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Tee shirt method of fibreglass mould making - common problems?
smart51 - 20/5/11 at 10:36 AM

I'm going to make an instrument binacle by bending a wire frame to the perimeter shape I want and stretching an old tee shirt over it the way home made sub enclosures are made. Has anyone done this? what are the usual pit falls?

For those who don't know, you paint the stretched tee shirt with resin to make it hold its shape then apply fibreglass to the surface once it has hardened. Hey presto! compound curves!

jabbahutt - 20/5/11 at 11:00 AM

know nothing about it but really interested to see the results!!

MK9R - 20/5/11 at 11:19 AM

quote:
Originally posted by smart51
I'm going to make an instrument binacle by bending a wire frame to the perimeter shape I want and stretching an old tee shirt over it the way home made sub enclosures are made. Has anyone done this? what are the usual pit falls?

For those who don't know, you paint the stretched tee shirt with resin to make it hold its shape then apply fibreglass to the surface once it has hardened. Hey presto! compound curves!


Nice idea.

I have made a buck from mounting card (think white card from craft shops), glued it together with a hot glue gun, as long as there are curves its amazingly strong!! It will even hold the wax to release it from the grp afterwards. I also made the mould for my bonnet bulge by covering the engine poking out of the bonnet with thick foam out of an old chair, then a piece of carpet, then covevered it all with a plastic bag and masking tape over the top to help curve it, it came out a treat:-









Removed the mould and all the tape etc and screwed mould back onto bonnet and layed up buldge from the inside






[Edited on 20/5/11 by MK9R]

[Edited on 20/5/11 by MK9R]

[Edited on 20/5/11 by MK9R]

Peteff - 20/5/11 at 11:20 AM

Fleece jacket/jumper material works well for this job.

mattyc - 20/5/11 at 11:23 AM

I have used artist canvas in the past, soaked in resin as it dries it shrinks tight.

ashg - 20/5/11 at 12:12 PM

i found the material used for longjohns is best as it stretches in all directions and doesn't dip when you apply the resin.

iank - 20/5/11 at 04:30 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Peteff
Fleece jacket/jumper material works well for this job.


Indeed, there have been a few threads in the past about using fleece for this very job.

a search on "fleece resin" gives a few including this one:
http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/viewthread.php?tid=33641