door panel reinforcement and repair.
07-02-11, 06:33 PM
#16
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i test fitted it as best as i could with the door handle installed and in the way. but it seems ok. i was initially going to inlay it more but at this point my panels have been out for a month already so i guess im starting to rush.lol. but it seems like it wont be a problem.
07-04-11, 01:59 PM
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i wanted to hold out for more pics but since some one replied i figured i would update.
not bad for a bloody newb ehh.... seems to be going well lots more glassing,griding,sanding,body filler to go but it feels good to reach the light at the end of the tunnel. stay tuned.
not bad for a bloody newb ehh.... seems to be going well lots more glassing,griding,sanding,body filler to go but it feels good to reach the light at the end of the tunnel. stay tuned.
07-04-11, 03:08 PM
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i did a couple layers of glass on top to stiffen it. then i will grind the edges of the t shirt back and scab over to the plastic to create a solid bond on the top layer. once the pod is all bonded to the panel solid i will then separate the panels again flip them over remove the dowel rod braces and build glass layers on the inside for thickness. one thing to note where i had a small problem. i used a high quality spray adhesive to glue the t shirt in place before the resin. it glued very strong however when i applied the resin it reacted to the glue and it wanted to come unglued in certain areas. it wasnt too bad and i got away with it but next time i will glue the materiel way beyond where the seam will be and not glass over that part. then just trim away the excess and scab glass over to make the bond. lesson learned
much more to come and soon we will see if i am any good at laying down vinyl
much more to come and soon we will see if i am any good at laying down vinyl
Last edited by bleedspeed; 07-04-11 at 03:12 PM.
07-05-11, 08:51 AM
#23
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here is the first piece after i trim back the edge of the t shirt then cleaned up and sanded the plastic. then i scabbed over from the pod to the plastic. this will create a solid bond. once it is secure and i am confident i can separate the pocket from the back half of the panel i can then flip it over and build from the inside. end result should be rock solid. it is getting heavy. i would say close to ten pounds.
07-05-11, 04:42 PM
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another days work on the project gone. i initially did about 2 layers of glass on top and today after trim the edges and scabbing i did 2 more. now they are pretty stiff and just about ready to be separated from the back half of the panel. you can see here when i did the scabbing i went onto the plastic about 2 inches. this should ensure the pods will never break away from the plastic.
07-05-11, 08:03 PM
#25
I don't know much about creating fiber glass enclosures but is it pretty tough like that, mixed to the plastic? 'Cause judging from the pics the fiber glass part is gonna crack it's way off the plastic part if you put any kind of pressure on it..? Are you a pro at this? I can't wait for the final product since as I've mentioned I have future plans of doing this also.. I hope you decide on wrapping this still with the leather instead of making it a glossy painted door panel that only looks good on show cars..
07-05-11, 09:01 PM
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glass will bond to plastic pretty good as long as the surface is prepped good. first you have to remove any oils,glue ect with a solvent. then it needs to be sanded to a rough surface. i sand it with a 60 grit on an orbital sander. i am covering them in vinyl. beige on the top padded part and black on the bottom half. am i a pro? no not at all. but am i good enough for my projects? yes. i have built 5 glass sub enclosures and a pair of kick pods. so still a novice but there really aint much to it. once you have done a few projects you pretty much can make anything out of glass. this is my first time bonding glass to a plastic door panel but i am confident they will hold up. i didnt just go in blind on this i have seen it done a lot. in person from working in an audio shop. also keep in mind that what you see on the front is not the only bonding point. it will be bonded on the inside of the pod very thoroughly.
07-05-11, 09:38 PM
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ahh one thing i almost forgot in my haste to get this done and thankyou kingphillip for reminding me. when it comes to bonding glass to plastic there are a few ways to do it. there are plastic epoxys that can be layed down under the glass mat. and the method that is easy and cheap which i still must do to these panels. geeze i could have screwed up! any how the trick is this all along the seam drill small holes then when you lay down some mat the resin will drip through the holes creating an anchor. the idea is to get the resin to bond to the mat on both sides of the plastic. you can usually get away with just a rough sanding but this is the definite secure method. i will post up pics of it tomorrow.
07-06-11, 09:38 AM
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allright so i got the first panel separated from the rear half.
i then drilled a bunch of holes along the seam.
this may be hard to see but i stuff mat all along the seam underneath the holes. so when i drip resin through the holes from the top side it drains down into the mat.then i lay more glass on top so that it basically creates rivits.
hopefully they will never separate. as far as the body filler i will use first a plastic adhesion promoter then primer on top of the glass and plastic. the body filler should stick to the primer pretty good. then a layer of glass cloth on top of the body filler to ensure it does not crack or chip.
i then drilled a bunch of holes along the seam.
this may be hard to see but i stuff mat all along the seam underneath the holes. so when i drip resin through the holes from the top side it drains down into the mat.then i lay more glass on top so that it basically creates rivits.
hopefully they will never separate. as far as the body filler i will use first a plastic adhesion promoter then primer on top of the glass and plastic. the body filler should stick to the primer pretty good. then a layer of glass cloth on top of the body filler to ensure it does not crack or chip.