!

[@RUDEST99]

My dude this help me so much if u don have the fancy three dimensional measurement

[@fix206]

For sure, this is the best way that I found so far that most anyone can do especially if you are on a budget, and can't afford a multi thousand dollar measuring system

[@davidlee-mf5yf]

Some good info mate! I just learned something new 👍👍

[@fix206]

Glad my vid was helpful

[@ohcamsrazor1966]

Very good, easy to follow.

[@fix206]

Thank you, it's a pretty simple and effective procedure that makes measuring damage out pretty simple

[@chrismaddox15]

Very well done. Thanks for the detail and professionalism!

[@fix206]

You are very welcome Chris... I'm glad you liked the vid 👍

[@RadarRS1]

@fix206 would you say 5mm is enough to go through the process of straightening or will adjustments in alignment be able to make up for it?

[@fix206]

it really depends on a vehicle, from factory unibody has 3mm tolerance and a framed vehicle has up to 5mm tolerance. They arent perfect from the factory, you could possibly get away with playing around with adjustments, but I like getting everything down to a T, that way final assembly goes much smother

[@lyftuberninjaworkaholic7524]

I hope you are a college professor. Wow! Thanks for educating me

[@fix206]

LOL, I wish :-) all jokes aside, the idea of teaching crossed my mind many times. I know it is something that I would have enjoyed if I chose that line of work... I'm glad you found this video interesting/beneficial/educational...

[@brianbowles99]

I was wondering about what size tubing you used to make the tower puller that you used on the Honda roof and how did you make the spot puller gun and red attachment and love the videos bc ive been thinking about making my own as well

[@fix206]

I actually made a video about how I built the bridge that I used for pulling the roof with, I just need to edit it first before posting. And I originally planned on making my own puller gun with attachments, how ever I ended up ordering one from Russia and it came with the keys that are bing welded onto the panel. So that's the only thing that I didn't make :(

[@briancorrigan5350]

Congrats from NorCal on your wedding. That happened already, yes? Riddle me this, and maybe you could share some thoughts in your next project: What do you leave on the car when pulling damage? Like our boy Arthur will pull the damaged sections, get it close, then cut out the mangled bits and massage in new pieces. You can tear it up a little on pieces you know are ultimately going to be replaced. Thanks as always.

[@fix206]

Thank you Brian, I am a married man now :-) normally once you figure out which part you will be replacing, you will try and pull that part back into its original place so all of the adjacent panels that are attached to it can go back into place with it. This way you're not trying to pull different panels by themselves which would be a lot more time-consuming and would also get more complicated.

[@7guccislides7]

What can be used yo pull the fame rail downwards?

[@fix206]

I use my homemade frame rack. Here is how I built it: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oaOmnJxmd7lrfNk

[@pepesanti6073]

You are a Genius man. You got my like 👍 and subscription

[@fix206]

Thanks and welcome!!

[@gulraizify]

awesome work big respect from Pakistan . Please if u dont mind can u tell how to measure frame rails from side to side without laser

[@fix206]

Without using a laser you can measure out frame rail side to side movement by using a tram gauge. Tram gauge works fine, just not as precise as it could be by using a laser in my opinion. I made a video on how to easily and cheaply build a tram gauge . Here is the link: kzbin.info/www/bejne/o4XVZpd5n5men9U

[@gulraizify]

@@fix206 wow thanku stay blessed

[@gulraizify]

@@fix206 one more query ,The previous owner of the car bent the radiator support from below, and the issue I'm having is that the car is wandering from side to side, sI was curious to check the frame rails, but my mechanic said that frame rails are stiff structures that don't move easily. However, if they are moved in the video in the same way,.. Please explain the tolerance of moved frame rails, as it appears in the video to be about 5mm. Is this acceptable?

[@fix206]

If the Frame rails moved by 5 mm at the front, that would not cause any issues with drivability. You will just have a hard time putting the front end of the car together meaning the gaps between the fenders, hood, headlights, bumper cover will not be even due to that 5 mm discrepancy, but car will drive down the road just fine. Sounds like you may have some suspension problems.

