Fiberglassing, Need A Couple Pointers

Im looking at making the center console bezels one piece to include a section for switches where the cubby hole is, and Im having a hard time making a mold to fiberglass over, is there any specific material i can use to make a "cast" mold to fiberglass over, as i have so far used 3 layers of aluminum foil and it gets the imprint of what i want but wont stay in the exact shape i need after i pull it off. basically what I need to do is first make a mold with the aluminum foil in place on the bezel and then another mold on the other side of the aluminum foil that then can be used to fiberglass over...lmk thanks!

[AftermathAlero]

Trying using masking tape and tape up the shape u want. or get some cardboard and cut out the shape u want then use masking tape and tape it on the center console panel then lay glass. I dont get why ya trying to make a mold. Just glasss a piece for your switches thats removable. no reason to make a mold, unless ya want to mass produce the item and prolly no one will buy.

When i glassed my door panels.. I get million of questions if I made a mold.. I said what for? I just glassed over the stock panels. If u can't get it right.. keep practicing.

reason im wanting it to be one piece is i have to relocate my radio to below the a/c controls as I just bought aleromasters carputer and gonna use the setup he had goin...figure it would be easiest to just make it one piece and all, but i have thought about doing that as well, guess i should just experiment and see if i like it...

Alright, I have the template (or mold) ready to go, so I can start fiberglassing my switch panel and all tomorrow. I just need to clarify steps since Im new to this. Is it best to first put the fiberglass mat over what Im glassing, then mix the resin and pour it in, then put another layer of mat over the resin? or am i totally mixed up on how this goes on? lmk thanks!

[Silentalero]

best way to do this

unless anybody has a better suggestion...richs massking tape works good also

#1 - get a small amount of fleece and staple it over the hole
#2 - get a small piece or 2 pieces of wood and staple them in behind the fleece and staple the fleece to it to give it a curved shape.
#3 - Mix a lil fiberglass resin n hardener
#4 - spread on and let it dry
#5 - Then cover it with rage gold
#6 - sand and vuala..
#7 - cut holes for switches and your done....

#8 - oh btw and if you really feel the need, fill the backside of it with short kitty hair for extra strength

but make sure you only stape to the radio trim and not the bottom piece also because if not, youll never take that out as 1 piece.

Also if you want to make it perminant use some vetter filler for smc panels and mold the fiberglass to the edges for a cleaner look

whats the best tool to use to cut fiberglass, without taking an extremely long period of time?

Are you talking about cutting chop mat or just the normal cloth?

Or cutting it once everything is hardened?

On the two pieces that I made I just used scissors with the cloth.

The best way to work with mat or cloth is to have all your cut material ready to go, mix up your resin and hard. then brush on a thin layer of resin to give the first layer fiberglass something to stick to. After you've layed on the first layer of material take a 2" wide stiff paint brush (just get the el cheapo specials at lowe's or wherever) and using the end of the brush straight up and down into the fiberglass, saturate the cloth or mat, with the resin. the fiberglass will turn translucent when it saturated and make sure to stay ahead of the working time of the resin. You'll have less or more time to put it on depending on how much hardener you put in it the room temperature will affect it also. Also make sure you have the resin in something that it won't melt through when it starts curing, it gets quite hot after you mix it up. If you're doing more than one layer you can keep on layering them one on top of the other until you've built up the desired thickness. Also make sure to get all of the air bubbles out of the fiberglass wehn you are putting the resin on.

im looking at cutting it after its hardened, what im doing is since i bought aleromasters carputer setup, im relocating my radio to the cubby hole, and now need to cut the hole for the radio out...

[cherrington17]

i'd more likely use a dremel. but remember, the first time you disrespect it, you'll lose a finger!

[FormulaNERD]

i'd use a dremel, maybe spring for an Advantage Rotary Saw Kit

[sound_xtreme]

dremel works, rotozip, or jigsaw will work. jigsaw will make the less mess.

[bnight04]

dude...................PICS!!!!!

i wanna do the same thing soon and pics would help out.

depending on how it works out, i may try to make a few in case anyone would want one, what im planning on doing now, is covering the hole with fiberglass, then cutting out a hole to fit an aftermarket radio w/ the additional cubby hole that comes with the adaptor kit for gm cars, and molding it to the trim to give it a one piece look. ill get pics in the next couple weeks when im home from college and should have it finished within the next week, hopefully, just depends if i get ahold of a dremel or rotary tool, cause i dont feel like buying one, may go rent one, idk we shall see, but ill have this done hopefully before x-mas. all depends on how i feel the quality of my work is and all...i have found the past couple weeks i like working on this type of stuff for some reason and designing, maybe i should change my major