I have a old Pantera. I want to replace the windshield with a fiberglass one. I want to make it myself. I am a car painter but Im not a fiberglass guy and I dont want to ask the body guys because they dont know boats.
My question is can I use the frame from the winshield and fiberglass over that? Im thinking the shape is fine, the mounting hardware is already in place and will line up perfect. Getting it straight and painted is no problem. I just dont want it to crack down the road.

You can built a mold out of the existing glass,,,,(use it as a plug),,,then glass with some corefoam or other good and light core mat. int the mold and mount it on the boat,straighten everything out and paint it ,,,,,,,DONE.

Thats what i would do ?!

Thanks Daredevil. Thats a good idea. How would I mount it if I use it as a plug. I dont want to fiberglass it to the deck. I would like to keep it a seperate piece. I am not painting the whole boat this year. Im going to paint the windscreen black with yellow Pantera letting across it. Then when I paint the boat next year I will paint it the color of the boat.

Well ,,,after you used the windshiled as a plug,,,,DONT BREAK IT,,,,,you can fabricate the fiberglass parts just like the windshield and mount it the exact same way ??!!!!

After you perfect your fiberglass work then you can start on my dually fender.

Russ..
When you figure it out...build me one?
Seriously, I've considered powdercoated aluminum with a rolled top edge, but can't pull the trigger to do it.
Sutphen's actually looking into that farring idea for me.
Have you tried Pantera?
C
btw where do you run? some of us are looking to head your way this summer...what's good?
etc, cool looking older boat!

ChristianGott- Can't call Pantera, I'm a low buck guy so I have to do the work myself. I'm being lazy and looking for a short cut with using the old frame for a base. I also thought about just covering it with sheet metal and painting it. Using even spaced decertive type screws and even the snaps for the cover on one end to attach the metal to my frame. I just keep thinking what if the metal brakes lose and comes flying off!

Scott-Its no problem for me to repair fiberglass and finish it off. I just am un-shure about bonding the fiberglass to a metal frame. With the temp. changes and all the beating my boat takes I dont want it to crack.

Nah man I'm just messin' with ya. I've seen the work you did on the Checkmate. It looked good. Just had to put in a jab.

Russ , All to well understanding the importance of needing to stay within a budget I would still say that I wouldn't personally recomend glassing over the existing aluminum frame. (also not sure if you are talking about fiberglassing over the actual glass between the fame or what you had in mind there ??) Not saying it Couldn't work , but In my opinion I just dont think it would be a good idea for a few reasons... Why not build one out of wood using the old windshield as a pattern ?? Yes I understand that some sort of coring material ect would be lighter but being on a budget & possibly wanting to use readily availible materials ?? Done Right , using wood with a few good layers of resin & cloth over them would do the job very well & outlast the rest of the boat... It could be done with very minimual weight added... However you decide to do it its definatly not going to be as quick to fabricate a new fairing as just quickly glassing over what you have , but the end result would definatly pay off in my opinion...

However If you are just looking for a quick "few hours" fairing & are dead set against spending a decent amount of time & effort into it I think you would be better off covering the glass with aluminum like you mentioned than trying to glass over it , & again done right could easily be done without any fear of comming off & not look bad at the same time.

--On a side note if you did cover it with aluminum or sheet metal of some sort & could utilize rivits instead of screws to secure it to the frame it could possibly look pretty sweet after its painted !-- However to make it look good you would really need to do the inside as well

Feel free to let me know if I can help with any questions ect....

Later , Scott
Littledcsrodshop(at)comcast(dot)net

Hey Russ, I did what Scott said to do above for the Excalibur. I used the old frame for a pattern and made it out of wood. But I glassed mine to the deck. For you to keep it seperate just use some T-nuts on the bottom piece of wood that lays flat to the deck. It would essentialy be through bolted to the deck that way. Once you have everything mocked up how you want it... glass it, paint it, and bolt it on. Let me know if you need a hand...you know where to find me.