Most people are intimidated by doing their own car audio work, however they shouldn't be. If you've had some time in woodshop, or messed around with power tools, then creating your own car audio door panels is easy enough to do. There are some advanced ways of doing these panels, however I figured it would be good to start off with plain, easy to make door panels. I will cover these in a later page. Fiberglass is the fastest, easiest, and best looking way to create door panels that will turn heads in any car audio show, or even on the cruise downtown during the weekend. Fiberglass is very easy to work with, even for a beginner. You can get fiberglass resin and fiber at most plastic shops in a larger town, or even at a car parts store (however, it's cheaper at a plastic shop - just look under plastics in the phonebook). These door panels are tough enough to withstand years of kicking from your passengers, and will look like they belong there.
Items you'll need to make door panels:
Tools:
Jig
saw
Screwdriver
or Screw gun
Stapler
Door
panel puller (not required, you can get them at most Auto stores)
Window
crank puller (not required but recommended, again you can get them at most Auto
stores)
Table
saw (not required but nice to keep straight lines)
Router
(Not required)
Assorted
hole saws (not required, you can also use the Jig saw)
Nail
Gun (Not required)
Materials:
1/2"
or 3/4" MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard, 1/2 sheet should do, depending on
how far you want to build out)
Fiberglass
Resin
Fiberglass
cloth Material
T-shirt
Material (No logos) or Speaker Grille cloth (doesn't matter what color)
CHEAP
paint brushes
Plastic
Epoxy
Bondo
Assorted
sandpaper
3M
or equivalent spray glue (strongest possible)
Matching
vinyl or carpet
1/4
inch Wood screws
Door Panel Removal:
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| Figure 1 | Figure 2 | Figure 3 |
Pull any screws out of the door closing handle using a screwdriver or screw gun, find the screw in the cup under where the opening handle is mounted and anywhere else you can find them.
For people with window cranks you have to pull them off, to do this there is a c-clip mounted behind it (most of the time it's behind the trim ring). To get this off the easiest and fastest way, use a window crank puller. Put the crank puller under the window crank and trim ring, if so equipped. Catch the c-clip on either side, then line the puller up with the other side and push the opposite direction until the clip comes off. If you don't have a window crank puller then you can try to use 2 flat bladed screw drivers by catching one side of the clip with one and the other side with the other screwdriver and push the clip off.
With all the trim taken off of the door panel all that should be left is the door panel. The stock door panel is mounted to the inside metal door skin with clips mounted to the metal outside skin of the door panel. There is a door panel removal tool that you can purchase to make it easier to pull off the clips. The removal tool can protect the clips; however, the clips aren't very expensive to replace anyway. Start at the bottom and pull each clip off one by one till they are all released (Figure 1).
Then pull up on the stock door panel, it usually hangs on the inner door skin and is easily pulled up and off.
If your door already has speakers in it, measure from where the door panel used to be to the center of the speaker from the bottom and the side of the door. Write this down we'll use this later. Then go ahead and remove the stock speakers (Figure 2).
It's a good
idea to clean both door skins out by blowing it out with an air compressor and
then wipe with glass cleaner or a similar product (Figure 3).
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| Figure 4 | Figure 5 |
The next task is to cut a "base" for the mid-bass pod to mount
on. The base is a large flat piece of MDF
that the speaker pod mounts to and is attached to the original door
panel. The base can be made in just
about any shape. Before you start
this, measure the height and width of the bottom of your stock door panel
(Figure 4). At this
time it's best to check to make sure that your window crank isn't going to hit
the new door panel. If you'd like to you can be creative and build the new door panel
a little higher up on the original door panel like in Figure 5, which also creates a larger base in which to mount
the speaker to.
Also, you don't have to build the panel so it runs the length of the
stock door panel, if you'd like you can just create one that is just large enough for
the speaker.
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| Figure 6 | Figure 7 |
Cut 2 bases out of 1/2 inch or 3/4 inch MDF using the table saw, use the height and width measurements that you took in Figure 4. If you're going to build it up higher, measure that distance and use it for the height measurement.
Take one of the stock door panels and put it upside down on one of the base that you just cut. Draw a line using a pencil, along the bottom of the door panel on the MDF (Figure 6). Repeat for the other side. On the front of the base you'll want to mark whether it's drivers or passengers sides.
Cut this line with a jig saw, you need to stay just inside the line. You'll need to sand both of the edges you just cut with a small hand sander or a belt sander to keep them as smooth as possible.
Now, you can do one of two things here, it depends on which way you will think look better. You can hand sand the edges and smooth them , or you can use a router and a rounding bit and take off the edges. Pay close attention to which one you're sanding or routing, remember they should be mirror images of each other. You need to sand the front side only! (Figure 7).
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| Figure 8 | Figure 9 | Figure 10 |
Next you'll have to cut 2 donuts (one for either side), use hole saws if you have them. If not, use the jig saw and cut a hole the size of the inside diameter of the mid-bass, and the other just a little larger than the outside diameter of the mid-bass (Figure 8). If you don't have a compass, you can try finding a hole the right size in something else. I found one of my Mom's Tupperware bowls that would work (Figure 9).
Smooth out the edges as you did for the base.
Cut the hole in the base for the speaker to come through using measurements that we took off of the door skin (Figure 2 ).
Join both of those lines and put an X at the center where the existing driver is.
Put one of the donuts over the top, and center it over the X.
Draw a line around the donut, take it off of the base, and
cut out with a jig saw or hole saw then repeat for the other side (Figure 10).
