How to Create a Flair with no welding Tools and material Layout and Determine Material size Cut out blank Reference Lines Create Flanged edge Shape Flange Shrink Edge Test Fit People ask me about my flairs all the time. I am not a sheetmetal guy but this is how I made my flairs. This procedure worked for me, you may need to significantly alter dimensions to arrive at what you want. You should be able to buy all needed tools brand new for less that $500.

Tools and Material 4 Tools needed: Bead roller, Shrinker, leather hammer, steel block 4 Material is H14 aluminum sheet

Layout using wheel dia and desired width 4 Draw a 180 degree arc with the radius equal to your tire diameter”A” The centerpoint should be 8” below the bottom of your sheet 4 Determine width of desired flair(distance from car body to outside wheel)”B” 4 Add A to B and using the same center point draw a second 180 degree arc 4 Material must be at least as wide as 2 times A+B Height is A+B - 8 inches

Cut out Blank 4 Using tin snips, a Sabre saw, or a Bandsaw, cut out your shape

Add Layout lines 4 Layout lines enable you to shrink symetrically from both sides of the flair centerline

Bead Roll 3/4” Flange 4 The bead roller is used to bend / form a 45 degree flange on the wheel opening of the flair. This will provide a defining edge between the flair face and tapered portion. 4 Adjust your rollers so they force a groove into the backside of the flair. 4 Set a stop on the backside of the material so the 3/4” flange will be consistant. 4 As you crank the material thru, lift with your left hand to force the material to bend upward

Hammer rolled flange to straighten 4 Using a smooth metal or wood block, support the rear of the flange while hammering with a leather or plastic hammer. 4 Object is to smooth out ripples and provide fairly flat surface to insert into shrinking dies

Shrinking The Flange 4 My shrinker is a kick press that I modifid to accept shrinking dies from one of those $180. Units 4 In the picture I am using my foot, you will be pulling a handle both do the same job 4 Starting at the center start shrinking the flange on 2” centers, go from the center out in both directions. 4 The more times you do it, the tighter the radius of the flair will become, I usually end up doing the whole thing 3 times on 2” centers, alternating my starting point.

After Shrinking 4 Flair now has almost finished shape 4 Reshrink to fine tune shape

Fitting to the car 4 This the hardest part, basically, lay the flair against the car and trim it to conform to the shape of the existing fender. 4 Draw a centerline on the fender and align the centerline of the flair with it. 4 Make sure the flair is centered front to rear and is high enough to allow for wheel movement. 4 You can still see the old flair that has not yet been removed, am using blocks to hold new flair in place

Attaching the Flair 4 Trim the flair until it follows the contour of your car to your satisfaction. 4 Make sure centerlines are aligned and height is correct. 4 Draw a line on the car along the outside of the flair. 4 Remove the flair and draw another line roughly 1” inside the line just drawn. 4 This second line will be your cut line to enlarge your wheel opening. 4 Now is the time to figure out how you are going to attach your flair.

A video I shot shrinking 4