Restoring Grills

[75wagon]

I've just completed a restoration on a grill for one of the members, I'm happy with the results.
When I started the bottom grill was broken and cracked, but otherwise was in the same condition as the top grill.
I removed the mesh, plastic welded and repaired the sections, and resprayed in the original pattern.

[dvsfin]

hey mate...i have a spare grill like that which i brought off kodos a while back...i had it sitting in my gc last summer...and the heat warped it in the headlight surround part...do u rekon its fixable

[75wagon]

I don't know about warped?
Put up a pic. May be able to heat it up and reshape it if it's not too bad.

[colta51]

nice job looks new!

[75wagon]

He's just picked it up, he's happy

[75wagon]

nice job looks new!

That was the plan....

[77galantv6]

very happy hahaha!
i will post some pics up when i fit it to the car....
and also of your other work
got one side done and am having a break

top work dave
really appreciate it
thanks,
Dean.

[Skidmark]

Looks great Dave ,nice job.

[mooey1232003]

Looks good...What kind of spray did you use to spray the grill?

[75wagon]

I used Acrylic Lacquer, through a spray gun.
The whole grill resto took about 5-6hrs
GB grills would be easy, they're only one colour.
Same with GE grills, you just take the stainless headlight trims and strip off it and it's only one colour.
Hope this helps..

[dvsfin]

hey mate...i just got some pics for u




it was in perfect condition when i bought it off kodos...trek'd all the way to the blue mountains just for the grill too >_<

[75wagon]

OK. I can weld that type of plastic, so that means that it can be heated and shaped too.
You must have had some weight on it or something? That's all I can figure. And heat must have distorted it.
But the problem is can it be made back to original shape? ............... Hard to tell.

So what were you wanting to do? Have a go at fixing it yourself?
You'll need a heat gun. the same as painters use to strip off paint.
You heat the area you need to be shaped until it becomes soft enough to bend back into shape and then let it cool. It sounds easy, but if you overheat it, you could burn the plastic, or damage it even more. But with the shape it's in, it might be worth having a go.
The only other thing I can think of is getting a broken one and cutting and welding them together. That would work fine.
Dave.

[dvsfin]

yea i didnt have any weight on it...it collapsed under its own weight...and yea im undecided with wat to do with it yet...the 1 on my car is in perfect condition...its just a spare

[75wagon]

I've never seen one warp like that before...
I suppose that they are meant to withstand the sun, as they are designed to be in the sun. It's just got me why it would warp...

[dvsfin]

yea i was pretty suprised too...i think it was how i had it lying down...the end was hanging in the air...and it kind of flopped down

[colta51]

yea i was pretty suprised too...i think it was how i had it lying down...the end was hanging in the air...and it kind of flopped down

yea thay warp in the sun i had a ga grill do the same thing!
but it was laying in the back of the car thru summer! (my falt)

[galantman1976]

hi 75wagon, i was wondering if you would be able to have a look at my grille. there is a crack at the bottom of one of the headlight pods and a couple of the mounting tabs are missing. i'll put some pics up tommorrow, could you have a look and let me know what you think?

cheers
galantman1976

[75wagon]

Have you still got the grill from your accident? Or is that the one you still have?
If you still have the damaged one, you can use it to repair the one you are talking about.
All you need it a 40watt soldering iron and some patience.
You can cut bits off the old grill and weld them to this one. Make sure you add extra plastic to where the repair is, because the repair will not be quite as strong as the original part.
You can cut strips off and use it as welding rod (similar to how you do oxy/acetylene welding).
Make sure you penetrate the weld deep into the plastic to repair all of the crack and not just the surface, otherwise it will fail. I guarantee it.
When you've complete the repairs, you can use car filler to make the repair smooth, just like a body panel.
Then paint it as you would a body panel and your done.

Dave...

[galantman1976]

cheers heaps 75wagon i'll give it a crack next weekend. i'll post pics when i get it done.

cheers heaps again
galantman1976

[boyracer]

There is a whole GD Sedan for sale five minutes from our place has $500.00 on it.

[pistorf]

Dave,there is a product called Q_Bond that is great for repairng plastic. The kit consists of a powder and really thin Cyanoacrylate glue . You just vee out the cracks or the broken bits,feed a bit of the powder in,run a few drops of glue and repeat the process till the thickness has been achieved.Sand it off,wipe a thin smear of bog over it and prep and paint.
I have repaired countless grilles and headlights with the stuff. I prefer this method to plastic welding,as it is less time consuming and a stronger bond. I think Autolac in Newy still stocks it.

[shuggy]

that stuff is magic, but start off with glue

[pistorf]

Powder first Shuggy,stops your fingers becoming part of the equation .
It's good to see that someone agrees with me about something though .
A cheap alternative is bi-carbonate soda and pink Zap (the thin super glue that the aeroplane guys use). Not quite as strong,but will do in a pinch

[shuggy]

funny i only discovered the stuff today, fixed up a few things on a job. then come on here and someone is talkin bout it..

[75wagon]

Dave,there is a product called Q_Bond that is great for repairng plastic.

Never heard of it before.
Probably the reason I have always just plastic welded plastic things is because I did a fibre glassing course and part of it was plastics. I learn't about plastic welding and it's uses. I don't really find it time consuming, and as far as strength it depends on how far you can penetrate into the thickness of the plastic and whether you overheat it or not.
I'm sure Q_Bond is good stuff, I'm not disagreeing, but I have a soldering iron here and how easy is that? Plus, I'm a tight arse

Dave...

[rob020]

i broke my grille :*( anyone got the passenger side headlight surround part of a lb hatch grille to donate???? pweeeeeese?

[shuggy]

yeah and its 30 bucks for 2 super glue sized tubes.