DIY My Fibreglass Subwoofer Box [DC2(R)/4] 56K warning [M's Garage]

[GIPONU]

Disclaimer: The following is provided as a GUIDE ONLY, and neither myself nor Ozhonda take any responsibility for the outcomes of someone else doing the following. You follow these steps at your own risk!

Aim: Build a custom moulded sealed subwoofer enclosure for the boot
Required:

Lots of fibreglass resin (bunnings)
Lots of fibreglass matting (bunnings)
Lots of Fibreglass resin Cataylst (bunnings)
Lots of cheap paint brushes (hardware store)
Mdf Wood (bunnings)
Fleece or big cloth (home or Craft stores)
Small pin screws (bunnings)
Orbital sander (whoeva has one, I borrowed mine)
Blade (or a knife...)
Mini saw (like a blade but with teeth to cut through hard stuff)
Jigsaw (whoeva has one, i own one)
A box of plastic gloves (painting resin and handling Fibreglass)
Bodyfiller (flexible one if you can)

Alternatively, you can buy alot of fibreglass kits. or buy in bulk.. i went the Kit way and used around 4...

Steps:
ok, I should really use about 5-6+ layers of fibreglass, but since i did mine the cheap way, so as long as it works, i managed to keep my cost to less than $350.. Its really up to u how many layers u use, i used 1/2/3 at some places, depending where was weak and where was strong.

1. I chose to mount my subs at the rear 2 corners of my boot, as i needed some boot space. and my current box was a heavy one which used up alot of space..

2. Clear out ur working area and start taping it up, I used Duct tape as masking tape wouldnt stick to my trim. then i stuck masking tape over that. Try to make it as neat as you can. and u can skip part/bumps/holes by laying the tape over it in the desired shape.
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/TapeIt.JPG
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/CompleteTape.JPG

And because I'm doing both corners for 2 12's i did the other side too.

3. I used the Fibreglass Kit 3 from bunnings, which is enough for 1 square metre.. Take out the Fibreglass matt whilst wearing gloves and tear small 15cmx15cm squares out of it. till the whole thing is teared up. The jagged edges will allow you to go around edges and stick easier. Now mix up some resin and put A LITTLE BIT of catalyst. If you use too much, You wont have enough time to work on it. THE MORE YOU USE, THE FASTER IT GOES HARD!.

Place a fibreglass square at a position and using ur brush DAB the resing onto the masking tape. Dab until it is soaked. but not too soaked(otherwise it'll be a waste of resin)
just keep doing this till the whole area which u plan to fibreglass is fibreglassed.
You can overlap the fibreglass while it is still wet. If you can, try to apply minimum 3 layers around the whole thing and apply extra layers on flat areas as fibreglass is extremely strong around bends but not flat areas.
When your done it should look like this.
Give it 24-48 hours to cure/dry before doing anymore work to it.
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/FGit.JPG
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/2ndFG.JPG

4. While the fibreglass is drying, you can cut out your sub rings. as so..
I cut my rings out by detroying my old box..:D:D
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/Rings.JPG

5. Ok, so now it should be dry after 24-48hrs.(i left mine overnight:D)
go to your boot and give little pull and tugs and eventualy big pull and tugs so that the shell pops out.. You should be wearing gloves at all times as it is sharp. It mite seem impossible to take it out as it is stuck tot eh tape. and ur tape is stuck to your trim. so keep trying and eventually it'll be out..
When you do finally get it out, flip it over and let the backside of the shell dry and cure in the sun.
Then start to scrape off and rip off the masking tape nd stuff..
after that it should look like this.
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/Popedshell.JPG
test fit it..
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/Testfit.JPG

6. trin around the edges to the place you want the fibreglass to cover to by using a saw. Then using cardboard, make a base for the enclosure..
and then cut it out on MDF board.. the MDF is more stronge than fibreglass to me..lol
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/Installtehbottom.JPG
I used screws the secure the bottom on.
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/screwit.JPG

7. Go around the inside and outside of the box where the wood and shell meets and firbreglass over the gaps. and also while ur at it, fibreglass the bits where yoru missing fibreglass or is weak on teh structure.
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/FGtheinside.JPG

8. Using bits of wood and some hot glue, apply excessive amounts of glue and glue where u want to mount your ring, like this.
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/Mountthering.JPG

9. Now, stretch the cloth over your structure and ring and hot glue it to shell and then I screwed it in alternatively you could use a staple gun and staple it in. try not to over stretch it too much. as it mite start to also bend the fibreglass. and it wont fit your trim anymore.. and u'l have to use gap filler to fill the gaps..
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/Clothit.JPG
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/Niceeee.JPG
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/Secureit.JPG

