FiberFlex is Polyvance's "Universal" rod. FiberFlex is formulated with carbon and glass fibers for the strongest, fastest repairs. It is not a true fusion weld; instead, the FiberFlex is a hot-melt adhesive that is applied with a plastic welder. So, it is similar to a brazing process. It sticks great to polypropylene and TPO.
This video will demonstrate a bumper cover repair using an airless plastic welder and FiberFlex welding rods. Do not use the FiberFlex rods with the nitrogen plastic welder!
Featured product: www.polyvance.com/Airless-Wel...
View this video on our website for more information and product suggestions for this repair: www.polyvance.com/video/fiber...
Chapters:
Intro: 0:00
Preparing the welder: 0:10
Embedding the mesh & removing the gloss: 0:31
Applying the FiberFlex to the back: 2:03
Preparing the front side for repair: 2:46
Applying the FiberFlex to the front: 3:20
Sanding: 3:42
⚠️ Important ⚠️
- Always wear proper safety gear while working!
- The length of this video is in no way representative of the actual time required to perform a complete repair and therefore should not be used for estimating purposes.
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Awesome job very professional thanks for sharing now I know how to fix mine
Been doing repairs for years only used to use a piece of gear clamp which was heated up with a torch and then pressed into the plastic ,job done.
See the cheaper and easier way to weld plastic kzhead.info/sun/asyGZZd8i5ecfqc/bejne.html
I attribute all your success to your taste in music :)
I'm a new customer from Canada, I just tried this out and i'm very impressed your product. Works as shown in this video. Well worth the money. Thank You
Thank you for your business, Jack! If you ever have any questions about anything, feel free to call us or email us!
This is a very effective method to repair a cracked bumper or broken tabs 👍🏼
Thank you!
Just the heavy metal intro music alone gets a thumb up from me, but, this is a great set of videos from what I am expecting is a great company!
Thank you!
Satisfying
Thanks!
The ONLY proper bumper repair video on KZhead.
Thank you!
Very formative with a good clear voice and instructions. Please ditch the background music
Thank you for the compliment! I'm sure you'd enjoy our newer videos! We haven't used this music since 2017. This video is from early 2016, and unfortunately, we can't do anything about the music.
Excellent work
Thank you!
Very mesmerizing to watch
Thanks!
Great job, I like the fact that your dude is inhaling plastic fumes without a mask... Yeah, he'll be alright.
😂😷
View this video on our website for information about the products used in this video and some helpful tips! www.polyvance.com/video/fiberflex-repair/bumper-repair-with-plastic-welder Here are some answers to common questions about the video: Why don't you use the same type of plastic as the bumper? We do this all the time! We have plenty of videos on fusion welding with the nitrogen plastic welder, and a few on fusion welding with the airless plastic welder. You can check them out on our channel. This video is to show off our FiberFlex. The appeal of FiberFlex is that, though it doesn't truly fuse, it sticks to many types of plastics. It sticks best to polypropylene and TPO. Can I use FiberFlex with the nitrogen plastic welder? No! FiberFlex will not provide a fusion weld. You should use the FiberFlex with the airless welder and spread it onto your roughed up plastic. It is used as a hot melt adhesive that sticks to the surface of the plastic. Don't try to melt it into the base material.
im going to apply excessive pressure
Don't say we didn't warn you! Haha.
Looks good for dashboard cracks too. As of now, I use JB Weld.
We also have a product for dashboard repair. Here is our tutorial video: kzhead.info/sun/ktxxodiufl-Pa40/bejne.html
Just a few question, what type of primer should I use since it is a plastic bumper and not metal? Also, same goes for body filler, what is the best filler for plastic in this case the bumper? I heard regular bondo used on metal areas do not adhere in plastic parts really well and can crack.
I prefer the 3041 light gray waterborne primer surfacer. www.polyvance.com/Waterborne-Primer-1/3041-1/ Be sure to use 1050 Plastic magic first! Everything that goes on a polypropylene bumper (with the exception of Bumper and Cladding Coat, should be preceded with adhesion promoter. The filler I would use is 2000 Flex Filler, also by Polyvance. It is epoxy based, so it has excellent adhesion, but it cures flexible and is easy to sand.
Well that was pretty neat
Thanks!
Instruction wasn't clear enough I tried 6010 welding rod
Julian Saldana I used 110-18.....
My fluxcore didn't do anything at all. Disliked
Julian Saldana what type of shielding gas should I use?
How many tenths do I take off with the surface grinder?
I dont even have a car but i still watch the whole video😂😂
Thank you for watching!
Me also... 😄😄😄
wow It looks very good...
Thank you so much!
Well done
Thanks for watching!
I’ve got to admit this is very cool as I’m a steel fabricator. What is the depth of penetration? With the mesh does the mesh melt into the base plastic on the bumper so it gets a stronger bond / repair? Thank you in advance.
