Working Man's Burbon

[HO455]

I replaced the factory plywood with some marine plywood that comes with a non-skid coating on both sides.(I'm afraid I don't recall the brand name) It is a product made for docks and other areas that are continually exposed to water and have people walking on the area. I scored it on Craigslist for about 50% off. Even then it was over $200 for 2 sheets. But I figured it would never de-laminate and absorb moisture like most other wood products would and that would be a good thing.

There maybe something that dissolves the polyester but I didn't find anything (I didn't try gasoline) I did try denatured alcohol, acetone, mineral spirits, and Goof Off Pro. The Goof Off did the best job of dissolving the contact cement but it also removed the paint on panel. So I used it lightly and then scuffed the panels with a flexible putty knife and a red Scotchbrite pad and called it good enough as the new glue seemed to reactivate the old glue on a test area.

Next up it was to cut the fabric. I didn't mention it earlier but the layout of the foam (and the fabric too!) was the trickiest part of this project for me. Making sure I had the correct side of the foam or fabric up when I marked the cut lines so I didn't end up with a mirror image of what I needed!

I sort of got cocky on the last piece and marked it out and started cutting when I realized I had marked the wrong side of the fabric! I got really lucky as I had started cutting in an area that wasn't critical when I flipped the fabric over. The last panel was also the largest one and I may not of had enough fabric for a second try.

I cut the fabric 1-1/2 inches oversize on all sides of each panel. (Photo #2) Then a coat of spray glue on the foam and the backside of the fabric. Then carefully placing the panel on the fabric. I made guide marks on the backside of the fabric to allow me to get the panel centered correctly.

Once the fabric was smoothed out and secure I flipped the panel over and sprayed a coat of glue on the back of the panel so the fabric would be secure on the back side. (The white overspray looking areas in photo #2 )

Using the techniques shown in the video I linked above I cut and folded the corners over. (Photo #3) As to the holes for the handles I didn't find any specific information on the interweb about how to do them so I used a variation of one of the things I saw in the video. This involved cutting the fabric in the holes into 8 or so pie slices (As shown in photo #4). Then I pulled each pie slice tight and stuck it down securely on the backside. It doesn't look very secure in the photo but on the first panel I did a fair bit of tugging and rubbing on the fabric and it stayed put. Time will tell of course.

For the small screw holes at the bottom I roughly cut the back side with an Exacto knife (Photo #5)to locate the hole and then sealed the edges with a soldering iron.