Blooze Own: An F355 Six Speed N* Build Thread (Page 121/126)
Bloozberry JAN 20, 10:06 PM

quote
Originally posted by 355Fiero:
A couple tricks learned over the years of glassing...



Thanks for the helpful tips Don. I'll try some of them on the RH shroud.


quote
Originally posted by Yarmouth Fiero:
If I know you, you're out in the shop tonight trimming and buffing the piece before a photo shoot ha-ha-ha



As if you're not guilty of the same!


quote
Originally posted by Lonster:
A small squirt of acetone will quickly dissolve the foam...



Thanks Lonster... I tried a rag lightly soaked with acetone to get the little tidbits out and it worked really well.

I got the big stuff out by whittling it with a box cutter. It wasn't as easy as I thought it would be:



Once the biggest part of the foam was removed, the rest came out by simply pulling on the red tape. There was a thin film of sticky resin residue left over on the inside of the fiberglass beneath the tape, but it dried or cured overnight:



Here's the cleaned up shroud ready for final trimming:



The inside is relatively smooth, though the tape left a few marks. It's certainly good enough considering the job it has to do.



When I built up the foam mould, I made it longer than needed so once the resin hardened, I trimmed off about 1.5" from the interface with the radiator. I've got it fitting nice and evenly all around:



And finally, here's a bug's eye view just before he gets cut up into neat little slices!
Yarmouth Fiero JAN 21, 07:53 AM
The glass work turned out great Blooz. Now for the other side.

Do you think there would be any benefit to putting a small U channel rubber edging around the edge up against the radiator, not so much to make a seal but more to prevent the glass from rubbing on the radiator? We use a lot of that here and I may have some pieces in black left over that has a soft aluminum spline inside and a little rudder tang that keeps it snug in place on the edge. I'll drop some off the next time I am driving by. If you want to try it to see, let me know how much you need.
Bloozberry JAN 21, 09:26 AM
Great idea. I was thinking more along the lines of fiberglassing a small 90 degree flange all around and using some foam weatherstripping between it and the rad, but your idea is much simpler.
ccfiero350 JAN 21, 09:38 AM
Very cool!

Another trick I used to remove the old foam core. Stiff wire brush (like a bottle brush) in a drill or die grinder. It makes a huge mess unless you have your shop vac taped to your drill but it makes quick work removing the foam buck.

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yellow 88 GT, not stock
white 88 notchie, 4 banger

Yarmouth Fiero JAN 21, 11:55 AM
Here is a picture of the molding Blooz. It has a nice soft compressible edge that makes a clean finished look.
Bloozberry JAN 21, 12:08 PM
That looks like it would be the perfect thing. I'd need about 60" per radiator shroud.
Yarmouth Fiero JAN 21, 12:14 PM
Done.
Bloozberry JAN 21, 12:22 PM
Yay!
355Fiero JAN 21, 02:25 PM
That Hammerhead is a very cool craft. I have no interest in doing fiberglass work full time though. haha Done enough for my entire lifetime on my 355 panels that you and Blooz have and my 308 replica I am finishing now.... I think it is time to get a metal project so I can learn some metal bashing and not have to play with fiberglass any more.

Blooz;

The intake looks great. Have fun with the right side.

Cheers
Don


quote
Originally posted by Yarmouth Fiero:

Looks really good Blooz. Can't wait to see the finished product. If I know you, you're out in the shop tonight trimming and buffing the piece before a photo shoot ha-ha-ha.

Great tip Don for working mat into and around tight corners. Are you looking for work as an FRP specialist? Google "Hammerhead USV-T" to see one of our products currently in use in your area on the West Coast.
Bloozberry JAN 22, 02:26 PM
Thanks Don. I have a few other things to address before I get to the RH radiator shroud. The first thing is getting rid of the engine bay side wall nearest to the old battery location... the black part in this photo:



A cut-off wheel in the angle grinder made short work of that!



With that sheet metal wall removed, it sure lays bare the structural members of the frame:



Here's the view from the engine bay:



Next, I made the clearance notch in the passenger side B-pillar for the radiator shroud. It went faster than the driver's side because I was able to use that side's chopped out part to mark the size and location of the notch on the RH side. To close up the notches on both sides and to regain some of the lost strength, I made some cardboard templates of the pieces needed, cut them out of some 18 ga. steel plate and formed them by hand (and foot!) over a piece of 4" round pipe I had laying around:



Once they fit just right, I tack welded them in place so I could measure the smaller pieces to close off the tops and bottoms:



Here's a close up of all three parts needed to finish the job:



I made up the parts and tacked them in place in about three hours for both sides. Here's the passenger side ready for final welding:



Now I'm ready to start the RH radiator shroud. I won't bore anybody with a repeat of what's already been done on the LH side so it'll be a few days before my next post. Thanks for watching!