Photo # 1 - All of the panels are then removed for the next major step, covering them with fabric. But first I have some more prep work to do. The curved panels all need to have the back sides sanded down fairly smooth for gluing. This is how the backside looks as they came out of the car. The odd looking texture is the result of the drywall compound being pushed through the perforated fiberglass tape and then wrapping around the wire mesh. I use my air sander to take off this excess material and create a gluing surface.
Photo # 2 - Here’s a shot of the rear corner panel which shows the difficulty of the compound complex curve fairly well. This is just a very odd shaped piece. I’m sure an experience pro could lay in the foam in one piece but as a total novice, I opted to break the foam up into sections.
Photo # 3 - Next I need to clean up the edges of the curved panels and cut away much of the wire mesh surrounding each panel. The mesh needs to be removed in order to wrap the fabric around the edge of each panel and glue it on the back side. But I also need to leave some “ears†of mesh in place so that the panel can be held in place. I’m totally shooting in the dark here as to whether I’ve trimmed away too little or too much of the mesh.
