My fiberglass topic., yeah, I need some clarifications. Options

[njccmd2002]

I have decided to fiddle with fiberglass.

My first question is, i need a good supplier online of fiberglas, and resin. Would also like the fiberglass spray.

No, will not buy at walmart or auto zone or 0reilly.

I need high quality, show, fiberglass.

Where do you guys get it at.

More questions to come. but this is for now.

[yarik83]

First and foremost. 99.9 percent of all fiberglass parts are prepared using the following method:
There is a drum with fiber string that gets shredded as it comes out. Attached to same gun is a 2nd hose that sprays out resin so when it all lands it has the resin and bits and pieces of fiber. Several layers later and or a specific thickness later the part is either air dried, oven dried or otherwise cured. Naturally all of that is sprayed onto a mold of some sort.

Now for small patch jobs you can purchase a fiber type cloth such as ones that are sold in stores and on many websites out there. Those are perfect for when you have a small crack or a small gap between panels.

Also there is a compound that works somewhat like mighty putty that err... is very toxic but non the less super effective. It is perfect to quite literally bind 2 panels of fiberglass together. Come to think of it I think its stronger than jbweld.

[mgnt232]

what are planning to make? assuming your planning on something?

I know my friend has a gelcoater (what most bodykits come with to make the fibers smooth) and for applications like amp racks and what not, you just use fiberglass mat, sand a little, and gel coat it smooth. But again im not sure what exactly ur going for

[njccmd2002]

its a secret project. Just in case. It will be for my 1gc and 6gc. nothing big really, but definetely nice.

Make sure to put links to where u buy this stuff.

[cheela]

ooooh!!! will be waiting to see what comes out of this.

[Bigblock]

njccmd2002--
Any news?
Did // will gel coat be used??

mgnt232--
Can you help xplain the dif between gel coat & resin?
I know gel coat is the nice smooth finish, but how to
determine if gel coat is needed or if resin is suficient??
Any help would be appreciated!!

[njccmd2002]

im still researching. I have not started yet. this is a long project, mostly related with my 1GC. May apply to my vert if i do it right...

[mgnt232]

I am not rlly sure how it is determined it a gel coat is needed, I know the gun and system is pretty pricey, and you can get most things on a fiberglass mold smooth with sanding more resin and some bondo. But thats just the way I have done things, may be an easier way

[mkernz22]

im gunna take a wild guess, but are you making fiberglass louvers?

[playr158]

a) there is no such thing as "show" fiberglass

b) the stuff you get at home depot/advance auto is perfectly good stuff for anything you'd need to do

c) you won't need to spray anything, vary rarily is that method used and only in commercial applications. You would use the wet layup method.

take your mold/frame/ect and lay some fiberglass cloth down, brush on resin. Matt, resin, repeat until desired thickness/strength. Sand/ touch up fill, sand, paint.


when you make a mold, you then coat the inside of the mold with release wax then spray in a gel coat, then you lay in your fiberglass after that.
The release wax does just want the name implies. assists in releasing the part from the mold (makes it non stick)
gell coat makes a smooth finished surface to the part.

This post has been edited by playr158: Sep 4, 2010 - 6:08 PM

[njccmd2002]

well, i want the fiberglass in a can to get molds from dificult parts. those that bend to much or hard to access places.


but yeah, some parts like louvres, and parts of the trunk, also fix my trd bumper... etc..

thanks player. As soon as i have time ill be playing with fiberglas..

[playr158]

there is no such thing as "fiberglass in a can"

you get yourself some of this


you cut it into smaller strips inorder to get it around difficult/small/tight places say 1" wide by "X" inch long and lay several down.
You can use 3M spray glue to keep the strips/pieces in place before laying down the resin. The glue won't stick if you have successfully used mold release wax to coat the part.

[ZGear]

I've researched fiberglass too and playr is almost always right on when I needed fiberglass help.

Have you ever wondered why most cheap fiberglass mold don't fit like oem parts? It's the technique they skip on. Just like playr said. For the smaller crease and corners, you want to fill them with smaller strips and layer it to build foundations. Most companies wouldn't hassle their time with getting the perfect fitments and getting the better details.

It's all about how you prepare the surface to lay the fiberglass and how you go about laying the fiberglass on. Meaning if there's a **** load of corners, don't just lay one huge mat on all of it, go about it with strips on all sides and then start covering it after a few layers. You also may want to invest in a cheap paint roller to spread out any air bubbles when you are laying the mat.

Spray? I'm guessing the resin and or gel coat before you lay the fiberglass? Most of the time a cleaning gun would do the job to lay the resin, otherwise I've known people to just use a brush to dab it on. Gel coat is probably the better solution if you want to paint the fiberglass mold against using bondo.

For reference youtube has helped me out a lot, even though most of it is for sub enclosures.

HAPPY FABRICATING!

Kinda OT, but Playr, I've yet to figure out how to put fiberglass and ABS plastic together. Epoxy, or rough sanding and or both?





Fiberglass Tools:

www.fiberglassforum.com (sign-up to view content)
http://www.fiberglasssupply.com/
http://www.uscomposites.com/

This post has been edited by ZGear: Sep 14, 2010 - 5:58 PM

[njccmd2002]

yay, i have been working with it and fixed my bumper, but finally ordered some tools and gell yesterday and on the way... yes 2 years, but i like to procrastinate

[njccmd2002]

found this place today, cheaper than what i bought..

http://www.tapplastics.com/