Right front fender panel lose

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Art In Mobile

Art In Mobile

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Joined
Jan 5, 2009
Posts
372
I am debating weather to bolt it back tight with SS screws and SS fender washers or put 3M5200 on after cleaning the area. Any thoughts? Thanks Art
 
My only thought is that if the area where the 5200 is used will be exposed to the sun I would use 4000UV instead.  They say it is half the strength of the 5200 but it still peels gel coat if installed properly. 5200 turns yellow and sticky when exposed to the sun.
 
John, have no way to post photo at this time. It is the right front fender on the vertical rear edge.
Charlie, the 5200 would be under the fender where UV could never get to it. I have built boats & used 3M5200 for 20 years & never have had it turn yellow & sticky even out in the sunlight. It does chalk & crack a little after about 5 years in the sun. Like any adhesive metal must be cleaned & sanded a little. I personally have found it to be one of the best adhesives I have ever used. It also can flex just a little. I just am concerned how the SS washers would look so am torn between using 3m 5200 or SS fasteners. Thanks to both for your input. Art
 
Just came up with another brainstorm, so stand back. How about instead of SS fender washer on the bottom I could use an orange reflector with a hole in the middle at least on the bottom where it started to pull lose. It might look better & even be a road safety improvement.
 
You could also use the SS fender washer with a flat head machine screw and cover it with a reflector. And you are correct about the effects of UV on 5200.  The yellow and sticky was from using alcohol to clean up excess.  Alcohol does not go well with polyurethane.  3M told us to use mineral spirits instead.  Worked great to both clean and smooth.
 
Good idea Charlie. I don't want to lose the looks of the front fender with to many screw head showing. Art
 
I have used ss oval head screws and ss finish washers along with 5200 for the same type of repair. Index the phillips heads and space evenly. Even do the other side, not many will know the difference.

Bill
 
I've had that problem on both front wheel wells (on a different brand).  I did not want to put bolt or screw hoes through the skin if I could avoid it. May not apply well to yours, but here's what I did.

The fiberglass panel was bonded to a metal bracket, which in turn was bolted to the body. The adhesive bond broke. I used a two step repair, sort of belt + suspenders. First I used JB Weld to re-bond the fiberglass to the metal - it's excellent for a fiberglass to metal bond. But since I couldn't clean the bonding surface well without removing the entire fender well, I was concerned the bond would soon break again. So, I added fiberglass cloth and epoxy resin lapped over the metal piece and onto the adjacent fiberglass, where I could sand it clean. That provides a solid secondary support.
 
Had this happen to the panel between the front wheel and the slide (storage is part of slide) on the left side of my 2006 Winnebago Voyage. On this model the panel is bonded to a plastic horizontal strut. The plastic was brittle and broke when I began to repair the bond. Had enough left to bond to, but I was not sure it was enough to keep the bond for very long. So I bought some wire and some eye-bolts. Then I tied the panel to the chassis with 3 wires. It has lasted a while now, so I have no reason to believe it won't continue be a good fix.
 
Don and Gary, thanks for the reply's. Mine seems to be glued on to the aluminum vertical piece. May remove the complete panel to see what to do. I could just bolt the lower part back on and use a reflector as my back is giving me some trouble right now. Thanks Art
 
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