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Posted 9/15/2020 11:16:14 AM |
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Supreme Being
Last Login: 2/1/2024 7:08:20 PM
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Started repair work on the mold today. Fiberglass is pretty strong so I use a grinder to remove any major anomalies. The grinder with an 80 grit disk cuts through it like warm butter so must be careful. There is some waviness in some of the panels. Nature of using foam for a base mold I guess. I used an orbital sander with 40 grit paper for this. I will follow up with progressively softer paper and wind up with a polisher.
The biggest problem is the decorative lines. Some of them didn't come out well. I need a way to make them all equal. I tried making a sanding jig out of a block of wood but it didn't work to well. Might work better if I make it out of aluminum.
Any ideas?
Here's an example of a piece that has the grinder and 40 grit paper used on it.
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Posted 9/15/2020 2:32:07 PM |
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Has NO LIFE!!
Last Login: 12/4/2023 11:08:55 PM
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sly
"The biggest problem is the decorative lines. Some of them didn't come out well. I need a way to make them all equal. I tried making a sanding jig out of a block of wood but it didn't work to well. Might work better if I make it out of aluminum.
Any ideas?"
How about gluing, riveting, and/or screwing square plastic, rubber, or aluminum (square tubing or solid stock) to the inside of the mold.
This should allow you to mold in the decorative lines. My preference would be plastic or rubber.
You can buy square rubber or plastic molding for window glazing with an adhesive peel and stick backing.
If you need to curve the plastic/rubber moldings you can use an electric heat gun.
For aluminum, a propane/Mapp gas torch. vertigo
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Posted 9/15/2020 4:15:51 PM |
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Supreme Being
Last Login: 2/1/2024 7:08:20 PM
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Good idea!! I'm going to look into it to see what I cam find. Thanks buddy.
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Posted 9/15/2020 7:27:16 PM |
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Has NO LIFE!!
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Been thinking a little more on this problem.
You could also mill the panel divider lines, inside and outside from ridge plastic panels on your CNC machine and attach these to the molds.
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Posted 9/16/2020 2:56:11 PM |
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Junior Member
Last Login: 10/18/2023 12:03:11 PM
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Looking good!!
Regarding the detail problem you're having with the lines....personally I wouldn't stress about it at this stage. Sure, sand the molds as smooth as you can, after all it's less work after you have the pulls...but that's just it. I'd be sure to build the areas that are missing some of the lines with a little more gel coat in my castings and then once out just router or tool them into the car part pulls themselves. That way you can also work in real perspective instead of inside out which you'll always have trouble with depth and perspective angles being the same from left to right.
Either way, however you handle it I'm sure you'll nail it bud.
David
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Posted 9/17/2020 3:39:13 PM |
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Supreme Being
Last Login: 2/1/2024 7:08:20 PM
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Thanks for all the advice on the lines. I'm working on it.
Finished all grinding today and went over everything with 40 grit paper. The best section is the large front half. That came out very well. I wonder if it was because I used body putty on most of that, although the main cabin part that I did totally with drywall mud came out not too bad as well. the bottom parts seem to need the most repair work.
Here's today's pic. Main cabin sections after first rough sanding.
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Posted 9/24/2020 10:04:38 AM |
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Supreme Being
Last Login: 2/1/2024 7:08:20 PM
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Progress report:
I have spent the last week putting a very thin coating of Evercoat Easysand on all the panels. This stuff is specifically made to fill pinholes and small bubbles in fiberglass and body putty. Works great but is super expensive. Also have leveled out any low spots. Here's a picture of the rear engine cover completed and polished. You can see the repairs but if you feel it, it's as smooth as glass.
Here's a close up of the pinholes, and there are a lot!
Also, I have been working on what to do about the decorative lines. There is a small diameter pvc pipe that would be perfect if cut in half, but cutting it in have cleanly has bee quite impossible. Need a different blade for the table saw perhaps.
There is a weather stripping that would work. I would have to grind off all the lines and replace them with this weather stripping. Actually about 75% of the lines are perfect as molded imo. 15% are damaged and 10% didn't come out. All would have to be removed for either of the above applications to work and have everything look the same. I hate to remove the 75% that are nicely molded in. There is one more idea I have to look into. I'll report on that when I've tried it.
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Posted 9/24/2020 10:25:23 AM |
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Has NO LIFE!!
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hey sly,
Looking great.
If I had few lines to do I would probably use a straight edge, French curve, and/or templates held in place with two sided tape.
Then I would use the Dremel routing attachment on my Dremel tool to do the cutting.
On projects in the past that I needed to cut small diameter round tubing in half for I used a scroll saw with a clamped on piece of thin plywood with a straight edge rip fence and a nail the diameter of the saw kerf. The nail keeps the tubing from rotating and the rip fence keeps it cutting straight. vertigo
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Posted 9/29/2020 8:23:02 AM |
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Supreme Being
Last Login: 2/1/2024 7:08:20 PM
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Finally came up with an idea on how to make the lines uniform. I noticed that the applicators for the body putty had a hole in them to hang them up for storage that was the perfect size for the lines. I cut the hole in half and now have a line applicator! I use the hole to measure the lines and if they are too big or wide I sand them to the right size. If there are missing spots in the line I apply body putty and run the applicator along where the line should be and viola! I have a perfect line. So easy.
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Posted 9/29/2020 8:56:04 AM |
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Has NO LIFE!!
Last Login: 12/4/2023 11:08:55 PM
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More proof that necessity is truly the mother of invention. vertigo
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