[@gulraizify]

@@fix206 thanks for detailed reply

[@gtdodgeviper]

Awesome. I will use this to figure out what is wrong with my truck. I bought it from copart with frame damage. I took it to a shop and they had it for 6 months. Then they gave it back and it was leaning to the driver side. I took it back and they had it for 3 more months and they just gave it back to mee but it still leaning and I notice the driver front wheel is also further in the fender than the passenger side. The time they had it for is just ridiculous to not even had fix it. I will take it back once I see what is wrong with the laser. Or should I ask for a refund?

[@fix206]

The whole thing sounds a bit fishy... Go ahead a level the truck out side to side and check everything against the laser. And if things aren't checking out you may want to ask for refund..

[@artemionanco6858]

What type of a lacer do you recommend sr

[@fix206]

Either one of these will work good... amzn.to/3hTKTVn or amzn.to/3rc2rRj

[@artemionanco6858]

Thanks you so much God bless you

[@daniellara3385]

Question, does a flat tire can affect the measurements?

[@fix206]

It really doesn't matter if the tire is flat or not. Even if tires are pumped up the exact same pressure on both sides of the vehicle, the driveway that the vehicle is located on is not going to be level anyways. So the lower side of the car would need to get raised up with a jack to where both sides of the car are 100% level... I will have some new videos out pretty soon where I will be showing once again how to level the car out and also how to measure out quarter panel damage. Stay tuned for that

[@daniellara3385]

Thank you

[@pradhyumanpatel9422]

Nice work 👍 keep it up

[@fix206]

Thank you very much!

[@raymondadams5583]

What method was used to level the vehicle?Thanks

[@fix206]

just a jack under the side of the vehicle that was lower then the other side

[@raymondadams5583]

Once you start to Pull do you continue the process of leveling during the repair?Meaning pull them level,pull then level? Thanks for the advice

[@stevejanka361]

Good morning, excellent tutorial on measurement. What kind of device did you have the laser mounted on. Thanks for the great video. You take care.

[@fix206]

I just mounted the laser onto a cheap tripod, nothing fancy :)

[@gary24752]

Are the lasers mounted on a frame system or tripod?

[@fix206]

I mount it on a tripod

[@jesusvidela8708]

Hola soy jesus de argentina. Muy unas tus consejos..

[@christcombiccombichrist2651]

Hey fix206 where do you buy that laser equipment from?. please send a link

[@fix206]

Sorry for the delay here is the link to the updated version of the laser I used: amzn.to/2TQL49i

[@aleksihaapasaari]

This is so useful. Thank you.

[@fix206]

You're very welcome!

[@aleksihaapasaari]

@@fix206 I just had a crash like 2 weeks ago and this really came in helpful

[@fix206]

Sorry to hear about the crash... Glad my technique was helpful 👍

[@lyudmilaboltenkov5267]

Question: did you have to move the Lazer to level rear end of the car ?

[@fix206]

You can move the laser to the rear, but if you're only working on the front of the car, just level out the front and you'll be good

[@PS-cw9pt]

Can you tell us please what kind of laser(model number) and stand you are using.

[@fix206]

You can use just about any self leveling laser level. If you are using it indoors than just about any laser Will do, if you are working outside in direct sunlight then you will need a more powerful/more expensive laser. I normally just set the laser up on my camera tripod, nothing fancy there

[@cosolote]

great explanation! thank you

[@fix206]

Thank you my friend !!

[@wa6gxq]

Just found your channel. excellent!!!

[@fix206]

Thank you Barry... I'll have more good content that I'll be posting here before long.

[@ivanhernandez1868]

Me gusta tu trabajo es de mucha ayuda fácil de hacerlo y me da una idea de como yo puedo hacerlo gracias,🎉🎉👋

[@fix206]

Mucho gracias Ivan !!

[@underballbutter]

How do you make sure your tape measure is angled the same when you take your measurements?

[@fix206]

You move the tape around and look for the lowest measurement possible. Because if you think about it if you turn measuring tape sideways your measurement on the tape will only get bigger and bigger. So you just move the tape around and look for the lowest number you can come up with and that's gonna be your true measurement. Hope that makes sense

[@underballbutter]

@@fix206 makes perfect sense. Seems obvious once I read it. Thanks!

[@fix206]

👍👍👍

[@SabirKhan-vo5hl]

Very nice video

[@fix206]

Thank you very much Sabir !!

