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Remember......I'm a Rookie at fiberglass work...don't use my "method"......LOL!
I actually did more panel-making this morning (after getting the family car inspected/tires balanced).......
I bought one of those fluorescent light diffuser panels to use as a surface to make the large cargo floor extension 36" wide by 15" deep/then used a marker to lay out the pattern.......
The same pattern was drawn on the fiberglass cloth........
I put a full size piece of cloth as the base layer/then used four edge-remnants of cloth to lay the next layer/alternating layers of full size and remnant cloth and coating the entire area with resin between layers......finally I added the full size 4th layer to finish the thickness....the panel isn't quite as thick as the original trunk floor because I used woven cloth for more support........Because of the extra floor length I will also add metal support braces under/across the floor.......
I'll give it an hour to firm-up......then trim the edges of all three pieces to rough-size for fitting onto the body.
NOTICE: DO NOT USE FLUORESCENT LIGHT PANELS....THEY DO NOT LET GO OF THE CURED FIBERGLASS!
get a can of johnsons paste wax from home depot, lowes, etc. 3 or 4 coats and fiberglass doesn't even stick to fiberglass...but first take a wood chisel and hammer and try separating them...
Interesting because you're a regular guy trying to make your Vette better on a regular guy budget while also dealing with the curve ***** life sometimes throws at you (and the rest of us too). I'm also curious about how your mods go because I have a `76 that is a tad too long at both ends.
That's one of my favourite quotes Derek. Don't often run across somebody who knows what it means
Interesting because you're a regular guy trying to make your Vette better on a regular guy budget while also dealing with the curve ***** life sometimes throws at you (and the rest of us too). I'm also curious about how your mods go because I have a `76 that is a tad too long at both ends.
That's one of my favourite quotes Derek. Don't often run across somebody who knows what it means
You summed up the budget/curve ball part perfectly....I just hit the $13,000 mark according to the credit card bill!
I don't know what the quote means.....but I do know that I had the same problem, so I cut what I thought was the correct amount off the other end-----now THIS end is too short!
I did round up all the fiberglass supplies, including 6 bags of mulch.
How did THAT get on the list.....it's not even my handwriting!
get a can of johnsons paste wax from home depot, lowes, etc. 3 or 4 coats and fiberglass doesn't even stick to fiberglass...but first take a wood chisel and hammer and try separating them...
I'm going with your storage bin lid advice/it will flex with no problem to fit the fender contour and the cured panels pop off it with no problem
Since it's raining 1/2" per hour, no fiberglassing will be done by this rookie........but I did lots of fitting of panels.
derekderek will get a kick out of the experimental "nose insert" that he made/I will notch the '76 front end to fit the insert........you can see how much the fiberglass "straightened out" during shipment..................
I used painter's tape to gradually pull the piece against the back of the bumper.....................
The rear view of the insert...................
I will definitely have to "mount" the front bumper directly to the fiberglass insert so it will be the exact shape of the bumper. Then I can fiberglass it to the car body.
Now I need to go back to the rear of the car and fit the trunk/cargo panels!
Last edited by doorgunner; Oct 24, 2015 at 04:34 PM.
Looks like a ton of rain will be coming your way. May be another day before glassing. It all looks good. Anxious to see the nose and rear come together.
ZIO
Looks like a ton of rain will be coming your way. May be another day before glassing. It all looks good. Anxious to see the nose and rear come together.
ZIO
Same here. I read about you wanting to get your engine running to make things easier with all the moving around.
That's the only thing STILL working on my car after dropping the tank last week. I'm going to see how many more times I can move it onto the driveway before the fuel lines and carb run out of gas
Hey DG , i told ya i had big surprise for my white car in the garage ( besides more parts ) ...hes got a new garage mate ...lol
NOW you're not playing fair! "Good thing your garage doesn't have four doors!"
Unnnnnnnnless I wake up early tomorrow......I'm taking the day off....need to let the right shoulder rest for a day....it spent too much time this week/weak holding a heat gun and a gasket scraper above its owner's head!
Over.......and out.
Last edited by doorgunner; Oct 25, 2015 at 10:55 AM.
Doorgunner, I have been watching this thread with interest and complete awe! Thanks for showing that glassing and bodywork can be done by a "rookie" (not that I'm gonna try it anytime soon... )
Anyway, in the above picture, I noticed that the outside driver's panel clearly says inside passenger... They may be close enough in shape/size not to matter, but thought I'd mention it in case it does.
Doorgunner, I have been watching this thread with interest and complete awe! Thanks for showing that glassing and bodywork can be done by a "rookie" (not that I'm gonna try it anytime soon... )
Anyway, in the above picture, I noticed that the outside driver's panel clearly says inside passenger... They may be close enough in shape/size not to matter, but thought I'd mention it in case it does.
Keep up the great work!
Danno [/QUOTE]
The experts are wincing at my abilities (grand-daughter's name/etc.) on the panels/I can't blame them.....but it's $100 worth of materials in order to make the 3 panels thick enough/I'll live with the amateur work...LOL!
Thanks to you and everyone else for keeping an eye on my work and letting me know about my oversights
Even though the panels are identical (how THAT happened with a jigsaw--I have no idea....only God knows) I will put them in order when I bond them together. It's been raining nearly non-stop because of the Pacific Ocean Hurricane, so I'll move to the front of the car tomorrow and cut/fit the nose-bumper fiberglass insert.
I said the same thing...."I'll NEVER attempt fiberglass work!" But, there are enough things to correct that I may as well give it a try (I'm making sure to do the "unseen" work first though!)
Last edited by doorgunner; Oct 25, 2015 at 05:29 PM.
Tony, where is the custom made gas tank going to go? In place of the spare tire carrier? Lou.
It's a trade-off. You're right. The 7" deep tank will go under the cargo/trunk floor from frame rail to frame rail/from the differential crossmember to within an inch of the rear of the frame.
I have a doughnut spare (that I will find a place for).
It's not ideal....but as I have said...If the car would have been just 50% original, I would not have made a single modification.....I have to stay within the $20,000 budget/I just couldn't put another $10,000 into it in order to reach 90% originality.
Designer Imagines A Corvette That Looks More Like a Corvette Than the Corvette
Slideshow: A Jaguar designer's personal project imagines what a modern front-engined Corvette might look like if Chevrolet revisited the golden age of the Stingray.
because you're a regular guy trying to make your Vette better on a regular guy budget while also dealing with the curve ***** life sometimes throws at you (and the rest of us too). I'm also curious about how your mods go because I have a `76 that is a tad too long at both ends. 
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