fiberglass door panels

[arrozburner]

i want to make fiberglass door panels but dont know where to start...can anyone help me out by telling me what i need and if possible, a list of instructions on how to do this? thanks

[blamethepunx]

well you need to have a base (chicken wire works) or a mold (if your going to make it exactly the same as your stock ones), yu need the fibre glass kit (comes with the resin, hardener and cloths) you need sandpaper, paint, and a mask, (so you dont get high lol) and a well ventilated place to do it

[kings_blend]

hey punx i was thinking of making a fiberglass box during the winter for 12" subs and i was gonna make the frame from wood, and ten use (dont laugh) pantyhose as the base, and then spray tones of fiberglass on it. i saw something like thats some guy made his box like that and it came out good. and then i can prep and paint it up real nice....

[arrozburner]

does anyone have the instructions on how to do this? im planning on getting a door panel from the junk yard to work on and see if i could do this myself...is it hard to do?

[arrozburner]

does anyone have a spare door panel they want to get rid of?

[accordzoom]

yeah ,, ive never researched fiberglass, but im curious as well

[accord driver]

Use fleece instead of pantyhose. It's what most custom installers use.

[arrozburner]

here's what i was wondering, if i were to have the same style as the oem door panels, should i just mold the chicken wire in to that taking into account the holes for the door handle and windows? i was also thinking about doing this to the ceiling and the sliding shade for the sun roof...bu it'll stop at that not like the red cd5 somebody posted on this site...too much fiberglass and too much red

[kings_blend]

Originally posted by accord driver
Use fleece instead of pantyhose. It's what most custom installers use.

Where would I be able to find fleece? and is it thick like the fleece sweaters at old navy or is it as thin as pantyhose???

[arrozburner]

well, i got an extra set of door panels and some chicken wire and i could get the fiberglass mats and resin from home depot. now where do i get sheets of pantyhose? this is my plan, mold the chicken wire and drape the pantyhose or other type of material to hold the first layer of resin and then the first later of fiberglass. is this the right method? should i use pantyhose or something else?

[aero]

yeah, use fleece. Just go to your local fabric store, there will be plenty to choose from.

And yeah, just put the chicken wire frame down, and put the fabric over top. Then dab the fiberglass resin on there w/a short brushed paint brush. Do that until the fabric is soaked(turns dark) When that dries, it will be hard as hell. Then you can sand it, clean it, and apply some layers of fiberglass. I am also going to be doing this soon, or ...maybe not so soon since i wont have time up in college. Looks like a summer plan.

[arrozburner]

after i sand it and clean the fleece, i add a layer of resin and then a layer of fiberglas right? how many layers of fiberglas should i add? im thinking 4?

[rebels]

Fiberglass is a bitch to work with and hard to get to the exact mold you're looking for. Good luck though, hope it works out if you glass your panels.

[aero]

Your going to put down the fleece, then saturate it in the resin.. Wait till that dries, and it will be pretty solid. Then you can sand that down so its mostly smooth if you want to. Then just put the fiberglass on.

The best way i found is to have a piece of cardboard, and put the fiberglass cloth pieces on it. Then dab/brush them so they are covered w/ resin, but not too much. Then put those on the fleece and get them smooth. Make sure there are no air bubbles. You should be able to use 2 layers...3 at most, and it will be fine(you will prolly be able to stand on it) Then just sand that down real good, and fill in any holes w/bondo.

Fiberglass really isnt that hard, only problem i have is i always just use my hands, and say screw the gloves...I finally found some garage floor/engine degreaser that will take the resin off my hands :)

[arrozburner]

thanks for the help aero3685...btw, would the fiberglas mats and resin i find at home depot be good enough to do this? or is there somewhere else i could these materials from?

[aero]

It pretty much should be all the same. The home depot cloth may be thicker since its for bigger projects, so im not sure. But you will prolly want a thinner one, just cuz its obviously got to be better detail. But a local auto store should have everything. And since you sound like you are serious about it, getting the bigger size of everything will help in the long run.

