A Quick Overview Of The Fiberglass Manufacturing Processes For Fiberglass Products Starting With SA- or SARF-
With only a few major manufacturers making Mustang fiberglass it's hard to imagine that there can be too many differences between companies and their processes. Stang-Aholics, LLC aims to offer some of the highest quality fiberglass products for Mustangs, Cougars, and T-Bolts on the market. We offer fiberglass from a small business that makes all their fiberglass by hand, not with a chop gun and not by pushing them down an assembly line.
We are Mustang builders, so we understand the frustration of getting fiberglass that does not even come close to fitting how it should. We believe that through a little more time and attention to detail we can offer the kind of fiberglass the car building enthusiast has been desiring.
By now you are probably thinking: "How can their fiberglass be much different?" Well, let us take the time to tell you.
Hand-Laid
All the fiberglass we offer starting with Sku# "SA-" or "SARF-" are pieces that are hand-laid- No chop gun to spray any of these pieces! Through experience, we have found that you cannot produce high consistency in the thickness of all parts manufactured unless you take the time to place the material by hand. Many companies that are mass-producing their products use a chop gun in order to move the required product volume out of their facilities and keep up with demand. Our supplier spends a little extra time and money, to employ only a few experienced fiberglass builders to carefully place every layer of fiberglass by hand. Every fiberglass product produced with a Sku# starting in "SA-" or "SARF-" is 2 layers thick of fiberglass matte. The flanges that are molded into the nose section pieces and the end caps are 3 fiberglass matte layers thick.
Marine Quality ISO Resins/Tooling Gels
Our supplier uses some of the highest quality resins available. ISO Resins are used on everything they produce. The reason why ISO Resins are superior to other resins used for fiberglass is that ISO only gets stronger the longer it is exposed to the sun. We have many customers tell us that they have purchased fiberglass from other vendors which ended up warping and sagging after a few years or even only after a few months!! The hoods or trunk lids we offer will not sag after you mount them on the vehicle. Here is an example of just how tough this resin is once it's exposed to the sun for a week or more. We once set a fiberglass sheet out in the sun which was coated with ISO Resins. This sheet was 3 fiberglass matte layers thick. After a week of letting the sheet bask in the sun, we tried to cut it with a jigsaw. After only trying to cut a piece 8 inches long we completely dulled two new saw blades!
Mounting Flanges
All of the end caps we offer (SA- or SARF-) and front nose section pieces are outfitted with a flange for mounting purposes. Before our supplier started producing fiberglass, they became so frustrated with mounting fiberglass nose sections and quarter panel end caps. The cause of this frustration was that the parts would shift and move once tightened down to the fender or quarter panel.
They knew that there had to be a better way to design these parts. The parts would pop out of place because the studs were mounted the wrong way. Also, with the other vendor's designs, there was hardly any surface area on the fiberglass part actually touching the mounting surface, and that is what would cause the pieces to shift and move out of place once tightened down to the fender or quarter panel. The mounting flange has corrected this problem. This enables the installer to tighten down the piece as tight as needed without having to worry about the studs pulling out or the piece shifting out of place. Instead of bonding a stud to the backside of the fiberglass part, the mounting bolts are threaded through the thick return flange so they will not bend, shift or pull out!
Cures In Molds For At Least 24 Hours
After the fiberglass pieces are finished in the mold, they are cured at least 24 hours. They do this so the piece will not bend or twist when they take it out of the mold. Pieces that are not fully cured or still considered "wet" will easily twist and re-shape after they are pulled from the mold. This is one reason why the pieces we offer are so straight. Mass manufacturers will heat up the fiberglass while it is still in the mold to try and expedite the curing process. Some manufacturers have not perfected this heating process and many times the piece will not cure evenly; it will tend to re-shape after and during the release from the mold. By leaving the pieces in the mold for a least 24 hours, it's been found to enable the piece to dry naturally and it always cures evenly and thoroughly.
Still Not Convinced?
Find out what the industry has to say about the fiberglass Stang-Aholics carries.
Check out This Mustang Monthly Article Following the Install of our New 1969 Shelby Style Fiberglass Kit!
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