First step in glassing dashboard

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=31720
Printed Date: July 16, 2025 at 9:25 AM

Topic: First step in glassing dashboard

Posted By: djdaveoc
Subject: First step in glassing dashboard
Date Posted: May 06, 2004 at 4:10 PM

Does it matter if I sand the plastic dash first if I am already cleaning it? I plan to wrap it in fleece and resin that and then add a few more layers. Then I will use Maraglass, high build primer, paint and clear.

Also, how should I attach the fleece to the plastic? I'm going to wra the fleece around the back and also resin there to hold the whole piece on the plastic well. But I don't know if I should try to use a strong staple gun, or some type of glue to make the fleece stick to the plastic in the shape I want. Would one of those strong 3M sprays work? If so, which one?

Thanks.

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}:) Plan, Research, Do

Replies:

Posted By: djdaveoc
Date Posted: May 06, 2004 at 4:12 PM

Sorry, wrap the fleece around the back, I type too fast.

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Plan, Research, Do

Posted By: sam1
Date Posted: May 07, 2004 at 10:11 AM

to attach my fleece to my fg base, i used a hot glue gun. i put a dab every two or three inches. worked great. im sure it would work fine for plastic as well. some people say that you can glue thru the fleece, but i couldnt get it to work for me. i had to lift up the fleece, put a dab of glue, then press it back down for about 10 seconds.

Posted By: djdaveoc
Date Posted: May 09, 2004 at 4:07 AM

I started glassing one of my doors today. I cut off a part of the plastic that stuck out with the cutting head installed on my dremel. Then I cut out the shape of the hole in MDF and glued/glassed the wood onto the back of the door where the hole was. So when it dries I'll cut out a smaller hole and make a small box to show off my crossover. I can probably take a pic if someone can send me instructions on how to post pics on here. If I have to host them somewhere I guess I won't be able to do it because I don't have a place to put them.

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Plan, Research, Do

Posted By: silverbullet00
Date Posted: May 09, 2004 at 9:54 PM

What kind of fleece do you use?

Posted By: djdaveoc
Date Posted: May 09, 2004 at 11:04 PM

Everyone on here uses 100% polyester fleece. I got mine at Joann Fabric. It think it was like $18 for 5 yards and about 5 ft. wide.

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Plan, Research, Do

Posted By: sam1
Date Posted: May 10, 2004 at 1:03 PM

yea, i got a yard of fleece from walmart for 5bucks. it was enough to do two boxes for a pair of 12s. i think it was polyester as well. you can really use anything tho as long as it can be stretched a little bit.. even some old sweats or sweatshirt. a couple people have even used tshirts.

Posted By: djdaveoc
Date Posted: May 10, 2004 at 1:09 PM

I hear women's thongs are pretty stretchy. But I imagine you might need about 500 of them to get good coverage. :)

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Plan, Research, Do

Posted By: pureRF
Date Posted: May 10, 2004 at 7:53 PM

I use the thinest fleece u can find from walmart. It works great. Make sure to thin down the resin for the first coat with some acetone(cant spell) for the first layer to make sure to gos ALL the way thru all the fleece.

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dream it, build it, fiberglass it

Posted By: sam1
Date Posted: May 11, 2004 at 10:13 AM

yea, i used a really thick fleece for mine. when i put the resin on it, it soaked up about double what i thought it would, so i figured it was good. when it dried, i looked at it and the resin didnt even soak all the way thru. so then i had to put resin on the inside and also put a layer of mat inside as well. so id recommend thinning it like pureRF said.

Posted By: djdaveoc
Date Posted: May 12, 2004 at 10:49 AM

Hey PureRF, what ratio of resin to acetone do you recommend? I've worked with resin a few times now but I've never mixed in actone to thin it. Thanks.

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posted_image

Plan, Research, Do