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You can fiberglass!
Ok I am turbo my car, and I needed a spot for my boost gauge. I wanted to go someplace new, and I saw a place on my dash I liked and seemed to be good for me. I took some pieces of cardboard (from a normal box) and cut out a small cutout of the shape I wanted the front of the pod to be. I then cut a small support from the top of the front face to the back of where I wanted it to reach. I covered the two pieces with some old t shirt material (I think cotton/polyester). Mixed up my home depot bought fiberglass resin with its hardener and dipped it in. Then I left it under a lamp to speed up the curing process. Next I added more cloth to make the sides of the pod. I redid the whole fiberglass process for the sides. Then again I did the whole pod over in fiberglass to acheive an equal layer all over. Next, I took out some 220 grit sandpaper and worked down the high peaks of the fiberglass, and used a razor to chip off parts that were too big to sand. I left the fiberglass overnight to fully harden and cure. The next day, I covered it in bondo, trying to make it smooth as possible. Sanded it with some 400 grit paper, which really did nothing. I stopped sanding and just used my razor to cut off any peaks in bondo and fiberglass. I rushed the process and it came out not so bad... I did not have any primer, so I used white spray paint, then tried to sand, and I was going nowhere with my 400 grit paper. I abondoned the project for a few days. I got some black primer paint from walmart ($3) and put 3 layers on, and this REALLY did cover up many of the small crevices in the workpiece. I have stopped working on this part as I need to get more sandpaper to make this smooth as possible.
Heres what you need to fiberglass:
old shirt
some cardboard or pieces of wood or plastic
fiberglass and resin
bondo
assorted sandpaper, I would start with 40-80 grit next time I do this. Never above 120 on the fiberglass. start with 100 grit on the bondo and use some extra on the piece and just take off what you didn't use afterwards.
primer - to cover up small crevices and defects
paint - whatever color ## interior is
heres pics. you can see the old shirt and the cardboard in the first 2.
I have all the supplies laid out
DO NOT USE STYROFOAM as your mixing place. it melts under fiberglass. I made this mistake and you see the results. Make sure you mix the fiberglass and hardner well, and I like to use extra hardner, less working time, but faster results.
Heatlamp and a plastic bag to protect the floor
some more assorted pics.
will add the final result installed after I put it in the car. Dont let the cardboard fool you. This pod is harder and more durable than any ebay pod you can get, and it is custom. I dropped it twice already outside on pavement, no damage other than a paint chip. my girlfriend also "accidentally" stepped on it. nothing broke
tips:
more hardner = less work time but faster hardning time
no styrofoam, it melts under the fiberglass
use some ventilation, I did this indoors and it smelled bad.
use a dremel to keep the hole for the boost gauge big enough at each stage.
I used hotglue to hold the cardboard pieces together and to attach the cloth to the cardboard.
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