10. Same as step 3, fibreglass the outside of the box. over the screws and onto the fibreglass. apply roughly 3-6 layers on the front as it will be supporting the weight of your sub. so it has to be strong and thick enough. try to make it as smooth as possible without any major wrinkles..
it should look sorta liek this when your done..
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/FGtheoutside.JPG

11. ok, now it has harden trim around the speaker ring so it is smooth and so that you have a cirle. WEARING LONG CLOTHES (cos the dust can make you itch allllllll night if it gets onto/into your skin) use the orbital grinder and sand down the fibreglass, all which is exposed so that it is fairly smooth and you cant cut yourself.

Then bodyfill the surface that will be on display. apply a pretty thick layer and try to make the bodyfiller as close as you can to the actual shape of the box, so less sanding down..
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/Bodyfillit.JPG

12. Now, the lots of labour part begins.. Start sanding with 120grit paper and make the shape of the box you deisre over the body filler.
Use bodyfiller and apply it over holes and imperfections that you see. and sand it down with the 120.
then sand the whole thing down with 180grit paper to get rid of scratch marks.
then sand it down with 270 to make it fairly smooth..
in the end it should be looking like this.
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/Sandit.JPG

13. After sanding it down, it can be ready for painting by using primer and paint and clear coat.(which im still waiting to do)
To install it to your boot, place it where your gonna install it. For me I used 2 big screws and screwed it through the MDF and into the chassy where there is some solid piece of metal welded to teh chassy.

Drill a extra hole just big eough for the speaker cables to get through and pull it through and hook them to your sub. Then install and screw in your subs.

I took a picture of my install from the rear seats looking into the boot.
Disregard the bat and the jacket. ;);)
http://h1.ripway.com/GIPONU/Install.JPG

Extra Comments:
This took me about 3 weeks to do with things to do in teh time period.
I'm still waiting to get this painted. and I learnt how to do this by using www.the12volt.com If you put enough DIY's together you will just get how to do it. simple.lols..

I'll add another picture after i spray it, just to give you integra owners some ideas on your next sub box install

Hope you people like it :D:D

[xtat1k]

nice work but too much extra weight !

[GIPONU]

lol, u havent seen my last box before this one.
its was all MDF wood and it was almost the whole boot.
so, less weight. LOL:p

[steve88]

in the crafts section for those who get lost at bunnings. aisle 11 at rockdale :(

[GIPONU]

lool, or the section where the paints are.. :p

[steve88]

crafts is next to paints. :). excellent DIY. Btw pics arent showing for me

[GIPONU]

crafts is next to paints. :). excellent DIY. Btw pics arent showing for me

lol i dunt know wats in crafts sections..lols
thanks for the comment.
mind me asking, do u see the pics? for some reason i dont.. lols i did 1hr ago...

[votek]

nop. no pics showing

[steve88]

they're working now for me. before they had a "bandwidth exceeded" page when i tried to visit the pic manually. u should reupload them to photobucket

[xntrik]

Man this looks dodgy.
But really creative!

[Red_EG4]

nice work but too much extra weight !
Give it a go with Kevlar and Carbon Fibre then.

Thanks for the DIY GIPONU, any more information on your resin/catalyst mix? Did you just guess the mix or weigh it?

[sitta]

thats a great DIY i've been wanting to try something like this and get a hands on experience in using fibreglass!! thank you for the information

[GIPONU]

Give it a go with Kevlar and Carbon Fibre then.

Thanks for the DIY GIPONU, any more information on your resin/catalyst mix? Did you just guess the mix or weigh it?

no probs. i guessed it. cos it was too hard to measure it. due to the temperature. the first time i mixed it. i weighed it. and half of it went solic b4 i got to half way. so all the rest of the other time i just used a tiny bit. and left it overnight or in the sun to dry. ;-)


thats a great DIY i've been wanting to try something like this and get a hands on experience in using fibreglass!! thank you for the information
thanks.yeh i like hands on stuff. wish i had more time though.. Fckn hsc -.-'
make sure u wear long clothes when u sand. otherwise u'll be scratching urself whilst sleeping.. haha

[panda[cRx]]

Man this looks dodgy.
But really creative!

it's not dodgy or overly creative. this is a proven method of making sub boxes. there is another DIY for this on here somewhere

but yeah nice work on the DIY and thanks for taking the time to take pics etc, i'm looking at doing something similar and reclaiming some boot space in the future :D

[GIPONU]

;1391111']it's not dodgy or overly creative. this is a proven method of making sub boxes. there is another DIY for this on here somewhere

but yeah nice work on the DIY and thanks for taking the time to take pics etc, i'm looking at doing something similar and reclaiming some boot space in the future :D

no probs, very much appreciated for the stick up and comment. ;)

[steve88]

doesnt the box have to be fairly thick so it cuts how low frequency? how about does it vibrate at all?

