gqchicago

Guys-
I recently purchased the race pedals from Supercomputers. I was not happy with the way the AT brake pedal fit on my car. The backing metal plate is not even. This caused the little rubber dots to push in. I had 2/3 choices to get it to fit better...
1. Get longer screws and mount it on top of the existing rubber foot pedal...well I went to Home Depot yesterday and they didn't sell screws I liked in stainless, so kind of ruled that out.
2. Back it with some double sided tape. This seems ok, but the tape is a little but foamy, and I felt it would "give" some when you step on it hard...and not a very elegant solution.
3. Back it with something else...I thought metal plate...nah too hard to fabricate...what can I use....hmmmm...aha! West System!!


I chose 3. Being a boater, I had West System 2-part epoxy laying around. This stuff is similar to Bondo, a kind of mix it yourself fiberglass type stuff. I mixed up the 2 part solution (resin/hardener), added fairing stuff to make it pasty like peanut butter, then applied to the pedal to smooth it out. First of all I already had holes drilled though the metal backing plate from before.

First you cover the floor in plastic sheeting. This stuff is nasty and doesn't come out if you get it on anything at all. I also wear rubber surgical gloves for the same reason, makes cleanup a snap. You also tape the back of the pedal in packing tape. Pre-cut several additional pieces of packing tape...more on this in a minute, but you will need it in 5 mins.



Mix equal pump squirts of resin and hardener in a small plastic stirring bowl, stir with a tongue depressor. Add the powder fairing compound to make it thicker, get it to the consistency of peanut butter. A chemical reaction starts to occur in the pot, you now have about 10 mins at most to work with this stuff before it sets...GO! Take a spatula or putty knife and spoon it onto the pedal....if you drop some no big deal you have a plastic sheet! Smooth it out somewhat...now take 2 additional pieces of packing tape and put it on TOP of the stuff... press tight. Let cure for at least a few hours (depends on temp and humidity).



Once it's cured, remove the packing tape, drill some holes through the hardened West System, and mount your pedal! It will now have a smooth backing with tons of very strong structural support, as strong as metal practically. If you were going to finish a piece or something (say a sub-box you're painting, for instance...)... you could now sand this stuff smooth, paint it, spray gelcoat on it..whatever...but we're just covering it with a pedal anyhow so it doesn't matter really how good it looks underneath / finished it is. Putting the tape on top of it before it sets will make it smooth anyhow, and keep it from sagging at all while it's drying.



Now my rubber inserts are sticking out all of the way on the brake pedal just like they are on the other 2 pedals, MUCH better!

You can pickup West System or something similar at any marine store like West Marine (national chain).

gqchicago

My white fleet!

neuronbob

Awesome! That is an great DIY.

robbie82

Sweet, Im looking into buying those pedal, how do they feel by the way? Do they ever feel slippery? The sills look great!

HQTL6SPD

Never...

juicdawg18

Where did you get this and how was it possible, that's really sweet!