[@GeneAPalmer]

Great information! Thanks, Gene

[@fix206]

Thanks Gene

[@JamesEhler]

Best explanation I've found. Subscribed. Any info on how to measure the back end of a car? Like say a 92 honda prelude that had a glance and blow on the left rear corner, pushing the bottom of the tail light down and in by about 2 inches but the top of the tail light still somewhat close to lining up, also pushing the quarter panel to within a couple of centimeters of the back side of the tire? Just a totally random example that I picked out of my head, not that it's my current situation or anything. Cough, Ahem, Cough. Like how would I be able to figure out exactly how far I need to pull it out if it measures as level? I guess it might be described as the other dimension measurement. Thanks for the video, the knowledge and any tips. Keep up the good work. Finally a good video that isn't just a sped up video of some guy working on something, with absolutely horrendous music playing on a loop and has no spoken words whatsoever and only an occasional sentence or two vaguely describing a random step they are on with describing any before or after. Seems to be way too many of videos like that, so your video is top notch. All useful and insightful information and no bullshit. Thanks again.

[@fix206]

If one of the quarter panels is damaged, you can take the measurements of the opposite side quarter panel assuming that the other one isn't damaged

[@JamesEhler]

Ok. That makes sense. The other one is not damaged at all. So I've been doing that. But now I am curious about how to measure the wheel arch to see/make sure that it isn't "bowed out" I guess you could call it. Cause when it was hut on the left rear quarter, it pushed the bottom part of the quarter panel (which is hidden by the back bumper cover since it extends all the way to the wheel arch) causing the back of the wheel arch to close the gap between it and the tire, while at the same time (since something else has to give to account for that) causing the top of the wheel arch to kind of bend upwards/flare out. After watching your video I built my own anchors for pulling and straightening out the body of my car where I park it on the side of my house on a brick patio by taking measurements of my car, the wheel locations and the locations where you are suppose to jack it up and put jack stands. Then I pulled up the brick from where my wheels and jack stands would be, dug out about 4 to 5 inches of dirt, put stakes down and ran a string around them all, put markers down and measured them all and made them all equal so that they all would be perfectly level and filled with concrete up to the markers. Then in front and behind I dug out 3 foot by 3 foot squares 6 feet from where the car would be and hammed concrete stakes at roughly a 45° angle from each square and at a slight downward angle so that about 8 to 10 inches of the stake would be inside the concrete form so that the act of pulling on the slab would kinda want to cause it to dig furter into the ground in the hopes of preventing any movement. I then took some rebar that I bent in the shape of a U and hammered it into the ground until just the tip would be sticking out above the forms and filled with concrete. One for each corner of the car. I could then take one of the many chains I have with hooks on each end and hook them to the rebar that barely peaks above the hardened concrete. I used a fat masonry drill bit to clearance out the concrete from the rebar so that a hook could hook onto it. I could then hook a come along onto the chain that is hooked to two of the anchors, allowing me to pull from different angles. I'm also now working on something like an a-frame with a pulley wheel at the top that will allow me to pull from different angles than just down low. Anyways, I had to brag to someone about it haha because I guess this whole comment could just be simplified to this: But I've got the quarter panel pulled back to the same measurements as the other side, but how would I check to make sure the shape just above the wheel arch is the same? I do seem to have a gift/curse of being able to tell if two things are not perfectly lined up and am able to do so to less than 1mm alot of the time. It's a gift and a curse, because while I'm able to tell, it doesn't tell me how to make them match and drives the O.C.D. in me absolutely crazy! Haha. But I'm curious if there is actually an accurate way to do that. Okay, I'm done typing. Thanks for your time and help. Went out and bought a cross beam laser level after watching your video last time. Same one you have in the video. Amazon had a deal on one for $22. Couldn't pass it up.

[@jask320]

Thanks for measuring in centimeters!

[@fix206]

That's the way I like to measure, much simpler than doing it in inches !!

[@romellyarde907]

great explanation, I saw those lasers selling at the store but wasn't sure if they could be used for car repairs. Thanks I would give it a go.

[@fix206]

it's all about the knowledge of the application 👍 Most folks wouldn't know how to apply this basic laser to an autobody repair, but once you learn you won't use anything else !!!

[@romellyarde907]

@@fix206 i love the way you think dude

[@fix206]

Thanks bro !

