daz c Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 Hi in the future I will be looking for a fibreglass shell for my baja 5b but they are expensive. Would I be able to to use it for a mould to make some myself for the future ? whch way would I do it ? would you use the inside of the shell for a mould or would you make a mould from the inside of the shell and fibre class that ie shell is concave mould would be convex ? Does the gell coat go in first or go on last? cheers daz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ravenguard Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 ive just done one for the xrc ,i use the cling film to cover the shell then fibre glassed over the top ,then used car bodge to cover any holes ,then sand it (alot) i also dont a savage shell ages ago but that one i use vasiline first then the fibreglass came out much smoother that the xrc one but it did take some paint from the inside on the shell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daz c Posted February 13, 2011 Author Share Posted February 13, 2011 I will be using a blank fibreglass shell to start with before I paint it . Was it easier to fibreglass the inside or out m8 ?. cheers daz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marcd220 Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 (edited) i think you would have to make a negative mould, then mould your new shell from the inside of there that way it would be smooth on the outside Edited February 13, 2011 by marcd220 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daz c Posted February 13, 2011 Author Share Posted February 13, 2011 Do you but the gel coat in first when you are making the final product ? cheers daz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ravenguard Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 inside is much easyer and its a better finish. if you make a moled then you could alway make more that 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daz c Posted February 13, 2011 Author Share Posted February 13, 2011 I would make loads but is there a patent on shells ? Could always flog them to your mates though to cover your costs. I just think that things like shells are realy overpriced I mean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom24-7 Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 ryt where do i start with this lol if you want to make a fiberglass shell get your original shell and gel coat it on the inside this comes in a range of colours. now take your fiberglass matting and cut it into squares this makes it form to the shell better. now mix up your resin and hardner now get a paint brush and cut the end down to make it stiffer dip it in your resin. take the fiberglass you cut earlier and place it in the shell and dab over with the resin and paint brush keep going till the shell is evenly coated. now take the brush and dab out any air pockets as these will form dimples on the outside once you have done this leave it to dry until it feels tacky but not sticky this is known as the green stage. get yourself a sharp stanley knife or scalpel and cut away the excess doing this now is easier than when its set once youve done cutting of the bits you dont want leave to dry and pull it away from the shell and walla a fiberglass shell/mold to make many more.. if theres anything ive missed feel free to correct it. any questions pm me im a panel beater by trade Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daz c Posted February 13, 2011 Author Share Posted February 13, 2011 ryt where do i start with this lol if you want to make a fiberglass shell get your original shell and gel coat it on the inside this comes in a range of colours. now take your fiberglass matting and cut it into squares this makes it form to the shell better. now mix up your resin and hardner now get a paint brush and cut the end down to make it stiffer dip it in your resin. take the fiberglass you cut earlier and place it in the shell and dab over with the resin and paint brush keep going till the shell is evenly coated. now take the brush and dab out any air pockets as these will form dimples on the outside once you have done this leave it to dry until it feels tacky but not sticky this is known as the green stage. get yourself a sharp stanley knife or scalpel and cut away the excess doing this now is easier than when its set once youve done cutting of the bits you dont want leave to dry and pull it away from the shell and walla a fiberglass shell/mold to make many more.. if theres anything ive missed feel free to correct it. any questions pm me im a panel beater by trade Thankyou very much mate very helpful. Would I use the inside of the mould or the outside mate as the inside would be rough ? or would i fill the inside so it was smooth? cheers daz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom24-7 Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 use the inside mate because if you use the out side the shell will end up slightly bigger and the gel coat should smooth things out once youve taken it out get some fine sand paper and water try 800 grit the smoother the better .once youve done sanding get out the polish and buff her up real good :good:no probz mate after all you cant buy knowledge Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daz c Posted February 13, 2011 Author Share Posted February 13, 2011 Thankyou very much mate:good: I wont mid paying 120 quid if I get to sell a couple to cover the cost of gear and I get a few spare ones:good: cheers m8:good: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B-Master Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 (edited) dont spend £120 to get a fiberglass shell just to make a mould mate buy a lexan shell i did this a while back when i made a carbon fiber shell for my Baja here is what i did Made a frame to hold the lexan shell (wood frame) tacked the lexan shell to the wood frame with the tabs on the lexan shell so it dident move and flex in the lay up process (you can get them uncut) i then used cling film on the lexan shell (to avoid dmg so i could use it after)take your time over this cut up my fiberglass in to smallish squares applied the agents made a thin mould after your happy with the thickness (this is just a mould) then spend time smoothing and polishing and accentuating the inside of your mould this way i have a very good mould i could then produce my actual carbon fiber shell out of carbon fiber twill which i could use over and over again hope this helps Edited February 13, 2011 by B-Master Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daz c Posted February 13, 2011 Author Share Posted February 13, 2011 The shell I have seen is an all in one I havent seen them anywhere cheap in lexan . Have you seen an all in on 5b shell for a fair price mate ? cheers daz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B-Master Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 Je spares always keep the uncut baja shell in stock mate JESPARES (BAJA) If you need any help doing this let me know i had a freind of mine help me when i made mine his profession was to make fiblerglass bathroom items sinks/baths/showers ect he also used to make and sale fiber glass shells went under the name of MQ Fiber shells he was one of the only sellers for a long time happy to help if you need more advice add me to MSN its in my profile good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carlcurtis83 Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 Baja 5b shells are only Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharkfat78 Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 I've never used fiberglass so this is only a thought but if you made a shell by adding fiberglass to the inside of another shell, wouldn't it be slightly smaller? Smaller by the thickness of the fiberglass? I don't know if the size difference would be negligible or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daz c Posted February 13, 2011 Author Share Posted February 13, 2011 I like the look of these ones http://www.mmrlargescale.co.uk/acatalog/RCFIB01.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B-Master Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 (edited) when your wet laying a shell if your worried about the size diffrance (0.5mm) then you can make your mould from the outside and then make your final produce from the inside of your mould but you will end up spending alot more time carving/scraping/fileing out the details on the bodyshell this way and it really is only a .5mm diffrance between the orignal and the one you produce in fiberglass or carbon fiber on a side note i have some high grade carbon fiber twill cloth left over from when i was producing my carbon shells if your intrested in making it carbon fiber insted of fiberglass its no harder to use and looks damn sexy also the shell you linked does look very nice on a baja but maybe start small and cheep make some oringal designs then work your way up to something harder like the one you linked mate Edited February 13, 2011 by B-Master Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carlcurtis83 Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 (edited) I like the look of these ones http://www.mmrlarges...og/RCFIB01.html Ah the marder/leopard esque ones. The guy that makes them is over on the BajaForum, I'm pretty sure he was selling them cheaper than that to forum members. Awesome shells and painted too. EDIT, Reading the advert on MMR they come supplied in white now, however I'm sure the guy on the forum was willing to paint it for you. Edited February 13, 2011 by carlcurtis83 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daz c Posted February 13, 2011 Author Share Posted February 13, 2011 They do look mint and I would like to make something along them lines but doubt they would be anywhere near as good as that lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carmst74 Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 That guy designed the shell to sell on forums etc. He was planning on selling them for about Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daz c Posted February 14, 2011 Author Share Posted February 14, 2011 I think 110 for a unpainted shell is to much imho however they are nice and I dont think the bloke will see that much of that money. Did you get the baja roller m8 ? daz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carmst74 Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 No he wont see much of that money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gjc Posted June 25, 2024 Share Posted June 25, 2024 Does the heat from curing cause damage or melt the original lexan/ polycarbonate body shell. Have access to roofing fibreglass which heats upto around 30 degrees while curing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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