seabreeze landyacht construction section, or maybe come up to Kal for the weekend when we make wedgetails new speedpod
Sorry Paul- its not landyacht stuff- but same principals I suppose. I need to make a set of CJ3a or CJ3b jeep "flat fenders", and one of 2 versions of bonnet and grill.
Cant get them locally- and mine are too rusted for my metalwork skills to handle.
I can bog up the rusty bits good enough to take moulds off them- but have never done much more than brush resin onto old furry windsurfer masts.
I was hoping for a local night school class or similar- but not sure where to go.
Tried the polytech west website but no luck.
Stephen.
it is not hard - drop into Fibreglass and Resin Sales in Welshpool and they will show you mould release waxes etc and explain the process of making a mould and then making a part from it.
If you have the bogged and smoothed original panels then its just the same as doing a landyacht seathow about putting up a photo of the smallest,simplest panel and the "fibreglass enthusiasts" amongst us could discuss it step by step
Beware it can be like using silicon, when you finish go to the furthest point from where you have been working and start cleaning up...
It doesnt have to expensive car bog , you can use cheaper builders bog , or even gyprockbasecoat , followed by a thin layer of bog.
you could even opt for a bog made from talcand polyester resin. . a 500gm or 1kg bagof fumed silica is cheap and makes a lifetime of bog.
you will need to sand it back to a 1200grit finish before you start waxing
after you've got a bogged up smoothed / finished panel / part , give the panel a good spray of auto paint primer - then apply two rub coats of wax formula (leave overnight each coat of wax).... then with the mould release gel - best to put it into an old spraygun for application , this way it goes on evenly and doesn't leave "lines" like a paintbrush would... otherwise you will have ridges when you 'pop" the moulded panel.
When you come to applying initial resin layer on top of wax & release gel - put two good coats on (leave 1st coat overnight to cure) before placing matting on.
Get yourself a brass resin roller (bunnings have them) tip is to keep rolling the resin into the matting until it goes opaque (it starts off white same colour as the matting) AND keep rolling to get rid of all air bubbling which can occur.
For separating new panel from mould - get a plastic plaster spatula and gently prise somewhere then get your air compressor with a air nozzle and spray jets of air in the area around that - it should crack it apart for you easier mate.
Get back to me if you need more info - glad to help if I can Steve
*** get a tin of Acetone for clean up of resin from tools & self!
I suppose this is where it gets interesting with the different techniques.
I buff wax coats as soon as they dry otherwise they are relly hard to get off.
the mould release goes on with a chux ,that way you dont end with runs and drips from putting a thin liquid in a spray gun.
as you are making a mold, i would recommend the first coat being white gelcoat.
this gives a bubble free layer that can be sanded,buffed and reworked to extend the life of the mold.
have athink about how complex your shape is and will you need to pull it out in a number of pieces.
maybe beef up the mold with some coremat and or timber strips to make sure itdoesnt twist or crack/flex with use.
I dont like leavig layers to cure overnight as ive had some woeful results when doing it. if your only making molds or panels for a car panel it should be easy to do it in one hit.
youve only got as far as preping a mold sn !!!!!! and we all dont agree
^^^
Absolutely yes , what he will get is good food for thought and a chance to get something together from all the tips & experience (if that is a good description)
just takes a bit of learning , not that hard really.
You make some valid points regarding the white gel coat , and the wax / release gel too by the way - and the ribbing / re-inforcing of the mould too.
remeber too that the pva release is water soluble so opening an edge and running water in the gap will dissolve it and make life easier.
i have hose fittings on my molds that you plug the hose on to, turn on the tap and sit back have a beer and let it pop
in theory
