revvenue

A few weeks ago I embarked on my very first fiberglass project after reading many DIY's online (probably 100? lol). I finally said screw it, I'm just going to do it and see what happens.

Let me just tell all the beginners out there, if you REALLY and TRULY want to do some custom pods like I did for the longest time, just do it. It's really not as hard and complicated as you are probably making it seem in your head. I personally did the project for hours in my head before even buying the materials, making it in to some kind of rocket science, which it is not.

I will say I know I will get better with time and experience, and these aren't the most or best pods I will ever make. The learning experience is what I got out of it and that is priceless. I will probably end up ripping these out later once I do it a few more times and make something mint, but regardless all the sanding *lots* was somewhat therapeutic . And the sense of ownership of creating something with your hands and with your Z is AWESOME!

Anyway, on with the pics/explanations:

(If any of you pros have advice or criticism please share, I really don't mind!)


The Gear: Rockford Fosgate T1652-S 6.5" Component Mid-Bass
(Link: https://my350z.com/forum/**************/foaFp)



First thing I did was frame up the pods using the original kick panels as the base plate. You can also foil the originals to create a duplicate of them firstly if you want to spare them, but I bought a 2nd to put in the closet, to save me the hassle. (Which I realized wouldn't have been much of one after I started working with the fiberglass)

I decided to use some ductwork from Home Depot (brought my driver in to the store and just found some that would fit it) and some plumbing back-strap also from the same department in the store. Screwed it in and used hot glue on the ring after cutting it to size. I'm sure MDF would be a better choice, but I don't have immediate access to wood working tools at the moment.

If you can make a ring out of wood, do that instead! But the plumbers strapping works a hell of a lot better to position your ring where you like it than dowel rods. Once you set a dowel rod you have to wait for it to dry, see if the position is correct, re-cut, etc. (do a couple test fits with the driver and ring in your car before you set it.) The plumbers strapping is bendable and a lot easier to get both panels identical as well.





Next I wrapped a few pairs of spandex over my skeleton. This is going to absorb the glass resin. I didn't take a picture of applying the resin itself, but basically just buy some resin and mix it according to the directions. Make sure you use a respirator and then soak the material of your choice (you can use fleece, mat, etc. but Spandex worked pretty good) with the resin. This hardens and forms the base for your kick pod.




Take a break for a pic of yourself with your newly acquired disposable respirator to use as your default Facebook/MySpace emo pic.




Next thing I did was mix up some body filler and put it over the glass. This adds a lot of bulk so when your buddy gets in drunk and tries to kick a hole in your stuff, it will only break his toes. Invest in the Bondo brand spreaders... they are made of a material that repels body filler and once it hardens they're flexible enough to bend and break the body filler off. I nearly bought a metal spackler.... thank God I didn't.

Once the first layer was applied, I used a grater to do away with any big chunks that would eat my sander up, then hit it with the sander for a long time. Sanding it down until it was as smooth as I could get it, before repeating the process about 3-4 times. The trick is to use the spreaders to get the body filler as smooth as you possibly can before spreading... and I'm sure I'll get better with time at this as well.




...And sand it again... (80 grit here)




Once fairly smoothed out, I hit it with a can of filler/primer. Some people use a "milkshake" blend of body filler/resin. This just smooths it out even more before the finish. If you plan on painting it has to be perfect... but for upholstery (I'm using faux black suede), most of the imperfections won't show up if they're slight enough.




Test fit




I used a Dremel with a high-speed cutting bit to cut the back out for the magnet to fit. Then I hit the back up with a can of sound deadener (liquid rubber). You can buy it in the spray paint section of Home Depot.




After 12 hours my dog finally gave up on me coming back inside...

Anyway, I plan on using some mat (the kind that's under the carpet in some vehicles...) to give a faux-back on the panel just so I can get to my fuse box and give the driver some air space. And also apply some RamMat and polyfill inside. I will post more pictures once I have it upholstered... With my work schedule lately I'm not sure when that will be.

Here are the final shots of my tweeter pods I finished a few weeks ago that match these drivers: