Q about fiberglassing small wood mold

[lagarto]

First, this is not exactly boat related, but I'm desperate, I looked high and low for an answer--I'm trying to make 4 dozen small fiberglass boxes, like the size of a shoe box, nothing fancy looking, not painted, etc. I can build the wood mold, know how to apply/mix etc. the materials... problem is, do I have to cover the wood mold with the actual parting compound? Some say use wax paper instead, but the boxes have to be fairly decent, I'm afraid the wax paper will make bad wrinkles, etc., plus I'm working on a budget--any other suggestions? Can I paint the mold with ordinary enamel and spray it with WD40 each time I fiberglass over it? Thanks! KS

[trawler builder]

can you get your hands on a little formica ,just contact cement it to your box mold and then wax real good ,a few coats ,should release well .

tb

[lagarto]

Thanks...I was hoping to paint or spray something on, as I need the corners of the mold fairly rounded--the mold is designed to imitate a small cat litter pan, these are being used for raising mice, but mice eventually chew through plastic (not fiberglass hopefully). it's a shame I can't turn the plastic pan upside down , and use it as a mold (or can I?)..

[trawler builder]

test the pan and see if it is resistant to resin if so ,there is no reason you couldn't use it for a mold but wax real good first and take your time parting the layed up piece

[ondarvr]

On a surface like bare wood, you need a mold release product that will go on sort of heavy and fill the porous surface, Green Wax works well for this. While there are other things you can use as a mold release, you would be better off going to a place near you that carries F/G supplies and get the right stuff.
Most paints will be softened by the resin and start to wrinkle when used as a mold surface.



Like TB said, if you can use a plastic pan as your mold (it may eat the plastic, just depends on the type.) it will be much easier.

[wet feet]

For a quick,cheap job I would cover the wood with a couple of coats of shellac sealer.Flat it with 320 grit paper and then apply the release wax.The finish won't be high gloss but you should be on the way to achieving your target.

[drcoastline]

Give it a coat or two of the resin you will be using to seal the wood. After the resin hardens give it a good coat of wax this will act as a relaese agent. I use a heavy coat of collinite fiberglass wax as a release agent. You could even use a heavy coat of spray on furniture wax as a relase agent.