Foam TDs

[Dorado]

This has probably been asked before but I can't find it. Has anyone tried making the body of a TD out of Styrofoam and coating it with fiberglass? I know that surfboards are made out of it so why not a TD?
If you make the walls, roof, and floor out of dense foam and coat it with a 50/50 mix of Elmer's glue and water, the resin from fiberglass wont melt the foam. I've seen people make fenders and other things like that, and the foam didn't melt and it looked good. Wouldn't that make the walls lighter, and insulated?

[Miriam C.]

http://tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?t=43647

This one is actually built and has been on it's first trip...

The thrifty thread evolved into a foamy build that Jan did.
http://tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?t=39373

[Wobbly Wheels]

Styrene based resins will eat 'styrofoam', epoxy won't.
PVC foam is typically used for coring with polystyrene resins. You can get it at marine suppliers and it's considerably more expensive than styrofoam.
Look for the names Divinycell or Klegecell.

[GPW]

Now if money is no object , an EPP foam might be a good choice ... Expanded polypropylene .. Tough stuff !!!

[swampjeep]

I know this was posted before the cfreation of the new forum, but I wanted to mention in here there is now a new forum just for foam, not a lot of defferent threads there (yet) but one lengthy one with TONS of info on this

http://tnttt.com/viewforum.php?f=55

[eaglesdare]

yup a foamie has been build and has made 2 trips so far. it works!


the foamies now have their place. it will be broken down to make it easier to find the info. give it some time as the new forum was just created and that major thread is rather large.

[Artificer]

In 2006 or 2007 I saw a trailer build that used pink foam, and was going to be fiberglassed. I couldn't find it again, but I didn't spend a terribly long time looking.

The cheaper version is the foamie, as mentioned.

The top of my new trailer is foam and stringers. I picked up some 20oz roving and epoxied it on. What surprised me was that the 50" roving was only $4.60/yrd. $69/gallon kit of epoxy, and the fiberglassing may not cost too much. Compared to $30/sheet 1/8 5'x5' baltic birch sheets, it cheap.

michael

[GPW]

Absolutely Nothing wrong with fiberglassing a TD ... It's an excellent covering for the foam , as proven by many years of similar Boat construction!
After all ,what is a TD , but a boat turned upside down , both designed to keep the water out ...

[mikeschn]

Now if money is no object , an EPP foam might be a good choice ... Expanded polypropylene .. Tough stuff !!!

Where do I get EPP?

My stuff is EPS. Extruded polystyrene.

Mike...

[GPW]

EPP is extrudes polypropylene ... Difficult to find , frightfully expensive .. Difficult to work with, at our tool level... does not accept most glues , or paint, and most solvents don't harm it .. But it is very durable , and flexible ... unlike styrofoam , if you take a hammer to this , the dent will just bounce back out ... It's the foam that modern car bumpers are made from, many different densities available ...

Here's some info from the Plane modelers ... Just FYI.. http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=703115 It does make almost indestructible plane models , which frequently tend to fall out the sky at great speeds ..

[swampjeep]

Hey, Mike, I'm not sure if they have it, but I seen there's a "foam" ware house type store down in Troy, not too far from L.O. they seemed to have a lot of stuff on teir website, I'll look for it again and post it if I find it.

[swampjeep]

found these to, fairly local to us, but don't see it on their sites...

http://www.foamforyou.com/CustomCutFoam.htm

http://www.thefoamfactory.com/