The Chopper Compendium

Years ago I was asked if I do mock-ups. I said, "Hell no! Why waste time doming something twice." The truth was I do mock-ups where I'm not sure it will work the 1st time. I've done a template for my primary to verify hole alignment and interference with the frame. I did a full size wooden...

I've been kinda busy lately...as always. I just finished my 1st week at a new job. I'm working R&M at an aluminum foundry. How kool is that? They do production castings for mil and auto industry. Some of these castings are huge. All but a few are poured into permanant steel molds. No green sand ...

I'ld love to see this. Don't forget the detailed pics of workholding and tooling, start middle and finish of multiple set-ups, etc...

Thanx, Bob. Lots of interesting things in the details.

Well its been a busy week. Took a 450mi round trip, got to meet a few hundred new people, and delivered some product. Now back to glass. I covered the foam lid with foil and sprayed with Pam for a release agent. It is working well. I have problems getting the glass to turn sharp corners so I covered...

Does my hair look OK.

Thanx, Dan.

Massive failure of the mold. The resin made it's way past the seal and ate the foam. It happened quick so only a small section got destroyed. I'll rebuld the damaged areas with cardboard and grind it away after it's done. I'll cover with alum. foil and that should work fine. I'm not going to get thi...

Well, it's the end of the prep work and I start laying fiber tomorrow. Tonight I will cut the hatch and prep the lip for weather stripping. Then coat with latex to seal the foam from the resin. The drywall mud has been the trick. 15 min of sanding, wipe a new layer, wait 2 hrs, and try again. I thin...

Thanx Hans. I'm kinda surprising myself.

Vinyl Spackling and sheetrock mud are my new best friends. It dries quick with a fan and sands soooo much nicer than foam. I had finished the final shape but still wasn't happy with it. The less work I do now the more work I'll have to do in glass. Voids, cracks, holes and general imperfect shape wi...

Thanx for the kudos. But, just when you get comfortable, power tools will bite you in the ass. 093.JPG Dont even try a DA. I've had good luck with an electric hand plane and electric palm sander. To get the flat contour, an air file was working real well untill the paper caught the foam and cut it l...

Thanx for the encouragement. I'll have more pics in a few days when I crash again. I've got some hands coming this morning to do the running around. I've put over 200mi on the bike just checking on things. I filled in the voids and finished the profile. I was hoping to be finished shaping last night...

The good news is that foam dust comes off pretty easy. The bad news is that there are some places of the body you really don't want to put an air hose. This has gone pretty well. Most of my fears are not as bad as expected. I may need to add more foam to the back to fill in the sagged foam or I may ...

This is how the scary start looked. I drew an outline to lay the blocks but some sagging became a problem. Dowels would have helped