The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop Using fiberglass to make repairs???

I was wondering if anyone has used fiberglass to make repairs to thier trucks and how it worked out. I have seen fiberglass repro hodds fenders. And was wondering if fiberglass soaked cloth could be used to fix cracks and pinholes. thanks

sure, if you're into redoing it regularly, fiberglas needs special care to adhere to metal, and it doesn't like rust, so might as well do it right the first time .... pinhole repairs can be done with solder

Bill

The Por15 has a trunk repair kit that has a fiberglass like mesh material in it to use for pinholes. I have used it and it works & holds up well.

Hank

That is exactly what I was wondering about. So the fiberglass mesh in the por15 kits use the por15 to adhere not any kind of feberglass resin? or do you fiberglass first using the mesh then cover with the pro15? I have read a lot about por15 some good things and some bad. I have also read where folks had used fiberglass then covered with the por15. I have been doing a lot of work on a 55 chevy truck. I have been mostly using a mig to weld up the holes in the hood and fender. I went to a car show this past weekend Adn there were 2 fellas who said they had used the fiberglass on thier trucks. And they had some nice looking trucks. So I was wondering if the fiberglass really holds up for a while or just lasts for a year or two. thanks

Shoot, man, if you have a welder to fill the "pinholes", that's less time consuming.

I've not used fiberglass on a car or truck BUT I have worked extensively with composites of all kinds for nearly 30 years. Fiberglass is not made for that type of application. Can it be used to patch metal? Probably (if the bonding agent POR15, resin, etc. will stick to metal). All the glass fibers do is lend strength to the resin. The resin by itself has no strength, compressive, tensile or shear. If the resin holds the patch will most likely hold, at least for a while. I've not used POR15 so I don't know it's characteristics. If it gets hard like polyester or epoxy resin it may be suitable for using with glass fiber. If it stays flexible it's NOT in any way suitable for any sheet metal patch. Using glass to patch metal panels is considered Arkansas engineering at it best. The downside of using any composite in any application is that while it has major strength to weight benefits, when it fails it totally fails. Metal will deform and can be straightened and will maintain most of it's strength. Once a composite is stressed to the point of failure it looses ALL strength and must be replaced.

tha's what I figured to, hold the mig gun to the pin hole and zap it's done.

Hank
i checked out the por15 site and those folks have evrything from floor pan patch kits to gas tank patch kits. I think I will try some of the por15 stuff out since you say it works good. I just don't want to throw money up a wild cats [censored]. I have been using Zero Rust and it works pretty good.

Tiny
thanks for the heads up and it does make sense about using the fiberglass. Those fellas at the car show had some nice rides. But if the body repairs don't last it ain't worth a toot.

I would never repair metal with fiberglass. Repair metal with metal, fiberglass with fiberglass, don't mix.

Fiberglass is great For repairs... on Corvettes & boats.
Not metal

Don't think the mesh is glass, not sure, it doesn't use a resin in the traditional way, a por15 coating is used. Works great the two times I used it, no problems and covers pin holes without having to clean them up to mig or drop the gas tank to avoid a spark. I think you will like the trunk kit. Check the latest issue of Hemmings Classic cars as they sometimes have a code to get free shipping as well. Good luck and let us know how things go.

Guys, I'm not saying to throw fiberglass over rust, it will reappear. The por stuff encapsulates the rust.
Hank

I ordered a por15 kit. And from what I have seen and read on the net the stuff is really good, thanks

It will do fine. I have heard a few complaints about por15, most of the time the problem is people don't follow the directions that come with the product. They want to do it their way and that won't always work. Wear gloves and a long sleeve shirt you don't mind throwing away, use in an open air area. Let us know how it goes. The guys here love pix of work.

Hank

.... I didn't do it but after the fact someone suggested to drill only a small hole in the top of the can, say a 1/4" and only pour out small amounts at a time. Stick some good tape, duct tape?, over the hole so it won't dry out. Use throw away brushes..... and don't stick your head down in it. That stuff will coat your lungs to!! As Hank said, follow instructions.

I like that idea about the drilling the hole Alvin, I will give it a try this week when I use some to paint my old pump. Thanks!

Hank

Thanks for the tip, I have read that one of the main complaints about using por15 is that once the can is opened the stuff will dry out.

I will post some before pictures of the inside of the cab and after pictures. The cab is only rusted through in 2 places about a 3' by 4' holes and is in pretty rough shape. The truck was on a military base back in the 50s and 60s. The base is now closed down, We all lived on base so I'm trying to rescue the old truck.