BLACKBIRD (Skylark Convertible)

[RustySprockets]

Hit it with a hair dryer--it'll get chewy again.

 

[Duchess]

With some decent experience with hot glue, heat it a little and cut as much off as you can, then you might be able to roll it off with your fingers if it's a small amount left (expect to maybe lose some skin from the friction, but it works!). Alcohol also helps . . . as a solvent for the glue.

 

[The Renaissance Man]

Stinkers! Man that's a bite. Can you get some weaker hot glue?

Sorry to hit you with a bad pun on such A somber occasion but the way you're creating this detail on the fender is quite electrifying...

I'm sure you'll get this sorted in no time. So looks like this was the plan for the mullets all along? Great be along the R&D for a TRM product..

Hahaha, no foul!
This is something that I had thought about but wasn't sure if or when I would be able to get to it. When Steve added the extra month to the build off I decided then to jump in and see how far I could get and hopefully find enough time to finish the bike. But if all I get is this fender it has been worth it!

Hit it with a hair dryer--it'll get chewy again.

With some decent experience with hot glue, heat it a little and cut as much off as you can, then you might be able to roll it off with your fingers if it's a small amount left (expect to maybe lose some skin from the friction, but it works!). Alcohol also helps . . . as a solvent for the glue.

Thanks, I used a hair dryer and it did help to get most of what remained off. I'll try some alcohol to remove what's left. Unfortunately the real damage was done as I was pulling the cables off. It pulled some of the finished body work with it.

That's the bad part. It was important to finish the body work before adding the 'wing tip' so as to avoid having to shape and sand in a confined space. I will attempt to repair it but if I'm unhappy with it I can always sand everything back down to the first nose profile again and chalk this up to experience. Practice makes perfect!

 

[RustySprockets]

I guess, next time hit it with the heat gun while removing the forms? I couldn't think of a better, safer adhesive to substitute for the hot glue. Anyone?

 

[Chad T]

I guess, next time hit it with the heat gun while removing the forms? I couldn't think of a better, safer adhesive to substitute for the hot glue. Anyone?

Sounds like he's going to try and work with what he's got but maybe this removable 3M Low Temp Gummy Glue (says it's also known as booger glue) might work. Or just use boogers.

https://www.hotmelt.com/products/3m-scotch-weld-3798-low-temp-gummy-glue-hot-melt

Hard to tell if it's strong enough but there are zillions of options on that site. Even though I don't mind taking one for the team that's as far as I care to go down the hot melt rabbit hole...

 

[The Renaissance Man]

I worked on repairing the damage but have decided to take it all back down and do it over. To make a nice mold it needs to be right from the start or else all of the subsequent parts will be compromised.

Here's what I am dealing with.

After an attempt to repair it, it's still not right. (Hard to tell from the pictures.)

Before I erase all of this work I wanted to at least finish the wing tip. So I sanded it down and gave it a quick coat of primer just to get a look before it's gone.

It makes me a little sick to start over but I'm at least confident that the method will work!
I think I'll glue the cord back on again and experiment with a safer method for removing it before I start again.

 

[kingfish254]

Very cool work for that nose.
Seeing that wingtip set off a lightbulb for me. I'm going to keep my eyes peeled for some wingtip shoes at the thrift shops now. I bet the actually wingtip leather would be cool for a fender or saddle nose wingtip someday.

 

[contraptionist]

You could make a mold off of the wing tip before you start over to save some of your work, that might also save some time.

 

[The Renaissance Man]

I bet the actually wingtip leather would be cool for a fender or saddle nose wingtip someday.

Like this one by @The Black Monark ?

You could make a mold off of the wing tip before you start over to save some of your work, that might also save some time.

I think I can improve on it a little by doing it over anyway. Thanks for the suggestion though!

 

[OddJob]

Is there anything anyone hasn't done yet to a rat rod bike? That wing tip idea on the saddle is cool to the nth degree!

COOL x N1 = COOL n2

 

[Chad T]

Thanks for giving us a preview....that wing tip looks amazing.

 

[The Renaissance Man]

Today is a rain day thanks to Hurricane Barry. So I've been testing the process for the do over. I've learned a few different things.

1) Reheating the hot glue will work to remove the cord. A hair dryer is easier to control than a heat gun. The heat gun has the potential for blistering the bondo underneath (even though it did go back down as it cooled).
2) Even after softening the glue, there is still a danger of lifting the body filler from the HDU substrate. I believe I can avoid this by sanding the HDU down even more so that when I build it up with filler, it will be thicker and therefore stronger. Right now it is just a thin skim coat.
3) Rubbing alcohol helps to remove the glue but also removes rattle can primer! More proof that you can't really expect much performance out of any rattle can paint! However, I'm thinking that it might work to my advantage for the paint to rub off when the time comes to clean off the glue.

Here's the test piece glued on.

The heat softened glue. Look close and you will see some bondo still lifted because it is so thin.

Finally the effects of rubbing alcohol on expensive aerosol can SEM etching primer!

Time to sand all of this off next!

 

[The Renaissance Man]

No turning back now!

 

[sandman]

No turning back now!

View attachment 99503 View attachment 99504

I wish I had the patients that you have . I would have been giving
up by now !

 

[contraptionist]

No turning back now!

View attachment 99503 View attachment 99504

I know what you are going through, I need to redo some work on my elginator, keep at it.

 

[The Renaissance Man]

I tested the hot glue again directly on the bondo and it seemed to work good (no picture).
So it is sanded, dammed and ready for more filler!

 

[GuitarlCarl]

Looks like a lot of fun.
That's a medium I've never worked with.
But I like where it's going.

Carl.

 

[contraptionist]

I tested the hot glue again directly on the bondo and it seemed to work good (no picture).
So it is sanded, dammed and ready for more filler!

View attachment 99584 View attachment 99585

A lot of things get dammed around here!

 

[The Renaissance Man]

Second time's a charm! I'm back to where I was a week ago but this time no damage from the hot glue to fix!

Filled in and rough sanded.

After about an hour's worth of carefully removing the dam and the hot glue.

More sanding.

Still more sanding and shaping to do before priming but here is where it stands at the end of todays effort.

 

[MazdaFlyer]

Just wow...I remember doing some molds 50 years ago in a plastics class. Never did anything with that skill set knowledge. Forgotten more than I know.
Really impressive work and effort on your build!!!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk