painting fiberglass...

[ASDF12345 10+ year member]

make sure you switch hands while your sanding the piece. you wouldnt want the mucles in one arm to get bigger then the other.

 

[bootleg 10+ year member]

I would sudgest using a gelcoat first but I doubt you want to get into that as it is a little pricy.

 

[abcdefg 10+ year member]

do u got a air compressor??? u can get a paint srayer thing and attach it to that and do it urself

 

[ASDF12345 10+ year member]

Originally posted by Savant First, depending on the size of the cracks, I'd say use resin to fill them (maybe even a little glass if big enough)..

Gooooooooooooo bad idea. Never use resin unless there is a medium with it sucvh as fiberglass mat or cloth. Resin by itself is very brittle and if it doesnt break with normal use the fluxuation in temp will crack it out. Use body fill to fill holes. Stay away from Puttys as they dont really chemically bond with the wax surface that forms over resin (resin has wax in it when it dries the wax goes to the outside most layer of the resin thats why you have to sand between layers). A really good filler is called "Rage: Gold Lightweight body filler." You can get it over thenet if you can't find it loccally. It dries very hard very fast and sand very easily, this is what the pros use.

 

[ASDF12345 10+ year member]

Originally posted by abcdefg do u got a air compressor??? u can get a paint srayer thing and attach it to that and do it urself

not only that but a compresser with a DA Sander will literally cut hundreds of hours off a big progect like fiberglass.

 

[evo2k3 10+ year member]

Originally posted by Grand AMature not only that but a compresser with a DA Sander will literally cut hundreds of hours off a big progect like fiberglass.

whats a DA sander? similar to a sand blaster, or totally different?

 

[Savant 10+ year member]

Originally posted by Grand AMature Gooooooooooooo bad idea. Never use resin unless there is a medium with it sucvh as fiberglass mat or cloth. Resin by itself is very brittle and if it doesnt break with normal use the fluxuation in temp will crack it out. Use body fill to fill holes. Stay away from Puttys as they dont really chemically bond with the wax surface that forms over resin (resin has wax in it when it dries the wax goes to the outside most layer of the resin thats why you have to sand between layers). A really good filler is called "Rage: Gold Lightweight body filler." You can get it over thenet if you can't find it loccally. It dries very hard very fast and sand very easily, this is what the pros use.

I think I'll have to disagree with you.. While you don't want just resin for structual use, to use it to fill cracks would be fine if they were too small for like a glass/resin paste to be pushed into.. keep in mind there are a lot of types of 'cracks'.. and note that I suggested using a little glass with it if it was big enough, glass/resin will be a LOT stronger in a crack than bondo..

And, not all resin has wax in it.. 'layering' resin is normally wax free so you don't have to sand.. Surfacing resin has wax that will need to be sanded between layers and before painting..

From what I understand, bono (body filler) is only used to get a surface that is easier to work with (sanding wise) than fiberglass.. if you get a pretty smooth surface of just glasswork, you won't need filler at all.. it's just hard to get that smooth on the surface..

 

[Savant 10+ year member]

Originally posted by evo2k3 whats a DA sander? similar to a sand blaster, or totally different?

I believe DA is a brand.. he's talking about newmatic (sp) tool.. hooks up to the air hose on the compressor and uses air to move the sanding head.. like an orbital sander..

 

[jlaine 10+ year member]

Originally posted by Savant I believe DA is a brand.. he's talking about newmatic (sp) tool.. hooks up to the air hose on the compressor and uses air to move the sanding head.. like an orbital sander..

DA = Dual Action orbital sander

I use them very heavily when doing body work... it's an amazing tool.

 

[Savant 10+ year member]

Originally posted by jlaine DA = Dual Action orbital sander

 

I use them very heavily when doing body work... it's an amazing tool.

Ah.. thanks.. I'm familiar with orbital sanders, but don't think I've heard them called DA except in context of certian brands.. Now I know //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[tommyk90 5,000+ posts]

Originally posted by Savant Sounds durable.. recall the brand/kind? I might try that for my box..

Well, i found out what kind it is. It's called Emron, and Dupont makes it. But sorry, you can't use it on wood. Looks very nice on metal though. But IMO, the best you can do for metal is powder-coating. It's incredibly durable and very shiny.

 

[Savant 10+ year member]

Originally posted by tommyk90 Well, i found out what kind it is. It's called Emron, and Dupont makes it. But sorry, you can't use it on wood. Looks very nice on metal though. But IMO, the best you can do for metal is powder-coating. It's incredibly durable and very shiny.

Will it work on Fiberglass? That's what I'll be working making shiney...

 

[tommyk90 5,000+ posts]

Originally posted by Savant Will it work on Fiberglass? That's what I'll be working making shiney...

Oooo, don't know about that. I doubt it just because it doesn't work on wood. But i can ask.

 

[jlaine 10+ year member]

Originally posted by tommyk90 Well, i found out what kind it is. It's called Emron, and Dupont makes it. But sorry, you can't use it on wood. Looks very nice on metal though. But IMO, the best you can do for metal is powder-coating. It's incredibly durable and very shiny.

It's called Imron actually. I use Imron 5000 quite a bit at work... And yes you can use it on wood, you just have to properly seal the wood first... My home theater towers are painted in a midnight blue metallic Imron 5000 paint. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

 

[tommyk90 5,000+ posts]

Originally posted by jlaine It's called Imron actually. I use Imron 5000 quite a bit at work... And yes you can use it on wood, you just have to properly seal the wood first... My home theater towers are painted in a midnight blue metallic Imron 5000 paint. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

I don't know if we are talking about the same stuff then. My dad(who's been painting for 30+ years) says you can't use it on wood. If you can, i'd use it. Very durable stuff. Although, i think there are different kinds too. Whatever. Hey, my truck is painted True Blue Metallic, although mine is the regular base coat, then clear kind. Paint is hella expensive too. Glad my dad does all of my paint and body work.