Another thing is to test the resin a first time. Make a small batch, and take note of its color when you are mixing it(either take a picture, or something that is the same shade, or just remember what shade it is of red, and just do a little test area. Then time it to see how long it takes to dry. You usually want 20-30 minutes so you have time to work with it, and use it all so it doesnt go to waste.

The darker/more red it is, the faster it will dry(or the more hadener. The approximate mixing scale should be on the back of the resin, and is based on little to no humidity, and 70 degrees or something like that.

Also, obvious but good to remember is using a cheap paintbrush, since it will harden, and be useless(wal-mart usually has nice cheap ones) A gas mask and well ventilated area is a major plus. Dont do it inside, or you will smell it forever. If you get it on clothes...it 99.9% of the time wont come off, dress accordingly. And simple green or something like that will take it off your skin pretty well if you get it on yourself. Get some cheap rubber gloves since they can also only be used once.

Good luck, and have fun.

[arrozburner]

also, whats the differance between the fiberglass cloth and the chopped strand mat? i saw them online and i was wondering which would be better for my project.?

[aero]

I am not sure, but im guessing the chopped stuff is just cut already and the cloth is just that, a cloth made out of fiberglass that you cut into pieces yourself. (I usually cut mine into pieces of about 1" x 3") If you have ever done paper machee' or whatever that was back in school, its just like that.

[arrozburner]

good thing you said that it was like paper machet...i was just going to use big pieces of fiberglass instead of small ones:rolleyes: im thinking im going to use the chopped one cuz it looks like the king body kits are made of...you could see the strands and the mats look like it is weeved. here is my shopping list...let me know if im missing anything:

chicken wire
fleece
resin
fiberglass sheets
brushes
gloves
mask

i have an extra set of door panels and i already have chicken wire...im going to go buy the fleece at the textile district so i'll have to see how much it goes for. as for the rest, im going to check online and compare prices since im most likely going to buy alot of fiberglass...if everything goes well im going to do all the panels, the roof liner and the sunroof liner. also, when i add he resin to the fleece, will i be able to take the chicken wire off or does it stay on there? in other words, could i be able to use this mold again or is it a one time thing?

[aero]

http://web.njit.edu/~cas1383/proj/main/

I found that, it should help w/any other questions for clarification.

as far as using the mold over... You could try to put a trash bag over the chicken wire then do the fleece, and take that away from the wire. You might have plastic on the back of the fleece then, but you wouldnt really notice since it would be stuck to it, you could just trim the edges.

[arrozburner]

so wait, i chech the site out and your supposed to add the fiberglass to the back? i though that the fiberglass was added on top of the fleece and not the back? so by following the instructions on the guys site, my fiberglass would go over the chicken wire and not the fleece?

[arrozburner]

btw, thanks for the site...very very helpful...now i know i can do this:boink:

[DRAGGEN]

http://board.accordtuner.com/showthread.php?t=6380
a link off of accord tuner

[MRX]

hmmm...now u guys have me interested too!!! :p . If i were to fiberglass all the door panels (4dr) the dash and various other interior places would the fiberglass be lighter than the oem plastic? On top of that i could mold gauge pods into the chicken wire before putting the cloth or whatever on and then resin and so forth right? If this is true then i could just make my own gauge pods out of fiberglass right???

[aero]

Yeah, you can make whatever you want, just takes time and patience.

[arrozburner]

So aero, would i put the fiberglass behind or on top of the fleece?

[aero]

behind... like if you are going to try the trash bag thing, pull the fleece off, then do over the trash bag w/fiberglass. If you dont use the trash bag, and the wire is stuck to the fleece, just fiberglass over the wire. Eithery way, your going to do the inside of the door(what faces the door guts) when ya do it, make sure to get pics...Ive been waiting to do this for quite a few months now, i just never have enough time, so i wanna see what it looks like.

Are you going to be painting them after you are done, or recovering them?

