Fiberglass repair to dually fender?
 

Anybody ever repaired the rear fender with glass? Gotta opportunity to do that on my truck.

Had about 3 1/2 tons of sand on it yesterday. Backed up to unload it and the truck sank in the mud and slop. Wheel caught the flap, tore it off, and the whole mess caught the edge of the fender lip. Pulled two 4 or 5 inch chunks out of the lip and "modified" the liner.

Too cold right now to lay up the glass, but got it temp fixed. Was just going to epoxy the pieces back in the lip and lay a bit of roving on the inside.

Sound good? or any better ideas?

Ed

Lay a bit more than a "bit" behind it. But that is the way it can be done if you have good pieces. Just make sure they don't crack at the seam. Tried it on my Corvette and it cracked. Ended up removing my repair and rebuilding the whole area from scratch. I lost a flap the same way, but luckily it just popped it out at the fasteners. Hardly even hurt the flap or the liner.

I believe the dually fenders are made from sheet molding compound (SMC) - a whole different animal from fiberglass. It might be worth a little research to come up with a SMC-specific fix.

JMHO :rolleyes:

Rusty

It does look different, but did not have any idea of what it actually was, hence the question to the experts.:D

Time for more lookin....

Ed

Good luck with your search Ed, I'm interested as well.

RJR

You can not fix the dually fenders by patching it with fiberglass. I have been previously told when they break you can only replace them. Last week I was a body shop talking to the owner about ordering some nerf tubes, when I saw an 03 that was my truck's twin. The body shop owner had just fixed the fender, and he told me that 3M has come out with a specialty repair kit for plastic fenders. It is supposed to work great, I didn't ask how much, but anything is better than the $1000 for whole fender.

Good Luck,

James

I found some stuff on the net about fixing "small defects" with SMC, plus one epoxy based resin that looks interesting. I have all the puzzle pieces, and all fit tight in their respective spaces.

Also thinking about a product called Marinetex. Used it in the past to fix many things.

If I come up with something, I'll holler. A friend has a smashed fender at his place I may experiment with.

Ed

JB weld works great.[laugh]

BB, thought about that:D It's on the list to try. Right now, the handy mans' secret weapon is doing pretty good. Red Green would be proud.

Ed

You know what - - I never thought about the material of those stupid fenders when I answered previously - I was only thinking fibreglass. They are not normal fibreglass. I don't have the slightest how to repair them other than replace.
DumbBob

Found some more stuff that is a resin made for repair of automotive plastics and SMC. Gave GM part numbers as OEM item. Gonna stop by and talk to the dealer next week and also go by the GM shop.

Still think that with the minimal damage I can come up with something. It's not like a dinner plate size or something is gone.

Talked to two body shops today, one said" we got a whole bed out back" and the other did not want to discuss it without looking at it.

Ed

Anyone who tells you that those fenders can't be repaired is probably in the business of selling fenders. I would find out what the material is and see if there is a repair kit.

I have repaired ABS holding tanks on an RV with fiberglass with no problem. The epoxy sticks to it just fine. I clean the area real good and rough it up with some real coarse sandpaper. Then I coat it with epoxy, lay on the cloth and put on another coat. Do it on the inside with cloth then when it's all setup, I would Bondo the outside to cover the seam.

If you knew what the material is and you can find a repair kit then so much the better. I would sure exhaust all my ideas before I gave $1,000 fo a new fender.

Also, look in the boneyard.

Edwin

It would take lots more damage than I have to make me buy a whole new fender or a bed. Someday, a new bed is in the future for the old gal but now it is a work truck 7 days a week.

Just a big irritant to know it's dinged. Just don't seem to be happy with me right now.

Ed