These are the steps I took:
This is by no means a How To just what I did and some suggestions
1: Figure out what design I wanted and take measurements
2: Build the wood frame for the box out of 3/4" MDF (Test fit after this is constructed)
3: Ideally I wanted to wrap it in fleece cloth but the fabric store I went to didn't have any available so I got just a white sheet instead. The fleece would be much easier b/c it stretches more and would be easier to form the curves I was looking for.
4: After it was wrapped I started on the fiberglassing, this is where the patience comes in. If you spend some time here it will save you a lot of frustration later on. Assuming you are doing your fiberglassing with the resin and fiberglass seperate, cut out small workable strips and only mix a small amount of resin at a time b/c it will start to gel and become very difficut to use. I put down one layer of fiberglass and let it dry/harden overnight then continued with about 4 more layers the next day. Be sure you don't leave any bubbles b/c once you start to sand they will become holes that will have to be filled.
5: B/c my initial fiberglassing was not that great I took a grinder to the box to get it as smooth as possible. (50 grit was not having a very good effect)
6: After the box was relatively smooth I applied bondo to fill in the irregularites. This is where I ran into another problem, I decided that I could mix a lot and apply it very quickly...bad idea. It started to harden while I was applying it and got applied in chunks that took a lot of time to sand out. This also caused air bubbles to form in the bondo that appeared during sanding.
7: After a couple of hours of sanding, filling, sanding, filling, sanding more I finally got it where I wanted it and sprayed a layer of primer. This is where a lot more blemishes appeared.
8: I've applied some more bondo to the areas that needed filling and next week I will sand it all down smooth, apply another 1-2 layers of primer then the gloss black goes on.
I can't stress the importance of taking your time. I have very little patience and it came back to bite me in the ass.
Hope this helps anyone thinking of tackling something like this. If you have any questions feel free to PM me or post. Also if you have any more advice post it up.
More pics will go up next week.
TStar said:
indeed. fibreglass is not only a PITA to work with, it's a huge risk for your health if you don't obeye the most basic safety at work instructions.
Good Point and good advice. Make sure you wear proper breathing protection. Not just a one of those white dust masks but something with a filter on it. You can get them relatively cheap at home improvement stores. Also be sure to work in a very well ventilated room or outdoors. I was lucky enough to have access to a ventilated paint room when I was doing the work.
Eye protection is also a must, fiberglass in the eye = bad/painful situation
Wear old clothes (pants and long sleeved shirt) with gloves...fiberglass will get everywhere
All this is important while applying the fiberglass and then again while you are sanding it
