Doors.... doing doors... Or at least getting them prepped....
If you see this....
It can only mean this exist.... With adhesive all over it.
So we do the cleaning to get rid of the adhesive....
Then the sand it with 80g. This doesn't reallllllly need to be done. It's just the way I'm wired.
Only 8 more lids to go!
Ok... so we spray lacquer thinner then scrape. It's really not hard at all. But ya' gotta want to do it cause it does get monotonous....
Well... it's actually spray lacquer thinner, scrape, clean with scotch brite and lacquer thinner then sand. And sometimes one, or more of those, 2 or three times...
But when it's done a fella can nearly break his arm - patting his-self on the back!
5 more lids to go...
Looks great!!!! What could go wrong with spraying a couple gallons of lacquer thinner in a 100 degree shop? LOL!!! KIDDING....Looks like you shut the shop lights off at least...
That is going to turn out nice for sure! Looking forward to seeing the end product!!
Nice work !
1993 Gambler 206
24’Bass Cat Puma Sts-300 Proxs
23’Gatortrax Gt tunnel hull-200 Suzuki
Thanks for the comps guys.
The biggest problem I'm having with the heat is evaporation when I'm spraying it. Stuff doesn't stay wet on the work piece long at all. I've quit using the syringe because I couldn't find a metal one at the local WalMart and the plastic ones lasted no more than a day. I'm using the squirt bottle to do what the syringe was doing. I'm using way more lacquer thinner this way but it's getting the job done.
I have an exterior wall mounted exhaust fan and a large floor fan and both move a lot of air. The lacquer thinner fumes are fairly well dispersed rather rapidly. The most immediate hazard would be sparking at the work piece and I'm working with aluminum/fiberglass so that kinna minimizes the spark possibility. The other hazard is the carpet holding the thinner where I used the squirt bottle. It, carpet, does hold the thinner for a longer period of time. That is one reason you see pictures of the carpet laid out flat. That gives it time to fully evaporate before I stack it in a pile.
And no... didn't turn the shop lights off. I have no idea why that one picture is much darker than the other.
Last edited by yupitsme; 07-09-2019 at 08:57 AM.
Watch the elephant disappear.... One bite at a time.... or is that three bites at a time???
The hinges need straightening up as well. When installed over carpet the hinges tend to deform so I'll be hammer n' dollyin' those to get'em back to factory specs... HUH...
You can kinna... sorta... see where the screw holes are pulled down in this pic. Some of the off-set hinges, that bolt directly to the fiberglass, don't have this problem.
I played around with buffing the hinges but the results did not match up with the effort so they'll get straightend, cleaned and reinstalled. Didn't get any good pictures of the effort but below is what I've got...
Wow! Man that looks great! Makes me want to redo my 2100!
Thanks!
OK... I'll admit it.... I've got some 1/4" Bronze acrylic plastic coming for the windshields. But I wasn't real sure how it was gonna turn out. How the plastic was going to react to a heat gun on a larger surface are. Did I have enough heat to soften all that needed softening at the same time. Lotta question soooo.... Went to my local glass n' mirror shop n' got some clear 1/4" plexiglass. The clear cost almost exactly 1/2 of what the bronze did but there was a lot of shipping charges and a $20.00 cut charge. So anyway... I got this 2'x4' piece of plexiglass... Looked like this...
yeah that's the windshield pattern on it. Bought it that'a way! LOL... did not.
Little black dots are the windshield mounting holes....
So I got it all marked up and ready to cut. I used a jig saw. I "might" try the next one with my trim router and a laminate bit.... maybe.
Partially cutout with jig saw. I'm leaving some of my marking line which I'll sand/file whatever I gotta do to get the final dimension.
And here the rough cut is completed...
