making fiberglass panels?

KRONIK

KRONIK

NAXJA Forum User
Location
CRAWLERADO SPRINGS
Have any of you made a panel out of fiberglass mat and resin?
I want to make custom fenders and bed sides for my truck.
Kind of hard to explain but they would connect to the existing fenders and would be flared like prerunner fenders.

I plan to start by making a card board template. Then form the fiber glass around that. Not sure how to Keep it from sticking to the template...

Any thoughts or creative ideas of how to do this would be greatly appreciated.
They don't make prerunner fenders that are not for huge tires....
I have to make them myself.

Thanks in advance.
 
wax paper, heat shink, or a trash bag on the panel. then tape up alot of cardboard and shoot some form of foam (great stuff) inside of the cardboard. and then you shape the foam, repeat step one and start laying mat. once is cures pop it off and tada your very own one off fiberglass panel.
 
dude! i know tons about composites and am a bodyman by trade and i am looking for a project. no charge but we need to buy materials, lets meet up and discuss there is much to learn. if we make really good molds we can sell as many as we can make.
fiberglass carbon fiber and kevlar
once we make molds we can use any of these or a combination of them.
no bullshit here i know what i am talking about.:cheers:


KRONIK said:
Have any of you made a panel out of fiberglass mat and resin?
I want to make custom fenders and bed sides for my truck.
Kind of hard to explain but they would connect to the existing fenders and would be flared like prerunner fenders.

I plan to start by making a card board template. Then form the fiber glass around that. Not sure how to Keep it from sticking to the template...

Any thoughts or creative ideas of how to do this would be greatly appreciated.
They don't make prerunner fenders that are not for huge tires....
I have to make them myself.

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
 
i have an even faster method.
Swamprat said:
wax paper, heat shink, or a trash bag on the panel. then tape up alot of cardboard and shoot some form of foam (great stuff) inside of the cardboard. and then you shape the foam, repeat step one and start laying mat. once is cures pop it off and tada your very own one off fiberglass panel.
Click to expand...
 
thanks everyone!!! I was reading up on the foam techniques. Really cool stuff.

gunter. That sounds great. But I'm in the springs. I will most likely be working on this late at night when I get done tattooing.
If only you lived closer...
 
KRONIK said:
thanks everyone!!! I was reading up on the foam techniques. Really cool stuff.

gunter. That sounds great. But I'm in the springs. I will most likely be working on this late at night when I get done tattooing.
If only you lived closer...
Click to expand...
i ll send you some links and materials sources.
 
O-Gauge Steamer said:
Give me a call and I will be more than glad to teach you how to work fiberglass.

Nights are difficult, but we may be able to work something out...
Click to expand...

thank you. I am going to start collecting materials. I will post up as soon as I get everything together.


any suggestions on where to buy FG mat and resin?
 
IMO, you will want both mat and cloth to build with. The cloth gives the strength and is used for reinforcement in the critical areas. The mat is cheaper and not as strong. Dealers choice I suppose...
 
SolarBell said:
The biggest shop I know of is fibreglast.com, they have been around for a couple decades now and do web sales. I don't know of anyone local though.
Click to expand...
http://www.easycomposites.co.uk/
http://www.fibreglast.com/
Plasticare
Address: 4211 S Natches Ct, Englewood, CO 80110
Phone:(303) 781-1171
Hours:
Tuesday hours 7:30 am–5:00 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioj1YBm6bJY
the speaker vid is good for general purpose info.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8cz_5eP81U
search fiberglast and easy composites web sites for how to make things.
both companies have very good youtube vids as well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcHxo7XNRi8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=504I_hJDFck&feature=fvwp
 
thanks for all the help. I have been doing a lot of research and have watched a lot of videos to see different techniques.

I'm going with mat and cloth. I am going to use card board forms and use the 2part expanding foam. Much easier to sculpt than other options.

only thing I'm not sure about is the gel coat and how to remove the expanding foam after the fiberglass hardens.
 
i use this http://www.fibreglast.com/product/Polyester_Molding_Resin_just_resin_77/Polyester_Resins
and i like it. it is wax free so no sticky residue and much easier to work with. great price as well.
http://www.reynoldsam.com/p88/Locations-|-Reynolds-Advanced-Materials---Denver,-CO/pages.html
for foams rigid and flexible, 2 part of course
how to make a hood
http://www.easycomposites.co.uk/Composites-Tutorials/Make-A-Carbon-Fibre-Bonnet-Hood-Part1.aspx
http://www.easycomposites.co.uk/Composites-Tutorials/Make-A-Carbon-Fibre-Bonnet-Hood-Part2.aspx
http://www.easycomposites.co.uk/Composites-Tutorials/Make-A-Carbon-Fibre-Bonnet-Hood-Part2.aspx

once you make your plug( part you want to make copies of) making a mold is some what easy.
you could shape the foam as close as you can then cover it in bondo and do the final shaping. then make a mold like they did for the hood , making your originals will be the most time and labor intensive part. i ll post more vids as i have a cool collection of them.
 
Geeez. Lol. I was not taking it that seriously. I just started looking at one of the links.
I was planning something completely different. I wouldn't be able to reproduce any of them.
Making molds and all that is way out of my league. Haha.

I really wish you lived closer. It's really difficult trying to learn all this through video and text. Don't know if i can pull it off. I suppose I will only know if I try.
 
damn i know. i have a simple thing to show you. but cant find any pics or video.
i ll try and describe it. let me know if you want more detail.
imagine your fender on the truck.
imagine the wheel opening as you need it, on a piece of plywood.
position it 10 inches out from your wheel.
imagine cloth fastened on the fender body line and draped over the plywood. now adjust all the cloth so all the wrinkles and waves are gone.
glue tack or staple the cloth to the plywood so it stays in position.
now if this were fiberglass cloth once the shape is right, brush or spray gel coat on the fabric and let it cure. add 4 to 5 layers of CSM ( chopped strand mat) and your fenders are made. then sand smooth and finally spray one last time with gel coat. from there sand and prime, no foam, less mess and easy to do.
once done you can screw, rivet or bond the panels to the metal fenders.
use fiberglass cloth in 4x4 twill as it will be super easy to take any 3d shape for the initial shape.
to hold the first cloth to the fender you can screw a strip of wood to the fender clamping the cloth in place. brush or spray on the gel coat.
if we have an old sheet and tape and a piece of wood i could come down and mock one up for you and you can see it in 3 d and better understand what i mean
 
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