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Hi Gonzoracer
Actually it should have been "Fendrum bend-rum"
but again, it proves the maxim that nobody is perfect.
You are right about fiberglass, it is lighter than
steel, and easier to work with. To make mold
we used sides in plywood and thin smooth metal
sheet for surface, with rounded sides area filled with plaster. If this description sounds funny
I can make design of fender mold. Unlike wire
mesh, it's major parts are already smooth .

Greets
ewhen

Hi TooBusy
Sherbrooke is only stone throw from Montreal
You are more than welcome to use our rig.
As for talent, when I reached maturity,
I still did not know how to lace my shoes.
Greets
ewhen

used a speedway nose and grill, cost $129.99 for the nose and $199.99 for the cast aluminum grill, if i had made them, i woul have had to make a plug, then a mould then the part, and for the grill, well i probably cold have fabricated it from steel flat and rod.

just sayin that somtimes its better to buy the thing premade or we would be making our own bolts and nuts from hex bar.

i did however make the trunk lid from scratch

_________________
this story shall the good man teach his son,
and chrispin chrispian shall ne'er go by,
from this day to the end of the world.
but we in it shall be remembered.

When I took my first class in a machinist certificate program the instructor handed us a file, a hacksaw and a scribe. We were told to make a C clamp body. 4 inches tall, 2 inches deep in the throat, with the "C" 1/2 " thick x 3/4 inches wide all around.

He would check the dimensions with a micrometer when we handed in the project; everything had to be +/- .005"

THat had us scribe as close as we felt comfortable, cut with a hack saw and draw file to final size. If it was in tolerance when we handed it in, we could then go grind a cutting tool and head for the lathe to learn to turn the screw for the clamp. If it was out of tolerance, he handed you a fresh piece of steel.

There were 2 lessons to be learned: you CAN make pretty much anything with simple hand tools given enough time and patience. When something is too big you can take more off, when it's too small, you're pretty much hosed, so measure carefully.

_________________
Too much week, not enough weekend.

OOPS I did it again
http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=17496

Blood Sweat and Beers
http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=15216

Hi JackMcCornack
I am sorry if my statement about the difference
between building and assembling did hurt
anybody's ego. Mea culpa, mea maxima culpa.

I do not see any pride in owing handbuilt car
which was done wifh help by family and friends
plus advice from those who endured pain and
occasional frustration making hand made cars.
which is my case (sort of collective effort)

Times ago I bought used 1" deep shrinker from
Ebay, for total price of 22. Dollars (cnd.) which
was used for fashioning various parts, including
fenders for cars, trailers, manure spreaders, etrc.

Is it really wrong to encourage people to build
certain things rather by themselves ???


ewhen

I'm sorry if my response to your statement did indicate anybody's ego had been hurt.

All I was saying was, I think the difference between building and assembling is not that precise. I feel like I* built my car, though the majority of its components were built by other folks. There are extremes; I know an engine builder who doesn't make any engine parts, and then there's a guy in my local autocross club (he drives a Birkin) who started with a drawing pad and a whole bunch of aluminum and an English wheel and built himself a streamlined motor home. The range of builders is broad.Heavens no, it's not wrong at all--at least not in my opinion. For example, see...
http://kineticvehicles.com/DwgFrontSuspension.htm

*I get by with a little help from my friends--me and Dave and Sharon and George built my car.

_________________
Locost builder and adventurer, and founder (but no longer owner) of Kinetic Vehicles

I'm going to make a confession to those of you who don't already know me in the real world. I struggle with patience. I like to get stuff DONE.

When I started looking at actually building a Locost a few months ago instead of just thinking about it, I developed a pretty aggressive timeline and budget. My goal was to have a street legal car, licensed, driving, and well into the de-bug process in 6 months for less than 6 grand.

I agree with Jack that "builder" covers a broad spectrum. I'm somewhere in the middle between the guy who smelts iron to hammer into steel and the guy who writes a check to Chip Foose.

I'm seriously looking forward to visiting ewhen's shop next time I head North.

_________________
Too much week, not enough weekend.

OOPS I did it again
http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=17496

Blood Sweat and Beers
http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=15216

hi if you go back and look how i widened my clamshells, no fender bracket breakage, less wind buffet too.

I looked at your build log. Nice approach. I could do that easily. Thanks for another good option.

_________________
Too much week, not enough weekend.

OOPS I did it again
http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=17496

Blood Sweat and Beers
http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=15216

I saw your mention, Ewhen, of plywood sides and a sheet metal center, with corners smoothed out by plaster. Thanks for that simple solution. I had another discussion going above under tools & fabrication, about how to set up for forming fenders, and someone said why not use 1/8 masonite for the curved part. That might be better than metal.

I'm not sure yet but I think I will start with a simple half-circle and form the cross-section the way you suggested, but without any flat parts. IOW, all filled with cement and/or plaster.

Now I need to get the right wax to make it smooth. I am assuming it will break out of the mold with-out an air hose connection. The final piece will be 3/8 thick Divinicell foam between two layers of epoxyglass. A bit of thickness to help prevent cracking in use.

BTW, the other day I was on the road next to a Cadillac of about 1930 vintage, similar to a deuce coop. He had the deep purple (almost black) body in perfect shape. The fenders are the swoopy kind, rounded rounded rounded and flawless. I would be scared to drive such a perfect car.

Mine is more for daily use but I want it to look good.

Hi Rapt
For sure you can use masonite or even
thin 1/8 " plywood, as long as it can
follow the curved sides.
For easy separation of glass from the
mold, we used hard wood floor paste
wax, but nowadays the resin vendors
do have a right stuff to do the job.
Applying gelcoat to the mold, gives
smooth surface to the fibreglass part.
Cheers
ewhen

One more thing before I go.

I thought up an idea that might help. Use the right size inner tube to form the shape in the plywood/masonite rig; pour the plaster, press in the inflated tube, and if all else goes well, the plaster will harden in the right shape around the tube. then you have your female mold. For my purposes this may be the way to go.

Rapt,

I would be more inclined toward's Ewhen's approach as the bladder is more likely to capture air and may not actuallty achieve the required shape if the bladder (inner tube) pressure is inadequate. Fine Homebuilding has described a technique like Ewhen's albeit for male shapes (mouldings) rather than female (a fender mould):

http://www.finehomebuilding.com/how-to/ ... c=ts&ra=fp

I have a set of COLD front fenders that have a nice cross-section, but the wrong radius for my tires and I'm tempted (one day in the distant future - I am putting the Texas locost build record at risk) to give the plaster technique a try for a fender mould. This would allow me to duplicate the COLD cross-section.

_________________
Warren
Isuzu Pickup/SR20DE, +401 COLD frame
Build Log: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=11601