[@patrickgonzalez2462]

I’m in a similar situation as this, with drivers fender support needs replacing and realigning the radiator support, possibly the frame too ( although it doesn’t look to be off ) Curious from watching the next few videos, I see you mentioned your drivers strut tower is higher, but I didn’t see anything after your pulls if that drivers tower matches the passenger side now? My drivers side is 1/4” higher then the passenger, so I’m just curious as far how did you manage to lower the tower/rail down? This is interesting! Good stuff to learn here! Just made me a tram gauge following your video!

[@fix206]

After making my initial frame rail pull, strut tower ended up coming down some but then I helped it with a secondary pull to bring it down into spec. Sadly I don't have any footage of that secondary pull. Just recently picked up another vehicle where both frame rails and one of the strut towers had moved. I"ll be dong a detailed video on that framework later down the road

[@patrickgonzalez2462]

@@fix206 Awesome! Yeah I’ve noticed as I’m trying to pull out my fender reinforcement that’s all pushed in towards the tower, ( to make it easier to drill out the spot welds ) I’ve noticed the tower as well had moved down bout half my distance so far! Don’t have a nice frame pulling machine, but using a porta power with a 5 ton puller is getting the job done slowly but surely! Looking forward to seeing this next video! Really does give a lot of people that push they need to really get into this themselves, and to think myself I was about to give in and take it to a collision shop for the frame pulling! Screw that!

[@fix206]

Believe it or not sometimes I need a good motivational push myself. And watching other guys work on KZbin normally gets me into working mode.

[@celioeduardosilveira921]

Excelente explicação ! Ter conhecimento de geometria das máquinas ajuda a transferir conhecimento também aos veículos. Os veículos são montados através de gabaritos e pontos de fixação que geometricamente estão corretos e padronizados com mínimo de variações em milímetros. Sugiro que faça uma vídeo auxiliando ao conhecimento dos mecânicos e curiosos .... X,Y,Z. Acho que consegui explicar minha sugestão !!! Parabéns !!!!

[@redwingdetroit9671]

Does it matter that the vehicle was not levelled front to back? Excellent vid

[@fix206]

If you're trying to measure out the front of the car then go ahead and level out the front. If you're working on the rear of the car then level out the rear. That's the way I do it. If you jack up one of the sides in the front to level out the front, that will create a bit of a twist within the chassis due to uneven weight distribution so your rear would not level out while the front is

[@briancorrigan5350]

Your frame rail conclusion could be wrong. It could be that the driver side frame rail is pushed in but the passenger side is fine. You need the point-to-point frame dimensions that most every factory publishes. What if the factory span is 900mm? Then your passenger side is perfect and your driver side rail is pushed toward the centerline by 10mm. I love this procedure and plan to use it on my next project. Thank you for sharing it.

[@fix206]

I did also measure the spacing between the frame rails based off of measurements of a front bumper reinforcement. so I know the spacing is in spec

[@briancorrigan5350]

@@fix206 That works! Again, thank you for sharing the details of this great method. And if you haven't seen him, check out Arthur tussik's channel. I think you two could be related.

[@fix206]

Haha, I'm subed to Arthur's channel. He's got some good material👍

[@Henrique-rd4em]

@@fix206 Sou reparador no Brasil,vi seus vídeos,e o questionamento acima também tem fundamento,mas vc tirou a duvida,medindo a alma do parachoque,eu também tirava essa medida e uso o compasso de vara,uma ferramenta simples,mas muito precisa,como Arthur Tussik . Abraços e continue postando vídeos!!!Henrique(Branquinho).

[@ericsframe]

if the strut tower is up then isnt the frame rail short,its attached to the rail ,thats where a length measurment must come in.ive straightened many many cars with the strut tower too high and every one the rail was short or the tower was in.i usuall measure the rotor for height off the rack.very nice explaining on how to use a laser but it doesnt measure length which is why you must use 3 d measuring and a bluprint for at least width

[@fix206]

That's right it doesn't do the 3D... this method is used to mainly check to see if anything had moved up or down, and it also works great to check for side to side measurements, but as far as the length measurement goes, measuring tape is still one of the best tools for that :)

[@racer6583]

that was great on how to set up then measure out how straight or how out the damage is on the vehicle triple thumps up

[@fix206]

Thanks man.. I got more videos on my channel that you may like, you should take a look 😉

[@stevenharpervw]

How so you know that right side has been pushed up and not the left side has been pushed down? Or both have moved up and down

[@fix206]

This is not that severe of an accident to cause the strut tower on the other side to move,

[@shimxininahi8024]

How is the strut tower moved down?

