Found a 76 that has been sitting on the side of someones house for about 15 yrs the guy says. My question is about fiberglass, the paint is blue and pealing. Has the fiberglass been destroyed sitting out in the sun this long? Or does sunlight not have any affect on fiberglass.
this is just one example of why it is important to use epoxy to seal off fiberglass. it will help stop the degrading of the glass. once stripped of paint it needs 2 coats of epoxy.
It will depend on how the SMC sands. It is hard to say...without seeing it...but with it being SMC...the chances are better than the press-molded fiberglass from earlier years...which is a softer composition of body material. The SMC should not "powder" away easily when it is sanded. If it does...you will be able to see the "strand" structure of how the panel was made. It will appear much like a broken oak baseball bat. Rough and have stranded grain running through it. If this occurs....then filling in these areas may be required...if not replacing the entire panel. Once again...hard to say without pictures and your imput.
My two-cents worth... I DO NOT USE EPOXY ON FIBERGLASS/SMC. I have used polyester primer with GREAT RESULTS for years and years. Test and compare the two and you will see what I mean. Polyester primer will harden solid ( when allowed to sit in a mixing cup and cure, usually by the next day)...while epoxy can not do that...it is not designed to do that....even if sprayed as designed...it will not "rock-up" like polyester primer. Polyester/vinyl ester primer is not that hard to sand also. It is harder to deal with than some primers...but... I want a primer that is as hard as the body when ever possible...and not one that "moves" around due exposure to the sun and such....because it has not "totally" cured.
You will get "others" who express their views on this and WILL NOT change...and I am no different. We each have cars out on the street that look great and win awards...at least mine do...and I am sure that theirs do also. SO that decision...of using epoxy primer or not will be totally on who your believe in the most. My way is to apply ONE primer and sand and paint.....it "primes", "fills", and "seals" in ONE step. The other way is to apply two layers of different products and sand and paint...and you may...need to apply another coat of sealer before painting. I used to do it the other way...gave it up due to problems with the epoxy primer ( back when it first was introduced in the early 1980's) did not dry well. I am not willing to try an epoxy today...because I have mastered the polyester / vinyl ester primers,,,and have NEVER had or have a problem with any form of paint flaking, bubbles, delamination, crazing, pin-holes, shrinkage, swelling or color "die-back" or hazing.
The choice is yours and I thought you may want another opinion. There is more than one way of doing a repair...the choice is yours on how well you want the outcome...over time.
"DUB"
Thanks guys. Now I need to make a decision on which way to go.
But for now I'm going to get the car. My son and I went over the car for about an hour today and found very little rust (I was shocked) and all the glass is good. So for $800 (100% complete car, but he ran the engine w/o oil and it locked up, tow it home 15 yrs ago pulled the engine and trans and there it's been sitting) it gives me something fun to play with.
Sounds like a good starter project car for the both of you. You can contact me directly via the phone if you have any questions...or...post your issues on the forum.
Corvette Store
Sun and Fiberglass
