I need to mount the fiberglass front end on my 56 Chevy. It is a two piece, so I'm going to bolt the front end down, then use Dzus fasteners for the hood. I don't want to rivet plates on, because I don't want the rivet heads to show on the outside. so I'd like to just bond metal plates to the underside or thin angle iron so I can bolt the front on without the rivets showing. I'm certain there are a bunch of wrong ways to do this, but what is the best way to bond metal to the front end? How many square inches of metal should I have glued to the front end to keep it from pulling apart when I pass a semi on the interstate? Thanks for the help, guys. I'm new to bodywork that doesn't involve bondo and spray cans. Trying to do things the right way, but not pay a bodyman's kids' college at the same time.
3M has a product listed here - looks like you can get it from Summit On line. Duze fasteners suck use Camlocks from CoastFab in Huntington Beach, CA - or their new Aero Catch More about Camlocks Prep is the key to ANY bond line. The metal has to be prepped and lower the surface tension. The Fiberglass Kit,I have to assume, is is chopper glass and a few layers of fabric in a polyester base. Meaning it probably does NOT have bonded in pick up points...re enforced areas in the lay up that will provide structure for mounting ( other than Dukes of Hazzard hood pins with massive washers and "R" clips ) So, normally, bonding a receiver tab for a Cam lock needs only to be large enough to accommodate the receiver and a few square inches of surface area - the epoxy based bond will likely be stronger than a poly and glass hood. I suspect that spreading a few around will assist in spreading the aero load. In your case I'd suspect there would be room to place quite a bit of surface area on the back side and several Camlocks. http://multimedia.3m.com/mws/mediawebserver?mwsId=SSSSSu7zK1fslxtUN8txm8_Bev7qe17zHvTSevTSeSSSSSS--
I worked for a Fiberglass boat manufactured for many years. 3M makes a product that in available in a tube that fits a standard caulking gun. 3M 5200 comes in several colors as well as fast and standard cure. I've seen 5200 bond well enough to peel some of the Fiberglass off with the metal piece when trying to break the bond. 5200 would be my choice for what you are trying to do
Your front end is undoubtably made with a polyester system, so first thing is to get a couple of quarts, or even a galon, of regular polyester fiberglass resin, usually found at Lowes and hardware stores. Don't get the stuff with "tiger hair" or other fillers. Just straight resin, and the tubes of MEK that come with it for a catalyst. Also pick up some woven fiberglass cloth. Don't get that stinking boat mat, get a woven, and it doesn't have to be real heavy. You'll need a couple of those wonderful cheap chink paint brushes, one and two inch, and a body shop type yellow squeege. Then decide how big a plate you want to use. I'd use 16 gage if it were me, .125 would be overkill IMO. You can weld a nut, bolt, or stud to the plate before you bond it onto the fiberglass. That way a simple bracket can be fab'd on the car that will attach it securely. Grind or sand a nice area for your plate to go, and make the area about 2-3 inches bigger than the plate. Grind both sides of the plate. Cut squares (or rectangles) of the fiberglass, one about half inch larger than the plate, one about an inch bigger, one about an inch and a half bigger, and just for grins, a fourth two inches bigger. One trick is to put masking tape on the fiberglass before you cut it, and draw your cut lines on the tape. It helps keep the material from fraying all over the place, and you can just leave it in after you cut it. It will bond right into the part with the 'glass, and the edges of your modification will be much neater than if you didn't use the masking tape. So, now, let's assume you've welded a bolt or something to the plate. Take each piece of fiberglass, again, you can use masking tape if you want, and cut a hole large enough for the bolt to pass through it. Now get a plastic drop cloth, or even swipe the wife's largest cookie sheet, and cover it with plastic completely. Mix your resin, and do not use more hardner than it says. You can get away with a little more, but that will greatly reduce your working time. If you use way too much, not only will it reduce your working time, the part will be rubbery and never set up properly. So, mix the resin, pour a little on you covered work bench or cookie sheet, and lay the fiberglass in it, largest piece first. Brush or squig it so it is saturated, then add the other pieces in descending order, repeating the saturation process. Take the squig, and squig away the excess resin. Brush a little resin on the cleaned part of your fiberglass part, and place the metal paart against it, and then pick up all of the fiberglass pieces in one piece, and place them, smallest piece down first against the metal panel. each piece of fiberglass now extends past the one bleow it giving the strongest possible bond strength. Use your brush to "stipple" the fiberglass down tight against the surface of the original part. keep an eye on it, make sure it stays down tight by continueing to "stipple" until it's hanging tight by itself. Let it cure completely, which isn't long, but I'd still wait overnight, and you should have a jam-up mod.
I had good luck in the past w/ a product called Vette Bond....I would atleast look it up and research it as well..........Littleman
What's work for me has been to grind 24 to 36 grit lines in your metal so that bondo will have teeth to grip, skin coat bondo on the metal, after it set's up, rough it up again with 36 grit paper and glass it on to your fiberglass surface, fiberglass will stick to bondo but sure doesn't stick to steel..........................
Judging by the date on your last post, you've probably already gotten what you need. But, for the benefit of others, i say ....i really like all the panel bonding products produced by SEM. I'd call your local autobody supply store and see if they have the SEM line, or something comparable. They have all sorts of panel bonding agents for all different materials. The store should know what you need.
3M Panel Bond, that shit will hold anything. If you ever try to get it apart it will tear the metal before the panel bond. I use it a lot , we even glue door skins on with it.
I glassed a steel petrol 'door' and surround into a glass panel in 97, I drilled holes in the steel so the glass could bond thru it, still no issues, tho obviously not takeing the stresses of a front end.
I have done extentsive work on new boats, and Plexus is an unbelievable adhesive. You can use polyester resin to entrap metal, but it really doesn't bond real well to Fiberglas. Plexus will bond very well. We used it to bond the top deck to the hull on 36' offshore High Performance Boats, without problems.
I'm responding to your post ONLY because of your location, BREMERTON, WASHINGTON. In about 1974 I built my first dedicated bracket car, a 1956, model 150, Business Coupe. BBC, built Powerglide, 68 Camaro 12 bolt with a Moroso Brute Strength diffential and 5.38 gears. I had a 1 piece glass nose for it, and it had the typical waves to it, as it was old and used, though in very good shape. I used WOOD to straighten and strengthen it and was going to just make it a lift off, as opposed to tilting it. Somehow, a guy got wind of the nose, and offered me a BUNCH of money for it to go on his 56 Bel Air 4 door hardtop (?). So, I sold it to him, used the stock hood and fenders, bolted them together, and made a tilt for it. Here's the reason for my post.........on my very first 1/4 mile pass at Bremerton Raceway, I RAN OUT OF GAS!!! Car did'nt have stock gauges, and I thought I had enough fuel in it. Been a BIG fan of Bremerton Raceway ever since, was even a member of the Handlers Racing Association for 4 years, that operates Bremerton Raceway (since 1959). Hope to see your car at the track this year. Butch/56sedandelivery.
You can look into using 3m 8115, it's made to stick anything to anything. Metal to metal, metal to fiberglass and vice versa. Many other applications as well. I've used it and has worked very well
I too worked with fiberglass for years. Went thru lots of mylar and acetone. I don't see any reason to go thru all of that now with the great adhesives available. That 3M 5200 is the tits. Before all of these came available, bonding metal to fiberglass was usually a nightmare.........
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