Frenching fiberglass: part 2
Last time I showed how to french in turn signals in fiberglass. I used the stock lens to shape the tunnel, but I decided not to use the factory socket and base. The sockets were in pretty bad shape and the contacts no longer made a good connection to the bulb. Because the tunnel now defined the lens shape, I can use any turn signal that is bigger than the stock one. First I made a flange for it to sit on. I coated a piece of cardboard with release wax and taped it to the end of the tunnel.
Then I laid fiberglass strips over the tunnel and the inner face of the cardboard. I went to the junkyard and found some front turn signals from a ’80s chevy van. In spite of their size they are extremely light. They use a socket that just twists out from the back. This socket is replaceable (the same one as on millions of chevy pickups). Because the housing is plastic, it’s already equipped with a ground wire (very important for a fiberglass front end). For now I attached it with foam double sided tape, but I’m going to get some aluminum or fiberglass threaded rod and bolt it one also (I just can’t stand the thought of the hardware weighing more than what it holds on).
Here’s a pic from the front, it needs some more spot putty and sanding, but it gets me back on the road. The amber color is solely from the bulb (which is not on).
I’ll post in the future about mounting the headlights and making the front end tilt.
