fiberglass box

[badash]

alright guys i think this summer im gonna try to make a fiberglass enclosure for those of you that have done this on a scale of 1-10 (10 being most difficult) how hard is it to make one?

how did you measure out the air space?
where the heck do i buy fiberglass material???
is the sound as good as a regular MDF enclosure?
will this endeavor cost me an arm and a leg? or is it fairly cheap?

currently i have a Sealed box with my 3 JL's and would like the fiberglass one to be sealed as well, i would like it to go from wheel well to wheel well and kinda bump up where the subs are and possibly invert mount the centre one i dont quite know where i want the amp yet, but preferably somewhere in the middle too or maybe in the floor? visible anyways cause it has blue led's on the HIFONICS that looks cool...

reasons for doing this box, my current box.., well is just crappy... the screw holes to mount the subs are all messed up and a bunch dont even screw in causing major air leaks, and set the subs off key a little, plus the carpeting job didnt go so well, lol long story...

any help is appreciated, im in the process of doing a search on the board for other fiberglass boxes, but gotta go to work right now.

 

[4X402]

Ok, first off, fiberglass is not that hard to work with, however building a good box is going to take a lot of time and some math. the design is totally up to you, howecever u want it u can build it, there are several ways to build it. There is the foam Block method, where u basically just lay the glass over the desired foam shape, and start cutiing th foam out (Not how id do it) What i would do would be 2 build the bottom, back, and probaby sides with MDF, then build a frame out of MDF with rings 2 support the subs. I personally would advise if u r running only 1 amp to the three subs, not to flip 1 sub over, keep them all the same way, all in or out, this is due to Harmonic frequencies canceling eachother out. As for sound quality, if u do not make it thick enough they tend to have a funny sound its kinda like a hollow sound to my ears.
Airspace is going to require alot of math, u might want to design and then calculate airspace b4 starting construction, when in doubt consult a mathbook. U can buy the mats at ur local automotive or most good hardware stores. and this wont be very cheap, a gallon of resin runs about 40bucks, u r gonna need to bondo and paint the surface 2. They can look awesome but its a bit of work.

 

[conig]

supplys can be bought alot of places, its not hard but time consuming. The finishing work to get is smooth thakes the most time IMO.

Calculating air space is alot harder becuase of funky shapes. personally I would build a box like stated above using 2-4 sides wood and build in alittle lee way for airspace so you can get in the size range your sub needs(sealed of course)

the other way is to build the box and stuff a trash bag in it and fill it with water. a gallon at a time until you get the exact air space.

flipping one sub should be alright in my opinion as long as the sub(s) mounted magnet out is wired in reverse phase from the others.

 

[badash]

cool thanks a lot for the info guys I think im gonna do it this summer, but ill start buying up the materials for it now..

just kinda randomly i had a neat idea... i was thinking instead of painting it with glossy finish maybe put like a thin layer of carpeting like headliner material, then put foam underneath to make a design ie flames or something? like what people have done to there headliners or doors, I like that look and I think it would blend well with the vehicle rather than a shiny stereo in a rugged 4x4

 

[conig]

it can be done but is hard.

another option and what I have done is to have a line-x shop spray on a matching color bed liner it covers all the flaws and is way more durable then paint.

 

[badash]

ahhh good call that would definately be the easiest and most durable root thanks