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I started glassing my spare tire compartment for the bottom of my box. I went to home depot, but i was told that i was using the wrong fiberglass materials. I was told to buy the stuff that you lay the sheet down and paint it on? I saw that tight a$$ box built in here, and the fiberglass is black? The stuff i have is brown. Is there any difference between the stuff i am using and what you people are using? Also where can i get it for a reasonable price? I have done one layer and it already cost 56 dollars.
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Posts: 797 | From: npr, fl, usa | Registered: Dec 2000
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What materials did you use? You sure it was fiberglass?
$20 retail for a gallon can of resin plus $5 for a yard of cloth.. does not compute man.. =)
On average yer gonna spend $20-$25 per gallon on the resin, and the cloth reinforcement should be around $5-$7 per linear yard.
A good way to figure out how much resin you need for the amount of cloth you have is that you should use the same weight of resin as the weight of cloth you have. For example, if a gallon of resin weighs 10 pounds (dont quote me on that weight, last time I bought resin it came in a 55 gallon drum) it is enough resin to wet 10 pounds of cloth, no matter what the thickness is.. makes it a 50/50 ratio.
As far as the resin goes, just be sure you are using polyester fiberglass resin, doesnt matter what color. There are different colored resins that are colored to denote the grade of the resin, but the brown stuff is fine for car audio use. Whoever had the black resin had it because they put a black pigment in the resin. There are pigments designed to color the resins, if that floats your boat, go for it. =) Personally, I feel it's a waste of time and money to pigment the resin when the finished part is gonna get covered with primer and paint anyways. =)
------------------ Mike Pipes Digital Illusion Custom Graphics
R POT Designs - Carbon Fiber Watercraft Performance Products
Posts: 431 | From: Lake Havasu, AZ | Registered: Jun 2000
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posted
Yep, i bought a gallon of bondo fiberglass at 36 dollars an extra small bottle of mek hardner/activator, And two 5sqare yards of fiberglass mat at ~8 per bundle, and a tube of liquid nails approx ~3 bucks. Total bill at home depot was 56 bucks. Where do you get your supplies at?
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Posts: 797 | From: npr, fl, usa | Registered: Dec 2000
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posted
cbrman, I usually get my supply orders piggy-backed onto a local carbon fiber shop's orders. I work at the shop on occassion for fun.
I know of a place in west palm beach FLA you can order cloths from. You can order resins there too but keep in mind there are Hazmat fees for shipping the resins. The company is US Composites Inc and their site is http://www.shopmaninc.com They have a ton of stuff and pretty good prices too.
If you plan on doing alot of fiberglass work I would not buy from select products because their prices are just too high. On some items they are triple the cost you can get elsewhere.
------------------ Mike Pipes Digital Illusion Custom Graphics
R POT Designs - Carbon Fiber Watercraft Performance Products
Posts: 431 | From: Lake Havasu, AZ | Registered: Jun 2000
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posted
walmart, pepboys, home depot. comes in a can and u gotta mix it kinda fun get some dishwashing gloves though... fiberglas resin + hair follacles on hands= itchies
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Yeah don't waste your money at Home Depot. They are a bit overpriced compared to a boat shop, fiberglass specialty shop, or online. And it's the matts and cloths where they get you. The place where I get my 1.5 oz matt charges around $3.25/linearyard. The stuff @ Home Depot is 3/4 oz and is more expensive. For resin, I pay $18/gallon and it's a higher grade than the Bondo brand. The Bondo brand is ok for car audio, but I have a gallon I purchased in June and it's still fresh. I'm not sure if you could keep resin from Home Depot for that long without 1/2 of it starting to gel up.
But for you, being in Florida there's gott be TONS of boat shops. They're sure to have what you'll need and @ a lower cost.
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There is also www.Fibreglast.com it looks to be a little more expensive than US Composites but just an option. Then again I'm not sure they charge you for Hasmat fees at Fibreglast so it still may be worth looking into.
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Posts: 121 | From: Streator, IL | Registered: Jun 2000
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