Best way to get a flat panel to stay flat?

[airrj]

So I am working on a '69 Camaro Pace Car and the hoods that came with the kit are pretty poor fitting. The hood contours at the front edge and rear edge sit nicely, but the sides of the hood are warped up about .030". It is a noticeable bulge unfortunately. I am looking for the best practical way to get the hood to lay flat. I built some of the factory underhood bracing to jazz up the looks and hopefully to help give the part some structure, but the hood has too much warp for this little panel to hold it flat. It is a cowl induction hood. so there is so structure from front to rear.

Any suggestions? I don't want to try to sand this thing flat, because I am afraid there won't be any material left when I get done.

Thanks for the help.

R.J.

Edited April 13, 2009 by airrj

[MrObsessive]

Try heating up the hood in hot (not boiling) water, and bend slightly until it's flat, and then quickly run cold water over it to "lock" it in place. This might take a several tries, but it should work.

I would use lukewarm or cold water to wash the hood later before painting, the hood now has a "memory" and will want to go back to the original shape.

I also would not use liquid (or other solvent) glue to put on that underhood bracing------the solvents in the glue could also make the hood go back to its bent shape. 5 min. epoxy would work well for that.

Hope this helps!

[airrj]

Thanks for the suggestion. I will jump on that tonight. And thanks for the glue suggestion, I would have never thought about that.