Thread: Fiberglass Rods

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Anyone who thinks glass rods are easier to build than steel, come on over to my house and help me block my '34 Coupe.

This thing has more curves than the chorus line at the Lido. And, if you have an uneven area, there's no hammering it out. I'm glad Gibbon used a good gelcoat/primer, otherwise, this would be a nightmare.

By the way, the gelcoat/primer is one of the FEW good things about this body.

It'll be fine when it's done, but that's due to MY hard work, not THEIRS.

I've done a lot of 'glass car paint over the years. I've worked on really nice 'glass, and really bad 'glass. There are a few things I've decided are the minimum requirement. A body that has enough thickness to maintain a decent surface, any extra panels have to fit within reason, and no more than a few dozen pinholes. Anything else is useable.

I haven't seen any bodies that are paint ready when they come out of the molds. There is always some shinkage, especially where inner panels are bonded. Other issues involve the condition of the original "mold plug" body, curing speed, which can cause warping, or parts that aren't completely cured, and the condition of the molds.

If I had to choose the most important thing, it is thickness of 1/8th inch or more. You can't overcome that, if it isn't there.

On the other hand, I prefer 'glass over rusty steel, if I were building a "keeper". Once it's done, I wouldn't worry about old problems resurfacing later.

One thing I don't have to worry about is thin glass. It's heavy duty - too heavy in some spots.

Gibbon didn't use a single mold. For some reason, they mold the parts in about as many pieces as Henry Ford did, then they bond them together. That makes for a lot of extra work at the joints. Fortunately, they did most of that at the shop. They did a fair job at fitting the trunk lid and the doors also. There weren't many pin holes either. The hood and grille shell . . . well, that's another story.

hi there, i just finished a dearborn duece and it wasn't all that great. i was surprised at how much time and effort was needed to get the thing ready for paint.

Originally posted by painter77
hi there, i just finished a dearborn duece and it wasn't all that great. i was surprised at how much time and effort was needed to get the thing ready for paint.

For the guys who like metal bodywork, I've seen a couple metal rod bodies, from different manufacturers, and I reached the same conclusion....nobody's product is perfect. If it's a consolation, that is a minor concern in the scheme of things. Just plan on some "finish work" before paint, as part of the building process.

I do a lot of bikes, and as a general rule, I don't care who made it....I don't care how much it cost....that new sheetmetal's gonna need some work! Some need a little, and some need a lot. Many guys assume that it's straight, but from my experience, they should assume it's NOT.

Even in the world of original cars, this is also true. Things only need to be out-of-straight a few thousandths to show up under a high gloss finish. I did a '57 Chevy delivery a while back. Before he brought it to me, he paid a dealership bodyman to strip it, rough out the body, and get it into primer. I guidecoated it, blocksanded, and started glazing in the imperfections. He called to see if I'd started painting color yet. I told him that 40 to 50 years results in a lot of minor damage. He asked me how many spots, so I counted them. He was shocked there were 186 touchups, after the initial "roughout" of the bodywork. He even had to run over to the shop to see for himself. The experienced painters out there know this is not that unique!

:-)~ ......and some people thing all we have to do is shake the can really good, and spray on that glassy look! LOL!

Amen brother on the work required to finish a glass body.

My Lonestar body combined with my skill level are definitely trying my patience. However I still like glass bodies and floors. You can really make nifty repairs and mods.

On the plus side my vinylester-glass body is extremely light. My son and I toss(ed) it around with ease.

And it doesn't dent or rust and willl require centuries to rot away

Regards Kitz

Fiberglass is a lot of tedious prep work I agree, but try to do a resto on a model A - without any plastic fillers. Now your living tough. Same principal as fiberglass, only harder to move and add to.
Henry wasn't real precise either, only now it's rusted so it's re-skin, or lead.

You have to admit though- the harder the work, the more pride you can take in a job well done.

My hat is off to guys who do the final body prep for painting. It is the part of building a car I hate the most. Hours and hours of blocking, filling, etc. aren't my idea of how to spend an exciting evening.

A good friend of mine is a top notch body man. A few years ago I built my Jeep truck and just wanted it to look presentable. So I stripped the body, primed it, filled the bad spots, primed some more, blocked, and generally spent the better part of a month getting it ready to shoot. My friend stopped by when I thought it was ready for paint, and said " you really aren't going to paint that yet, are you?" He pointed out a bzilliion flaws, and said if I painted it now it would look horrible.

So we wheeled it into his shop and spent another week of evenings DA-ing, filling, and priming some more, and I was amazed at the low and high spots he found. When it finally got shot I have to admit, it was now pretty straight.

Body work is one of those tasks best left to guys, like some on this forum, who have the eye and hands to do this stuff. I just don't have the patience and abilty to see those little flaws that it takes to do this kind of work.


Don

I absolutely agree with you.

I did my first ever body work and painting on the bottom of my 32. Enlarged the trans tunnel in-situ, fixed some flaws, etc.. It was a great measuring stick for what is to come with the topside for me.

And yeah I basically shot it after becoming weary of messing with it rather than having it perfect. But I figure it would cost more than $10k easy to have a shop do all this work and I don't have the resources for it as all my money is in the mechanical areas.

When I finish the top side I already know it ain't gonna be perfect. But I will have put plenty off effort into it, it will look really good, and I'll be proud of it. And no one will believe I did it myself

Kitz

Just got done with my '32 I have a total of 304 hours total in the body and paint.....but it is now flawless

Originally Posted by iceburgh

Just got done with my '32 I have a total of 304 hours total in the body and paint.....but it is now flawless

Not really that unusual to put hundreds of hours into a street rod finish. If it's an original car, you have 75 years of wear and tear. If it's a 'glass car, you have the flaws that were in the original it was cast from, plus some manufacturing flaws due to shrinkage in the glass and such. If it's a steel car, you have the flaws that will be in the stamping dies. These companies can't spead that cost over a few million bodies, so they have to spend a lot less on the dies than a new car manufacturer would, so it is going to be a compromise.

Compounding the problem is the high level of professionalism that the hobby has risen to. Todays older, more astute builder expects a much higher level of workmanship, than the high school kids who built these in the '50s. What is now a "street and show paint finish", was the "full-blown showcar finish" of the past. Rods have truely become rolling art, except, of course rat rods, which are more like a comfortable old sweatshirt, complete with holes and stains. :-)~

Originally Posted by HOTRODPAINT

Not really that unusual to put hundreds of hours into a street rod finish. If it's an original car, you have 75 years of wear and tear. If it's a 'glass car, you have the flaws that were in the original it was cast from, plus some manufacturing flaws due to shrinkage in the glass and such. If it's a steel car, you have the flaws that will be in the stamping dies. These companies can't spead that cost over a few million bodies, so they have to spend a lot less on the dies than a new car manufacturer would, so it is going to be a compromise.

Compounding the problem is the high level of professionalism that the hobby has risen to. Todays older, more astute builder expects a much higher level of workmanship, than the high school kids who built these in the '50s. What is now a "street and show paint finish", was the "full-blown showcar finish" of the past. Rods have truely become rolling art, except, of course rat rods, which are more like a comfortable old sweatshirt, complete with holes and stains. :-)~

I agree.... I have been to shows that teh cars just blow you away and you try and look as good as they do.
Here is what mine looks liek now and should have the front end on in the next day or 2

Very nice!

iceburgh... what brand of body and chassis did you use