The case for the yacht navigation system has been completed.
Although access to the inside of the case is via the removable base I haven’t screwed down the Top Panel. I’m waiting until I’m satisfied with the system software. Currently that is a problem. I’ve resolved two software issues. The weather sensor is now transmitting data and the Gauge Dashboard is no longer frozen in the middle of the screen. However the autopilot has stopped working.
The old brain is being given a rest and my attention has turned to the damaged rear bumper on the 4WD. I don’t have a workshop manual for the vehicle which resulted in removal taking a considerable amount of time. I discovered grunting and swearing helped!
Eventually I managed to remove it and see the extent of the damage
Late last year I visited several local panel beaters to obtain quotes. The price ranged from $1600 - 2000+. Rather than give money to someone else, I opted to complete the repairs myself and purchased a plastic welding gun from AliExpress ($43).
Using our hot air gun I softened the plastic around the cracked and damaged areas then pressed everything back into shape. Next I used the welding gun to melt staples into the cracks in the plastic effectively sewing them back together.
The metal ends of the staples were removed using an angle grinder.
The welding gun has a flat blade attachment which I used to melt (weld) plastic cable ties into the small gaps between the edges of the stapled cracks.
The damaged areas were then sand and filled with body filler before a second sanding back to smooth.
The next step was to take the bumper outside and spray paint it with primer.
This has revealed some imperfection in the area I’ve repaired which will require more body filler and sanding before a second coat of primer. Then I can move on to the coloured topcoat and final clearcoat.
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