Doghouse Repair

thanks tim. it's at the upholsterer's shop now getting carpet sewn on.

ok, i have 2 options from the upholsterer for adding carpet to the bottom of the doghouse. can anyone tell me how this would have been done originally on an '88??

Option 1 : sew carpet to bottom of vinyl and wrap/glue.

Option 2 : add a 1/4" ply ferring strip ~4" from the bottom. staple vinyl to the ply, then staple carpet to the ply (upside down), fold the carpet over itself and wrap/glue.

I think the end result will look the same...Option 1 seems more "correct" to me, but I'm no upholsterer...

I was going to say- it looks a bit thicker than original in the repaired area. I would have overbuilt it the same way- nice job.

If you throw a little bit of black paint on the inside before putting it back together, it will be tough to tell there was ever any damage!

            


Piece of cake Nick.... now it wasn't that hard was it?

Did get enough plies on to at least match the original thickness?

Looks good from here! It will be stronger than new.

Looks good Nick! I'd say you're ready to go. Prepping the job properly will make the installation seem like a cake walk.

I agree with Tim 100%. Looks good nick. Rounding the corners is EXACTLY what you needed to do.

Another little tip for you (which I should have thought of earlier). If you save a little bit of the fiberglass/epoxy dust from your sand job then you have a filler material to add to some epoxy (set aside a little bit in a dixie cup when you mix it up to lay your glass) for filling the stop drilled holes and the holes from your rivets. Just add a little at a time to make a thin paste. You'll want to fill the holes so you don't have air trapped in your repair.

Fill the holes with your paste AFTER you get your layers of glass on the backside so the paste won't fall out.

Is it paint or gelcoat? I suspect the latter.

Either way, yes- grind it off anywhere you want to lay new glass down (probably 2-3" all around). You want the new glass to stick to the old glass- not gel or paint.

Another thing nobody has mentioned is to prep the surfaces with acetone so that they are really clean before applying the resin.

Nick I did the same repair on my 89SN. I added a piece of 1/4" ply right across the back of the engine cover and then applied 3-4 layers of cloth over that. I did this after repairing the cracks it spreads the load over a much larger area. Like Hollywood said if you leave the engine cover up it really pulls on the hinges and the engine cover is not thick enough to handle these loads.

tim,
thanks a lot for the step by step...of course I have a few questions.

1) "For the crack you I'd use a bigger bit to stop drill it. I think what you have is too small."
are you saying the crack is small enough that I don't need to stop drill it??

2) regarding your #3, is "BACKSIDE" the inside or outside of the doghouse?? maybe doesn't matter?? also, this step should be cloth plus resin, right?

3) regarding your #5, 3-5 layers after the "plug"??

4) do i need to grind out the corner cracks at all??

thanks again.

Nick thanks for the beer bonus! I used it to buy a correct craft fan shirt off the site.

Nick, I can't believe I missed this one. I had to do the exact thing a few years ago on my 88 and work with this stuff daily

For the crack you I'd use a bigger bit to stop drill it. I think what you have is too small. Tim's suggestion on material is good and Keegan is correct on repair.
I would taper sand the edges about a 1/2 to an inch of the part that has broken off so that the new glass will have a smooth transitional surface to adhere too. To make a really make a strong repair for this application compression is key.

1. Get your cloth cut and ready to go before you start as you don't want to cut as you go cause the resin will set up before you finish.

2. Use 2 pieces of wood or aluminum sheet ( a little wider than your repair) to use as a backing plate wrapped in wax paper. ( this will prevent them from becoming part of the repair.

3. When your ready to go lay several long pieces of cloth on the BACKSIDE of the taper sand making each one a little longer than the prior.

4. On the side of the taper sand start appling your cloth (the size and width of the removed damage) and resin one layer at a time. Build this up until your close to the original thickness of the parent material. You are in a sense using layers of cloth to create a plug. Once you think you are at the proper thickness throw in a couple extra plies to be sure.

5. Now finish the repair by appling your cloth that extends beyond the original damage. I would use about 3-5 layers making sure each additional layer overlaps the prior one about an inch on both ends.

6. Once your done laying up the glass then apply your backing plates to both sides of the repair and clamp the crap out of it. Not so tight that you squeeze all the resin out of your repair but you want do want compression as it ands strength to the repair and will force out ANY air that is trapped in the resin. Air in your repair isn't good as it weakens the bond of plies.

7. Once the resin cures you'll have a nice smooth surface and very minimal sanding if any at all.


:For the cracks on the corner I would just lay up 3-4 layers of cloth on both sides of the dog house. Use a hair dryer or (heat gun if you have one) to heat up the cracked area and dab a little resin onto the crack. Heating up the repair area will cause the resin to flow into the crack and any "dry" fibers will wick it up. Lay your glass over the crack the same as above extending each one longer than the prior.

Make sure that before you start any fiberglass repair that the surface is free of any paint, glue, oil, or rubber. Wipe down the entire repair area with Alcohol or Acetone before you start. You want a clean surface so the resin will bond to it.

Nick if you got any questions or anyone else for that matter. Give me a hollar.770-316-6963. I'll help where I can.

Good luck and keep us posted.

thanks for all the input guys. here are a few more photos of what i'm workin' with.

corner crack...i'll fix this one at the same time.


this one turned out to be more than a crack. for repair should I put a layer of glass on the outside and then build up layers on the inside after that cures?? sorry, I have no fiber glass experience.


big chunk missing on the other side...same procedure as above??


adding a 1/4" ply reinforcement seems like a good idea to me. after I fill in the holes/cracks do I just "glue" the ply to the inside with expoxy resin and then add a layer of cloth over that?? or, would it be better to add the ply on the inside and then build up layers on the outside?? again, no fiberglass experience here.

keegan, i'll send you an email about your cloth and mat.

thanks again guys!!

Dont know much about questions 1 thru 5 but that is a nice bribe photo. I am suprised J-Bear hasnt chimed in with advise.