Fiberglass question

Hey Guys,

Read through and watched a lot of tutorials on here about resin/fiberglass but had a question. I fiberglassed my first piece last night and not sure if the results are as intended. There is still a bit of flex in my piece, it doesn't seem that hard in flat areas, but the corners are strong. Did I not use enough resin? Should I use multiple layers of fiberglass? The tutorials talk about how to apply but not what the result would be. I expected fiberglass to not flex.

Thanks,
n8

n8four said:

Hey Guys,

Read through and watched a lot of tutorials on here about resin/fiberglass but had a question. I fiberglassed my first piece last night and not sure if the results are as intended. There is still a bit of flex in my piece, it doesn't seem that hard in flat areas, but the corners are strong. Did I not use enough resin? Should I use multiple layers of fiberglass? The tutorials talk about how to apply but not what the result would be. I expected fiberglass to not flex.

Thanks,
n8

Click to expand...

You're going to need a few layers to remove all the flex from your piece. And honestly, a little 'give' to your armour is never really a bad thing as long as it's not bowing and warping.

Do recall - fibreglass and resin get very heavy when you start layering it up. You'll need to offset the weight with strength and find a balance.

Fiberglass will have some flex to it with only one layer but thats should be just fine on all the little pieces, just because it has a little flex doesn't mean it's weak. It takes a lot to break that stuff. If you want to add more layers just let it harden up and cooldown a bit before applying your second layer.

As long as it's completely harding up in a timely manner (less than an hour), then you have the right amount of hardener.

I use about 8-10 drops of hardener per 1 ounce of resin. If it's cool outside use more. You can use all the way up to 20 or so drops but I would NOT recommend it, unless you keep a close eye on it. Fire hazard.

It is drying pretty well in an hour, maybe a little more because of humidity. I think I have the right ratio going on, the flex just had my concern. Thank you for the information.

The piece I fiberglassed yesterday was the helmet, which I don't want there to be flex in, do I? Will applying bondo with a little flex be a bad idea?