Hand Dollies

These are either cast or drop forged steel blocks, heat treated to provide the correct degree of hardness. The shapes of the dolly blocks have been designed to provide a working surface that is highly polished and suitable for use on the many contours found on motor vehicle bodies. They are used in conjunction with the planishing hammer or beating file and act as a support or anvil to smooth out the surface area of panels that have been damaged.These dollies,together with the planishing hammers,are the most essential tools for the panel beating trade. Obviously one dolly block will not be suitable for all shapes requiring planishing; therefore it is advisable to have a set of these dollies which would be suitable for a wide range of the shapes and contours encountered on the everchanging body styles of the modern motor vehicle.

When selecting a dolly block for a particular job,it should always be remembered that as flat a dolly block should be used as possible for the job in hand; then the dolly will not only cover the panel area quicker because of its bigger face area, but will smooth out the metal without excessive stretching. When working on panel contours it must be borne in mind that a dolly block having a high-crowned surface will tend to stretch the metal much quicker than one having a low-crowned sur- face;hence the choice of block depends on whether the particular section under repair needs to be stretched quickly or just smoothed and planished without stretching.
It is very common for the faces of the dolly blocks to become coated with paint,road tar,or anti-drum compounds which it picks up from the underside of panels under repair. This coating must be removed from the surface of the dolly block sothat when it is used with the hammer there is ametallic contact (metal to metal) between dolly block and work and hammer. This contact should be heard as a ringing noise if successful planishing is to be achieved.
Various dollies are shown in Figures 3.6 and 3.7. Some details are as follows.

Double-ended hand dolly is conveniently designed for a good grip with two useful surfaces,one highcrowned and one low crowned. It is ideal for general planishing and roughing out. Its weight is 3lb 4oz (1473g).
Utility dolly forms the basis of every body kit. It offers a variety of useful faces,and is found ideal for working in confined spaces. General-purpose dolly is very well shaped and easy to hold and offers wide,low-crowned faces which are essential when working on the new body styles.
Its weight is 2lb 12oz (1247g).
Heel dolly has a low flat face with radiused corners. It is suitable for corner and angle work and iseasy to handle because of its fairly small weight of 2lb 14oz (1020g).

Toe dolly combines a large flat face with a low crown on other faces and is long and thin for easy handling in narrow sections. The bottom face is ground flat which adds to the versatility of this block. Its weight is 3lb (1360g).

Thin toe dolly has similar surfaces to the toe dolly but is thinner and is ideal for working in awkwardplaces where other dollies cannot be used. Its weight is 2lb 4oz (1020g).
Shrinking dolly block is designed for shrinking welded seams and reducing stretched areas prior tofilling. It has a groove down the centre of the block into which the stretched or welded seams can be dressed. Its weight is 3lb (1360g).
Grid dolly is similar in shape to the toe dolly but has a large crowned grid face on the upper surface. The base has a plain flat face for normal finishing work. It has been designed to act as a shrinking dolly when used in combination with a shrinking hammer and the application of heat. The weight is 2lb 4oz (1130g).
Curved dolly or comma block has a long curved face,combined with the high- and low-crowned areas and the tapering face; it is extremely well suited to the modern body design,and is comfortable to hold in difficult areas and narrow corners. The weight is 3lb 6oz (1530g).
Round dolly is light and small and very easy to hold. It offers high- and low-crowned faces for work on small areas of damage. Theweight is 1lb 10oz (736g).