Hey guys,
So I'm still trying to make a liteweight fiberglass hood for my FB. This is my 2nd try and im still not happy with it. close but not there yet. This one weights in at 13.8 lbs. wich is about 65% lighter then stock. i used a white gel coat and isophthalic tooling resin so its pretty strong.

I think I went wrong when I fiberglassed the frame to the skin. I think a panal bonding epoxi might be a better option.

Anyways tell me what you guys think..

 

If you want to continue perfecting your method, I'll take this reject off your hands.

 

Would you mind to post up a half way DIY. I have been trying to figure out how to do as many body panels as much as possible. I am trying to find info on anyone who might have done a Lexan rear glass on the hatch. I don't know if the front wind screen is suitable for a street driven car. (being scratched)
Would fiberglass fenders be worth the trouble?

 

wow ... keep us updated ... I will soon be embarking on attempting to make a fiberglass version of this one as it does help with engine temps in Vegas but weight reduction would be a plus, it's sad the vendors do not see a viable market in the first gens ;(

 

Nthing a writeup, please

 

Yeah I can do a step by step wright up on how to make a fiberglass hood or anything for that matter.. I can do a half assed one later or I can do a detailed one when I do my next hood.

As of right now my front air dam, splitter, front fenders, cowl panel, Rear wrap and hood are fiberglass.
fiberglass door skins are next on my list once I get the rest of the fiberglass up to par.

Thanks for the replies guys!

 

wow how much weight you figure you shaved off so far?

 

Before you can make a fiberglass hood, You need a mold. To make a mold the first thing you will need is a plug. The plug is the part you are making the mold from.
I used a stock hood as my plug. There where a few chips and scratches so I did some sanding to make sure the whole thing was good and smooth.

After it's good and smooth, clean it with a prep solvent or soap and water. when its dry, put like 5 layers of 100% pure carnauba wax on.

 

My scale says the stock hood is close to 39 lbs, And says the fiberglass one is 13.8 Lbs. But i do not know how accurate it is.

As for the whole car I dont how much weight i have shaved off of it yet. i have done a few thing to get it lighter. like remove the the tar from the interior and put in a fiberglass dash. I would have to put it on a scall to find out how much weight i have shaved off it.

 

After the waxing you need to spray the waxed plug with PVA. I use a Partall # 10 PVA. They say to use a HVLP spary gun with about 10PSI at the cap. Spray the plug with light mist coats cuz the pva does not like to stick to the waxed surface. apply as many coats it takes to turn the plug a light green.

After the PVA has dryed. you can apply the gel coat I use a gel coat gun and spray it on to the plug, But you can also use a paint brush. as soon as the gelcoat gels you can mix up some resin. I like to use a isophthalic tooling resin. paint the resin over the gel coat with a paint brush then I use a couple layers of 1.5 OZ chopped strand fiberglass mat. Then paint on more resin untill all the mat has been wetted out.

 

After the resin has cured you can pop it off the plug. use a plastic wedge to pop the edges off the plug and the rest will follow.

A little bit of trimming and then you have a fiberglass mold

The PVA should just peel off in a layer or warm water will melt it off.

 

Looks good but you forgot a TII scoop

 

Looking very good! Good writeup so far too. Like a bunch of others I've been wanting to do some fiberglass work for my FB. maybe this will get me in gear

 

have you thought about using bar stock as bracing? That is what I been thinking aboutt for when I embark on mine.

 

What is your weight goal? Idealy I'd like to see my FB at 1,800lbs with stock dash, center con, carpet, headliner. Realisticly, I don't think that's possible.

 

Very Nice work on the Dash!!



Perhaps you can emulate this REALLY GOOD IDEA from Australia.

It's a great place to put aftermarket gauges, without screwing up
the stock look of your dash. Check it out!

 

Also, I wish you closer to me. I actually have a mold for the TII hood scoop for the FB. I bought it years ago. I have the top skin mold, not the bottom reinforcement mold. I would give it away in exchange for two hoods.

 

OMG, I so want that hood. You gotta do a run or sell it I'd make you a free or two hoods

 

If you make this hood at a resonable price, you will have orders stacked up. I want one.

 

As of right now I cant really make any good money off of fiberglass FB parts.. That and I cant sell them through the forum unless I sign up to be a vendor. I dont have the money to pay vendor dues and I dont want to get in trouble with the forum.

 

if there were no risks in making money we would all be rich, but i feel your point.
you wouldnt need to be a vendor really you should just make a few at a time and sell them just make sure you follow through!!!! and we will make sure your work is paid for.

And if the rx7 club **** says you cant sell it on here then contact the people who want you to make it like me and ill spread the word and so will the other guys your doing us a favor with your skills and we would love to see the product!

 

there would be a lot of interest, build it and they will come

 

If you want to save weight skip the whole under frame. Just use the parts that you need to hold the hinges and latch, maybe just the perimeter. You can gain strength across the hood with a 4mm foam core or even some 3/4 PVC pipe that is ripped in half and used as a spacer to build channels out of fglass.

I bet you can get it under 10lbs with no problem.

 

yeah I have been thinking about changing up the frame design to save weight.. My only fear is that the hood might be to flimsy.

I'm going to try some new ideas on the third hood. I'll do a detailed write up on the next one with lots of pictures. As soon as I get some cash for supplies.

 

from start to finish how much does a hood cost you in materials? I've done small fiberglass repair jobs but nothing to this extent. What kind of price range am I looking at?