gynormous fiberglass shark fin

[Renesis]

hey this may sound a little wierd
i have some friends of mine who own a pretty ghetto volvo station wagon. So being a bunch of bored guys we came up with the idea of putting a shark fin on the roof, just for fun
now i told them i might build one for them as a hanukah present (they're protestant).

so heres what i know.. i have to create a mold, and since a fin is relatively simple that shouldnt be too hard. And i know that i have to lay out fiberglass. It would probably be easier to do this if i built two halves, then bonded them together. but laying out is the problem. can anyone give me more information? i tried it before and it didnt look too different from my 3rd grade paper-meche project

[Coventrysucks]

Make sure you do it in a well ventilated area!

And no smoking whilst you're mixing the resin!

[Renesis]

have you learned that the hard way?

[johnnynumfiv]

Yea, definetly work in a ventilated area, you get very tipsy very quick
You should try use a fabric, i think it licra, they use it bathing suits, you can make a frame, then stretch the fabric over it, then add the resin and fiberglass cloth.

[Coventrysucks]

have you learned that the hard way?

The ventilated area - to a degree.
The flamability - not yet

This is from my uni notes, so hardly the most comprehensive guide:

As it is hardly a high-tech element that you want to build CSM (Chopped Strand Mat) will probably be more than adequate.

You get your mould, and cover it with release agent. This stops the resin glueing itself the fibreglass to the mould.
If it is a female mould then you apply the gel coat (not sure if you'd want to bother with this, as it just gives a smooth finish), then the actual fibreglass, then add the resin, ensuring you use a bit of force to get the resin spread throughout the fibreglass.

If it is a male mould, then:
release agent
resin
fibreglass
gel coat.

Remember to add the hardener to the resin, otherwise it doesn't work very well.

Apparently hand laying fibreglass is illeagal in Europe due to the high level of styrene emission.

I'm not exactly an expert though.

You could try finding a small boat forum, those nutters are always messing with fibreglass.

[Renesis]

nice- thanks guys