Best tools for cutting grille, and inserting some mesh

by **Dylan7262** » Wed Jan 23, 2013 2:36 pm

Hey guys, so i basically want to take off my standard liberty grille and remove all the middle wing and fins and attach some black mesh i have purchased. basically i would like it too look like this one, what other tools will i need as i have my grille off and have the mesh ready to do it!!!

Credit to seanmau5 for uloading the pic, i found it in another thread and really like it

by **HoFF** » Wed Jan 23, 2013 2:48 pm

Just a basic dremel kit is all I used to do mine.

by **zch91** » Wed Jan 23, 2013 2:55 pm

Dremel, sandpaper and sikaflex.

by **Dylan7262** » Wed Jan 23, 2013 3:32 pm

Thanks for the super quick reply guy's!!

i have the sandpaper and sikaflex already. i will go and get a dremel asap but there is 3 models too choose from

Dremel 130W 30 Piece Rotary Tool Kit

Rotary Tool Corded Dremel 130w 26pce Acc Kit

Dremel 175W 50 Piece Rotary Tool Kit

i would prefer to get the cheaper one as i will be mostlycutting through plastic. would that one be ok?

by **zch91** » Wed Jan 23, 2013 4:28 pm

I used an Ozito tool which is exactly the same, got it from Bunnings for about $30, 3 year replacement warranty.

by **Bond** » Wed Jan 23, 2013 5:03 pm

ozito ftw!

by **Dylan7262** » Wed Jan 23, 2013 6:01 pm

Haha, just dropped $130 on a Dremel... now i gotta just decide whether to keep the Chrome look on the outside of the grille or sand it back and paint it black to match the rest of my car.

Thoughts?

by **HoFF** » Wed Jan 23, 2013 6:11 pm

Haha yeah ozito was the way to go

My chrome was starting to peel. So I peeled off as much as I could. Tried to sand as much as I could to rough it up and smooth the edge.
The painters did a real thick layer of undercoat to make sure it was seamless.

by **wogboy_9000** » Thu Jan 24, 2013 2:53 pm

hey mate, there is a DIY around here somewhere that I used.
When you cut the middle section out, it will leave holes that you will need to fibreglass and fill with bodyfilller.
to do it so it's looks great, you'll have to spend some serious time on cutting, fibreglassing and bodyfilling.

by **seanmau5** » Thu Jan 24, 2013 7:47 pm

Cheers mate. I was happy with how it turned out but it really needs a respray, think I'll just go with Corazon

by **Dylan7262** » Thu Jan 24, 2013 11:40 pm

seanmau5 wrote:Cheers mate. I was happy with how it turned out but it really needs a respray, think I'll just go with Corazon

Haha, i'm all set too go with mine mate. Just one last question. what bog filler did you use? and also did you use bog to fill in the gaps where you cut the centre out? and then fibreglass over that than sand it so it was all smooth.?

Yeah that is why i haven't brought any spray cans yet because i have not found one that will "standup" to the job... So when i get the grille finished and filled i will take it to the local auto shop and they can put some thick coats on it for me :mrgreen:

by **bosc0** » Fri Jan 25, 2013 6:41 am

Buy quality tools ONCE as a rule!

by **seanmau5** » Fri Jan 25, 2013 10:41 am

I cut the grill so it was shallower and didn't have to fibreglass. Went to supercheap and bought some auto body filler to fix any imperfections, and the little dip at the bottom in the middle I just left. It was just a temporary solution until I sourced my Corazon..

Have you considered Plastidip?

by **Dylan7262** » Fri Jan 25, 2013 2:01 pm

No mate i havent really thought to far ahead of the cutting, filling process tbh. i literally just starting cutting now.

EDIT: When you were using the body filler, what did you use to hold in in place til it dried and you could sand it?
I just put abit of paper down under the part i wanted to fill then used some grip clamps to hold the grille firmly on the piece of paper... then used the filler on that

As you can see below

by **wogboy_9000** » Sat Jan 26, 2013 5:01 pm

What are you going to do where you cut the horizontal area of the grille out?
You really need something to hold the body filler in permanently - otherwise it's just going to crack and fall out.

A cheap fibreglass kit from Repco is $30 and extremely easy to use.