Topic: "fixin" a seat

[mystic_1]

Now you're talking.  Looking forward to seeing what you do with that.

mystic_1

[Geeto67]

The Mek in your slurry is probably going to outgas (solowly realease solvents and fumes) for at least a month. It probably was not such a good idea to rush into priming it. It may never stop doing that either, we had a 1957 corvette that was glassed improperly in the nose and it continued to cause bubbles under the paint 5 years after the work was done. We ended up having to replace it. The bubbles were caused by the mold release reacting with the epoxy.

There is a big difference between using heat to melt plastic to make filler and melting the plastic with chemicals. In melting with chemicals, something that was in the plastic reacts with the MEK and is consumed in the resulting reaction. I am not a chemist but it doesn't take more than a high school education to figure out that after the MEK has evaporated that the plastic left behind is not the same as the plastic you started with.

Heating plastic to make repairs changes it also, since some plastics release chemcials when heated. Some plastics can stand being melted at low heats and retain most of their flexibility but this is not the case with evey plastic out there.

Honestly though, what was so wrong with some two part epoxy or jb weld?

Look at it this way - now you have a decent buck for a mold if you wanted to make a fiberglass tail.

I would strip the primer off it, let it sit out for a long while and then skim coat it in body filler (marglass). Hopefully this will seal the plastic from any top layers of paint.

[Industrial Cafe]

geeto- I had the same thought with the entire thing of what you said.
but I figured I'd try it and see what happened.

the only thing I was worried about with JB-weld or other epoxies was delamination and the differences in flexibility between the two materials.

you may be onto something with the "buck" for a fiberglass mold.
hmmm...

[Geeto67]

geeto- I had the same thought with the entire thing of what you said.
but I figured I'd try it and see what happened.

the only thing I was worried about with JB-weld or other epoxies was delamination and the differences in flexibility between the two materials.

you may be onto something with the "buck" for a fiberglass mold.
hmmm...

The problem with the old plastic was too much flex. Ever sww spiderwebbed paint form bikes from the early 1980s? most of that is several decades worth of the plastic vibrating and flexing at a different rate than the paint. If using JB weld, I would recommend the use of a bonding strip, a piece of plastic that bridges the gap of the two pieces being joined, on the underside. That way if there is flex the bondig strip absorbs it before it has time to crack the butt joint. This is how corvettes use to be made BTW, two pieces of fiberglass with a strip underneath bridging the gap.

As far as the buck idea, well if you could fab up a seat pan that makes this deal a true bolt on then I am pretty sure at least a few members would want one just like it. Plus if it is glass it could be all one piece. just putting that idea in your head.....

[Industrial Cafe]

hmm

[Industrial Cafe]

did some sanding today, no pics, I'll post em up tomorrow in the daylight.

 got the center rib down, and got rid of the raised part around the back that supported the tail light
trying for a smoother (not stamped from a factory) look.

I'd like to try to make a mold, so I can make a couple more of them. but I need to fab up a flat part for the seat if I do that.

[Industrial Cafe]

my impatience got the best of me again

shaved off the ridge around the back opening


I can still feel a tiny ridge, more work ahead 

[mystic_1]

If you have a sunny day tomorrow, give it the "baking in the sun for hours" test again and see if the ridge pops back up.

Looking good otherwise.  Shape looks real nice.  Removing the ridge was an improvement imo, so long as it doesn't compromise strength.  Cracks start at the edges most often, remember.

mystic_1

[Industrial Cafe]

will do, mystic.

I'll be painting a cool post apocalyptic mural across the top of the tank and seat, so it don't have to be perfect
couple things on paper, and I'm not totally sure yet but

something like this

[Industrial Cafe]

oh, I forgot to add, I sanded it down last night, and a little today, it sat in the sun all day today till about 6:00pm no rise.
fingers crossed

[mystic_1]

Hmm.  Like it.


Zombie apocalypse, perhaps?

[mystic_1]

oh, I forgot to add, I sanded it down last night, and a little today, it sat in the sun all day today till about 6:00pm no rise.
fingers crossed

Oh good deal.

mystic_1

[Industrial Cafe]

YEEEESSSSSS more inspiration for the old sketch pad

[Spillman]

nobody... nothing smart to say?

....oh wait, this isn't the shameless thread, nevermind

looks like its bubbling up 

[Industrial Cafe]

oh thanks I didn't notice, I'll have to fix that. 

[Spillman]

on a more serious note tho i liked how it came out with sanding the ridge down.

[Industrial Cafe]

thanks dude

[fuzzybutt]

that gas mask looks just like the one Peter Tosh wore on the no nuclear war album jacket.

[Industrial Cafe]

after sitting in the sun for about a week, I sanded it smooth and primed and painted it.
   everything was great, then....  a few days in the sun later, the effin seam came back!!!
where's all this plastic coming from?!
wish my kids didn't break my camera.

I think I may have to do something ...interesting.

just don't know what yet.

and BTW, my homemade sync rack came out beautifully!!! wasn't out by much though.
I knew my ear was trained well.
I cut the ears off a jedi knight, and had mine replaced with em.

[mrbreeze]

You outa get some metal legs like the dude in Grandma's Boy!!!....
So get this seat thing done man!!!!!....It looks $#*$$'n cool

[Industrial Cafe]

to follow hte rest of this seat progress, go to this thread.
http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php?topic=56057.0

[MoTo-BunnY]

A little late, since you are so far along with this mod, but if you find that the joining of the two halves is still kinda weak (as end to end repairs tend to be) you might want to add an overlapping patch of fiberglass cloth, on the inside. It will strengthen it a LOT.

I used a piece of fiberglass cloth soaked in two-party epoxy resin (12 hour cure time is stronger than the 5 minute) and applied it, then added some more epoxy on top of it and let it cure, to fix a real long crack in my sidecover. The crack is centered underneath the "bandage" in the picture. You can also sand it down, if needed.

[Industrial Cafe]

oh, I soaked a piece of remaining plastic in the MEK till it was like a wet noodle, then I soaked the bottom of the cowl till it was somewhat rubbery and bonded the 2 together with a layer of liquid in between so there was no bubbles. its super strong.


that's not a bad idea tho.
but I didn't have any glass to work with at the time.

[MoTo-BunnY]

That looks real good - didn't realize with the quick post scan, you were already on top of it with the same kind of concept of applying a backing to the repair instead of just relying on two ends glued together, to hold it (butt end repairs are known to be real weak, metal welding or otherwise. . . (yeah yeah, I know "she said butt end . . he heh he)

I actually used this fiberglass cloth that comes on a roll for seam reinforcement for roofing, worked incredible for that sidecover repair because that puppy was REALLY cracked (I actually ran over it accidentally, in the dark. . .*doh*)

[Industrial Cafe]

I'm workin on a "no budget" budget, so I was just using what was at hand/cheapest.