rebar wrote:dirtsailor2003 wrote:Having worked with fiberglass building and repairing boats that looks plenty strong, but probably does weigh a bit more. Production costs were probably too much to keep going. Looks like hand laid mat not shot into the mold chopped.
https://www.fibrecore.com/basic-trailers
Thanks..
I don't know anything about fiberglass trailers except for the stress cracks on the scamp I borrowed for a week..
I'm still wondering if the fiberglass construction is a advantage over steel or not for rough Colorado roads..
Gel coat stress cracks don't bother me much, But will the body survive rough roads? I imagine the wall studs I need to install might strengthen it if epoxied in.
I can’t say how that trailer would do versus a metal trailer. Even a metal trailer if not properly welded can come apart bouncing down the road. Thickness of the fiberglass, type of resin, type of mat and layup of the mat would need to known to determine how strong the trailer is.
Epoxy alone won’t form a structural bond unless you add fillers (silica or wood flour are two common ones). Then you’d need to add fillets of thickened epoxy at the joints or fillets and fiberglass over. Either way you’d be adding a bunch of weight. I don’t think what you’d gain structurally would be worth the time and expense.
Honestly if I was to build it out I wouldn’t go to the expense of that. I’d use C channel metal studs to save weight and fasten mechanically and with construction adhesive. You’d have to know the thickness of the fiberglass to know if this would work. If it’s too thin fasteners may not work. Which then you could epoxy fillet wood attachment blocks. Then attach metal studs to the blocks. Sounds like a lot of work and expense.