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Old 02-09-2011, 02:24 PM   #92 (permalink)
3-Wheeler
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NeilBlanchard View Post
Awesome work! I really like seeing how well the 1/4" foam works on compound curved surfaces.

You have got me thinking very hard about going this route with my CarBEN EV design.

Are you going to skin it with fiberglass? Is Gorilla Glue and this glue compatible with fiberglass? If so, what sort?
Hi Neil,

I can speak of Gorilla Glue use, since very small portions of this glue were used on the Tail.

While the Gorilla glue did react nicely with application of water, it continued to swell beyond what I originally expected. This swelling causes some minor damage in the area of the Tail in the side-lights area. I had to do some sanding after the glue stopped expanding. It did cause some concern as the curvature was altered because of the over-expansion.

The Gorilla Glue is compatible with foam, and there was no worry about chemical attack.

I really like how well the 1/4 inch foam curved as well. This could be useful in the future, but ensuring that there is total bonding between various layers could be an issue. Vacuum bagging could be used, but without a rigid mold to hold the overall shape, vacuum bagging can easily cause distortion of the shape.

One might have to go so far to put wood dowels across the layers to provide extra bonding protection against delamination.

Building a really light-weight structure from foam and fiberglass is quite a time intensive task.

Jim.
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The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to 3-Wheeler For This Useful Post:
jime57 (07-04-2011), NeilBlanchard (02-09-2011)