How do you make panel templates for walls?

Medic

New member
And for what it’s worth, I did the wall templates from automotive headliner cardboard. Then I drilled and placed riv nuts. Threaded the bolts, hit them with a dead blow hammer against the headliner material, drilled the holes and got the template to line up perfectly. Transferred the template to the 1/2” plywood and literally 1 of 10 holes actually lined up. No matter how careful I was. I had to use a metric crap ton of time rounding/oblonging the holes to get the bolts to line up in the end. But when it’s all said and done, it works and looks good.


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Graphite Dave

Dave Orton
And for what it’s worth, I did the wall templates from automotive headliner cardboard. Then I drilled and placed riv nuts. Threaded the bolts, hit them with a dead blow hammer against the headliner material, drilled the holes and got the template to line up perfectly. Transferred the template to the 1/2” plywood and literally 1 of 10 holes actually lined up. No matter how careful I was. I had to use a metric crap ton of time rounding/oblonging the holes to get the bolts to line up in the end. But when it’s all said and done, it works and looks good.


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One hole will always line up!

I do one more step. I bolt the template in place with the bolts. Holes do not line up exactly where I had the marks in the cardboard from the hammer hit. Some of the bolts are offset from the cardboard holes. After the cardboard is bolted in place I use a marker to indicate where the center of the bolts are located and use the marker locations to drill the holes. Still have to use a rat tail file to enlarge some of the holes. Use a flat washer on bolt heads to hide the slightly offset hole. On 1/2" panels with flathead bolts I install the panel with regular hex bolts first. After it fits with the regular bolts I remove the panel and countersink the holes where the center of the bolt is.
 

SprinterKing

New member
Resurrecting this thread, hopefully the ideas are still flowing. I hesitate to ask this while in the middle of a triple set of night shifts (foggy brain) but how do you scale these drawings up to be useful as templates? Waiting for my D'oh moment:thinking:


Bump. I want to know the answer to this too.

Thank you.
 

hinesy

New member
I use 1/8" hardboard it available at depot and Lowes cut my height and use a set of dividers(compass) to scribe the shape. The trick is if you scribing walls you have to hold the dividers perfectly horizontal so the shape matches height wise, also it will take a few tries to make it nice. I made a template from the hardboard almost three years ago and I am still using it. Nutserts are easy you can take a bolt the size you will use to attach the walls cut the head off and sharpen it like a pencil drill a hole in the wall that size then insert your sharpened bolt and tap it with hammer and you have a perfect center mark, it will take some time but that will offset the finished product.. Good luck!
 

siradrad

New member
Dura-scrim, two-sided tape and a sharpie. This way you can see through your template material. The dura-scrim does not stretch so you can get an exact template.
 

Island Jim

Active member
I rip door skin to 1.5 to 2" strips at least as long as the longest side of the wall. Out line the wall cutting the strips to length using a small handsaw. Hold the up to the edge of the space using two side tape minimally and glue them together carefully with a hot glue gun. Reinforce your pattern with as many cross pieces as needed. Carefully remove the pattern from the wall and lay on your finish stock. Trace carefully around your pattern transferring the shape to your new panel, voila! If your carefull with your gluing and handling you can reuse your pattern many times, have fun with it.
 

Island Jim

Active member
If the panel you are making has a curved shape cut a wider strip, as wide as needed to allow for the curve, use the spile method to transfer the curve to your strip, it might take a few try's to get it right. When happy with the shape hold it up to the curved edge with the rest of the pattern and glue into place!
 

Plexgoth

New member
Hola Friends!

Does anyone have the files handy for the "07+ Sprinter Van Wall Liner Kit 144 Low Roof"

Big thanks!
 

d1g174l

Member
Did you ever find an answer on how to enlarge the drawings to full size?
You need to lay a 1” grid over top and use the outside dimensions in combination with the grid lines to extrapolate your angle cuts and re-create the spots where you need to drill holes etc.

This worked well for me on my 144wb.

What size is your van?
 

pdxb

New member
You need to lay a 1” grid over top and use the outside dimensions in combination with the grid lines to extrapolate your angle cuts and re-create the spots where you need to drill holes etc.

This worked well for me on my 144wb.

What size is your van?
2016 2500 144wb

Thanks very much
 

Cunharez

Active member
I've seen the panels from cargo vans for sale on craigslist...maybe use them as needed and then sell them again.
 

mexicannibal

New member

Elf

Vehicle Systems Engineer

i found these the other day, looks like its what your looking for
 

#yardsale

The cruelest dream, reality.
They were not cheap, but the RB Components walls I put in came out perfect. I would buy them again.
 

Mercanter

New member

Attachments

Elf

Vehicle Systems Engineer
mexicannibal
here is the file. overlap is 20mm. the image was a bit low resolution for the big size but i think it should be okay for template.
thats cool, ill have to make a one page print and take it to office depo to print one large enough to use a a temp or a CNC.

1 hr later. the time it would take me to organise this together is brutal. i dont know whats easier print 125 pages or to take the time to organise it. its a nice drawing but someone should put it together to make it easier to print.
 
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