Found this post on Supra Forums and found it quite enlightening. Anyone with knowledge on the subject or who knows which FG kits are good quality, please share.

"Contrary to what many believe, fiberglass is very strong. It all depends on the way the part was fabricated and the combination of materials used. To help understand the dynamics of fiberglass, carbon and aramid the strength is derived from the resin being used and the fibers of the cloth or mat only distribute the various loads throughout the part. At what point the part fails is determined by the type of fabric chosen.

There is a typical resin to fiber ratio that most of these backyard replica kit manufactues don't follow, thus producing parts that are over saturated with resin and become very brittle and frail. Also they tend to use chopped fibers fed through a roving gun and shot in the mold as opposed to hand laying the glass. This method is ok for producing a very thick mold but not for a finished part. The loose and inconsistant weave pattern caused by chopped fibers just wont hold up over time, especially on a thin part. Other problems can also arise like air being trapped between the surface coat (gelcoat) and the layers of fibers. Unless you totally inspect your piece this can come back to haunt you in the future if and when the gelcoat decides to pop loose in that area."

 

do you have a link to that thread? because i want to know the difference between importfan.com's $250 cwest front bumper and rotaryextreme.com's $600 (i know, $350 c*ck sucker, now beat it, that's what i tell my friends all the time).

link please

luigi

 

I think the time that the manufactures take in making the parts has a lot to do with the quality as well. Even some of the well known companies sometimes remove parts from molds before they have completely cured and they warp later down the road. I would be more concerned with how smooth the finish is, not neccessarily how strong it is. The odds are, if you catch your FG front end on a curb parking for instance, its going to smash pretty bad either way.

 

so then it wouldn't matter if i buy it from importfan.com because it will just cost me more later when the bodyshop has to spend some extra time smoothing it?

luigi

 

Here's the link: http://www.supraforums.com/forum/sho...or+%2Aurethane

I read a few other threads about the subject on supra forums, and the high quality fiberglass bumpers can take quite a beating and even flex under pressure according to testemonials.

There is also a post about how this guy used to have a cheap-*** FG bumper on his civic and one day he got pissed at his car cause it wouldn't start so he kicked his bumper and his foot went through it.

Seems the quality stuff is hand laid, now the trick is finding out which parts are quality and which are crap.

 

But I have had more than one replica hood and once you have seen a quality job you will be far better able to recognize cheap crappy jobs. Something else to remember, a good body shop can cover up a crappy piece with a ton of labor, so you often end up paying on that front for a cheap piece that you thought you got a good deal on. If a quality part can be bolted on and is really straight, then you will have a stronger piece that will need less work later. The difference in strength and weight from a fiberglass piece properly laid up, and a cf piece is negligible for a street car. I think the reason Fiberglass gets such a bad rap is because of all the cheap parts out there.

 

I've done a search and it seems that most of the people are happy with the importfan.com fiberglass parts, although there are some people who are dissapointed by their customer service. Anyone with importfan experience?

 

i order a cf hood from them and it didn't fit/ I had to haggle with them for about 3 months but finally I got my money back plus shipping and they let me keep the hood. it's the scoot hood if anyone is wondering / they said something about the carbon fiber tends to shirk when heated , they must have had some big problems with that hood because it's down to 350 and when I bought it it was 700. They're probably getting rid of that inventory. iwide7 ordered the same hood and his fit fine but mine had about an inch gap on the front bumper and a 1/2 inch gap on the passenger fender. pm me if you have any questions

 

in general, they are just giving people what they want. I do alot of carbon fiber work and I know that the parts that sell are generally the crappy ones. If you guys ever saw the carbon on a formula car you would probably think it is crap cause it looks bad. The nice glossy finish is just a ton of extra resin, making the part brittle and heavy.

 

Good to know about the carbon fiber. Anyone with fiberglass parts from importfan?