Fiberglass help. I suck at this.

MAZDABOY · 07-27-2008, 12:04 PM

So I'm making an attempt at fiberglass and so far nothing is going right.
I have a 97 eclipse. I'm trying to cover my foglights, so I took out the bezel and put fiberglass over it. Did a few layers and for some reason the fiberglass just popped off the bezel.
I tried it again and this time heated up the plastic and still no luck.

Now I'm trying to make a-pillar gauge pod that holds 4 gauges. I have an a-pillar that holds 2 and bought a universal one to go on it. I put 2 screws into it and fiberglassed around it. Stupid thing just popped right off.
Now I used a hot glue gun, then put fiberglass, then tried to do fabric over it. No matter how I tried I could not get the fabic to lay 100% flat, I got a lot of air bubbles.
Some of the fiberglass pulled off, but it seems pretty secure now. I started to sand it. It felt smooth so I did a light coat of primer to make all the imperfections stand out. I sanded some more, and now I'm going to get some type of filler to smooth it all out. Should I use a bondo with flex? A straight bondo? Bondo,flex and fiberglass?
What should I use?
And why does the fiberglass keep popping off?
If this one doesn't come out good, I may see if I can just get someone to do it for me. I've tried over and over again, and I must be doing something wrong.

Nexson · 07-27-2008, 01:37 PM

Fiberglass "pops" off because fiberglass does not adhere to plastic. It has to roughed alot. There is a whole process I follow to make it work.

I can finish it the correct way if you like, but you have to pay

v8 scimitar · 07-27-2008, 03:42 PM

Use epoxy resin and it will stick

Nexson · 07-27-2008, 04:11 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by v8 scimitar

Use epoxy resin and it will stick

Even so it needs to be roughed up still

MAZDABOY · 07-27-2008, 05:14 PM

Ok, so this is where I'm at now. I started over again. I got some plastic epoxy and used that to hold it to the pillar.
So far so good on that. I then got some filler (bondo), mixed that and a hardner, let it dry and started to sand it. Geez it's a lot of sanding and it's not coming out as perfect as I would like it to.
I used the bondo around the edges, do I need to cover the entire thing in bondo, will that be easier?
Nexon, I may be contacting you shortly if I can't get this right.

Nexson · 07-27-2008, 05:32 PM

It is jsut hard to explain if you have no pictures.

Do you stretch fleece, how many layers of fiberglass mat did you add?

Did you sand down the fiberglass first to get it somewhat even?

MAZDABOY · 07-27-2008, 07:00 PM

Well that was before. Now I used the bondo filler and expoy to hold it in place.
I'm sanding with a 80grit brick and an electric sander, then moved up to a dremel.
I put on a thin coat of paint to find all the imperfections.
How should I continue sanding? By hand, dremel, electric sander?

Nexson · 07-27-2008, 08:19 PM

By hand is the best way to sand

do 80-120-22o then prime to find imperfections, then keep continuing the 220-prime stage until perfect, then 400 wetsand primer

MAZDABOY · 07-27-2008, 09:27 PM

Well I found a spot that had a deep goudge, so I put more filler over it. Doing it by hand now.
Am I looking at a few hours of straight sanding? Any tips? I'll try to get some pics up tomorrow.

Nexson · 07-27-2008, 09:46 PM

sanding can take about 3-4 days. I have spent days sending just small projects.

Change sand paper often

MAZDABOY · 07-28-2008, 10:20 AM

Here are some pics I took last night:

Nexson · 07-28-2008, 11:06 AM

Its not bad, but it needs alot of sanding. Seeing how rough it is, I would used 36 grit in some places just to get the general shape.

MAZDABOY · 07-28-2008, 11:22 AM

Is there an easier way to put it on smooth?
Should I put another layer on it then start sanding? I just don't want to sand one spot too far then have to start over again.

Nexson · 07-28-2008, 11:57 AM

Since it is shapped very tightly, i use my finger to put it on, then sand it off, prime it to see how evenly it looks and then go from there

MAZDABOY · 07-29-2008, 10:45 AM

I got some sandpaper last night and went to town, wow this is going to take a while and you burn through sandpaper so quickly.
Nexon, I have a question. Someone told me to get an IR 90* angle grinder for my air compressor to help speed up the process.
Have you used one of these on this type of project, does it help?

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