FJowners.com

General Category => Maintenance => Topic started by: cclase on December 19, 2014, 02:22:12 PM

Title: Fairing road rash
Post by: cclase on December 19, 2014, 02:22:12 PM
whats the best technique to repair ABS road rash?  appreciate the insight!
chris
Title: Re: Fairing road rash
Post by: Pat Conlon on December 19, 2014, 02:32:56 PM
Sand to get the paint off, as much as you can, then Bondo and block sand accordingly.  It's not a high flex area.
Use only ABS glue with a back up piece of ABS on your cracks

Worked on my '84's road rash.
Title: Re: Fairing road rash
Post by: cclase on December 19, 2014, 02:36:21 PM
Thanks Pat!  I wasn't sure if the grooves should be sanded down or just cleaned up and filled.  Appreciate it.
chris
Title: Re: Fairing road rash
Post by: Mark Olson on December 19, 2014, 06:45:13 PM
Um... well if you are broke , use colored duct tape and some stickers . Correctly place with care they can hide a myriad of sins.

I actually went to my first rally in 2006 with duct tape on my FJ .  :shok:

You could hardly notice .   
Title: Re: Fairing road rash
Post by: red on December 19, 2014, 09:28:08 PM
Quote from: cclase on December 19, 2014, 02:22:12 PMwhats the best technique to repair ABS road rash?  appreciate the insight!
chris
Chris,

You should drill a tiny hole at the very end of any cracks, to prevent further cracking.  You can find how-to posts here for ABS plastic repairs.  Use ABS glues only.  You can dissolve Lego blocks in the glue to make a "repair putty" as thick as needed, for fixing broken or missing pieces.

If Bondo and a paint job will cost too much, look into Plasti Dip, in many colors including white, in brush-type or spray cans.  Apply some with a Nylon squeegee or a plastic card, as a first coat, to fill the gouges.  Finish coats will be smooth.  Try it on some scrap practice pieces, and see if you like the results.  If you decide against it later, it just peels off.

Also check out the 3M 1080 (and similar) car wrapping films, in all colors, even "carbon fiber" printed sheets.  You can get it in smaller sheets on eBay.  Google can tell you lots more, and YouTube has how-to installation videos for the car wraps.  The wraps can be removed later, also.

Cheers,
Red
Title: Re: Fairing road rash
Post by: cclase on December 21, 2014, 08:59:38 PM
Mark-yet another great application for 100MPH tape!  Is there anything it can't be used for?

Red-thanks for the alternatives!  I read about making ABS "goop" here previously...I assumed I would need to use this at some point in the repairs as I thought it would just the ticket for the scratches on the fairing.  However, it sounds like bondo is the first choice.

Still reading and learning...

chris
Title: Re: Fairing road rash
Post by: Brook on December 21, 2014, 09:00:37 PM
.... JBweld works well.  and is very strong
Title: Re: Fairing road rash
Post by: Pat Conlon on December 22, 2014, 03:19:22 PM
I am a big fan of JB Weld, use it all the time, however the correct glue to use on ABS plastic is ABS glue..

Right Steve (from Florida)?

At our last WCR Steve broke the stem (ABS) of his mirror and being a fan of JB Weld, I recommended a trip to the local Willits Ace Hardware for some JB Weld.....bad move, wrong application. There was plenty of surface area on the crack for JBWeld to adhere but alas, the fix did not hold.
Steve promptly lost his mirror on the next ride.

Had we used ABS cement the outcome would have been different.
The ABS cement actually melts the plastic surfaces together. The JB Weld, as good as it is, does not.

Lesson learned.
Title: Re: Fairing road rash
Post by: Brook on December 22, 2014, 07:25:34 PM
.... should have let it sit for 24hours.

For the pic's above, JBweld would work great.......... Well, at least it did for me!!

just need to let the JBweld harden.

also, for the cracked areas, I have had really good luck, with using JBweld , a small piece of sheet metal, self-tapping screws.... Along with a drill and a small cutting blade on a Dremel........... A clean and long lasting results.

