There's a Hole in My Box

guest · Jul 21, 2005

I'm driving down a residential street. I thought I heard something, but didn't think too much about it. When I stopped I had a large hole in the top front corner of my cargo box on the passenger side. Very upsetting. How do you repair something like this? It's got a fiberglass front cap like many D trucks. If I replace the whole cap how much would that cost? If I repair it how will it look? If I do it myself how will it look?

It could have been worse.

Lesson: Among other things, stay away from the right lane if there are overhanging tree limbs.

leymas · Jul 21, 2005

How big of a hole is it, Could you fix it with a fiber class repair kit? I know you can buy them at wal-mart had to get one for a camper I had once.

raceman · Jul 21, 2005

Here is a quick way. Go to a place selling autobody repair materials. Tell the guy what you want to do. You will get a pack of fiberglass material. They will also give you some chemicals. You will basically wet the sheet of material with resin and then it will be laid over the hole. You will finish with bondo and bingo you are done.

Take your time it will look fine. You sand all this down and hit with some off white paint and you will look like the rest of us.

You can go to a trailer serice place and they can oder you a new cap, that is that fiberglass piece you refered too. Expesive

Raceman
OTR O/O

guest · Jul 21, 2005

The hole is about 8 to 10 inches and looks like someone shot it at close range with a shotgun. I am going to give the fiberglass repair kit a try. I already have some of the materials. You will only be able to see part of the repair from the ground anyway, so it doesn't have to be perfect.

mcbride · Jul 21, 2005

>The hole is about 8 to 10 inches and looks like someone shot
>it at close range with a shotgun. I am going to give the
>fiberglass repair kit a try. I already have some of the
>materials. You will only be able to see part of the repair
>from the ground anyway, so it doesn't have to be perfect.

We had our truck's roof replaced for under $1000 at Stoops
in Indy. We had to have ours replaced as it was ripped open during a bad wind storm last year. Stoops did a fantastic job and were quick...in at 9am out at noon. We had the "tin" type roof put on as they told us the fiberglass roofs are not made for over the road...they apparently crack etc. However, both style roofs are about the same price.

mcbride-
O/O-D unit-Team-6yrs
--What goes around comes around--
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The Gibster · Jul 21, 2005

Another little tip - when you patch it make sure you apply some sort of paint over it, not just primer. Bondo is porous, it will leak water slowly but surely. The new fiberglass gels they have I believe are less porous, but I'm not sure how much. A decent spray paint will give you that outer waterproof layer right away, and it's easier to sand off paint later than remove all your (now rusty) Bondo and redo the whole thing.

If you need a used cap I believe they are generic sized, so if you see an old 12' box with good caps, get out your drill and just drill out the rivets. High labor, low replacement cost.

GOOD LUCK!

The Gibster

greg334 · Jul 21, 2005

Here is another piece of advice if you are working with fiberglass,

I don't know if you have had experience with fiberglass, so I will start with the most common thing, safety. Please don't be insulted if this is a rehash of your knowledge.

First wear gloves.

Make sure that you also use a pair of scissors that will not be used for food to cut the matting. Some matting has chemicals on it form the manufacturing process.

Get a paper "bucket" at one of the automotive stores for paint and a few sticks to mix it with; don’t use a plastic food container. The resin once mixed can get hot enough to melt the plastic and then you have more problems.

But first wear gloves.

Clean the area really good to get the dirt and oil off. I used plain old rubbing alcohol for the immediate area that I was repairing.

Sand a little around the area, maybe a half inch around the hole so the resin has some place to grip.

Don’t' just lay the fiberglass and resin over the hole. If you have the piece that was punched out you can trim the piece and patch it. A lot of people think that fiberglass sets quickly, well it doesn’t.

But if you don’t and can access the back of the cap, put some stiff backing on the inside of the cap to make sure that the matting doesn’t sagging when it is curing.

Let it cure for at least a day or two then sand and prime/paint the spot.

Years of working on vettes is paying off.

guest · Jul 22, 2005

I repaired it and I must say it turned out pretty well for my rookie outing. It was right on the corner so I had to get that curve thing going. Looks pretty good.