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Home > Companies to Avoid > Fibre glass companies. Why are they so bad?

dazibee

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553 Posts
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TRURO, CORNWALL

Having read horror stories on here about orders being made for grp parts with both the carbon weasel and arc angels that were paid for but never arrived and when they did arrive they did not fit well, i stupidly decided to buy some bits from TDK who seemed to have a good rep.

I wanted a rear valance and a ERA bonnet scoop, and all i wanted from these two parts was that they looked right and fitted good and were finished nicely.
Simple you would think?

Ordered from Dave who seemed a reasonable chap, 1 month later they eventually turned up.
Era bonnet scoop was about half the depth it should have been, had a flat bottom so no way would fit onto a curved round nose mini bonnet. I could have chopped the handle off a plastic dustpan and made it fit better i reckon

The valance was also as rough as a badgers arse, the flange where you are supposed to fix it to the boot floor was not flat so even clamping it on to see if it fitted was causing it to creak and groan, it would have cracked if i fixed it on properly. The cutout for where the exhaust pokes out looked like it had been cut with a bread knife.

I was offered my money back but basically he should not be allowing such crap to leave his shop to be honest, and i cant be doing with the hassle of packing it all back up, posting it then chasing after my money.


Would it have been so hard for tdk to spend a little more time and send something out that was well made and decent? Did he think i wouldn't notice! We spend thousands on our cars and fitting this sort of crap to the car is not befitting, lesson learnt.

There must be a real big gap in the market for some really good grp manufacturers whose parts fit, are nicely finished and do not need modifying at all.
Until then stick with steel i think......


evad1980

1142 Posts
Member #: 10165
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Stansted, Essex

It's not just them.. U can't get anyone to do anything proper these days. A lot of tradesmen (not all) just don't care.. Rough it in!!

Just do it yourself... Will probably be a better job!


Carl S
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1927 Posts
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Bristol

Oh dear, I was tempted to buy my front end and a few other bits from Dave but this hat put me off a little...

He may have been having a bad day, I've heard of a lot of happy customers buying products from him.


fastcarl

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Fastest A Series Mini in the World

leeds/wakefield.

Clearly the parts supplied did not live up to your expectations , you brought it to the attention of the supplier who offered you a refund, yet you still bemoan the fact, You need to try a little harder to understand that most GRP products are made for those who want to either save weight or ease of replacement and are not made to built a concourse car.All grp parts will need an amount of fitting up.

carl


On 26th Nov, 2014 dazibee said:
Having read horror stories on here about orders being made for grp parts with both the carbon weasel and arc angels that were paid for but never arrived and when they did arrive they did not fit well, i stupidly decided to buy some bits from TDK who seemed to have a good rep.

I wanted a rear valance and a ERA bonnet scoop, and all i wanted from these two parts was that they looked right and fitted good and were finished nicely.
Simple you would think?

Ordered from Dave who seemed a reasonable chap, 1 month later they eventually turned up.
Era bonnet scoop was about half the depth it should have been, had a flat bottom so no way would fit onto a curved round nose mini bonnet. I could have chopped the handle off a plastic dustpan and made it fit better i reckon

The valance was also as rough as a badgers arse, the flange where you are supposed to fix it to the boot floor was not flat so even clamping it on to see if it fitted was causing it to creak and groan, it would have cracked if i fixed it on properly. The cutout for where the exhaust pokes out looked like it had been cut with a bread knife.

I was offered my money back but basically he should not be allowing such crap to leave his shop to be honest, and i cant be doing with the hassle of packing it all back up, posting it then chasing after my money.


Would it have been so hard for tdk to spend a little more time and send something out that was well made and decent? Did he think i wouldn't notice! We spend thousands on our cars and fitting this sort of crap to the car is not befitting, lesson learnt.

There must be a real big gap in the market for some really good grp manufacturers whose parts fit, are nicely finished and do not need modifying at all.
Until then stick with steel i think......

WWW.FORCE-RACING.CO.UK PLEASE CLICK HERE


D4VE

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lowestoft suffolk

Was gonna say someone could take loads of moulds to make perfect panels.. for THAT mini.. but then it wouldnt fit another.. no 2 are the same, even heritage steel panels need a tweek to fit certain minis, i would always expect to have to nip n tuck fg items

On 24th Oct, 2015 jonny f said:
Nothing gets past Dave lol

NOTHING GETS PAST ME!! *tongue*

1/4 mile 14.7 @ 96mph 12psi boost
Showdown class A 2nd place 18.6 @ 69mph


Shauna

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Swansea boyo!

After how many people have trouble fitting fibreglass stuff if I ever (I doubt I would!) I'd expect to have to do some work to get it to fit. Like Dave says, even heritage panels need some work sometimes :(

They don't die, they just get faster!


dazibee

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TRURO, CORNWALL

Understood about all minis being different. But the boot floor is generally flat. The flange on the valance should be flat too. I can then take any tweaking from there. As it is it will crack if i fix it to my car.
As for the cutout round the exhaust, is it so hard to cut out a smooth oval.
Just bad workmanship


Shauna

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Swansea boyo!

If your that unhappy you should just send them back and get your refund, some people don't even receive their items and don't get a refund either from some companies :/

They don't die, they just get faster!


PhilR

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Birmingham

I Bought some fiberglass Sportspack arches at a show, years ago. Someone had used the original flexible rubber ones to make the mold so when they made the fiberglass ones they were just a twisted mess.

I want to make some vac-bag carbon fibre parts at some point. Bought most of the equipment, just trying to get other projects out the way so I can make some space before I get into it.

Do you have any pics of the scoop? It's hard to believe they could make it so badly, unless it was originally made for another car or just a very generic part - but then they really should state that in the advert!


