Re: Prototype body dies?

["jtrealtywebspannet" <jtrealty@xxxx>]

According to Stainless Steel Illusion the initial design prototypes 
were epo-wood (epoxy-wood?). The final approved prototype was then 
made from pine wood and the panels made from it. The book doesn't go 
into detail about the process which it says was done by a company 
called Milford Fabricating in Detroit. In most cases where a limited 
number of metal panels are to be made a "bucking horse" or wood model 
is made and then the panels are either beaten over the model or are 
bent and beaten over a mandrel and then checked and fitted against the 
model. This can only be done for a limited number of panels because it 
is very labor intensive and you quickly damage and destroy the wood 
forms. This is the way panels for the Delorean will be reproduced and 
repaired. Not only are "hard dies" very expensive when considering the 
limited production run but the "press time" and the amount of 
stainless steel required would cost a fortune. You would need an 
enormous press to do this job as stainless steel is harder than the 
cold rolled steel (crs) usually used for making car panels. These are 
not common and are VERY expensive. Just the investment in stainless 
steel sheets is enough to kill this idea. A 16 gauge 4x8 sheet of 
stainless is about $100. Figure out how many sheets you would need for 
a limited production run. There are 8? panels on the car. How many 
could you fit out of a 4x8 sheet and how many are you going to make? 
Don't forget scrappage, waste, setup, and damage. Now figure storage, 
shipping, and cost of money. Not to many people are going to think 
this could be even close to a break-even scheme. The hard dies are not 
the problem.
David Teitelbaum
vin 10757
Refer to Stainless Steel Illusion pages 32-37.



--- In dmcnews@xxxx, "Walter Coe" <Whalt@xxxx> wrote:
> Can anyone say how the stainless panels on the prototype bodies were 
made?
> Were they made using dies or by some other method? I have never 
seen a