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| Figure 11 | Figure 12 | Figure 13 |
Note: For mid-bass you don't have to worry about aiming the driver, bass is non-directional. If using mid-bass speakers you can skip step 19.
If you are mounting a midrange or tweeters, you'll need to have someone sit in the passenger side while you sit in the driver's side. The person helping you needs to have the base (passenger's or driver's) and one of the donuts. Have them angle the donut to where you want them to be in relationship to the base.
Note: If you are using midrange or tweeters: I recommend driver's side right ear for the right speaker ,and passenger's side left ear for the left driver.
Have the person hold the donut until you get the right angle. Get out of the vehicle and measure the distance between the base and the donut at the highest point. (Figure 11, my speakers are mid-bass, so I skipped this step).
Cut out a couple of pieces to angle the driver. A couple of 1/2 inch strips of 3/4 inch MDF cut to the length of your measurements should suffice.
Epoxy these pieces to the base and then to the donut so they are angled to the ear on both, the MDF pieces you just epoxied should be mounted on the bottom right when you face the driver's side panel, and on bottom left for the other panel. If you put both basses together, they should still mirror each other in every way. (Figure 12). While using epoxy on the pieces to angle the driver, you can also drill a pilot hole and drive a screw into the back to hold it into place.
If you don't have patience like me, and so you don't
have to wait overnight, take a nail gun and drive a few nails
into the sides of the donut to hold it (Figure 13). Repeat
for the other side.
Cut a piece of speaker grille cloth or t-shirt material larger than the door panel form that you just created. Use spray glue and coat on the back of the door panel forms. Make sure you only apply spray glue on the back!
Then wrap the piece of grille cloth and adhere it to the back of the base (which Figure 13 also refers to). You'll need to pull it taught all the way around to smooth out the grille cloth, you might have to pull it up and move it on the back of the base. This will make a form around the mid-bass pod or "donut", then repeat for both sides.
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| Figure 13 | Figure 14 | Figure 15 |
Find a good place that's well ventilated and put the panels where you can paint all the way around them and the excess resin can drop; garbage cans work well (Figure 13). Read the directions and mix your fiberglass resin with the catalyst. It's much like bondo, the more catalyst the "hotter" the mix and the faster it will harden up. You'll need to do this in an environment at least 70 degrees or hotter. Make sure you mix the fiberglass resin in a coffee can or other metal container, plastic will melt. You'll only need about a quart for both forms.
Use the cheap brushes, apply the mixture on to the door panel forms, (Figure 14) and make sure you get plenty of the mixture where the speaker is going to mount, and where the panel connects with grille cloth. When you coat it for the first time, let it dry a little and keep putting on the resin until you run out of it. After you've run out, let this harden, it should take about 1/2 to an hour depending on how warm it is outside, then repeat with a second coat.
Cut about 40 - 1X1 inch strips of Fiberglass cloth material.
When this hardens you'll need to strengthen the door
panel form by mixing another batch of resin and adding the 1X1 inch strips into the
mixture. Then turn the door panel forms upside down and stuff the mixture into any holes you
can get to (Figure 15). This is a good place to
stop for the day.
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| Figure 16 | Figure 17 | Figure 18 |
Make sure that your resin/fiber mixture hardened well; then clean it up using some sandpaper, the more sanding you do the less bondo work you'll have to do (Figure 16) . When you sand, try to stay away from sanding off too much of the plastic or else the grille cloth will fray.
Cut off all of the drips and any extra grille cloth. Also cut away the grille cloth that is over the speaker's hole. The back needs to be very close to flat (Figure 17). If you are going to do carpet you will not have to put Bondo on the forms; vinyl shows all the imperfections, that's why bondo is used. Look on the surface and see if there are any imperfections if needed apply bondo to places where it sinks too deep, and sand places where it's sticks out too much (Figure 18), then sand all surfaces. It's likely that you will need to do more than one coat of Bondo on your door panels, so be prepared for that.
If this is your first set of door panel forms and you want vinyl, it's probably best to have them wrapped by a professional. If you want carpet then cut your carpet larger than the whole form and use a good spray glue to adhere the carpet onto the form that you have made. Place glue on the carpet and on the form, let it dry for about 5 min, and then put the carpet on the form. I used vinyl, however the process to mounting vinyl and carpet is similar. (Figure 19). Using your hand, smooth out all the wrinkles and if you have to pull it up and set it down again. If you purchased glue that works well then you should be able to pick up the carpet and smooth it onto the form and smooth out any wrinkles. It will be a little difficult to get the carpet on the form and straightened out, and if you have any difficulties use a pair of pliers (Figure 20) to pull the carpet and then tack it down with a good stapler then staple it all the way around and cut out any extra carpet. Remember to keep the back as flat as possible. Sometimes you have to hammer down the staples to get them to go all the way into the MDF. Then cut away the carpet away from the speaker hole.
After you have both done, turn the door panel form upside down and line it up with the matching side stock door panel, use a drill and put in a few 1/4 inch screws especially where the corners are. The new panel needs to be mounted to the old panel a little higher than the bottom edge so the door will shut. Then reverse the removal process and put the stock door panels back on (Figure 21). Sometimes you have to enlarge the stock speaker holes so that you can put the door panel back on. Then attach your mid-bass speaker wire and screw in the mid-bass.
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| Figure 19 | Figure 20 | Figure 21 |
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| This is what the finished product looks like |
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