Tasmin FHC - Filling the hole left by a sunroof.
Discussion
I’m considering buying a Tasmin FHC which some vandal in the 80’s has fitted with a sunroof. Now I was thinking with the roof being fibreglass that this may not be the end of the world if I wanted to fill up the hole.
My questions are:
Can it be done?
Has anyone attempted it?
Any tips on techniques to avoid cracking etc in the finished article would be much appreciated. I’ll let you know tomorrow if I buy it.
My questions are:
Can it be done?
Has anyone attempted it?
Any tips on techniques to avoid cracking etc in the finished article would be much appreciated. I’ll let you know tomorrow if I buy it.
Hi, no i havent done this before but if you put a piece of thin plywood under the head linning which is larger than the sunroof you might be able to fiberglass on top of the ply from the outside and bond together, it would need rubbed down a fair bit then full roof respray..
PS -- this is only my idea of doing it.!!! good luck john..
PS -- this is only my idea of doing it.!!! good luck john..
Hmm Interesting,
I have made some parts in GRP in the past and I would say it's do-able
I think I would approach this a little differently, the First job would be to lay up some flat GRP sheet big enough to cover the hole appropriately the same thickness as the roof. This is best done off the car as you can use faced plywood or melamine (not the wood grain type unless you want a wood grain roof) it's also good practice before you start demolishing the car.
Once you have a piece of GRP trimmed to fit the 'ole you could then grind back the edges of the existing roof and the new piece, this allows you to key the new GRP to the old and also stops a big high spot where the joint is, on the inside it's not too important as long as you get a good lamination.
Next attach the new piece in position using ali strips, wood, pop rivets etc. once attached you would need to lay up at 3-4 layers inside the car over the whole area (not just the join !). Once that lot's set and you have got the resin out of your hair
you can remove the temporary supports and make good the outside with a couple of layers of GRP around the join line, may need a bit (lot) of filler & sanding to finish off.
If you want to learn more about GRP I can recommend Automotive Glassfibre by Dennis Foy
Hope this helps
100th post !
I have made some parts in GRP in the past and I would say it's do-able
I think I would approach this a little differently, the First job would be to lay up some flat GRP sheet big enough to cover the hole appropriately the same thickness as the roof. This is best done off the car as you can use faced plywood or melamine (not the wood grain type unless you want a wood grain roof) it's also good practice before you start demolishing the car.
Once you have a piece of GRP trimmed to fit the 'ole you could then grind back the edges of the existing roof and the new piece, this allows you to key the new GRP to the old and also stops a big high spot where the joint is, on the inside it's not too important as long as you get a good lamination.
Next attach the new piece in position using ali strips, wood, pop rivets etc. once attached you would need to lay up at 3-4 layers inside the car over the whole area (not just the join !). Once that lot's set and you have got the resin out of your hair
you can remove the temporary supports and make good the outside with a couple of layers of GRP around the join line, may need a bit (lot) of filler & sanding to finish off.If you want to learn more about GRP I can recommend Automotive Glassfibre by Dennis Foy
Hope this helps
100th post !Edited by B@man on Thursday 5th February 15:31
B@man said:
Hmm Interesting,
I have made some parts in GRP in the past and I would say it's do-able
I think I would approach this a little differently, the First job would be to lay up some flat GRP sheet big enough to cover the hole appropriately the same thickness as the roof. This is best done off the car as you can use faced plywood or melamine (not the wood grain type unless you want a wood grain roof) it's also good practice before you start demolishing the car.
Once you have a piece of GRP trimmed to fit the 'ole you could then grind back the edges of the existing roof and the new piece, this allows you to key the new GRP to the old and also stops a big high spot where the joint is, on the inside it's not too important as long as you get a good lamination.
Next attach the new piece in position using ali strips, wood, pop rivets etc. once attached you would need to lay up at 3-4 layers inside the car over the whole area (not just the join !). Once that lot's set and you have got the resin out of your hair you can remove the temporary supports and make good the outside with a couple of layers of GRP around the join line, may need a bit (lot) of filler & sanding to finish off.
If you want to learn more about GRP I can recommend Automotive Glassfibre by Dennis Foy
Hope this helps
100th post !
Told you i had'nt done this before,sounds good Simon...I have made some parts in GRP in the past and I would say it's do-able
I think I would approach this a little differently, the First job would be to lay up some flat GRP sheet big enough to cover the hole appropriately the same thickness as the roof. This is best done off the car as you can use faced plywood or melamine (not the wood grain type unless you want a wood grain roof) it's also good practice before you start demolishing the car.
Once you have a piece of GRP trimmed to fit the 'ole you could then grind back the edges of the existing roof and the new piece, this allows you to key the new GRP to the old and also stops a big high spot where the joint is, on the inside it's not too important as long as you get a good lamination.
Next attach the new piece in position using ali strips, wood, pop rivets etc. once attached you would need to lay up at 3-4 layers inside the car over the whole area (not just the join !). Once that lot's set and you have got the resin out of your hair
you can remove the temporary supports and make good the outside with a couple of layers of GRP around the join line, may need a bit (lot) of filler & sanding to finish off.If you want to learn more about GRP I can recommend Automotive Glassfibre by Dennis Foy
Hope this helps
100th post !Edited by B@man on Thursday 5th February 15:31
The thing to remember about most roofs - is that they are rarely flat .. just hold a piece of wood across the roof to see this ..
If it's not flat - then the best method is to make a mirror mould ..
You would need quick a bit of kit - and would need to use the rear section of roof that hopefully has the same profile as the front.
Mould wax (bees wax)
Blue release fluid
Resin
Glass mat
mixing jugs
measure
and some old paint brushes..
This is a useful site :
http://www.cfsnet.co.uk/
If it's not flat - then the best method is to make a mirror mould ..
You would need quick a bit of kit - and would need to use the rear section of roof that hopefully has the same profile as the front.
Mould wax (bees wax)
Blue release fluid
Resin
Glass mat
mixing jugs
measure
and some old paint brushes..
This is a useful site :
http://www.cfsnet.co.uk/
If I'm knocking up cheap-and-cheerful stuff in GRP on boards etc. I usually just cover the board/box/pipe/whatever with parcel tape. The resin won't stick to it and if you get the tape neat enough the worst you get is some faint parallel lines in the resin from the tape joins.
As for the FHC's roof, it's definitely curved front-to-back and maybe very slightly curved across the car, so a basic sheet might be a good starting point.
I'd be tempted to do it from inside the car with a suitable panel taped over the outside. Once you've got a good gel layer and a couple of layers of CSM in place, remove the panel and see how it looks. Worst case, you have to knock it off and start again.
As for the FHC's roof, it's definitely curved front-to-back and maybe very slightly curved across the car, so a basic sheet might be a good starting point.
I'd be tempted to do it from inside the car with a suitable panel taped over the outside. Once you've got a good gel layer and a couple of layers of CSM in place, remove the panel and see how it looks. Worst case, you have to knock it off and start again.
Gassing Station | Wedges | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff