Could I just put the glass over the vinyl so I don't have to use a bunch of layers of glass? Just a thought. If not could I use a thicker material instead of glass matte. Something cheaper? Then glass matte the last layer?
OK so I have been searching all over this site and found that some ppl on here have glassed over the vinyl and I wonder what the outcome of it was. And if its still holding up. And if anyone has a pic of the dash with the vinyl pad off.
And why could I not drill holes in the dash with the vinyl on and use like 2 layers of glass then bondo to smooth it?
not knowing the extent of your plans or experience i'd say at the very least take off the top dash pad, remove the airbag, peel the vinyl off of the top dash and then drill a LOT of holes in the hard plastic underneath. hitting it with some 80 grit wouldn't hurt either. The fiberglass doesn't like to bond to plastic so you have to ensure a STRONG mechanical bond. another thing you might want to watch out for is that the plastic and fiberglass may expand/contract at different rates. this could cause cracking, though I'm not sure- my dash has been built up mainly with MDF. I don't recommend starting from scratch on your first build like I did.
Also, double check that the resin you use doesn't melt the plastic, there is that possibility.
And just fleece won't cut it, use the fleece to get your shape then lay at least a couple solid layers of 'glass, even if it's not structural, as the fleece can degrade over time if left exposed.
Spend a lot of time planning.
here's a few links i've used as reference, also, google is your friend.
http://www.explorerforum.com/fiberglass/fiberglassing.htm <-- mostly about building sub boxes, but this guy has a lot of good advice
Your text to link here... <-- this is a sticky here on the site, not sure if you've seen it, but the author (Mennitti) is kind of the guru of interior fab on the .org
Your text to link here... <--this is cavFIRE's car, it's pretty tight, inspiring to say the least. not much instruction but ton's of Ideas and insane execution.
anyways, post up if you have more questions, and post some pictures of your build!
-tbirdIV
Credit for links: Mennitti, cavFIRE, Drew Wilson.
