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Old 07-02-2008, 11:23 AM   #12 (permalink)
MechEngVT
Mechanical Engineer
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by justpassntime View Post
I think I would make the top of it attach to the fender and the lower pieces front and rear made out of a heavy plastic that could be shaped and molded with heat to retain the desired shape. The lower pieces would attach to the top piece and to the front bumper and the rear piece to the wheel well.

Any ideas on a heavy plastic material suitable for this.
ABS plastic isn't very exotic, is very durable, and it thermo-forms. A lot of industrial and automotive parts are vacuum-formed from ABS. I've heard that ABS is harder to heat to a workable state than some other plastics like polystyrene or polyethylene. Keep in mind you'll want to work with thin sheet as opposed to blocks, but not so thin that as you heat and work the plastic it'll stretch/tear. You'll probably want to stay with .090" or 1/8" and above, but 1/4" is probably too thick to work by hand.

For availability you might have the best luck with polyethylene. You should be able to order sheets of many thicknesses of HDPE from industrial supply catalogs or possibly local stores, but I wouldn't hold my breath for Home Depot or Lowe's to have it.
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