How to cut foam

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masterwacker

Member - Posts: 15

Joined: August 13, 2004

Location: United States

Posted: August 13, 2004 at 1:38 AM / IP Logged

I know how to fiberglass already and have done some small things so far with it that have turned out pretty good. I am going to be picking up some 1lb. foam blocks today to shape into a center console. I will be building the structural parts with MDF. This foam I am getting does real well with sanding, but I would like to know how you guys have cut pieces to shape the foam. I saw somewhere that you could use a wire hooked up to a battery somehow that would heat the wire up and allow the wire to flow through the foam like hot knife through butter. Is this true? If so what wire and battery combo works well? Also I guess you would hook one end of the wire to positive and the other to negative, but I am not sure. Has anyone done this before? If anybody has any suggestions about how to cut the foam more effectively and make the cuts nice and neat, I am all ears.

Eat, Sleep, and Off-Road. Everything else is meaningless details.

cafociguy

Member - Posts: 16

Joined: August 13, 2004

Location: United States

Posted: August 13, 2004 at 3:01 PM / IP Logged

Try using an electric knife, the kind you use to carve a turkey, should fly through foam.

CarAudioHelp

Copper - Posts: 198

Joined: July 18, 2003

Location: United States

Posted: August 13, 2004 at 3:54 PM / IP Logged

LOL, I wouldn't try hooking up a wire to a battery. There's probably more to it than that. You can use a sharp Olfa (razor) knife. Or any number of small saws will work.

HottAccord

Silver - Posts: 247

Joined: August 12, 2004

Location: United States

Posted: August 16, 2004 at 10:54 AM / IP Logged

cafociguy wrote:

Try using an electric knife, the kind you use to carve a turkey, should fly through foam.

This method may be a little easier than the battery/wire combination...

Im a fiberglass whore!!

archemedes

Copper - Posts: 172

Joined: September 08, 2003

Location: United States

Posted: August 16, 2004 at 5:05 PM / IP Logged

there is a special tool that uses an electric current through a wire, but it's a very small wire, and probably some circuitry to make the voltage right, the carving knife works great

audiomechanic

Silver - Posts: 388

Joined: November 09, 2002

Location: United States

Posted: August 17, 2004 at 7:33 AM / IP Logged

you can also use grating files. they look like cheese graters and can be found in most hardware stores. this works really good to. it can also be shaped with a die grinder and a 24 or 36 grit disc.

there was a good example of this on the biker build off on discovery. Matt hotch got the shape of his gas tank this way.

defective

Silver - Posts: 642

Joined: August 20, 2003

Location: Canada

Posted: August 17, 2004 at 10:50 AM / IP Logged

finally thank you audiomechanic, took so long for somebody to give the correct answer. Use a Cheese grater. It doesn't take a long time, its foam for god sakes!! The cheese grater is the best tool for this job.

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How to cut foam

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