i recently purchased a body kit. it is indeed fiberglass and i was just wondering a couple of things. ive never bought a body kit before so forgive any and all of my ignorance.
so first up:
-the body kit feels a little bit thin in some spots.overall it feels quite solid but some places it seems a bit thin. my question is can i add fiberglass to the inside of the kit (inside so that its not as big of a deal how nice the fiberglass work looks) to build strength?
-and if i can do this, should i worry about the bumpers not lining up after adding the resin/fiberglass?
now maybe it is just me and the kit is actually quite good all around, im not sure though because ive never seen one up close before.
*as a note to the thickness of the body kit, when it is in my garage and the sun is shining you can see the light through it slightly... not tons but a bit.*
lol thats thin. where did you buy the kit from?
you can add more resin and fiberglass mat to the inside to built it up more. this will help prevent it from cracking
got it from www.onderground-design.com and ya as i said if you hole it up to light with the kit outside you cannot see through it... but if it is dark on one side and light is shinning on the otherside you can see through it slightly.
ill post pics when i get home later on if i get the chance... im not sure... it feels solid and it is difficult to explain the whole being able to see light through it but i must stress that you only see through it ever so slightly and ONLY when say if it was in the shade and you held a flashlight up to the back... then the bumber would look lighter in the area where the light was pointed at when you stand on the opposite side...
hope thats not too difficult to get but i will post pics then im hoping someone could tell me if i should add fiberglass.
paul eccles wrote:hope thats not too difficult to get but i will post pics then im hoping someone could tell me if i should add fiberglass.
Welcome to the world of aftermarket fiberglass lol. All you have to do is scuff up the part where it's thin and put some resin on it. If that part isn't going to actually touch the car, then don't worry about getting it perfectly smooth. If you're talking about the top of a side skirt, then you'll need to get it pretty smooth so it mounts correctly.
Basically, you can add fiberglass, just don't go too crazy around spots that don't need it or can't be too thick(I say this because I wasn't thinking and reinforced my whole side skirt. Then it didn't fit under the doors lol.)
without fiberglass mat or some type of material (like fleece) for the resin to soak into, its not as strong. the glass gets its strenght from that
John W(Ranger1316) wrote:paul eccles wrote:hope thats not too difficult to get but i will post pics then im hoping someone could tell me if i should add fiberglass.
Welcome to the world of aftermarket fiberglass lol. All you have to do is scuff up the part where it's thin and put some resin on it. If that part isn't going to actually touch the car, then don't worry about getting it perfectly smooth. If you're talking about the top of a side skirt, then you'll need to get it pretty smooth so it mounts correctly.
Basically, you can add fiberglass, just don't go too crazy around spots that don't need it or can't be too thick(I say this because I wasn't thinking and reinforced my whole side skirt. Then it didn't fit under the doors lol.)
i hope you're joking. fiberglass resin is about the same as wiping it down with water and thinking it will add strength.
fiberglass resin is very brittle, and has NO strength without the mat. please dont give advise if you dont know your facts
Joey Baggs (Eazy716) wrote:i hope you're joking. fiberglass resin is about the same as wiping it down with water and thinking it will add strength.
fiberglass resin is very brittle, and has NO strength without the mat. please dont give advise if you dont know your facts
No strength whatsoever?
Don't jump on someone else's mistake to add another one.
I mistakenly left out mat, my bad. For larger portions, yes mat is a must for strength. But for smaller spots, just putting resin will work just fine but, of course, it has to be somewhat thick. If you think I'm talking about just brushing over one time, you're a bit naive lol.
^^^naive is thinking any amount of resin without mat/cloth holds strength
so i say again, dont post info unless you know your facts
John W(Ranger1316) wrote:Joey Baggs (Eazy716) wrote:i hope you're joking. fiberglass resin is about the same as wiping it down with water and thinking it will add strength.
fiberglass resin is very brittle, and has NO strength without the mat. please dont give advise if you dont know your facts
No strength whatsoever? Don't jump on someone else's mistake to add another one.
I mistakenly left out mat, my bad. For larger portions, yes mat is a must for strength. But for smaller spots, just putting resin will work just fine but, of course, it has to be somewhat thick. If you think I'm talking about just brushing over one time, you're a bit naive lol.
im sorry but i have to agree with joey. wheater its a small job or a big job, the resin still needs something to soak into to give it its strength. why half ass something when you can take 2 seconds to add some material.
joey and strippedcav are right...
when i got my kit the first thing i did was find the weak spots and add resin and mat, mostly on the bottom lip incase i hit something or scraped it would have a chance and not destroy the kit. it held up nicely untill my wife took it to a car wash with a moving track, but fixin it was easy
Kill list:03 eclipse, 06 GTO, 04 Mach 1 Mustang
Ya resin is strong by itself..........if its like 2" thick
Also add where there are going to be bolts, like the corner of the bumper where it bolts to the fenders, I always see alot of spidering in those areas since there is so much stress there.
alright well thanks for the advice... so just to recap:
what i should do is add fiberglass (both resin and mat obv.) to the bottom lips of my front and rear bumbers, add it to the edges where bolts go, and any other thinner portions?
now i must be 100 percent blunt and honest hear. i haven't ever done any fiberglassing before. i've read reviews and whatnot so i am somewhat educated ont he subject but i have no experience. am i good to be doing this given that no one will actually be able to see it so smoothness and overall look of my glasswork isnt important (remember this is the inside of the bumber not the outside)?
thanks again and if it matters my kit is FRP (fiberglass reinforced plastic).
Ya just buy resin, matting, a cheap pair of rubber gloves and some cheap paint brushes oh and some cheap plastic containers to mix the resin in
No worries then if its the inside, just dab at it with the paintbrush to get the bubbles out
alright great... oh and am i good to go to magybe a home depot or something to pick up my materials...? i dont know where else would have resin and mat around where i live (hamilton, ontario-Canada)
i picked up my materials at canadian tire... it was a fiberglass repair kit which i wasnt sure would be good enough but it was not bad... came with 8 sq. feet of mat, litre of resin, appropriate amount of hardener... it was only like 20 bucks so not bad... i didnt glass the whole bumber... just some spots where there were small half inch sized cracks from shipping... turned out pretty good... lol pretty smooth also given that i wasnt even aiming for smooth... anyways im probably going to add some more to any low spots and edges tommorow... as well as pick up some more materials... its going good and thanks to everyone for the help.
glad to hear it man....post pics when you get a chance!
Built Not Bought
wow. the evo kit. i have wanted to see how this would look painted.
yeah I just noticed the evo kit......I am quite interested in seeing what this looks like painted and on the car....