The mesh isn't buried too deep into the plastic (it is around a millimeter into the plastic). You just melt the plastic and apply a little pressure to push the mesh in a bit. Yes, the mesh is used to provide more strength to the repair. It works kind of like rebar in concrete. The mesh itself doesn't melt, but the plastic melts around it and holds it in place.
Does this kit work with deisel fuel tanks.. I'm assuming it would?
Yes and no. It sticks, but you would want to use polypropylene rod instead of FiberFlex and do a fusion weld, rather than just apply the rod to the surface. FiberFlex is a blend of plastics and one of the ingredients no not compatible with fuel. Over time it will soften and eventually partially dissolve, leaving you with the same leak you started with.
flex tape?
Could I use this to bond Urethane to TPO? I’m molding a g37 bumper onto a Lexus sc400 bumper
Yes, FiberFlex will work. We just had a customer weld a piece of a minivan to a Crown Victoria with FiberFlex (same situation...the pieces were urethane and TPO) and it worked fine!
Nice video good job man
Thanks for watching!
Do you have anything like this for carbon fiber cracks?
I wish we did, but carbon is a thermoset plastic and needs to be repaired with epoxy resin and more carbon.
I like it .
Glad you like it! Thanks for watching!
You're welcome
what kind of time did you have into repairing that crack?
A repair on a crack like this might take around 15-20 minutes.
Brillian
Thanks for watching!
Thanks
Thanks for watching!
How do you get back the moulded texture that a lot of plastic bumpers have?
Use 3803 Flextex to produce a pebble grain on a repaired bumper if you have a textured bumper. It will not be the exact same texture as the OEM bumper had, but in most cases, its close enough most people would never notice.
As Scott said, you can use 3803 Flextex to produce a pebble grain. You can reduce it with lacquer thinner at different percentages to vary the texture between heavy, medium, and fine. We also have a low VOC version available. You can view our Flextex options here: www.polyvance.com/Flex-Tex-1/
Would this technique work to repair polyethylene plastic?
Yes, it would but polyethylene fusion welds very easily, so you'd be better off buying the KC Welder Pro from Polyvance, which comes with PE welding rod and do a fusion weld instead.
Ok thanks
Nice
Thanks!
do you send overseas ? i want a pack of that fiberflex for a PP bumper
Yes, we can ship our FiberFlex (and any of our other welding rod) overseas. Give us a call or send us an email and we can get that order taken care of for you!
Does fiberflex work with Polyurethane Bumpers?
Yes, it will work, but it is not the preferred repair method.
what does a new bumper skin cost?
There are a lot of factors that determine the price. Generally, repairing a bumper or bumper cover is cheaper than trying to get a new one. Especially if a new OEM bumper is hard to find.
this looks more like a plastic melter ?
so it will put you in the mood to fix plastic
That's the idea.
why im watching this at 4:00AM ? and also why this was in my recomended ? can somebody tell me
nice
Thank you so much!
Is it works with Polyurethane (PU)?
FiberFlex will stick to polyurethane, but a better solution is to use the 5700HT, the R01 welding rod, and the correct technique. Here's our playlist on repairing thermoset polyurethane: kzhead.info/sun/pbmPYdWopX2un58/bejne.html
i cannot find such soldering iron on aliexpress/amazon
www.polyvance.com/search.html?query=5210
What’s better this method or your hot air weld?
Generally a fusion weld would be your first choice, but this stuff works great too. Its plenty strong and sands nicely. Its only real Achilles heal is that it cannot be used on fuel tanks. On those, you would have to do a fusion weld with the same filler material as the base material.
Scott B so using a hot air tool with some of those strips would be ideal?
@@millermatic140 FiberFlex is meant to be used as a hot-melt adhesive. You must use the airless plastic welder to apply it. You don't melt it into the base material. It's best to make a fusion weld by using filler rod that matches your base material. For example: use R03 ABS rod for ABS plastics, use R02 polypropylene rod for PP plastics, use R04 polyethylene rod for LDPE or HDPE plastics, etc. This webpage can help you identify plastics: www.polyvance.com/identify.php This webpage can help you pick out the filler rod you need: www.polyvance.com/Welding-Rod-List/
Is this cheaper than buying new oem bumper?
Generally, yes. Especially if a new bumper is hard to find.
Surely with the cost of the kit & the amount of labour required it would be cheaper to replace the bumper!
Whether it is cheaper to repair or replace depends on the amount of damage and the cost of a new bumper. Of course, if the bumper is severely damaged all over, the time and effort to repair it may cost more than a new bumper. But in many cases, it is cheaper to repair the damage, especially if a new OEM bumper is hard to find.
wow very helpful. Where can i buy it?
Thanks for the interest, Jerry! The FiberFlex Repair Kit can be found at the link below. www.polyvance.com/Airless-Welders-1/5210/
That does not have the round tip you show here.
