door panel hard cardboard

You can get project board at hobby lobby if you like to be more original. I used 3mm lauan which is thin plywood and can be cut with a utility knife. Seal it with water based polycrylic and then upholster how you like. Lauan is flexible so it can be curved or formed a reasonable amount and can be cut, sanded, glued etc with basic wood working stuff.
 
Last edited:
If you have a Lowes in your area, that is where I purchased corrugated plastic boards. Good luck!
 
I used 1/8" ABS panels from a plastics supply house. Textured on one side and smooth on the other. Easy to cut, drill, and staple.
 

Attachments

  • IMG_20190618_225814 (Medium).jpg
    IMG_20190618_225814 (Medium).jpg
    37.8 KB · Views: 144
"Cowl board", (waterproof cardboard), is available through many vendors. Miami Corp, Midwest fabrics and Automotive interiors, to name a few.
 
as a rule ive always replaced card with ply general rule is 1/8 3ply moulding ply [it will take a bend /curve ] never had one of theses swell or crease as humidity here is a problem just cut to size check fit and seal with same sealer you use on timber flooring then trim to suit
 
I literally just went out and bought the wood yesterday. I'm using tempered hardboard (Lowes) that I'm going to treat with Thompson water seal. The hardboard seems to be the closest match to the original ones that were falling apart in my '40 Deluxe Sedan.

Now I need to figure out how to slightly shape the hardboard for some of the areas.
 
WarbirdPhotog said:
I literally just went out and bought the wood yesterday. I'm using tempered hardboard (Lowes) that I'm going to treat with Thompson water seal. The hardboard seems to be the closest match to the original ones that were falling apart in my '40 Deluxe Sedan.

Now I need to figure out how to slightly shape the hardboard for some of the areas.
Click to expand...

Water and steam for shaping and forming. So do all the fitting before applying the water proofing. Also Thompson is paraffin wax and will make it difficult to get anything to stick to it.
 
Last edited:
Good point on the water sealer. If it were me, I'd either just apply several good coats of paint after shaping or apply laquer, poly is not water proof, or marine spar varnish and then apply upholstery fabric and trim.
 
Pros and cons. The cardboard ,wood and yes the masonite are easy to work with and are some what sound deadining. They are good at holding staples and glues and tend not to viberate and rattle. The down side is they dont like any moistier. Over time even humidity will cause warping to some degree even in waterproof masonite as the surface is water proof but not where you cut or drill it. The plastics don't have this problem but they are a little harder to work with as they don't glue staple or hold tacks as well. I had a customer complain that he couldn't stop the hard plastic door card from making an anoying vibration rattel on hot days until coverd the back side with thin foam. Just some thoughts.
 
ActionYobbo said:
Water and steam for shaping and forming. So do all the fitting before applying the water proofing. Also Thompson is paraffin wax and will make it difficult to get anything to stick to it.
Click to expand...

I've also heard you use original Windex with the ammonia. Seems a lot of model train scene builders use that method for diorama backdrops.
I'm planning to use staples rather than glue it, which judging by the hundreds of staples that removed yesterday, was the way they did it. Though, I could leave a little gaps or sand areas for contact cement before I do it.

signsup said:
Good point on the water sealer. If it were me, I'd either just apply several good coats of paint after shaping or apply laquer, poly is not water proof, or marine spar varnish and then apply upholstery fabric and trim.
Click to expand...

I thought about painting it rather than water sealing it, but I felt that wouldn't be enough.

pistonbroke said:
Pros and cons. The cardboard ,wood and yes the masonite are easy to work with and are some what sound deadining. They are good at holding staples and glues and tend not to viberate and rattle. The down side is they dont like any moistier. Over time even humidity will cause warping to some degree even in waterproof masonite as the surface is water proof but not where you cut or drill it. The plastics don't have this problem but they are a little harder to work with as they don't glue staple or hold tacks as well. I had a customer complain that he couldn't stop the hard plastic door card from making an anoying vibration rattel on hot days until coverd the back side with thin foam. Just some thoughts.
Click to expand...


The original looks to be a tempered hardboard, I figured if it held up 80 years without being water sealed, using new tempered hardboard with the water seal should last at least my lifetime!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top