Now I gotta drill the holes. Drilling holes in plastic is kinna tricky because most drill bits get pulled into the workpiece. That's fine on wood n' metal. On plastic, especially when the hole is close to the edge, having the bit pulled into the work can produce really bad results. Cracked plastic. So I got some bits, couldn't find plastic bits locally and wasn't waiting, that I think will do the job. First hole it sucked the bit into the hole. Yikeees... No damage done. The first way I was trying to bore the holes looked like this.
Used the clamps hoping it would keep the plastic from moving - it did not. Clamps weren't close enough to the action. So.... changed how I was clamping it and went to this set up - which worked fine!
Here's the bits I bought hoping to make it go a little smoother. They're called brad point bits and are used in precision dowel work - among other things.
Oh yeah.... Locating the center of the holes... Was a bit of a problem with only the round dots to go by. I'd get it where it needed to be and try to clamp it down and something would move. And I could never be sure I was "center" so.... Got the below set up to solve that problem. The hole in the nut is just slightly larger than the hole I need to bore. So, when I place the nut over the dot I can see a thin edge all the way around the dot. I know I'm center or within a couple'a thousands of it. Then I took a transfer punch which was just undersize of the nut hole. Put it in the nut, light tap w/li'l hammer and center is marked. Now I know.
Used several different tools trying to get the final shape but haven't yet found what I'm looking for.
Tried this and worked so some degree but wasn't able to handle the long straight runs...
Prolly getting close to my photo limit so I'm gonna post this then start another message brb...
Last edited by yupitsme; 07-09-2019 at 05:38 PM.
Let's see.... where were we????
Oh Yeah.... got the piece cut out. got the holes drilled.... Guess it's time to mount it on the boat n' see what it looks like...
Mmmmm.... maybe I leave it like that n' see if it'll fly!
Nah....
Before we get too far along... I got 12 new ones of these. Got'em from BassCat.
Okiee dokiee.... moment of truth has arrived.... Heat applied, learned somethings, I do have enough heat and my template wasn't bad at all... On one side.
What about the other side though????? Yeah, it fit too...
Got final shaping to do. Gonna trim some off the left side. Straighten up the line across the top. I'm adding a flare to the top of the windshield to deflect the wind better. But all in all I liking the way it turned out. This is just the test piece so I'm not investing a lot of time in it. I wanna put the flare on it to make sure how I plan to do it will actually work.
I've got a phrase I coined long time ago. "Can't" - That is the word people that don't want to use. Think about it.
Thought I'd post a few other photos of the windshield w/o the paper on it. I did take it off and heated it up trying to make it better n' made it worse but.... that's what these test pieces were for - experimenting.
Some of the tools I used.
The one in the middle is a rasp and it did not work at all. The one on the top right is a metal file for doing body work back when lead used instead of plastic filler. The one on the left is just a long board sanding block with 80g paper on it. The metal file worked the best but not many folks are gonna have one of those....
If you look at the right corner(would be the left if you were in the boat) that corner was jacked up just a little before I worked on it. Now it's jacked up a lot. But I know what I need to do to prevent it from doing it again....
This pic shows the lifted corner better.... It's "fixable" but it's also a test piece so... prolly won't fix it. Still don't have the flare on the top done... I'll get it in the next day or two. Carpet shows up tomorrow and I still have 3 lids to prep. That nasty looking stuff on the bend is adhesive from the paper. The plastic itself is fine.
You are a mad-man.
I say that with great awe and amazement.
YESSS!!! Keep this going! I love seeing this stuff!
And then there was one - left... that's on the right.
Earlier I said left/right port/starboard windshields were not the same. This is the template I used on the drivers side windshield reversed on the passenger side.
Kind of hard to see here but the template is about 1" below the recess for the windshield. On both sides and the top(a little short) I plan on modifiying the template - after I create the drivers side windshield.
