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Looking for a bondo/filler material

Printed From: the12volt.com
Forum Name: Fiberglass, Fabrication, and Interiors
Forum Discription: Fiberglass Kick Panels, Subwoofer Enclosures, Plexiglas, Fabrics, Materials, Finishes, etc.
URL: https://www.the12volt.com/installbay/forum_posts.asp?tid=62189
Printed Date: June 10, 2024 at 5:34 AM


Topic: Looking for a bondo/filler material

Posted By: swede
Subject: Looking for a bondo/filler material
Date Posted: September 04, 2005 at 1:39 PM

Hi all - glad to see the sites back and everyone affiliated with its operation is well posted_image

I am in the final stages of my install and need to mount a 6" woofer where the door map pocket is. I tried to make a "new" pocket out of wood, but alas, its contoured and very difficult to match (and I stink at fiberglass so I'm not going there). So my Plan B is to take a couple of these map pockets and piece them together in order to make a "solid" front. Then I'll bondo the cracks and cover with carpet (as the oem ones are). What I need to do then is to fill the inside of it with something that I can cut and drill into to mount the 6" woofer. My guess is at least a 1/2-3/4 pint of whatever is going to be needed per door pocket to make the area solid.

I thought of Bondo but understood when its that thick it cracks easily. Any ideas?

Thanks in advance.

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Subtlety is EVERYTHING.



Replies:

Posted By: 05honda
Date Posted: September 05, 2005 at 8:41 AM

Why not just make up a btch of resin and pour it in the pocket......you will have to drill the holes carefully or it might crack as well but its less likely





Posted By: swede
Date Posted: September 06, 2005 at 9:29 PM
I also thought about making a basic wood/mdf form for the speaker, placing it into position, then pouring something in.

Would resin work with that?

Can resin be drilled/tapped?



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Subtlety is EVERYTHING.




Posted By: Firstnbass
Date Posted: September 07, 2005 at 4:19 PM
I have worked with fiberglass alot, and i would not try to tap or drill resin, personally. If you could make a ring of mdf and structure it in place as if you were going to do fiberglass then instead fill the areas with tigerhair , thickness does not matter but dont do to much at one time, be sure to do sections like maybe 1 inch thick per coat, now if thats not what you want to do then try layering fiberglass and resin on a peice of glass on your work bench, big enough to cut out what you need for the speaker cut out, this peice will need to be pretty thick maybe 1/4-3/8 in. then take and drill holes in that and use washers with nuts and bolts that'll hold your speakers, im not sure what your specific application is but i hope this helps




Posted By: swede
Date Posted: September 07, 2005 at 8:33 PM
The pocket is only about 1.25-1.5 deep, so with a 3/4" MDF, the resin won't be very deep (relatively). The crap thing is that the face of the map pocket is narrow in the front and wide in the back so I'm going to have to either piece 2 together, maybe JB weld some 1/8" ABS, etc to seal the pocket and extend the face all the way across. To be honest, I know nothing of resin, fiberglass, etc. so I'm hoping that resin is thick enough (not runny) to set up faster. I'll bondo the front but its getting carpeted (like factory) so that should allow some forgiveness. Main thing to me is that it looks like a factory panel.

The speakers are Boston 6.53's so the 6.5" woofer is going into the map pocket, the 4" mid will be above it in the original factory speaker's location, then the tweeter just above that. The crossover is HUGE, so it will also be boxed in inside the map pocket.

This entire install (I swapped in a new interior too posted_image ) has taken me the better part of 2 weeks. No idea how some of you guys do this for a living....but I'm glad you do :)



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Subtlety is EVERYTHING.




Posted By: Firstnbass
Date Posted: September 08, 2005 at 9:32 AM
Resin is like syrup, I dont want to sound c**ky but try dumping some log cabin on what your up to and see how it runs, if your okay with the consistancy go for it, but do remember that fiberglass/resin wont stick to plastic well, and if its a peice that has alot of oil it wont stick at all youll want to get some sem plastic/vynil cleaner if thats the case, and use smc plastic adhesive, its like a body filler,just make sure you use a whole lot of hardener with the smc stuff cause its ruuny like pancak batter(I love Pancakes) One thing i didnt think of till this morning, can you tiger hair a nut in position instead of doing a tap? if so the tiger hair would hold the nut as long as you dont overtighten the bolt, this method works both ways, you could drill a hole and counter sink the bolt head leaving a stud to put the nut on?

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*ALwaYs KnoW YoUr SaLEsmAN!!*




Posted By: swede
Date Posted: September 08, 2005 at 9:41 PM
I think I can mount a piece of 3/4" MDF and use washers, spacers, etc. to mount it to the face of the pocket (almost "suspending it" at a set distance) - this would hold it in place while the resin, etc. is poured in. After subtracting the volume of 3/4" MDF, the area in question is only about 7.5" x 7.5" x 1/2" deep. Not sure what bondo or body filler is like (is 1/2" too thick?) but that alone might work. Too bad JB Weld can't be gotten in a larger quantity. Another thing I have is some POR-Patch (POR-15) I may try.

The speaker's mounts are a good 3/8" - 1/2" from the front of its grill, so I intend on recessing it to make the grill face flush with the pocket face. I'm just concerned about having a solid area of support around the speaker itself (and in another area, the crossover too).

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Subtlety is EVERYTHING.





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