[@fix206]

It ended up moving due to the accident

[@shimxininahi8024]

@@fix206 Re-phrazed, What is the best way to pull the tower downwards or on any other body or frame parts that moved upwards with frame rack puller? Is it trial and error, pull from where the collision started first, and then pull downward from the frame rack puller, if needed? BTW, did you name your frame rack puller, yet?

[@fix206]

Actually, once I pulled both of the frame rails back to spec, strut tower ended up moving back into its original position at the same time so I did not have to pull it... But in another situation if you absolutely have to pull the strut tower down you can use a frame rack attachment such as this one to make the downward pull www.autobodytoolmart.com/product/mo-clamp-down-pull-assembly-5810

[@shimxininahi8024]

​@@fix206 Them parts were very expensive, but it nothing better to built it yourself. The site did have offer a lot of suggestive designs. Got, big help, TKU!

[@damienmikkelsen6056]

BRO! You’re a damn genius. Thank you!

[@fix206]

My friend, I am far from a genius :-) but I do appreciate the positive comment !!

[@damienmikkelsen6056]

@@fix206 I don’t doubt you mean the literally

[@gabrielgalo7866]

Very good help, exelent!

[@fix206]

Glad it helped!

[@PhillipHall01]

Great Video! Phillip Hall

[@fix206]

Thank you very much... Phillip I feel terrible for not releasing the updated video yet... I had to put in some overtime at the my regular job, and after pulling a 12 hour day I was just to beat to video edit at nigh... Tomorrow I'll do a regular shift and finish the edit after work. Expect the vid to be out Thursday morning...👍

[@PhillipHall01]

God Bless you. You have a good heart. You do what you need to do and I have all confidence that you will upload the video when you can do it with ease and peace. All in Gods timing. Please do not feel bad as I fully understand. We all have work and responsibilities that we have to be met. We also have to rest our bodies and minds. Upload at your convenience. Be it tomorrow, or next week. Blessings to you and your family. I appreciate your goodness and kindness. Sincerely, Phillip Hall

[@Explosive420]

Absolutely incredible! Thank you!

[@fix206]

You're very welcome!

[@zakzakk281]

does the car have to be on a level suface

[@fix206]

Nope, if you think about it there is really no such thing as a level surface when millimeters meter and even If you did find a "perfectly level surface" you'd still have the suspension sag and different air pressure in your tires that would throw your level off ... therefore you can just use the jack to raise up the lower side of the car to desired hight, that's what I did for this video. And normally if I have the car on the frame rack I'd just put the jack right under the frame rack on the lower side and raise it until the car is level... Hopefully this helps 👍

[@eddymancebo475]

liked and suscribed. Thank you!!

[@fix206]

Thank you and welcome aboard !!

[@midoomoh1307]

Very good job and idea . Thank you so much

[@fix206]

Hey I'm glad you liked it... Thank you for comment !

[@Garage48-Andrei]

Спасибо автору за познавательное видео. Я тоже использую нивелир в кузовном ремонте. Но мой нивелир поворотный на 360 ° и закреплён на вертикальной стойке с кронштейном. На кронштейне, нивелир может смещаться в право и лево для более тонкой настройки под центральную ось координат автомобиля. По вертикальной стойке нивелир на кронштейне, может перемещаться, как вверх, так и вниз.

[@fix206]

Мой новый нивелир сидит на штативе от камеры, так что перемещение вверх и вниз можно делать очень плавно и точно. Также у нового нивелира есть база позволяющая сдвигу направо или налево в районе 3 см... С самого начала сделал себе базу под нивелир как у большинства мастеров кузовного ремонта, но как переместил нивелир на штатив ты сразу понял что так более удобно ! Благодарю за коммент!

[@bobcat138]

how did you know the driver side strut tower was high as opposed to the passenger strut tower being low?

[@fix206]

Car sustained some major suspension damage on the front driver side so that led me to believe that it's a driver side issue rather then passenger