This gorgeous Harley Davidson Sportster 883 was refurbished by Rafa Abella using WEST SYSTEM Epoxy and carbon fiber.
Continue reading
Category Archives: Automotive
What’s New at Staudacher’s Shop
By Don Gutzmer
Aircraft designer and builder Jon’s Staudacher’s newest project is an enclosed wood trailer for his new race car. Jon designed a trailer to be suitable for hauling his race car and living in over a weekend at the race track. The trailer was built by scarfing and gluing together individual pieces of wood to form a beautiful natural wood finished race car trailer. Jon always surprises me with how innovative he is with projects. After Jon built an open wheel race car he had a design in mind for a new plywood trailer. Continue reading
Fabricating an Air Scoop
Using the Lost Foam Method
By Brian Knight
I used lost foam construction to fabricate a fiberglass air scoop for my son’s Formula Continental C race car. Our project started because a modification to the shape of the race car body necessitated the construction of a new air scoop. The air scoop is bolted to the car body so if either the air scoop or the body is damaged (a very likely scenario), the repair will be simpler. To fabricate the scoop, I made a Styrofoam male mold, surrounded the mold with fiberglass, and then dissolved the Styrofoam to leave a hollow part. I used Styrofoam to build the male mold for several reasons. It is readily available at most lumberyards, it is easy to shape with files and sandpaper, and it is easy to dissolve with lacquer thinner.
Auto Body Repairs with WEST SYSTEM Epoxy
By Tom Pawlak
Ten years ago the rear fender on my son John’s 1991 Honda Accord was damaged just forward of the wheel. It had been repaired at a local body shop, but four months later the same fender was rusting. I took it back to the body shop. The manager apologized and agreed to redo the job, but said there wasn’t much metal for his technicians to work with because the car had rusted significantly prior to the accident. He couldn’t guarantee that it wouldn’t rust again.
I asked him if he would consider painting both rear fenders in exchange for me rebuilding the problem fender, and he agreed. I planned to rebuild the fender myself with epoxy, and also rebuild the rusted fender on other side. I knew I’d be able to do a much better job with WEST SYSTEM Epoxy and fiberglass than with the polyester-based putties the auto body repair shop had used. Continue reading
A Magnesium Crankcase Repair
By Rob Van Mullekom
I work here at Gougeon Brothers, Inc. as Operation Supervisor in the epoxy department where we do production mixing, assembly, packaging and quality control of the epoxy products. A lot of the guys I work with here ride motorcycles. In talking with these guys, I found out that it is not uncommon to punch a hole in the ignition housing cover. In fact, that’s what happened to my bike. Continue reading
Plastic Engine Cover Repair
By Jeff Wright
My wife’s 2000 Audi TT has a very sleek shape, and these smooth lines are carried under the hood with molded plastic engine covers that provide a very clean looking engine. Unfortunately when I was servicing a burned out bulb, I attempted to remove the covers in the wrong sequence which caused a tab to snap off. Continue reading
Camper Panel Repair
By Tom Pawlak
Todd Lynch, one of our valued employees, brought in a damaged plastic panel from the back end of an 11-year-old pop-up camper and asked if it was worth fixing. It came from his hunting camper which had been rear-ended. He just wanted it to be functional. The impact had made cracks at nearly every screw hole for holding the panel in place, making it doubtful it would last another trip down the highway. Continue reading
Building a Grandson’s Formula 1 Ferrari
By John White of Fife, Scotland
When the first grandson arrives, any grandfather knows he now has the chance to fulfill the dreams he had as a boy. A Formula 1 racing car would do for starters. A small model purchased for £4 was the starting point. The car will be ready for his third birthday so plenty of time (or so I thought). Continue reading
Projects/Tips from the Shop of Jon Staudacher
By Brian Knight
Over the years, we have featured some of Jon Staudacher’s more innovative projects and ideas. From his extreme house, to race boats, to aerobatic airplanes, to a gate at the end of his driveway, to something as simple as a paint roller brake, Jon has always sought the simplest method to build his projects. Jon’s latest project is no exception.
Readers’ Projects, Issue 18
Contender Class Single-Handed Racing Dinghy
This Contender class single-handed racing dinghy was built in Italy by Bonezzi in 1994. Joachim Rosler of New Canaan, Connecticut owns and races the dinghy. He finished the boat with WEST SYSTEM Epoxy and has built his own carbon fiber foils.