Onto the fiberglassing. For this subaru, we are doing a single 8" into each side panel. Space is tight so we need to maximize, but we want to keep the ability to go back to factory if needed. To start, you want to cover your area. We used blue painters tape cause it will not leave a residue.
You want to do abotu 3 layers and criss cross them so there are no channels or gaps.
Once you have your work area tapped off, lay a lot of news paper or other stuff around. This will help you in case of spillage and runoff wich you will definatly have.
I like to press things flat when i work.
Our finished workspace.
On top of all this, you want to coat your mold area with a layer of wax. This will help release the mold as well as keep it from seeping through the tape. It's best to use "mold release wax" but any sort of carnuba solid wax will work. I'm jsut using a basic one.
You want toget it on nice and thick.
As for the fiberglass, you want to use random strand mat and cut it into roughly 2" pieces. Some longer some smaller. This will help because the smaller size will adhear to the curves better. This stuff has a tendency to straiten out when it's bigger, and that will leave you with gaps/air bubles.
When working with this stuff, you want to reduce contact with bare skin as much as possible. Long pants and a shirt are a must (and it was record settign 90 degree temps today). Gloves are great too and as you can see, i taped my seams closed. This stuff itches like crazy and can cause a rash.
As you can see, we press together the squares and soak them in resin. This stuff has a working time of 10 minutes so work quickly. Also, it is harmfull to your health to breath this stuff in, so work in a well ventilated area, and wear a resporator.
Don't rush things and bight off more than you can chew, you mix to much together and you get this. A wasted brick of hard resin. This basicly meant i had to stop for the night cause i ran outa stuff.
Day two, went to home depot and got much more of this stuff. Cheap paint brushes and mixing buckets are great. This stuff gets everywhere so make sure you don't mind ruining your cloths.
We are making progress.
This is just 1/3rd of all the waste i generated, but the stuff is cheap.
Last minute shopping means last minute stuff. I don't recomend this brand, but i was out of the good stuff and in the middle of a job.
You want to lay this stuff on 2 - 3 layers thick, making sure to get the seams good as they will take the most stress.
And this is all i had left after everything was done.
After curing all day, it's finaly hard enough to remove. Be carfull not to crack it as you pull it out. It will still be very brittle.
And here is the final result. Later i will show you how we fill it and make the proper front for a sub.
by [SMAN] » Mon Apr 07, 2008 1:31 pm 
