who is ready for a really depressing post?

[Hosehead]

Oh man, I wouldn't even accepted that in that condition, or even opened it. Sorry to hear this, how's the new digs?

New digs are awesome. Best thing I've ever done. I'll figure out the door panel. I think its fixable to use in a race car.

 

[Hosehead]

True and true.
I had a similar problem, and bringing the pieces together made the damage virtually disappear.

I used packing tape on the front to hold the pieces together, stronger hold and flatter than other types like painter's or duct tape.
Flatten the piece out with the tape on, and make sure it's flat and together.

I then used superglue on the seem from the back, just a little on the seem and spread it out.
This kept the seem together, prevented glue from leaking through, and it from sticking to the work surface.

I did very short sections at a time, small length of tape, glue, wait for it to dry, continue.

This ensured each section was together prior to glueing, and that the tape wasn't on the front for very long.
Test the tape first, obviously.

Last step, I used gorilla tape on the back as extra insurance. It has alot of glue on it and I worked it into the back.

Thanks! And this is exactly what I was thinking. Since the panels "broke" instead of ripping, they didn't stretch and the break is super clean. When I lay the pieces down, the seam virtually disappears. I think it will be a tedious process but I'll give it a shot. lol.

 

[Jerry Hall]

If you can get the puzzle of pieces back in place, I would apply some fiberglass resin then some fiberglass mat and seal it with additional resin. Then a little sanding to make it smooth.

 

[69a100]

If you can get the puzzle of pieces back in place, I would apply some fiberglass resin then some fiberglass mat and seal it with additional resin. Then a little sanding to make it smooth.

This would be my thinking and attack plan to repair it. Good Luck

 

[moparedtn]

Exactly the reason I couldn’t send my GTX tail panel out for restoration - I was afraid of the shipping damage. I lived with it the way it was. No regrets. Sorry to hear of your woes. That’s a tough deal.

Back when my friend in Texas Bob refinished mine (God rest ya Bob, RIP my friend), he insisted I build a wooden
crate to ship the panel to him in. I thought it a bit much at first, but when a friend is doing you a solid, you do
as instructed. I built a full framed crate with thick cardboard all around the outside; short of them dropping it out
of an airplane, the panel wasn't going to get hurt when I was done.
Bob worked steadily on the panel for a few weeks, even though he was in his last days of fighting cancer
(he didn't tell anyone about it until the very end) and would send me progress pics along the way.
He even polished the original lenses and such.
Finally, when he was done, he refused any attempt by me to pay for his work (I even tried to go behind his
back to his son and get him money that way, but he saw me coming there too. ).

The crate wound up sturdy enough that he actually used it again to ship the panel back when he was done.
He did just an amazing job on the panel and it's the most treasured part of my GTX to this day; Bob lives on
every time the car is out and about and I make sure to tell interested folks about him and what he did for me.
I'm not worthy of such and I'm quite proud of his work.

Before

If I wind up having to sell the GTX (end of the world scenario), such stories behind it will go with her, too.
I wouldn't be able to bear that. My GTX is no show winner, but she's an assembly of stories that cannot
be replaced.

Build a crate. Get that panel done the way you want it!

 

[Hosehead]

Dang. I have to fix the broken one. Of course, the panels look amazing with the old seats.......