JetBLICK

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Droitwich

laying up fibreglass and carbon is one of those things that is actually really easy to do, and get a decent result from it. Its the last 10% that takes the most effort and practice, patience and investment. The price of materials for wet lay fibreglass isn't actually that much, but the time involved is vast. For the prices company's charge in the mini community for their parts, the quality really is quite commendable. The price they sell the parts for wouldn't even cover the labour rate for the guys in the industry I work in.

Not an excuse, but just something to consider when buying parts like this off any company, and if you were offered a resolution then take it up if you're not happy.


dazibee

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TRURO, CORNWALL


On 27th Nov, 2014 Shauna said:
If your that unhappy you should just send them back and get your refund, some people don't even receive their items and don't get a refund either from some companies :/


I have the option but cannot wait another month for replacements. So i have to hack about what ive got and modify them to fit which i don't think i should have to do. I was told all i would have to do is rub them down before spraying.
Funny, people seem resigned that fibre glass items will be rough when we receive them. When we buy a set of alloys the customer will not put up with shoddy goods

Edited by dazibee on 27th Nov, 2014.


D4VE

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lowestoft suffolk

I understand what your saying but comparing bolt on wheels to bodywork is completely different

On 24th Oct, 2015 jonny f said:
Nothing gets past Dave lol

NOTHING GETS PAST ME!! *tongue*

1/4 mile 14.7 @ 96mph 12psi boost
Showdown class A 2nd place 18.6 @ 69mph


Carlzilla

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Quarry Bonk

My arc angels front end i expected to have to fit it around the scuttle etc, but not for one second did i expect to have to make the grille fit in the aperture! By the time i made the grille fit (only had the problem on the nearside of the front end) i was almost through the fibreglass and it's about 6-8mm thick in that area.

On 26th Jan, 2012 Tom Fenton said:
ring problems are down to wear or abuse but although annoying it isn't a show stopper

On 5th Aug, 2014 madmk1 said:
Shit the bed! I had snapped the end of my shaft off!!

17.213 @ 71mph, 64bhp n/a (Old Engine)


ministar

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Derby

Bought both my mk1 fg bonnet and single skin fg mk1 boot lid from ABS Motorsport. They delivered within a week.

Bonnet was perfect - small alterations to lip depth.

Boot lid was 95% - got rid of lip around the edge and fits brilliantly.

And gaps are pretty damn good! Perhaps I got lucky..but I'd certainly buy again.


Shauna

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Swansea boyo!

A friend on mine ordered a front end from ABS and it was over an inch too wide! This was some time ago though, they might have improved since *tongue*

They don't die, they just get faster!


dazibee

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TRURO, CORNWALL

As Carl said earlier a certain ammount of fitting up should be expected, which i agree with. Stuff that dont fit at all without cutting it about and re doing aint really on.
If there was better quality stuff on the market where attention to detail was paid im sure people wouldnt mind paying a bit extra


D4VE

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lowestoft suffolk

Stuff can be persuaded n shaped by leaving it, stretching it, leaving weights on it etc if you get me? My front end if left un clipped will spread, especially if its hot.. its extremely tough but when on L2B when it was at its hottest it was so wobbly and flexible... what im trying to say is it is possible to perduade it! I brought a fg front not long ago and where it mounts wasnt a great fit.. left it for a while with a bungee pulling it in certain places and its much better now

On 24th Oct, 2015 jonny f said:
Nothing gets past Dave lol

NOTHING GETS PAST ME!! *tongue*

1/4 mile 14.7 @ 96mph 12psi boost
Showdown class A 2nd place 18.6 @ 69mph


wolfie29177

133 Posts
Member #: 476
Advanced Member

The Black Countraaaaay

sometimes the problem is when a buck is bought from a company that has dissolved/moved on. Some numpty with little experience of working with the bucks will lay the wet fibreglass over the top or underneath the buck rather than where its meant to be. This is how you end up with a product either too large or too small. Others get a car and lay up over it and dont allow enough time for drying before removal so it warps meaning the entire buck is warped and they will never have a product that fits. The only way to get top notch stuff is by going to the people who act as third party to Kit Car manufacturers as they're specialists who have to do top quality work or lose large contracts

Edited by wolfie29177 on 27th Nov, 2014.

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robert

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uranus

dazibee , can we see some pics of the parts?

Medusa + injection = too much torque for the dyno ..https://youtu.be/qg5o0_tJxYM


dazibee

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TRURO, CORNWALL




On 28th Nov, 2014 robert said:
dazibee , can we see some pics of the parts?


ERA scoop. Bottom is flat. Mini bonnet is curved. Big gaps





dazibee

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TRURO, CORNWALL

Rear valance











robert

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uranus

gotcha thanks ,i can see what you mean.is it worth cutting the bottom out of the bonnet scoop?

Medusa + injection = too much torque for the dyno ..https://youtu.be/qg5o0_tJxYM


dazibee

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TRURO, CORNWALL

The scoop can be modified i think. The valance needs building up with more fibre glass and then flatting to get rid of all the wavy bits


apbellamy

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King Gaycharger, butt plug dealer, Sheldon Cooper and a BAC but generally a niceish fella if you dont mind a northerner

Rotherham, South Yorkshire

That is piss poor. Sent them back with a turd in the box.

On 11th Feb, 2015 robert said:
i tried putting soap on it , and heating it to brown , then slathered my new lube on it

*hehe!*


TurboDave16V
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SouthPark, Colorado

Wow... That is gash... Looks like the valance was yanked before properly set up and not placed on a flat surface perhaps? But that scoop,,, yikes. It just looks to be the wrong shape in many directions..

On 17th Nov, 2014 Tom Fenton said:
Sorry to say My Herpes are no better


Ready to feel Ancient ??? This is 26 years old as of 2022 https://youtu.be/YQQokcoOzeY


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