Title: Re: Fairing road rash
Post by: cclase on December 22, 2014, 08:22:23 PM
We're getting ready for a 1st annual Christmas Eve party around here, so I haven't had much time to do more than research.  Thought this little tool (or similar) may make an interesting addition for plastic repair work:

http://the3doodler.com/welcome-3doodler/ (http://the3doodler.com/welcome-3doodler/)

...at least until I can find/afford a full on ABS 3D printer...

chris
Title: Re: Fairing road rash
Post by: ribbert on December 23, 2014, 03:24:18 AM
Quote from: cclase on December 22, 2014, 08:22:23 PM
We're getting ready for a 1st annual Christmas Eve party around here........

chris

At what intervals did you previously hold it?

Noel
Title: Re: Fairing road rash
Post by: Steve_in_Florida on December 23, 2014, 07:55:11 AM
Quote from: Pat Conlon on December 22, 2014, 03:19:22 PM

I am a big fan of JB Weld, use it all the time, however the correct glue to use on ABS plastic is ABS glue..

Right Steve (from Florida)?

At our last WCR Steve broke the stem (ABS) of his mirror and being a fan of JB Weld, I recommended a trip to the local Willits Ace Hardware for some JB Weld.....bad move, wrong application. There was plenty of surface area on the crack for JBWeld to adhere but alas, the fix did not hold.
Steve promptly lost his mirror on the next ride.

Had we used ABS cement the outcome would have been different.
The ABS cement actually melts the plastic surfaces together. The JB Weld, as good as it is, does not.

Lesson learned.



In this case, it was the best we could do.

A failed attempt at sabotaging accidentally damaging Father Pat's beautiful `84 broke my left mirror at the base of the mirror housing. Only about an inch of ABS was affected, around where the stalk joins the mirror.

Had to be sparing with the JBWeld, as I still had to be able to adjust the mirror once it was reconnected.

Attempted to use heat to get it to cure faster, as the first full day of WCR riding was only a few hours away.

Quote from: Brook on December 22, 2014, 07:25:34 PM

.... should have let it sit for 24hours.

For the pic's above, JBweld would work great.......... Well, at least it did for me!!

just need to let the JBweld harden.

also, for the cracked areas, I have had really good luck, with using JBweld , a small piece of sheet metal, self-tapping screws.... Along with a drill and a small cutting blade on a Dremel........... A clean and long lasting results.


Brook: Self tapping screws? Metal reinforcement? Man, that's a PROPER FIX! Remember, the rally was OUT IN THE STIX!!! Not _EVEN_ a PROPER STRIP CLUB!!!  :diablo: (They told me I'd have to go to SAN FRANCISCO for THAT KIND OF ENTERTAINMENT!!!  :shok: )

Actually, the fix held up remarkably well; a whole lot longer than I thought it would. Almost five hours of riding, I think.

Once I entered "The Kookaloo Zone", though...

Something about the physics of wind, vibration, speed, friction, drag, (hootin' and hollerin'?)...

I actually WATCHED the mirror kind of waver a bit. Maybe flutter. Then it just detached.

(popcorn)

No better way to justify a new set of CBR mirrors, though.

...that's the reason my bike wasn't in the WCR lineup photo. The embarrassment of not having that left mirror.

(Trolling for STRIPPERS! <rolls eyes>  Indeed!)

Steve
Title: Re: Fairing road rash
Post by: cclase on December 23, 2014, 08:39:10 AM
Quote from: ribbert on December 23, 2014, 03:24:18 AM
Quote from: cclase on December 22, 2014, 08:22:23 PM
We're getting ready for a 1st annual Christmas Eve party around here........

chris

At what intervals did you previously hold it?

Noel

Noel,
This is our first go at a "once annual" Christmas Eve party...traditionally it's just been us, but we decided that this year we'd like to put together a proper party with friends and family for the primary purpose of spreading Christmas cheer!  Reckon time will tell whether it becomes tradition or not, but we're hopeful!

chris
Title: Re: Fairing road rash
Post by: cclase on January 29, 2015, 09:12:59 PM
ok, thanks to all for the suggestions!  after a bit more research, i've done a little experimentation with ABS goop.  it will be obvious that i'm a novice, nonetheless, still managed to produce some interesting results...goop was made with acetone and lego/duplo bricks.  here are some before and after pics that i hope will be helpful.

chris