Recent snap of your Westfield

[Andrzej]

Swithching cars in garage to work on Westfield 

 

[Stuart Davis AO - Devon Cornwall & Somerset]

Slightly different take on this. Can you spot the Westie in this picture? Not terribly difficult I know! 🤪

 

[HB46443]

When I put my glasses on it was simple as you said. @fatblokestu

[Quinten]

I don't know why I haven't done this before as it turned out to be fairly easy to do, but I finally used the 3M Perfect-It Medium Cut & Polish compound on the rear of my car where the previously fitted spare wheel had left some very visible marks

 

Before

 

 

After

 

[Pco]

 

Best looking car on the ferry today... But bl**** cold!!! Brrrr

[Gary Taylor]

A cracking day out to the Racer Cafe , 270 miles of fun, leaving just before 8am with a lovely sunrise behind us, we met Barry at aviemore then across laggan to spean bridge onto Ballahulish and then to the cafe where we were joined by Gordon and his family.
We were welcomed by wayne who showed us his westy and then took care of us as we warmed up in the cafe.
This really is a definite visit in the summer , 
Suitably fed , watered and warmed up, and a few pictures taken we said our goodbyes and headed for home refuelling at fort William , at spean bridge Barry headed north whilst we headed back over laggan to aviemore and home, getting home just before 5pm.
Thanks all who made it today 👍

[Benrobson2999 - Kent AO]

5 hours ago, Quinten said:

I don't know why I haven't done this before as it turned out to be fairly easy to do, but I finally used the 3M Perfect-It Medium Cut & Polish compound on the rear of my car where the previously fitted spare wheel had left some very visible marks

 

Before

 

 

After

 

I need to try that then where the side door have rubbed the body

[Rob Hunter - Club Secretary]

Other colours are available 😂

 

[Flying Carrot Steve]

On 05/02/2023 at 13:14, Quinten said:

I don't know why I haven't done this before as it turned out to be fairly easy to do, but I finally used the 3M Perfect-It Medium Cut & Polish compound on the rear of my car where the previously fitted spare wheel had left some very visible marks

 

Before

 

 

After

 

Did you use a DA polisher or by hand? I want to polish mine up and despite being a decent detailer I've never done a glassfibre car. It seems like a very hard surface so probably need a decent amount of cut to get a result? 

[Flying Carrot Steve]

Some of you may recognise this car, it used to belong to another WSCC member. I've had it for almost 2½ years now but it only feels like months thanks to covid

 

Mine is the orange one - the Flying Carrot. In the 1st 2 pics I have no idea who the other two yellow Westies belong to, they were already parked up when I got to the AV8 cafe at Cotswold Airport and fate left a space for me right next to them! Anyone recognise them please say hello!

 

The 3rd pic was on a blat with a mate in his SDR V-Storm on the way to Sweets Tea Rooms near Glastonbury for a Sunday morning meet up and the last one was at Tintern in the Wye Valley Wales last year at a kitnet evening meeting. 

 

 

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman]

27 minutes ago, Flying Carrot Steve said:

Did you use a DA polisher or by hand

Personally, I use a rotary, but I know plenty of owners getting reasonable results with a DA. Hand is perfectly possible too, but it can be a long slog.

 

Westfield have used many different makers for the GRP over the last twenty years, and there’s much variation in its qualities, too. Some eras of gel coat are really hard, and pretty much take everything you can throw at them, from light wet sanding (even down as far as 400 grit - you can go beyond, but that’s a topic in its own right), right the way through machine polishing with very aggressive compounds.

 

On the other hand, the gel coat from some suppliers was quite soft and thin, and needs a lighter touch when dealing with any marring.

 

I find it’s quite different to painted steel/aluminum, not necessarily much better or worse, just different. Heat management needs care.

[Quinten]

40 minutes ago, Flying Carrot Steve said:

Did you use a DA polisher or by hand?

 

DA polisher.

 

22 minutes ago, Flying Carrot Steve said:

In the 1st 2 pics I have no idea who the other two yellow Westies belong to, they were already parked up when I got to the AV8 cafe at Cotswold Airport and fate left a space for me right next to them! Anyone recognise them please say hello!

 

The yellow one with racing roundel and white racing stripe is my old one, now belonging to @Rozmondo

[Flying Carrot Steve]

1 hour ago, Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman said:

Personally, I use a rotary, but I know plenty of owners getting reasonable results with a DA. Hand is perfectly possible too, but it can be a long slog.

 

Westfield have used many different makers for the GRP over the last twenty years, and there’s much variation in its qualities, too. Some eras of gel coat are really hard, and pretty much take everything you can throw at them, from light wet sanding (even down as far as 400 grit - you can go beyond, but that’s a topic in its own right), right the way through machine polishing with very aggressive compounds.

 

On the other hand, the gel coat from some suppliers was quite soft and thin, and needs a lighter touch when dealing with any marring.

 

I find it’s quite different to painted steel/aluminum, not necessarily much better or worse, just different. Heat management needs care.

Mine is one of the 'all-in-one' bodies it seems, at least I think so because the rear arches have no join to the tub? I'm a Westfield newbie although it's my 4th kit (currently own 2 the other being the original red ASBO a bike engined exoskeletal car) so I don't know an awful lot about the bodies over the years. My gel coat does seem extremely hard compared to lacquer on say a normal metal bodied car. Do all Westfields originally have a gel coat? Is that where the colour is actually in the GRP or on top of it? I seem to recall from my Lotus days (40 years ago almost) that GRP cars can come with various methofs of paint colouring? I clearly have a lot to catch up with 😂

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman]

Hi Steve,

 

Caveat! the only thing 100% absolute with kit cars, is that there are no absolutes!

 

Almost all Westfield (seven style cars) supplied by the factory were supplied with self-coloured grp. A very tiny number, for at least one special occasion, were supplied painted over the top - the Silver Jubilee saw some models with silver paint details, for instance. But from the factory, this was very rare.

 

Owners, over the years, tidying up older or much modified cars have had them painted. It's a little trickier than painting metal, but can be done very well. But once started, I've always felt you're then committed to periodic resprays, if you plan to keep for the real long haul.

 

But the majority of cars are "self-coloured" GRP; what does this mean? Well to make a GRP body part in a mould, (simplifying greatly) it's first given a good coat of gel coat, this will form the shiny, hard, protective outer layer. But as it's not structurally very strong, there is then a thick layer of "chopped strand mat" reinforced Polyester resin applied to it. This is the very uneven surfaced layer you see inside the panels. On later cars, a layer of black "flo-coat" is often applied over the top of this to even it up a bit, and dress the surface.

 

It is normal, for both the gel coat and CSM reinforced structural layer to have the body colouring pigment mixed with them, so they are the same colour all the way through.

 

Because the gel coat is the same colour from top to bottom, and is thicker than paint, you can do more wet sanding and cutting than with paint. BUT you absolutely do not want to break through to the mat layer, as this is not easy damage to repair. 

[Flying Carrot Steve]

Fantastic info Dave, a great help, cheers!