how to: make a factory bezel - Page 8

nsgrossman · 04-05-2008, 09:10 AM

one of the best tutorials I've ever read!

Thanks man and nice work!

-Nate

turbocad6 · 04-08-2008, 12:47 AM

thanks, hope it helped some guys...

this mesh is a really nice technique, it's like fiberglass in the respect that the end result is much stronger than either component by itself. if you force it through the mesh it works like resin soaking through mat...

these new liliput bezels really suck for fabrication... there like a white clear plastic really... not very compatable with anything like most dash bezels. one thing that causes a lot of adhesion problems is not sanding well enough, or rather,not rough enough... you don't want some wimpy 120 or 180 sanding here on the larger areas to grab, rough it up good & deep, 40 grit maximum, this increases the effective surface area many times over & goes a long way in helping adheision... the areas that I don't want it to stick too I don't sand...

turbocad6 · 04-08-2008, 01:05 AM

rough cut it with 40 grit but then let it get hard to sand closer... if you sand too much before it really cures then it just peels off, when it fully cures it has better bite. I used an exacto knife to remove the tape or I could have peeled the whole thing apart at this stage of it being fresh & not fully cured.

Nermin · 04-09-2008, 03:39 PM

dude, you amaze everybody everytime you post/try something new - I take my hat to you for awesomness of your work and will to teach everyone on the forum

I'm waiting for Dynatron 660 to arrive and I cant wait to try some of your work myself, thanks again and keep doing excellent work

turbocad6 · 04-10-2008, 12:22 AM

thanks

ok, this is after curing 48 hours & then shaping. anything that is loose or not 100% adhesion should be removed. there are 2 types of adhesion in fabrication, one is structural & the other is finish. this structural stage has to be really strong, I can twist this pretty hard at this stage & everything is bonded very well. you can see the left side & lower part of the screen is sanded all the way to the aluminum mesh... the mesh itself is the bond between the 2 & it is strong.

once the structural is good then comes finish coat. of course you do want a good bond with finish coat too, but if the structures not solid then the finish is useless, if you have anything peeling or not strong bond then you have to remove it & fix it & not just try to cover it up with another layer... that will lead to cracks & failures later on.

these pictures are the first 1 coat, cured &then shaped, the white plastic around the screen opening is the Lilli bezel. it is very hard to bond too yet this thing is bonded very strong & solid, this mesh is nice to work with...

KOoLkOnDuCt · 04-29-2008, 04:13 PM

Hi Ya, what did you use to seal the space between the actual screen and the bezel ?? what brand of screen did you use ? Is the carputer fabricated too ??? Im thinking about installing a lilliput monitor but Im not sure if I should expense myself and buy a complete computer or just build one

turbocad6 · 04-30-2008, 10:25 PM

ok, this has been very slow going as I've had several delays on my end & I apologize to the guy I'm building this for. here are the next steps in this fabrication. in order to get a perfect opening for the DVD drive I tape up the face of the drive, then insert it with about 7mm protruding & then fill all around the drive. the way this is taped for a clean release is, the face of the drive gets taped flush, no wrapping of the tape around the face. the edges of the drive face need to be done with just a thin sliver of tape separately so the face can be released when the dynatron dries.... this thin sliver of tape will remain in the bezel as it is released, & then it can be removed easily. also notice that the little felt disc wiper is removed to be reinstalled after, & the slot is shimmed to retain the shape of the face before it is taped... if you try to do this without shimming the opening won't be square as there is no support in the center of the slot otherwise...

I do the opening in 3 stages here, fill around a 3rd of the way around the drive(picture shows first fill), let it set & then wiggle the face loose slightly, repeat another 3rd, release it by wiggling it loose again, then finish the last part... once it's all done the drive is slid out... if you tried to do the whole opening in one shot it can be difficult to release the drive, better to do it in several shots...

then the rest is all filled & left to set up well... normally I'll do a rough cut when the filler is just setting & still softer & easier to cut, but with problem plastics like this it's better to let it get rock hard & fully set before attempting to sand it down for better adhesion .... a few days should do it, I let this one sit a little over a week before sanding it all down like this.... I got 0 peel back & good adhesion all around at this point, just need a few minor filling & finish it off... I'll update when it's done, but here are some shots of this stage...

turbocad6 · 04-30-2008, 10:29 PM

.... last picture in this set is after the dynatron is dry & retestfitting the drive in the opening... I left it this rough till it fully cured...

turbocad6 · 04-30-2008, 10:33 PM

ok, these pictures are after fully cured & sanded...

turbocad6 · 04-30-2008, 10:35 PM

last for now...

steelbluesleepr · 05-08-2008, 04:43 AM

wow, you make it seem so easy, lol! i really want to try this now, i jaut have to wait a week before i can go home for the summer and work on my car.

Nermin · 05-13-2008, 09:40 PM

turbo - I got the Dynatron 660 and I'm in process of sanding corners off, it looks awesome and it seems pretty easy - thanks for all your advices

turbocad6 · 05-13-2008, 11:46 PM

hey thanks, it's nice to know it helps someone

latest shots of this bezel... I used the same dynatron to fill the larger pits & low spots, sanded again then coated with bumper primer, a high build flexible primer made by sem that sticks very well to plastic. then sanded & coated again with another high build primer. blocking & shaping in between each step.

a few shots...

turbocad6 · 05-13-2008, 11:49 PM

and...

turbocad6 · 05-13-2008, 11:59 PM

after the bumper primer I'm using an aerosol primer that is really good stuff. it's expensive & you may have to get it from a specialty paint supplier, but as far as spraying primer, the pro stuff is just so much better than what your going to get in a hardware or auto parts store. sprays like this are equivalent to pro materials sold in quarts & gallons, but easier for a home user/hobbyist to use...