Can anyone tell me whether there are any advantages or benefits of these two materials as far as strength, durability and paintability are concerned...I'm considering a Veilside V1 kit.

Thanks in advance!

 

Well, polyurethane is better if you ever scuff the lip b/c it is less likely to crack or break.

 

And fiberglass is better because it can be repaired...so if you do crack your urethane kit, say bye bye. Fiberglass from a good manufacturer (not most replicas) has a good amount of flex in it nowadays.

 

Enough flex to buy one over a PU?

 

I mean it's personal preference. I personally would rather have a repairable kit if something were to happen...so I'd go with fiberglass. If you don't think you're going to crack urethane, go for it. Plus fiberglass is normally less pricey...at least it is for the manufacturer.

 

If you are used to driving with lower clearance I would say go with FG but for people who might scuff alot I would say PU. I know PU can break too, but it takes a hell of alot of force to do so. Alot more than fiberglass.

 

Huh...??? You can repair PU. They sell kits and I've seen it done. On a daily driver fiberglass will get ripped to shreds. Sooner or later you'll scrape it on something.

sean

 

How do they repair PU?

 

I will never get a FiberGlass kit. They are too brittle,chip, and crack way more easier than PU. They are lighter and I guess cheaper unless you get a Top Secret kit. Waste of money IMO. Especially if your looking for Front end pieces, I think PU is the way to go.

 

Polyurthane sucks through if it bends and you let it sit like that because it will leave that bend in it and you will have to heat it up to get it out. Plus its so dam flimsy it needs lots of reinforcements to hold it up.

 

I had a PU kit on my last ride... It was great when I had it... Im pretty sure PU doesnt crack - It tears... Four years ago I rear ended someone... I was going about 35-40 mph - Did the PU tear??? Nope... I had some deep scrapes on it but noting that penetrated the PU...

Oh yeah I had a Kaminari kit for a 2001 Celica...

I would go for a PU front end over FG any day...

Oh the other hand... Things I didnt like about PU... Heat was the enemy... It causes the kit to flex/warp... Not really bad but noticable enough for you to know that a "gap" in the seams is getting bigger... It does go back when it cools down (to a certain extent)...

Well... I hope this helps a little...

 

I think this is because of weight... Since it weighs more (way more) than FG more supports are needed...

 

As of right now, the VeilSide V1 kit Z33 is only available in Urethane. There is no stock of the urethane option in the U.S. right now (unless there's some random shop just sitting on it). VeilSide USA will not have stock on urethane until their August container. Lastly, VeilSide USA is not bringing over anymore V1 kits in fiberglass or frp.

ON a side note, Carbon fiber V1 has been temporarily disco until they test fit the new ones. We sent VeilSide USA my OEM front bumper to test fit the last batch of carbon fiber V1 kits that came in (different mold than the original) and VS determined that the mold was bad, and sent them back to Japan. At this moment, there is currently a container sitting in Long Beach docs, in U.S. Customs, with the V1 carbon fiber in it. VS will be test fitting the new mold as soon as the container is released to them (probably tomorrow).

Hope all of this helps.

 

didn't look at everything on this site....but they probably have products that will work: http://www.urethanesupply.com/plastifixhowto.html

Stillen makes poly urethane body parts/kits that can withstand being twisted without having stress marks appear. It's high quality stuff!

sean

 

Thanks for all the replies and information guys - this really helps a lot.

 

Ignorance kills...

High quality fiberglass is thin, lightweight and is flexible. Repairs are easy as it doesn't explode upon impact like the cheaper fiberglass.

Cheaper fiberglass like you see on most civics and most replica kits is either too thin and brittle or too thich and heavy. The thin parts literally explode upon impaces and the thicker ones tend to crack and damage other parts of your car when you hit things.

Urethane sags over time, does not hold paint well, and is HEAVY. Even OEM Urethane parts cause the paint to fade over time. Almost all aftermarket urethane parts sag over time. Urethane rips/tears when you kit things and I've yet to see a clean method to repair urethane. (though i've seen a lot of kits that "repair" the tears or rips, they always leave a "scar")

The best material is what Ings calls Hybrid Aero and what C-west calls PFRP. It's a hybrid material that is lighter then even fiberglass, just the right thickness, and is as flexible as fiberglass. The problem is, only a few companies offer this material. (a few replica companies are trying to use something similar but beware, the parts I've seen do not hold their shape and sag as bad as urethane)

So to sum it up, PFRP or Hybrid Aero is the best material. If that's not available, go with high quality FRP (fiberglass). I would avoid Urethane and cheap fiberglass parts like the plague for the reasons stated above.

 

^^^ Amen

 

urethane is ok on smaller parts that are relatively light because of thier size.