I've been feeling too busy to update lately. Fab first, post later.
Actually, most of what I'm doing is really typical fiberglass over foam construction. Like this:
Fiberglass parts
One point of difference; I'm using a foam-compatible construction adhesive that I've found has excellent bond strength even when the joint is sloppy and the adhesive has to fill a gap. I didn't test other adhesives, I just tried this stuff and liked it right away (except for the price and the 24 hour cure).
Loctite PL Premium FAST GRAB Polyurethane Construction Adhesive from Loctite Adhesives
Here's a sample I tested to failure; the 2" pink foam actually has some ridges cut into it that cause it to fail early, long before the adhesive.
(Except that later I had a joint fail where I had bonded to an unsanded smooth face, also I was using the other Loctite stuff, the 3X, which I don't feel has quite the same properties. Scuffed it up and rebonded with the 8X that I like.)
So here's my blanks 'clamped' together with tie down straps and weights:
And then sanded down:
I felt like I should inlay some wood strips along the hinge and where the latch and lock will attach:
Then bonded it in with the Loctite adhesive... although afterwards I wondered why I don't just add a few layers of glass manage stress at the attachment points... if I'm wrong call it lack of experience... but anyways this will work... maybe it works better...
With luck, I should be doing glass tomorrow. More to come...