How to Make a Fiberglass Hood

A fiberglass hood reduces your car's weight while increasing it's performance [source: Magnante]. This is a messy project, so wear gloves, old clothes and a smock. You'll also need lots of patience. Doing a rush job may result in a hood that looks ugly or doesn't fit properly.

Materials:

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  • 14 sheets of fiberglass cloth cut at least 3 inches (76.2 millimeters) larger than the original hood
  • Gel coat
  • Paint roller covered by a PVC pipe and coated with a separating agent.
  • Resin
  • Separating agent
  • Three-to-five-inch (76.2-to-127-millimeter) natural-bristle paintbrushes whose bristles are attached with adhesive

Prepare the hood molds:

  1. Remove the hood from your car.
  2. Spray a uniform layer of gel coat on both sides of the hood.
  3. Place a fiberglass sheet on top of the hood, overlapping the hood by at least 2 inches (50.8 millimeters) on all sides.
  4. Smooth the sheet from the center outward to remove air pockets.
  5. Mix the resin and quickly brush it on the sheet, until it's soaked. Work quickly -- the resin begins hardening as soon as you add the catalyst.
  6. Place another sheet on top of the previous one and quickly brush it with resin. Mix up more resin if the resin gets too hard.
  7. Repeat Step 6 another two or three times.
  8. Smooth the sheets, removing any air bubbles with the roller.
  9. Allow the hood-top mold to cure for at least two hours.
  10. Turn the hood over and repeat Steps 3 through 9 to make the hood-frame mold.
  11. Remove both fiberglass molds from the original hood [source: Hotrodders].

Make the fiberglass hood:

  1. Apply the separating agent to the inside of the hood-top mold and the outside of the hood-frame mold.
  2. Spray a layer of gel coat on both molds.
  3. Place a fiberglass sheet on each mold. Brush resin on both sheets.
  4. Repeat Step 3, adding a second layer.
  5. Smooth the sheets with the roller.
  6. Apply a layer of resin to the sheet on the hood-frame mold before it's completely cured.
  7. Join the two mold halves carefully, matching up the fiberglass layers exactly -- you won't get a second chance.
  8. Allow the fiberglass hood to finish curing.
  9. Separate the mold halves carefully and remove the new fiberglass hood from the mold.
  10. Prime and paint the fiberglass hood [source: Hotrodders].

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