[GIPONU]

doesnt the box have to be fairly thick so it cuts how low frequency? how about does it vibrate at all?

yeh it's supose to be thick for strength and durability and sound improvement. but i did mine on a low budget, it sounds pretty good inside and doesnt vibrate as it is screwed down to the chassy and its agenst the walls of the boot.

[steve88]

so if i wanna thick it out, i just add more layers of that shit you where putting on right? when you say you screwed it to the chassis, wouldnt u have problems accessing the tail lights?

sorry for the mad amount of questions but Im a big planner before doing mods on car :)

[GIPONU]

so if i wanna thick it out, i just add more layers of that shit you where putting on right? when you say you screwed it to the chassis, wouldnt u have problems accessing the tail lights?

sorry for the mad amount of questions but Im a big planner before doing mods on car :)

yeh if i wanted to make it thicker, whilst i was laying the fibreglass matt, i would just add more layers at each area over over lapping it.
yeh, i screwed it down to tthe chassy..
whch means, i cant get to the tail light, and the spare wheel
wat i need to do some time soon is trim abit off the spare wheel cover so i can get to the spare wheel.
and to access the lights, i need to unscrew the sub from the box.
then unscrew the box from the chassy. then i can get to the light..
yeh its a bitch. hahaha

yeh no worries about the question. i asked alot of questions b4 i made this box too. clearly there just isnt enough answers in the world. lols

[Redteg]

Great work!

Try boating suppliers if you're after bulk fibreglass and related materials at a relatively cheap price.

[GIPONU]

Great work!

Try boating suppliers if you're after bulk fibreglass and related materials at a relatively cheap price.

i'll keep that in mind next time.
thnx;);)

[Mrgigolo]

It actually turned out very good! Half way i was like wtf is this crap! Then in the end it looked pretty good! Nice job!

[GIPONU]

haha yeh.
the only 2 important pictures is the first(before) and the last(after) pictures

[steve88]

did you cut the hole out when you fibreglassed the whole box with cloth over? if so howd you get it so smooth

[GIPONU]

did you cut the hole out when you fibreglassed the whole box with cloth over? if so howd you get it so smooth

umm i put the cloth on. then drenched it with resin. as the resin is like super glue and sticks the cloth to the wood and everything. then after that was dried, i cut the hole out of the cloth where the speaker ring is with a mini saw.
then i fibreglassed over the cloth and let to dry.
then used a saw to trim the excess which was in the ring hole.
then i body filled the whole thing and sanded it.
thats why it is smooth :D

[steve88]

ah! so you cut it half way in the process of fibreglassing, that'd explain it. cause i was thinking. if this guy cut just fibreglass that neat he must be pro@life. i didnt realise with fibreglassing you have to wait for resin to dry! thx again

[amurray]

its funny.. So easy to do.. yet people still pay the big bucks to have this done... i think i kno where u learnt how to do this lol... everyone read that DIY..

good DIY man..

[GIPONU]

ah! so you cut it half way in the process of fibreglassing, that'd explain it. cause i was thinking. if this guy cut just fibreglass that neat he must be pro@life. i didnt realise with fibreglassing you have to wait for resin to dry! thx again
dont cut the fibreglass while its wet. and yeh u have to wait till resin dries and fibreglass dries.lols. to make life easier, if u wana cut the holes out when everything is dried, drill a hole where the sub hole is and use a jigsaw to cut out the stuff which is in the way of the hole..


its funny.. So easy to do.. yet people still pay the big bucks to have this done... i think i kno where u learnt how to do this lol... everyone read that DIY..

good DIY man..
sure is easy man. just perfecting it and making it look pro is hard.lols.
i rekon the big bucks is worth it though, cos mine was <$350 and pros cost up to way more, but tats cos they have heaps more layers and yeh u gotta pay for their labour.lols

[dundas]

good work :)

[AzKik-R]

This tread is awesome!!!!! you must of put in loads of work to get this thing together, most impressive. how do i give one of those pq point thingys?
nevermind, I found it.

