(Updated) PICS of fiberglass enclosure construction
If a mod feels this belongs in car audio, feel free to move it, but I've had a lot of questions about building a 4th gen enclosure like this. instead of doing the fiberglass IN the car, I bought some extra trunk panels and kinda made a "jig" of the trunk to work from (no smelly car. . .yay!!). This should allow me to make multiple copies quickly. Tomorrow, I'll finish the MDF top and front baffels. I'm just going to make a template so additional copies will be a breeze. I plan to make 5 or 6 in the next month or so. The following pics are with 2-3 layers of fiberglass over the entire jig:
Originally posted by Crate hell ya dood. nice work =] ... i'm not that handy (sept w/ computers)
How much is one of those gonna cost for a 4th gen? and is it a 10"?
Yup, single 10 inch subwoofer. . .maybe a 12 if you find one with a shallow mounting depth that like small enclosures.
As for pricing, I'm shooting for a price range of about $175. I havent nailed down an exact figure because I'm unsure of materials costs when building multiple copies. Once this one is done and I can see exactly how much fiberglass is needed for each copy, and order materials in bulk accordingly.
I have built something quite similar to what you are doing about 2 years ago, but I trimmed the portion that is protruding out away from the back of the tail light. I also didn't use a complete 3/4" MDF front and top. I only used it for the mounting ring, and a brace inside the enclosure. I used Speaker grill cloth and layered that with some resin for the bulk of the enclosure with Fiberglass really only used for the initial mold. Yours is coming along very nice though. You might want to consider trimming down that portion I was talking about to make the enclosure more asthetically pleasing. How many cu. ft. is the internal volume?
I actually built a very similar one last year, and the corner didnt protrude quite so much. I INTENTIONALY made it stick out a little farther this time in the interest of getting a little extra mounting depth and internal volume. It really dosn't stick out as much as the pictures make it look like. I considered doing it with the method you described, but decided against it because I hate working with fiberglass THAT much. The biggest pain, as I'm sure you discovered, is making sure the corner clears the trunk hinge. I'm ballparking the internal volume at about .65-.75 cubic feet right now, but I'm gonna fill it with sand once its done to get an accurate measurement.
Sounds good. Hopefully it will sound as good as it looks. if it turns out to be in the .75 cu.ft range than a 10" will be perfect. I don't think that a 12 will work too well. Don't forget to take into account the speaker's internal displacement as well. I am sure you know that already though.
Yeah a 12 really would be pushing it. I know the Image Dynamics subs might work well in an enclosure that small, but not many others would be up to the task. Plus, the larger magnets on 12's might push the envelope in mounting dpeth. The last one was about .65 or so (cant remember exactly), so wel'll see if any of my revisions gained us a few hundredths of a cubic foot.
Mine was exactly .80 Cu ft. I designed mine for 8" subs I made one for each side of the trunk. I had to remove the jack and jack enclosure. but it sounded VERY good. I used Kicker Solobaric subs. I also ported the box as well. I believe the specs on the subs for a ported box were something like .60-1.0. So they fit the bill quite well.
Originally posted by Dr. James made one for each side of the trunk. I had to remove the jack and jack enclosure
Same concept, but this is from a 3rd gen I believe, and the guy just completley molded the enclosure as part of the panel and then recarpeted it.
I've been wanting to try and do one on the other side, but yeah. . .the damn jack is in the way. Did you remove the bracket that the jack mounts to (the little tab that is welded on)? If I could just unbolt the tab, I'd be all for it. . .but I just dont like making permenent modifications!
No I didn't remove the tab, I just molded a little indention into the enclosure to fit snug against the tab. Worked very well. That's the cool thing about composites, you can do whatever you want with some imagination.
I modified my jig a little bit, so that the top and corner pieces would be cast as part of the fiberglass, instead of being made of MDF and added later. The plywood and cardboard in the first picture provide a mold for these pieces. By eliminating some MDF, I was trying to cut down on a) weight, b) loss of internal volume, c) time spent joining MDF to fiberglass.
The fiberglass shell is really strong (about 1/8" inch) and has been coated inside with two coats of "milkshake", a Bondo and fiberglass resin mix that seals any pinholes. I was able to fill the enclosure with water to 3/4" below the top, using 6.5-6.75 gallons in the process. This comes to .85-.9 cubic feet of airspace, which is more than I was expecting!! I took a peak at the specs for the Image Dynamics IDQ12, and it looks like one just might work! So i guess you CAN get a 12 inch subwoofer in a 4g trunk without sacrificing your entire trunk!
I have decided NOT to mass produce these things. . .making 6 fiberglass shells would put a serious strain on my patience, overhead, and respritory system. I feel like I have done my body some serious harm already (even WITH a respirator), and I'm not looking to do any more!
For the front baffle, I've decided to do things a little differently. There will be a cutout for a 12" speaker, and then I am going to make these "adaptor plates" that will bolt to the 12" bolt circle and accomidate either a 10" or 8" speaker. This should be a very versitile enclosure. . .
After a quick Bondo application, followed by some sanding and spray primer:
Thats probably the only finish work I'm gonna do to the backside. You are never going to see it when it is in the car, so I'm not going to waste my time making it look pretty. There will be a recessed terminal cup somewhere on that flat little hump thingy. I've decided to make the baffle like the CAD model below (instead of the one I posted earlier).
This should yield maximum versitility and minimal headaches. I was going to start on that toinight, but BOTH Home Depot locations near my house were out of 2'x4' sections of 3'4 MDF!! Arghhh....
Originally posted by red92s
Those cant fit in the back seat?
i don't like things banging around in my interior, or people being able to see my clubs in plain view. so my interior is always empty. maybe i'm just wierd because i never leave home without my clubs. anyways, it kills off even your really nice looking enclosure. good job by the way.
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I am sure you know that already though.
anyways, it kills off even your really nice looking enclosure. good job by the way.
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