Fiberglass basics - Ack! Your tips needed

[JRMichler]

Originally Posted by bennelson

Anyone have a recommendation for a fiberglass materials supplier? Is this the sort of thing that's good to do by mail-order, or should I try to find someplace local?

I've had good luck with both of these:

Wicks Aircraft - Aircraft Kits, Aircraft Fitting, Spruce Specialty, Chrome Moly Tubing, Aluminum, more - Wicks Aircraft, Highland, Illinois
Pilot Supplies and Aircraft Parts from Aircraft Spruce

[3-Wheeler]

Originally Posted by bennelson

....Now, I'm trying to figure out how the whole thing will be held down to the truck. What are typical methods used on foam/fiberglass composites? I'm assuming that a bolt or some other fastener needs to be embedded in the fiberglass. I would think the weight or force needs to be spread out a bit too.....

How about this....

http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...tml#post184379

Jim.

[aerohead]

Originally Posted by bennelson

Does water-proofness of glue matter? Once it's covered with set fiberglass it should be weatherproof, right?

Could non-waterproof glue somehow react poorly UNDER the set fiberglass?

I was just using what I had handy. Maybe I'll put my sample in the bath-tub and scrub with hot water and see what happens.

Anyone have a recommendation for a fiberglass materials supplier? Is this the sort of thing that's good to do by mail-order, or should I try to find someplace local?

I've been purchasing materials from the paint department at HOME DEPOT and the automotive section at Wal Mart.
They both carry cloth,matt,resin/hardener,spreaders,3M tape,plastic drop cloth,etc..
The DEPOT and Lowe's have the polyisocyanurate foam board.
Harbor Freight has economical China bristle brushes for stippling,and a good price for Nitrile gloves.
Dollar Stores have disposable plastic cups for resin batching and popsicle sticks/tongue depressors for mixing.
I traveled to a marine supply house to buy a serrated roller.You'll want one of these! They are indespensible during wet layups,allowing perfect resin penetration into the glass matrix along with air bubble removal.
I also purchased polyvinyl alcohol,PVA, which is applied with a detail spray gun after 3-coats of wax have been applied,dried,and buffed.
100% carnuba wax is an industry standard for a mold release.McGuire's makes a fine wax.
Marine supplies also carry gelcoat if you ever get into mold-making.Styrene monomer can be used to thin things.
Shop around for acetone.You'll need this for tool cleanup if using polyester.It's cheaper in bulk as are most things.
You may choose to 'build' things on the car.If so,you can use cardboard and masking tape as your armature.
A wet-layup,after curing,can be slipped off the car and placed in a water trough,where the cardboard will turn to mush,slough off,leaving only the fiberglass part.I did the CRX's nose,wheel skirts, and boat tail this way.Quick and dirty!
Ventilate a lot! Protect your eyes and skin.Always wear a professional NIOSH -approved respirator with dust pre-filters when sanding.
Pneumatic tools are great around composites.Abrasive dust cannot enter the working parts,there's no risk of errant sparks.

[TOOSTUBBORN2FAIL]

One thing to keep in mind with 3m and bondo brand resin is that it has surfacing wax in it. If you need to add more layers after the first layers cure, you'll have to sand the entire top layer in order to get a good bond with the first layer. If you know ahead of time that you'll be doing multiple coats, get a good layup resin. Also, bondo resin is not very consistent, it can be thick in some batches and thin in others. After using resin from US Composites, I'll never touch bondo brand resin again. It so much easier to use good layup resin.

[bennelson]

Thanks for all the good info guys!

Jim, that link to your boat-tail is right-on. That's more or less the sort of thing I was thinking - I've just never done any of this type of stuff before!

[KamperBob]

I started using http://www.tapplastics.com/ a few years ago for structural (glass) and cosmetic (gel coat) work on molded fiberglass campers. I found their website rich in tech tips, data sheets, etc. In my limited shopping at the time they jumped out for product selection and price. Might be worth a look. Folks with deeper experience might be able to compare and contrast various suppliers. That'd be a HUGE value add to our collective wisdom. Latent dreams to build the ultimate camper from scratch infect my brain many a night.

[Ardent]

Originally Posted by Varn

I used to use west bros epoxy but became allergic to it . . .

Is the allergy to the vapors and liquid mix via inhalation or skin contact, or is it to the dust from sanding the cured product?

[Varn]

I would say mostly all of the above. I can't use it anymore. I don't sand anything indoors. Even outdoors I sand with a big furnace fan to my rear and side.

Am always amazed when someone on this list decides that their first project is going to be big like a boat tail. There is a learning curve working with composites. Start off small.

Originally Posted by Ardent

Is the allergy to the vapors and liquid mix via inhalation or skin contact, or is it to the dust from sanding the cured product?

[bennelson]

Originally Posted by Varn

There is a learning curve working with composites. Start off small.

Yep, that's why I'm practicing on small hunks of foam, testing materials, sanding, etc.

I'll do something small to an actual finish something soon. Paint it up, make it look pretty and all.

[Weather Spotter]

I make my tail from fiberglass and all I had ever done was two patches on a canoe. I had no idea what I was doing as I tried doing it while the daily high temps were 25F out. Polyester resin takes 8-12 hours at that temp to become non tacky and be able to re-coat or sand. I used Dow Blue board foam (I am from Midland MI, home town of Dow) and the polyester only ate about 1/8" into the foam and then stuck to it hard. Here the big box home centers carry 3m brand "epoxy" (polyester) resin for about $35 a gallon.