Oh... and... the flare on the windshield... May or may not get done. I diddled with it a fair amount yesterday. It is certainly doable. With the tools/methods I have available there's a fair chance I'll damage the windshield trying to put the flare on it. It takes a lot of heat on a large area. I ended up using a propane torch, which actually worked pretty well. But it does soften the plastic up to the point if I touch it with a tool it leaves an impression. I've got a few ideas left to make the flare consistent across the top of the windshield without damaging it. So gonna play with it some more but 50/50 I won't put it on the final pieces. The question is do I want to take the chance of damaging a good windshield, order more bronze acrylic and try it again or.... leave well'nuff alone....While I'm straddling the line I am putting most of my weight on the "leave well'nuff alone" leg!
Last edited by yupitsme; 07-10-2019 at 08:18 AM.
The problem....
The solution...
The results...
This is after using the metal file I showed earlier and the long sanding board. Got it "close".
That's what the edge looked like after filing and sanding. There are a couple of low spots that are still visible. But.... these test pieces, for me, are to show what's possible. Get to the final piece I'll worry more about final appearance...
Just so ev'a boddies unnerstan's who they's dealin' wid here...
And... after "flaming" the edges it looks like this. The dip/low spot is a bit more evident in this image....
And my attempt at flaring the top of the windshield. Like Einstein said "I've successfully found a way that does not work!"
You have mad skills!!!
2005 2200 Gambler 2005 Merc 250 Racing XS
Thanks.... I think...Originally Posted by wolfman051
So I put the windshield back on after straightening that once edge. If this were the final piece I would not be done with it but I now know what it takes to get to where I want to be.
The 1 1/2" flange where the windshield bolts to the cowl when it's all said an done there is will be a 1 1/2" piece of windshield blackout tape in that area so the dirt and just general stuff that will get there - doesn't show like it does now.
Tried to take a better shot of it but flash/glare killed the picture...
And then there were none...
And what a mess it made... all'a that stuff on the floor is contact cement that was removed from... well you know.
But... had to get it cleaned up 'cuz this showed up today....
Did get it all cleaned up and set up cutting table....
So let's unroll it some to see what we got...
Ok... looks like what I ordered... Threw a piece of the old on there and was surprised that they're pretty close the same color. The edges that didn't get constant direct sun are obviously less "purple" than the old sun beat stuff.
Check nap direction...
Got the nap runnin' the right way. Time to chunk the first pattern up there. Gonna start with the bow. Then the console area. Woooopppssss.... cutting table is 5" too short. Oh well.... I'll take care of that tomorrow. Checked the nap a couple of more times and probably will a few more times before the first cut. The way it's set up I "should" be able to simply take lid pattern and flip it over with everything facing forward just like it is in this photo....
This is gonna be a rather drawn out process because I'll be using Henery's 6700 indoor/outdoor adhesive. I used that stuff to nail down some loose areas several years ago and I had more problems getting those areas removed so I'm think it holds pretty good. Debating about using contact cement on the edges that fold in on the lids and certain spots in the console area. Guess we'll just play it by ear. Now the fun.... work begins...
Last edited by yupitsme; 07-10-2019 at 07:49 PM.
Don't miss this job at all. Looking great, and just about identical to how I did mine.
http://www.bbcboards.net/showthread....ghlight=carpet
The console and bow were unsurprisingly the worst parts. My front carpet came up in pieces so I had to build my own template and go from there. Used Weldwood and 8 years later have zero issues.
I remember when you did your's. So it's been 8 years huh???? Dang time flies!
I'm using Roberts indoor/outdoor adhesive(6700) not because I don't think Weldwood contact cement will work. I have no doubt it works fine. That or something similar held mine down for the better part of 25 years. I'm using the indoor/outdoor because it gives me work time to get everything in place. I have '0' confidence that I'm gonna dive off the platform and nail a perfect '10' I want that wiggle room!
As you can see I did manage to get all my carpet up intact. There's a few areas where the original install "missed" and they(whoever "they" are) had to patch in a piece here and there. And... no doubt the two biggest pieces will present the biggest challenges.
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