[GIPONU]

thanks for the comments. wasnt that much work, i suppose. i used alot of electronic tools and did some research on the net. it just costs alot of money compared to my weekly income. LOLS

[bankids]

its funny.. So easy to do.. yet people still pay the big bucks to have this done... i think i kno where u learnt how to do this lol... everyone read that DIY..

good DIY man..

when u have this done with big bucks, what you got is calculated box volume, lots more layers of fiberglass and danamate to stop rattle.

but it's a very nice diy man.

[iced]

btw its cheaper to buy your fibreglass supplies from a fibreglassing supplier.
resin, matting, rollers in bulk

[GIPONU]

didnt find any fibreglass suppliers in syd. only in adelaide..lool
another way to get it cheaper i heard was from marine builders..

[iced]

nah there are
i found several a while back.

[VTECACCORD]

Iced can you post up some places in sydney to get supplies from please.

[steve88]

i picked up the fibreglass kit today at bunnings. $50! heaps good

[GIPONU]

i picked up the fibreglass kit today at bunnings. $50! heaps good

watcha making?lol
take care with it

[steve88]

exactly what you got ;) except only one side and probably will make the fibreglass a bit more phat. i was gonna rip apart the entire car and redo the wiring as well, but i forgot to buy some premium nice and thick speaker cable. i also need to scheme of a way to hide 2 amplifiers!

[AzKik-R]

ya dont have to hide the amp, they look pretty cool sticking out. hmmmm, also unless its a d-class, you may run into cooling problems with the amp.

[IZY-10]

i got inspired by this thread as well and decided to make a fibreglass air box. Almost completed it looks great so far. Word of advice wear gloves when applying resin and fibreglass sheets

[GIPONU]

i got inspired by this thread as well and decided to make a fibreglass air box. Almost completed it looks great so far. Word of advice wear gloves when applying resin and fibreglass sheets

thats great to hear.
i plan on making a slot for my front bumper to suck in more air but inside divert it down so the air(water wen wet) wont get sucked into the filter.olol

[OzSir2]

We can all see lots of work went into this. Sanding must have been a pain the the bum...and forearms. What is the sound quality like? I'm thinking unless the thing is at least 1 inch thick all round including filler, there will be significant flexing of the enclosure. Perhaps some internal mdf bracing would help people doing this in future.

[Mitchman]

Fibreglass is alot more rigid that you would think when it comes to vibration, I had your thoughts as well until I made my box and I used many many coats and still was only about 6-10mm thick and it doesnt budge at allllll and i have 1000RMS and a 12 and a 10 inch in this box, It is a good idea however to brace as much as you can as this most def. helps, My box is out of 25mm MDF, bar the top and all is braced as much as possible. The only thing that vibrates is the rest of the car :-p

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l250/mitchimal/21072007808.jpg

[GIPONU]

the sounds quality sounds good.
the reason why i made this enclosure is so i'd have more boot space...\soooooo i've actually achieved my purpose.haha
3-4 layers of fibreglass is enough for me, since i was not going for sound quality..
as long as i had the strength and weight it was all good.
plus fibreglass is VERY strong around curves, there mite be 5-6 layers on the flat surfaces at some parts of the surface, but i dont remember where as it was random laying.

[OzSir2]

Ha Ha I've heard "strong curves " and "random laying" in the same sentence but never in relation to car audio before. I'm glad you're happy with the sound quality then. Mitchman apparently having subs of differing sizes will be out of phase so you get a distorted out-of-time bass. What do you find?

[Mitchman]

Ha Ha I've heard "strong curves " and "random laying" in the same sentence but never in relation to car audio before. I'm glad you're happy with the sound quality then. Mitchman apparently having subs of differing sizes will be out of phase so you get a distorted out-of-time bass. What do you find?

Sounds great, doesnt interfere at all. If you think about it it realy shouldnt unless one sub is over powering the other. This can happen in a sealed environment as you have both drivers competing to compress the volume of air in your enclosure. I have a 65L ported enclosure with both subs receiveing min 400RMS each so they both hold there own very well. To be honest I was skeptical and was originaly going to devide the enclosure but thought that the porting should help its cause, and I havnt heard any missed bass lines nor anything out of phase :D

[steve88]

i started on it today finally, masking tape (eek took awhile) the corner of my boot in my EK! will start applying fibreglass tmrw. i found cleaning the trim with acetone actually alowed the masking take to stick on pretty well!

[steve88]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v316/casmira/IMG_3266Large.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v316/casmira/IMG_3267Large.jpg

i ripped it out of my boot yesterday :D letting it dry then gonna patch up any weak spots in the structure

[tefu]

lol i was a noob when i did mine, should use a bit of wood for top and bottom of the box, I was trying to make it full fibreglass.. it was a pain to make it straight lol.