Nicky Pass

I want a fiberglass subwoffer box. Is it really hard to work with fiberglass???? I want the sub to pop or like a volcano.......I have no clue how to do this........any help or instructions would be awesome!!!!!

SilverBullet_RENAMED

To what I have been told by alot a few professional shops about the W7, you can not use FIBERGLASS for the W7. The fiberglass will flex too much and cause the sound to sound crappy. It will be very expensive to put tons of reinforcement on that box. MDF is the only way to go for that sub.,

langjae

I've seen a W7 in a fiberglass box actually. I'm not sure on the sound but it looked amazing. But I wouldnt see why glass would flex compared to mdf after several strong layers. I could be wrong, but I don't see THAT big of a difference between the two.

NSXNEXT

iTrader: (2)

I have to disagree.

For Subwoofer Designs, The material with the highest MOE (modulus of elasticity) is SUPERIOR. This is basic physics. Marine Grade Plywood and Baltic Birch have approximately 2.5 times the MOE (rigidity) of MDF. 3/4 inch Marine Plywood or Baltic Birch outperforms 2 inches of MDF.

Use 3/4" Marine Plywood or Baltic Birch and you'll be smoking the competition. It is GREAT stuff. MDF is used by maunfacturers ONLY because it is EASIER to work with, and EASIER to VENEER/FINISH!!! It saves manufacturers time and money. It's also cheaper, especially when you're building 1000s of boxes. For the DIYer, it's not much more.

Check any specialty hardware store, I know Home Depot and Loew's don't carry it.

SilverBullet_RENAMED

Well even the JL rep I met yesterday said do not use Fiberglass boxes.

soopa

Nicky, you arent going to be able to fiberglass yourself.


it requires experience and talent if you want it to look even halfway decent.


why didnt you think of this before you installed your stereo in the first place?


it seems like every single thing youve purchased for your car you have talked about completely changing it within a week afterwards. lol

Nicky Pass

I guess I'm hard to satisfy.......or, I run into extra money after I get something done

lrutt

What is the reason for fiberglass, odd shape or just because. If you want to make a mold, there are a couple ways to do it. Build up the basic shape with sheets of styrofoam. Coat the foam with mold release then lay glass over the foam. It can then be split and foam removed. A little mold release and you can make several copies. Same for using that spray in foam. build up the basic shape, shave to what you want, then lay some glass over it. I'd build it out of wood (plywood as stated earlier), glue and biscuit all joints. It will not come apart. Biscuit joining is one of the strongest methods there is for joining wood. If absolutely necessary, you could lay some glass over the wood for water proofing or whatever reason. Glassing is not tough. I've made seat sections, gas tanks for dirt trackers, small fairings for supermotard style bikes, and some other stuff. Good thing to learn and fun to do.

langjae

Give glassing a shot...

I did, and it came halfway decent but took way too much time for my liking. I can't hurt to try..you spend at most 50 bucks in supplies.

And the final touch is the painting..and you can just bring it to a body shop for them to paint it if you want. There you go..you just saved 500 bucks and have a greater satisfaction cuz you did that shit yourself.

Nicky Pass

SO, you make a mold, but how do you make the hole?????? The screws that secure the speaker.......do you pre-drill them?????? I need more details!!!!!!

BBsAcuraRacing

Build the box from MDF and then glass the inside to eliminate standing waves

4pumpedCL

The easiest way to do a fiberglass box is to build a box minus the top piece of wood. Cut 2 round baffles and elevate them to the angles you desire using wood dowels. Stretch either grill cloth of fleece over the baffles and staple it to the sides of the box. Lay some resin into the cloth, let it soak in and dry. After that lay down a couple layers of fiberglass working out all the airbubbles wish some cheap paintbrushes and you're good to go. If you want to paint it you'll have to bodywork the box using bondo. I've had good luck with Evercoat products, and I use angel hair fiberglass...not the cloth stuff. Good luck. It's not too hard, just really stinky.


Take a look at Langjae's pictures. He has some good shots of his box under construction. JL audio's own demo vehicle uses fiberglass boxes, so I'm sure it can handle the W7. The more layers of glass you lay down, the stronger it gets. If you have any questions feel free to PM me. I'm in the middle of fiberglassing all kinds of things for my trunk, so I'm starting to get ahold of the concept.

-Aaron

Nicky Pass

Where can you get the stuff to make a baffle!!!!!

4pumpedCL

baffles are just 3/4" MDF rings you cut out yourself. That is what the speaker will actually screw into.

Nicky Pass

Do you get a rough mold......then sand it sown?

4pumpedCL

with the technique I'm describing you don't actually have to make a mold. Just after a couple layers of fiberglass it'll be pretty rough, so you cake on some bondo and start sanding. The bondo won't be too thick when you're done, maybe 1/8" in some spots, but mostly just a skim coat.

langjae

Nah just get a jigsaw..you can cut decent circles with it. Don't mess around with routers..they all suck. Rotozip sucks.

Its easy to do, but best explained with pics and captions. Theres a few sites online that explain it really well. I had an issue of Auto Sound and security that had a good HOT-TO. But oyu can find decent info on the net.

langjae

I found that if you use a little mix of bondo and resin so it has the consistency of paint...then paint that on like paint, it makes a nice smoother layer so you know where to sand out air bubbles and dimples.