sewlow
Bitchin' Stitchin'
That foam is a requirement in order for the headliner fabric not to look like the surface of the moon when it's applied to the panel.
The factory H/L material has that foam bonded to the fabric.
Yea. I agree. That foam is the partially the prob, in addition to the fact that the bonding agent between the fabric & the material eventually will die, resulting in you wearing the damn thing! Lol!
The reason that that material is used is because of it's light weight. Important in the material retaining the ability to stay put.
The headliner actually puts up with a fair amount of stress. 70mph with the windows open & the H/L is being beat up pretty good by the wind. Heat, cold & condensation also play a role in the death of headliner fabrics.
But, if you'd like to do your H/L like mine, I'd recommend that a 1/8" thick closed cell foam be used. It's just enough to make the fabric over top look good & it's light enough in weight to be supported by the glue used to glom it onto the panel.
The skin of the CC has to be broken some for the glue to get a grip. Otherwise, that surface is too slick for the glue to do it's job. Not only does that foam have to support itself but also the fabric.
I use a piece of 80 grit sandpaper. Lightly drag it across the side to be glued to the panel first. In 4 directions. Up & down, across, & then in both 45* angles to that.
Use GOOD glue. 3M 'Spray 90' is about as good as it gets for the average home job. Normally I'd also recommend 3M 'Spray 76' for H/L's, but not in this application.
Even then, I still wouldn't be comfortable charging a customer good money & then have to stand behind my workmanship for the year that I warranty my work for.
I use a glue called 'Weldwood Landau Top & Trim Contact Adhesive'. Available in 1 or 5 gallon cans. Not cheap! A 5 gallon can costs me a little better than $300.00 now, & lasts the shop maybe 6 months.
It has to be sprayed. A regular automotive siphon type spray gun works best. No HVLP guns. The glue is too thick for those.
Once that CC is down, then the exposed surface also has to have that skin broken before the material can be applied.
The material itself is regular perforated automotive grade vinyl. (Mold & mildew resistant. UV stabilized.)
But, once again, that stuff is heavy when compared to the original type H/L material.
So, I will lay down a couple of coats of the glue on the foam, letting it dry to the touch between coats.
Letting it dry is important.
The glue itself is a solid & is held in suspension by various (nasty!) chemicals. Those chemicals need to breathe off. Otherwise, if the glue is still sticky wet when the vinyl is applied, those chemicals will continue to breathe off, resulting in trapped bubbles between the foam & the vinyl.
If your chemical sensitive, wear a mask. Not a paper particle mask. A real mask with proper chemical filters installed.
One decent coat on the vinyl is all that's required. The vinyl can be rolled onto the H/L+foam when that coat on the vinyl is just slightly tacky.
Use a roller to make a permanent adhesion. Just working it down with your hands is not good enough.
That glue gets stronger with age.
If after all this, you are still interested in attempting this project, I can give you pointers on some tips & techniques on how to actually lay down the materials so that it all looks pro done.
The factory H/L material has that foam bonded to the fabric.
Yea. I agree. That foam is the partially the prob, in addition to the fact that the bonding agent between the fabric & the material eventually will die, resulting in you wearing the damn thing! Lol!
The reason that that material is used is because of it's light weight. Important in the material retaining the ability to stay put.
The headliner actually puts up with a fair amount of stress. 70mph with the windows open & the H/L is being beat up pretty good by the wind. Heat, cold & condensation also play a role in the death of headliner fabrics.
But, if you'd like to do your H/L like mine, I'd recommend that a 1/8" thick closed cell foam be used. It's just enough to make the fabric over top look good & it's light enough in weight to be supported by the glue used to glom it onto the panel.
The skin of the CC has to be broken some for the glue to get a grip. Otherwise, that surface is too slick for the glue to do it's job. Not only does that foam have to support itself but also the fabric.
I use a piece of 80 grit sandpaper. Lightly drag it across the side to be glued to the panel first. In 4 directions. Up & down, across, & then in both 45* angles to that.
Use GOOD glue. 3M 'Spray 90' is about as good as it gets for the average home job. Normally I'd also recommend 3M 'Spray 76' for H/L's, but not in this application.
Even then, I still wouldn't be comfortable charging a customer good money & then have to stand behind my workmanship for the year that I warranty my work for.
I use a glue called 'Weldwood Landau Top & Trim Contact Adhesive'. Available in 1 or 5 gallon cans. Not cheap! A 5 gallon can costs me a little better than $300.00 now, & lasts the shop maybe 6 months.
It has to be sprayed. A regular automotive siphon type spray gun works best. No HVLP guns. The glue is too thick for those.
Once that CC is down, then the exposed surface also has to have that skin broken before the material can be applied.
The material itself is regular perforated automotive grade vinyl. (Mold & mildew resistant. UV stabilized.)
But, once again, that stuff is heavy when compared to the original type H/L material.
So, I will lay down a couple of coats of the glue on the foam, letting it dry to the touch between coats.
Letting it dry is important.
The glue itself is a solid & is held in suspension by various (nasty!) chemicals. Those chemicals need to breathe off. Otherwise, if the glue is still sticky wet when the vinyl is applied, those chemicals will continue to breathe off, resulting in trapped bubbles between the foam & the vinyl.
If your chemical sensitive, wear a mask. Not a paper particle mask. A real mask with proper chemical filters installed.
One decent coat on the vinyl is all that's required. The vinyl can be rolled onto the H/L+foam when that coat on the vinyl is just slightly tacky.
Use a roller to make a permanent adhesion. Just working it down with your hands is not good enough.
That glue gets stronger with age.
If after all this, you are still interested in attempting this project, I can give you pointers on some tips & techniques on how to actually lay down the materials so that it all looks pro done.
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