BENDING M&R SIDES SKIRTING
FOR THE END SKIRTS: Work on a table top covered with thick plate-glass (a piece of wood molding for home interiors would also do). Place the car side on it (facing UP) and place a second piece of wood on top leaving only a SMALL portion of the bottom skirting exposed and hanging out over the edge. (The wood on top prevents the entire car side from bending, then only the skirt will bend).
Using wood does NOT scratch the brass OR the plating and works well. The wood should be sturdy enough that it does not break when you are applying pressure to it. Use a square strip of wood molding like that used in your house where the walls meet the floor or the ceiling. The wood will eventually wear-out since the etchings are thin and sharp and sliding across the skirts can cut into the wood a bit, but it is not expensive. Any old wood will work, just avoid PAINTED wood since paint can rub-off on the brass or work its way into a fluted skirt and be hard to remove.
Take another piece of wood strip and push down on the small exposed bit of skirting, then gradually expose more to be bent and push down again until satisfied with the contour. Bending small bits at a time prevents the skirt from looking "kinked" or looking like it has several sharp bends. It only takes a few minutes.
FOR THE CENTER SKIRTS: Use the same method as above, but instead of pushing straight down, push AND slide the wood across the center skirting from one end to the other. This takes a little more time and practice to get good results since any openings in the skirting bend quicker than solid areas.
Return to the M&R Models page.