250 SWB Bumpers fabricated by Bonville Panelcraft

[Mineheart]

This is 100% not the case here.
I have a 250 SWB in gelcoat only and I've got air bubbles popping up in the sun. No paint at all on mine. I will try to post some photos but not too sure yet as Im new to this.

[molleur]

Originally Posted by Mineheart

This is 100% not the case here.
I have a 250 SWB in gelcoat only and I've got air bubbles popping up in the sun. No paint at all on mine. I will try to post some photos but not too sure yet as Im new to this.

Photos would help. I have a few ideas. Been fiberglassing since the early 1960's.

[JG]

This got me thinking as air gaps in fibreglass layup has come up before....would it not be better to use black gelcoat from the get go so that the body shells can be left out in the sun to let nature find the imperfections before painting?

[smash]

Pointless

[Tribute Automotive]

Originally Posted by Mineheart

This is 100% not the case here.
I have a 250 SWB in gelcoat only and I've got air bubbles popping up in the sun. No paint at all on mine. I will try to post some photos but not too sure yet as Im new to this.

Please let me know your name and when you ordered your kit, so I can see if we produced it in-house or it is from the new supplier.

You can email me on: info@tributeautomotive.co.uk

[Tribute Automotive]

Originally Posted by smash

.....Anyway Chris is ultimate arbiter

They certainly look like bubbles under the gel. Has the car gone back into paint yet? Once the painter has had a poke at them it will be confirmed.

Please contact me to discuss.

[Tribute Automotive]

Originally Posted by smash

1. I believe this is not the first issue like this (although mine may be the first you've heard about).

Correct. We had an issue sometime ago with a few blisters on the bonnet of Chris Wareham's Kobra (Which is now Nubodi's Kobra Demo car):

http://www.madabout-kitcars.com/foru...ead.php?t=4950

We discussed the issue with Chris and he was happy with our agreed solution.

Hand lay up GRP lamination involves a percentage of human error, some things slip through the net, at our end and further down the line. My apologies to anyone directly affected.

[molleur]

Could have been from wet or damp matt in the skin coat.

[Jeff H]

Originally Posted by molleur

Could have been from wet or damp matt in the skin coat.

I have a couple of small voids in my body, nothing major really, but the matt underneath the gel coat looks dry and flaky.

The gel coat has obviously adhered to the mould ok, it just looks like the 1st layup of matting needed to be wetter in the areas that have blistered, and I am only talking about 2 small bits on the whole shell.

As Lancelot has said, better to be found now as it is going in for correction any way, rather than they come to light at a later date.

Mistakes do happen from time to time, the good thing is Chris at Tribute is willing to talk to Smash and come to an agreement over this .

[lancelot link]

I've said my bit on this , basically bubbles can appear in the glass and if not heat gunned correctly will stay . Bubbles and blisters can appear as a result of paint errors ...just sharing my experiences and not making a matter of fact statement either way ...
I'm stepping out of this one now and await the results with interest ...

[Mineheart]

Originally Posted by Tribute Automotive

Please let me know your name and when you ordered your kit, so I can see if we produced it in-house or it is from the new supplier.

You can email me on: info@tributeautomotive.co.uk

My Name is Brendan Young, I paid a deposit back in October 2015 through your agent Nubodi. Im not too worried as I do not intent to paint the car that's why I ordered it with coloured gelcoat for the 'rat' look. I just though you should know about the problem.

[molleur]

Los of reasons it could happen.
Insufficient gel coat cure in the mould
release agent issue in the mould (PVA) if used.
Raindrops during layup
materials storage issues, usually moisture related or
styrene evaporation from old resin
Etc.

All will cause post lamination cosmetic issues.

[NeilF355]

I've had a similar problem with 2 of the 3 kit cars I have. I went round the car body and marked all the blisters with a triangle of masking tape. Here's a picture of one of them after I'd removed the gel coat.



You can see that there has been an air pocket under the gel coat and the fibreglass looks dry rather than having been covered with resin.

Best located with a heat gun or a black paint coat and some time in the sun so that it can be sorted before final paint.

[Lucky@LeMans]

I had a few issues with my BrigfhtWheel Viper back in the day. It to had a few air packets under the gel coat, mostly around the front arches and nose. Simply a matter of filling and making good. The body wasn't fitted to the chassis for about 12 months so by that time it was totally cured , nothing else came to light . I think the GRP needs to be left for as long as possible before painting rather than paint fresh from the mold.

[hurnleft]

The bumpers look very good, I expect them to be a popular addition to several cars.
Bob.

[Tribute Automotive]

Originally Posted by molleur

Los of reasons it could happen.
Insufficient gel coat cure in the mould
release agent issue in the mould (PVA) if used.
Raindrops during layup
materials storage issues, usually moisture related or
styrene evaporation from old resin
Etc.

All will cause post lamination cosmetic issues.

Thank you for your experienced input. Some points aren't applicable in this particular case but the remaining ones, and other not listed, could all be possibilities. GRP is a very versatile material but it does have many variables in it's make up.

[Tribute Automotive]

Originally Posted by Mineheart

My Name is Brendan Young, I paid a deposit back in October 2015 through your agent Nubodi. Im not too worried as I do not intent to paint the car that's why I ordered it with coloured gelcoat for the 'rat' look. I just though you should know about the problem.

Thank you for the information and understanding Brendan. I really like the style of your car, funnily enough. I hope you are enjoying the car to the full.

[ThatAmericanChap]

Originally Posted by hurnleft

The bumpers look very good, I expect them to be a popular addition to several cars.
Bob.

They do indeed, and you've taken the best of both split-bumper styles as well. The image posted by Paul in post 45 is s/n 3409 - a very late 1962 car, with heavily bevelled bumpers. Yours preserve the lightness of the bumpers which appear on several of the seven long wheelbase transitional 250s - from the 250 GT TdF to the "actual" Passo Corto - and further add to the restrained character of the earlier serial numbers, like s/n 1519, the 1959 car which sold at Bonhams as Lot 56 last summer:

https://www.bonhams.com/auctions/22792/lot/56/

Smash, you and Bonville Panelwhackers have managed these splendidly.

.

[Tribute Automotive]

Thank you to everyone for their input and experiences on this subject.

I hope Smash gets his car back sorted to his satisfaction.

[smash]

Thanks for agreeing to rear end repaint