[MRX]

what about weight? Will it be saving a little bit of weight? If i can make a fiberglass interior of any color i want i'll do it. And could i get an estimate on how much the entire interior will cost to do?

preciate guys

[arrozburner]

im going to paint them black:boink: i bought a set of panels for 20 bucks so thats my frame right there...im just going to tape it over with duct tape, put a layer of aluminum or maybe plastic and then lay the fleece over that and use the resin. i'll bypass the chicken wire step and i know the panels will fit just right...but i am going to modify the desing a bit. im going to incorporate a gauge bezel by the driver side door handle and all the rest will probobly look stock...still not sure. i'll get a pick once i do one of the panels and if they look alright, i'll buy a roof liner to do that also. abou the weight, i doubt there will be a noticeable weight differance...maybe a pound or two but i'll see once im done with it and i'll see how much i spent on it also.

[aero]

yeah, I was thinking of stuff to do to them. I really just want the doors to look "newer" like something out of a nice car, but that still goes along w/the cb7. When I do mine, I'm gonna put a nice thick layer of padding, then cover them so they look like they were stock... Im probably going to find some car that has nice window switches/door handles on the inside so i can mold those in instead of the ugly stock stuff. If I ever do finish them, I am thinking about making more for other people, and possibly customizing them. If I have a bit of time/space while Im at college, I will prolly make a mold to just pull the doors out of.

My other big project is I am going to do the same thing to a stock dashboard. I would like to add a gauge pod, and one of the digital compass/thermometer/gas mileage things in there too. Im still trying to find a dashboard for like 10 bucks at a junkyard to do that with.

[arrozburner]

well, i covered one panel with the fleece and put the resin on it and it seemed to come out fine so i covered the rest of the panels with duct tape and fleece and try to do the rest of them this coming weekend.

[kings_blend]

wow this thread is still alive.............

[aero]

Very nice. Cant wait to see pics.

[arrozburner]

i messed up at first cuz i mixed too much resin and hardening solution at one time so it started geling up and hardening too soon:idiots: after that, i just mixed it in small batches and it came out ok...i need to buy more resin cuz that fleece sucks it up like theres no tomorrow

[aero]

yeah, if you wanna do it...i would get a big thing of resin, hardener, and bondo. And of course a good sander.

[arrozburner]

yeah, i heard they sell resin in bulk at a boat shop but i dont know where one is...home depot sells a gallon for $24!! im goign to shop around this week and have aeverything ready for this weekend to fiberglass them all up...hopefully it works out

[mickey_601]

see after reading this ima go and try to mount 6.5 car door speakers in the front and rear doors after i mess up a couple of times l'll finally get it. great info though

[aero]

arroz... you ever start them?
I have 2 extra rear door panels that I will end up working on, but it will be a while. I was kinda thinking about doing a whole set to sell on ebay. But post up pics if you have started.

[arrozburner]

I have the fleece part done and the driver door panel with the gauge came out looking good too...i just havent done much lately cuz ive been really sick these past 2 weeks but i think theyre coming out good...i'll probobly start up on them this weekend and do atleast one of them in fiberglass...i'll try to take pics and post them up but they are alot lighter than the stock panels so far...i would guess that all 4 fiberglass panels will come out weighing about the same as 1 of the stock panels...but thats just a guess.

[akrodha]

www.the12volt.com

[don19]

SIGN UP HERE........... http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/glassmanscustomforum/

if u want to learn fiberglassing.

[arrozburner]

hey aero...do i really need the fleece part or will 2 layers of fiberglass do?

[ACCORDinglynice]

PANELS U GUYZ NEED PANELS DONE SEND ME UR PANELS MY BOY CAN DO IT IM TELL U THIS ITS A PAIN IN THE ASS TO DO IF U DONT KNOW WHAT U DOING DONT EVEN OTHER AND IF U DO GET IT RIGHT U NEED TO SAND IT RIGHT THATS WHERE SOMEONE FROM A BODY SHOP COMES IN TO SAND IT CAUSE THEY CAN FEEL THE WAVES

[arrozburner]

let me ask what most people will ask...how much?

[akrodha]

Originally posted by arrozburner
hey aero...do i really need the fleece part or will 2 layers of fiberglass do?

Fleece works better and results in a better product. You can form it to irregularities better than fiberglass matting. I'm tellin' ya, go to www.the12volt.com A forum there where you can ask lotso questions and find out losta answers.