stoutshady

Ok, got some pics of the panel, still have a little ways to go. Getting all these little tiny holes sanded out is a b1tch. I should be ready to prime by this weekend, paint and clear coat by next weekend. Hopefully.

Cebby

Those are door panels? Nice work! Why paint/clear coat and not vinyl or leather wrapped?

How big is the driver going in the big hole? It looks humungous!!

stoutshady

I have an 8" midbass and a 5" midrange going in those holes. I suppose I could cover it in vinly or leather but I wanted to see what it would look like if painted real nice. I can always go back and vinyl it if it doesn't work out.

Designsbyme

AWESOME! Keep the pictures comin!

arjan

Are there aftermarket enclosures available to fit directly into the pocket in the rear of a 4runner? I recall seeing a product like that a couple of years back. I made a box for my '91 runner from thin mdf and then fiberglassed it afterwards for strenght. It sunk all the way into the rear quarter behind the bumper and had a decent volume without sticking into the cargo area.

keisur

JL Audio makes a "Stealth Box" but it comes with the sub and that's the only way it comes, it's like $400!!!

JL Audio Stealth Box for the 4Runner

arjan

That's JL Audio box is not all that stealthy. It doesn't look like it uses the space in the storage box and it blocks it to boot! That was the one I've seen before, thanks for the memory refresher. I guess I've to build something myself again when I feel like digging into a project.

bamachem

See, not too bad...

BEFORE


AFTER REPAIR




BTW: I didn't just fill it to cover it up. I used a dremel and a router bit to make clean cuts where the glass split. I ground everything down to raw glass for at least 6" around the bad spots. I then mixed up resin and cut up cloth (homemade cat's hair or whatever you call it) and packed it into the cuts. Grind, repack, grind, repack, grind until I got the results I wanted. I then used the dremel with a sanding drum to shape the contours back to factory. After that, I gelcoated everything, sanded, gelcoated, sanded until everything was nice and smooth. I followed that with 2 coats of automotive primer and then blended 2 coats of paint into the surrounding area. I painted the entire thing about 3 or 4 months ago, so the paint was still a good match and didn't have any issues with fading.

Bob_98SR5

Bama's got mad skilz.

Bob

Designsbyme

So when are you coming to Texas to help me with my speaker enclosures? My friend just bought a plane. We'll come pick you up!

bamachem

Aw, gee Bob, thanks...



lol... Texas, heh? If I only had the time... I ~need~ to find the time to build a new enclosure into the cargo bin for my 12" sub.

keisur

Hey Andy, why didn't you fix that dent while you were at it? just kidding, good job.

I just went shopping for MDF and fiberglass stuff. I should get started soon on mine.

bamachem

Ummm.... fiberglass doesn't dent... it does ~look~ like a dent, but it's just a smudge on the sticker (vinly on that part). i thought the same thing last time i was down there and i about jumped on my dad for hitting something else...

keisur

I know that from my windsurfers I've fixed. I thought those were aluminum or sheetmetal panels. so the whole thing is fiberglass? I don't know anything about how motorhomes are constructed but my grampas fifth wheel had 2million dents in it, it had fiberglass corners and sheetmetal flat panels. it was from the 70's.

bamachem

99% fiberglass with gelcoat finish. that's why they fade so bad. i painted all the dark gelcoat with automotive paint. that's how most of them come from the factories now.

Designsbyme

Don't forget to take pictures! Will this be your first time with fiberglass?

pics pics pics

keisur

I'll take pics. hey, as far as your question goes, check out my post above, #11 I think it is.

Beachrunner

This is something I've been wanting to do for some time as well. Bama... if you come up with a creative way to mount/enclose your 12", I'd like to see it before I tackle my truck.

AkitaDog

iTrader: (1)

Here is where I purchased the materials for my glass projects.

Tap Plastics

Also here is a couple of sites that can help

Glassman's Custom Fiberglass

Elite Car Audio

nrgetic99

I made a 0.6 cu ft custom glass enclosure that fits in the cubby in the rear of the 99. It housed an 8" Solobaric L7 driver with around 700W and impressed the crap outta most folks.

I used the existing plastic cubby as a mold and just created a copy.

I got my resin and glass at a boat store here in town.

I used Glassman for reference. My first attempt was pretty fair and was very sturdy BUT I used waay to much glass which made it heavy but extremely rigid. If I do it again, it will be much thinner and I will use wooden ribs for stiffening.

It also took me forever

However, with a dremel for trimming, its very do-able.

My tips would be plenty of gloves, plenty of containers for pouring out resin, a really good roller for wetting and a large well ventillated work space. I built mine outside.

Oh yeah, and be prepared to throw a ton of gloves, containers and the occasional 'sticky beyond repair' tools away

David