The FIBERGLASS THREAD!

[blacks13ek]

k well im a new driver and just cracked my fiberglass front bumper. It is a crack from the bottom leading about 5 inches up and then splitting into two smaller splits that lead aproximately 4 inches. Do you guys recommend me doing the work my self or should i consult a body work specialist? I have little experience working with cars.

[ayjay]

hey sorry hellion... wasn't checkin this thread for activity... ya what you wanna do is follow the same process that my buddy did to make his kickpods... buy some Green Painters Tape and tape the crap outta your pieces making sure that absolutely everything is covered, and make sure you got plastic or tinfoil around the sourrounding area so that you won't accidentally get any drips on anything... have fun:pface

[Hellion240sx]

will it go thru a plastic bag?

[ayjay]

no, resin will not go through a plastic bag, it's not really corrosive, however if you mix in too much catalyst, the resin can get really hot and sometimes even catch on fire... plastic bags don't stop fire

[QX4MIkey]

This is an awesome thread...lots of excellent information! Thanks for making it a sticky!!

Mikey

[MECPInstaller]

Thank sled for making it sticky i mean putting it up as a sticky i don't really wanna know what else he makes sticky...........no comment lol and no problem my part of the thread only took about 2 hours of typing need anymore help feel free to post in the car audio forum with my name in the thread for a quick response of send me an email at [email protected]

[Hellion240sx]

this really does help out alot. thaks everyone who conributed questions and answers!

[Hellion240sx]

oh yeah imma start my first attempt so i will be posting more questions when they come up.

also is there a blue painter's tape??? cuz thats what i started with but i ran out is green any different?

[MECPInstaller]

i've always used plain old off white masking tape. the only difference i think i'm not sure if i'm correct though is that painters tape doesn't leave adhesive stuck to your plastic trim. If you got an autozone around pick up a quart of Prep All its in the same section as the fiberglass. Its used to prep pieces before paintign and removes almost anything without damaging the plastic. Its like 7 bucks for the quart and i only used the one bottle during the whole process so your not out much money, and i'm sure the plain old masking tape is cheaper than painters tape, unless you have a phat hookup. lol

[Hellion240sx]

eh i'll just stick with the painter's tape thanks for the response. and is there any diff btwn blue and green tape?

[ayjay]

don't think there is a difference between the two, they're just colors that'll make it easy to differentiate between wall and tape... painters tape does come in green and blue, and i think it also comes in red

[twofourzeroSX]

Hey how do you get a box colored? like say i wanted mine to be red but still glossy and smooth and all that good stuff/

[ayjay]

heyyy, haven't visited the board in a while, got a busted leg, so i been outta commision for a while and no progress on the box. part cyborg now with titanium in my leg, but no fiberglass

well to color a fiberglass box, you need to first off you need to build the framework for the box, then fiberglass it and all that... then you need to bondo the crap out of it and make ultra smooth... recommend sanding with 60, then 120, then 220, then 400, then finally 600 (Norton Aluminum-Oxide sandpaper is THE BEST, don't buy any other)... after that, spray a layer of grey primer on it and it will let you see if you got any more scratches you gotta get rid of. if not, then just paint away with your red automotive spraypaint. if you want, you can bring it to a paint shop to get it done and they'll do some more body work on it and paint it, and it will look good but it'll cost ya at least $150. that's it.

[DanielIser]

For a deep look to the paint you could also add another couple layers of just resin couldnt you? Would give it that deep staring color you want! Thats how i was told i should do it! Also i am getting ready to start builing my sub enclosures with amp rack. I have 2 kicker l7 10s and a 1200watt kicker amp. How do you get the right airspaces? I mean i know what the airspaces are for the speakers and such, but how do i make sure that my box has them if they are angled and such? Also i want the box to be ported like my MDF box so how do i go about that?

[TurboKA37]

very useful thread, never really took the time to read through it. anyways i ordered some fiberglass supplies through USComposites the other day to make a dual gauge pod. ill post some pics when i get working on it next week

[PoorManQ45]

Ok, I just started my fiberglass project.

I have taped off the area, with masking tape, two layers.

I want to make a mold so that I can reproduce the enclosure for others, my question is:

What type of Fiberglass should I use to make the mold? I'm thinking matte sinse it's pretty strong, but I just wanted to check with you guys first.

Also, do I apply the resin first and then lay the strips of 'glass on it and then put resin over it, or do I put the strips of 'glass down and then resin over it?

Thanks

[DanCouga]

What kind of enclosure are you making? If you are just making kick panels and want a release of the floor, I would say use chop mat. As far as the order goes, with chop mat you can usually saturate it pretty thoroughly by just pressing on it with a loaded brush. Just be careful as the resin hardens you can pull everything you just saturated off with one stroke if you are trying to 'put down just a little more'.

[PoorManQ45]

NO, I'm making a molded subwoofer enclosure for my Q45. It will be behind the driverside wheelwell. It will extend from the wheelwell to the back of the trunk.

[DanCouga]

Same method. Tape and wax the area and then apply the chop mat and push the resin into it and do several layers of mat for rigidity.

[PoorManQ45]

Oh, I'm supposed to wax over the tape? If so, what kind of wax?

[DanCouga]

I use masking tape and turtle wax. Most of the times the piece will release easily from the tape, the wax just makes this easier.

[PoorManQ45]

Ok, I started making th emold. I'm using fiber matte and marine resin.

Now that I've starteed working on it, it's fairly easy. I finished 3/4 of it in ~45 minutes. Now I have to wait for that to dry so I can finish the top of it, otherwise I'd have to lay in wet resin, and I don't want to do that.

Is there any problem with letting one part of it dry and then doing another part?

[DanCouga]

You'll probably want to scuff it up before laying new layers on hardened glass. I prefer to get the layers down in one go, leaving a little bit of curing time in between.

[PoorManQ45]

HEre's some pictures of it so far in another thread:zerothread?id=114677

The problem is, to do the top I actually have to be in the trunk, or atleast lean on the bottom of it, and I don't really want to get resin everywhere.

Now that I think about it, I maybe should have started with the top

[DanCouga]

Fold the rear seat down and crawl through and have your legs in the front, then be really careful not to spill any. Slowly build up the sides, letting them harden slightly to support the next layer as you move up, overlapping 2-3 inches on the previous layer. Make sure you have a good face mask too, being that close.

[PoorManQ45]

Unfortunately the back seat on the Q45 doesn't fold down, and the gas tank is up between the trunk and the cabin.

Anyway, the first layer is pretty much dry now. If I have time after school tomorrow I'll work on it some more.

[Levissan]

Thought I would post some stuff and let you guys ask the questions. Just some glass and paint we did at the shop:

[Levissan]

more:

[Levissan]

Oh, btw, the blue tape has less adhesive then the green. That is why we use green tape on out tape tree and blue for areas requiring less stick. You use green tape for pin striping and custom painting as well.

don't think there is a difference between the two, they're just colors that'll make it easy to differentiate between wall and tape... painters tape does come in green and blue, and i think it also comes in red

[Levissan]