The MAIN purpose of Gelcoating my panels on Vin# 1136 was ,To find another
way,of repairing Bricklin panels that would normally be behond normal
repair,ie: my panels were so badly damaged/Cracked/dryed out ,(This car was
a 24/7/52 outdoors car untill 1991)that the normal procedure would have been
to just scrap all the panels and start all over,I DID NOT want to scrap the
panels,so I tried different procedures,including trying to lay on a NEW coat
of Acrylic over the existing Acrylic,THAT WILL NOT WORK,next I tried wet
sanding and filling in the cracks with a combonation of red lead and
fiberglass/bondo mix,with mixed results,Then what I found that worked out to
"Fill" the Cracks (spiderweb type cracks)on a bricklin,was just Resin,so I
resin coated the whole car,to fill in all the cracks,(all major cracks were
repaired the normal way I sanded down the areas till I removed all the
acrylic,then I repaired the normal way with the fiberglass method), and let
that sit in my garage for about two weeks,then I simply gelcoated the
complete car,untill I got the desired results(coverage),after that I let it
sit for about a couple more weeks then I wet sanded the Gelcoat till I got
my desired finish. This method is NOT for a Bricklin that has just minor
flaws,THIS METHOD is for A Bricklin, that is a Total Basket case when it
comes to the Bricklin Panels,and You want to try and Salvage the orignal
Panels,rather than replace them,(1)it basically stablilizes the panels from
further cracking(2)It fills in all the cracks(3)It puts a finish on the
car,that can be left that way,or it makes a good base to paint the car,in
the normal way.(4)It saves a panel(s) that would normally have been removed
and scraped.(5) It refreshes the panel,and puts back life in a dried out
panel .NOTE:Before any of the above procedures can be done all the panels
MUST first be
firmly adhered to the car,no loose or flapping panels.
Claude
1136
----- Orignial Message -----
From: Seth <sbunin@provide.net>
To: <Bricklin@autox.team.net>
Sent: Friday, October 20, 2000 5:30 PM
Subject: Fwd: acrylic, gelcoat. painting
> I've now seen quite a few emails proclaiming the pro's and con's
> of gelcoating, painting, etc., but I think we can all agree with this one
> statement (which I think Stephan has been making all along):
>
> It would be nice to have the option of repairing our acrylic panels to new
> condition if it was possible.
>
> All I am saying is lets give this process a chance (regardless of whether
> another process may also work) and see if the results meet expectations.
> I think in the begining, all Stephan was looking for was a single cracked
> skin with which to try the new processes, does anyone have one?
>
> Seth
> #1544
>
>
>
>
> On 10/20/00, at 4:14 PM, alphachi <alphachi@writeme.com> wrote:
>
> >
> >First, Terry's panels can fit a whole lot better than stock, they are not
> >beyond cracking. After driving his white car for about a week, I can
attest
> >to that. Secondly, I can't imagine anyone opting to paint or gelcoat
and
> >paint, or bondo and paint, fiberfill and paint, or whatever, IF there was
a
> >viable acrylic alternative. The added advantage of using an acrylic
process
> >is that small repairs could be made on the existing panels, or an entire
> >panel could be resurfaced. No other process can offer this versatility
or
> >accuracy in maintaining the factory finish. Whether fiberglass, acrylic,
> >or a sheet metal car of ANY year, changing the color or type of finish
> >generally detracts from its value.
> >
> >Developing an acrylic repair process is part of the answer to improving
the
> >Bricklin's value and longevity. New and superior acrylic materials and
> >processes are out there, there's a whole new industry out there and
failure
> >to revisit the possibility of finally coming up with a process truer to
> >original form only hurts the Bricklin and its owners.
> >stephan #2821
> >
> >
> >
>
>
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