Fixing a goalie mask...

[vikingGoalie]

So I have the original Itech NV7 mask, it's been a work horse and has taken quite a beating over the years.   I now have 2 cracks in the chin (sorry no pictures yet) basically i have a tab with a crack on either side one side the crack is maybe 1/2" the otheside a little less then that closer to 1/4".   The cracks are all the way through and you can wiggle (with some force) the tab slightly.

So a new mask is not in the cards right now,   I might have a line on a promask that a friend no longer uses but still checkin on that.

Meanwhile I think i want to try and just repair it with a fiberglass matt and resin on definitely the inside of the shell, and maybe do it on the outside as well?

I'm pretty familar with that stuff and consider myself fairly handy.   Has anyone done a repair like that and/or does anyone have any tips?

Please note if this crack was were a puck could actually hit my noggin i probably wouldn't even consider this, but where the crack is if it failed and puck pushed through it would hit my rigid RBK kevlar collar/collarbone protector.  Would not hit my neck. Not a desirable thing, but I don't think I'd get "injured" from it.    Anyhoo advice is welcome.

--tx

[MangoRhinehart]

Sand down to the material. Get epoxy resin and fill in the cracks as much as possible. Then I would lay up a few layers of mat on the inside with epoxy resin. layer each mat with resin in alternating directions.

Then again, its definitely time to get a new mask...

[vikingGoalie]

so upon closer examination.    the outer shell is cracked through.  the inner kevlar (or is that carbon fiber?) is still intact.

So i'm thinking I put a couple of layers on the outside after sanding a little to rough the surface up for adhesion and that will get me through until i can find a new to me mask.   thoughts?

[MangoRhinehart]

Those could just be cracks in the gel coat. tap around with a coin. itll sound differently if it structural.

If you want to do the repair, sand down until you hit the actual shell then fill with 2 part epoxy.

[aircanuck]

Just call the guy that made it, even if its 22 years later.

[vikingGoalie]

so it's definitely the entire way through the abs shell as I can wiggle that tab that is created by the 2 cracks. that and looking at it on end you can see the crack is through.

So I'm on the fence now on how to do the repair. Did some more reading on this and the fiberglass resin stuff you get from 3M for car repair stuff doesn't really adhere to abs all that well. Since the crack is through the shell, I'm not sure if just a 2 part resin would strengthen that area enough that it do much if it got struck by a puck again. @MangoRhinehart is there a specific 2 part resin you are thinking of that adheres to ABS and would do the trick structurally?

 I have some black ABS plastic sheet laying around that I've used for other things.  It's probably 2x the thickness of my mask.  But, I've molded that stuff before, if you heat it in an oven  you can push it down on a mold and let it cool and it will take that shape.   I'm debating just cutting out a piece of abs sheet, heating it and molding it to the chin area, then trimming the piece to be a bit more specific to the  area.  Then adhering it to the chin, though here I'm debating if I do that the best way.  There is abs cement which is supposed to be low VOC but it's all black cement which if i'm careful that's fine I suppose.   According to youtube   you can use MEK and that will fuse abs plastic together.  Only thing is not so sure on the vapors coming off on the MEK stuff over time seeing as you are gonna be breathin that in.  That and it would probably look a bit frankensteinish when I'm done.

[vikingGoalie]

btw, this stuff looks like what you want to use to glue ABS together.  https://www.michaels.com/playlist%2Fshop-by-age-12-plus/10161780.html

[MangoRhinehart]

The inside is likely a carbon fiber sheet with a resin blend. You could attempt to shore it up from the inside.

Youll want to use epoxy resin for that part.

[vikingGoalie]

ok so i'm proceeding with my frankenstein project lol.

so i don't want to put a piece over the carbon fiber matt on the inside. mainly because of the condition of the abs shell in the chin.  A piece on the inside won't prevent pieces of shell flying off, and I think that might happen. nothing big but once it starts flaking off the whole area will get compromised.

So I have a 1/4" thick piece of sheet abs just layin around that I use to make armour, don't ask unless you want me to explain further there

So I made a pattern with a piece of paper,  cut out my piece of abs.  put it in the oven at 350 for 7 minutes, and then use a pair of oven mits to hold it and form it down on the mask and let it cool.

see attached.     next up.  I need to get proper adhesive to attach it to the mask.  I *could* drill holes and rivet this all together but want to avoid drilling through the carbon fiber matt.  so i'm going to adhere this to the mask with model adhesive, that stuff is specifically for those model kits you buy and those are abs plastic generally.

I also will paint this piece white to better blend with the mask.    Now this abs i formed is incredibly tough at this thickness, after i'm done this will be the strongest part of the mask.  It's just all about getting the two pieces to adhere together properly now.  (still debating the rivets as I have a ton of those and an anvil to put em together).

[vikingGoalie]

i'll have to wait to finish this off i think.  the paint is not quite setup enough for clamping. but this is what it'll look like pretty much done, I'm going with a 2 part epoxy and then this frankenstein will live!    

[vikingGoalie]

fyi.  i doubt anyone follows this path I went down   but...   first off do not use  https://www.zapglue.com/epoxy-resins?lightbox=image1vez

I did so on the recommendation of a local hobby store when I told them what it would be used for. I took a puck off the piece and it fell off.  sad face...

but that did not deter me, i went and put it back on using: http://www.loctiteproducts.com/p/epxy_plstc_s/overview/Loctite-Epoxy-Plastic-Bonder.htm

that stuff has literally fused it to the shell like it's one piece.  I also for good measure put 2 rivets in.  I have since taken a bomb off of it and it's 100% fine.  This part of the mask is now stronger then it was originally,and I dare say stronger then anything you can buy.   

[dualshowman]

Can I chip in to buy you a new cateye? I'm certain the next puck will be the last puck. Scary stuff.

[Math.]

1 hour ago, dualshowman said:

Can I chip in to buy you a new cateye? I'm certain the next puck will be the last puck. Scary stuff.

Yes please, was gonna comment on that too!

[vikingGoalie]

i know how they look, but they won't allow a puck through and I have been hit on those bars while they are like that for years now.     That is actually the 3rd cat eye cage on this mask.  They all bend like that from the shots I see anyway and by bend I mean literally the first shot that hits the bar they bend. 

But like I said subsequent shots they seem fine, the puck can not reach my face/eye, the welds are 100%.   The steel is not going to spectacularly fail.

Maybe I should start a go fund me