The round tip in this video has been replaced by a tear-drop shaped tip. The tear-drop shopped allows you to get into corners better.
there is no product available at all on the website..
Christian D, I am not sure why you wouldn't be able to see any products. This repair kit can be found here: www.polyvance.com/Airless-Welders-1/5210/
Or just use flex seal
For some reason it really bothers me that they call glorified soldering irons a "welder"
While this airless welder tool may be similar to a soldering iron, it is also very different. Most soldering irons have a wattage of around 20-60 watts. Our airless welder is 200 watts. While this isn't a fusion weld (a co-hesive bond between the plastics), this is an adhesive weld where the FiberFlex is sticking to the base material. So it is accurate to call it an airless welder.
Airless welder, AKA glorified soldering iron
Thats the first thing i said. Just make a coper or brass tip like this one and use it on ur soldering iron.
They always play heavy metal music for these auto-body videos. Why not classical?
We love orchestral music as much as the next guy, but we can't recall having seen bumper repair techs jamming to it in a body shop before...
Polyvance I was just being a smart ass. I already know what kind of SIM card they have in their brains. lol!
@4:17
Heavy Metal music makes the plastic weld better and it hardens like carbofiber so it last for years, also inceases your manly and sperm count
Polyvance
Im gonna use a hair curler and old plastic
good luck.
So what I got from the video. So you need is a soldering iron with a special tip. Some more bumper plastic and some metal mesh. I'm set to go lol.
Our welder is not simply a soldering iron. The temperature control box at the beginning of the video adjusts the heat to melt the type of plastic without overheating it. FiberFlex is our special universal rod. It does not provide a fusion weld, but it sticks well to PP and TPO. To get the best bond, you would want to use filler plastic that matches the plastic of the bumper you are repairing. We have many videos explaining how to fusion weld.
@@polyvance In all seriousness though you saved me big time. Using the method I described I was able to fix 3 damaged areas in my bumper. 2 of which hold on the bumper and one just cosmetic area. Did it all for free to. Thanks a million.
@@L5Rocks Good job! Glad it worked out for you!
@@L5Rocks Excellent to hear!
songs ?
Heavy metal music on a video about light plastic bumpers
I thought those were oreos on the thumbnail
😍
Glad you enjoyed the video! :)
just use same plastic as welding rod
Yes, that will work most of the time as well as long as the base plastic and welding rod melt together simultaneously. The appeal of FiberFlex is that, though it doesn't truly fuse, it sticks to almost any type of substrate.
I don't see no crack that goes that far up the bumper. The only thing I see is it 2 in crack on the bottom of the bumper that's it. This repair is going to be very effective because there was never crack that 12-in long repair.
If you look at 2:45 and again at 3:19 you can see it on the outside. the inside was ground with a Roloc Disc and it tends to smear the plastic over the crack if its tight fitting one like this is. At 2:45, you can see the ridge in the tape where the crack runs underneath, but the resolution is too low to really see the crack there. But at 3:19, you can see the crack almost in its entirety. When I first watched the video, I thought the same thing, btw.
Why do these types of videos always have metal playing in the background
This isn’t the best way to deal with a cracked bumper as it’s still liable to break at that point of repair even with a slight impact. It will crack even if left on the car in different weather temperatures I would recommend an application of fibre glass mesh and resin for this type of repair for total strength and aesthetics.
Poloo, you are clearly misinformed about the capabilities of plastic repair with Fiberflex. When done correctly with this rod, the repair will be as strong as the original part. Weather will not matter and play no role in its durability. However, if you were to repair a bumper with glass and resin like you suggest, the repair would peel away in a short amount of time.
See the cheaper and easier way to weld plastic kzhead.info/sun/asyGZZd8i5ecfqc/bejne.html
Do I need the rock music in the background to do this?
While not necessary, some sort of energetic music is recommended! :)
Why not Fiberglass??
Because Fiberglass does not stick reliably enough to PP, TPO and TEO to make a reliable repair to a bumper.
Song names please?
The background music is "Jerked Around" from the Getty Images music library.
Hi, I need informacion about of welder, if si posible sent to me informacion, phone, address, etc, I want buy solder, thanks.
All of our products are available at our website. www.polyvance.com
Nice soldering iron!
While this airless welder tool may be similar to a soldering iron, it is also different. Most soldering irons have a wattage of around 20-60 watts. Our airless welder is 200 watts. While this isn't a fusion weld (a cohesive bond between the plastics), this is an adhesive weld where the FiberFlex is sticking to the base material. So it is accurate to call it an airless welder.
Why is he pressing so hard on it after he said not to
I've seen a few videos of people using this product and every single one is saying the same thing. Do you guys get a script to read for the video?
On our own videos, we emphasize the application process of FiberFlex, which is generally the same no matter what kind of repair you are doing (so that may be nearly identical in each video). FiberFlex is our own product, and we make our own script for each of the videos. However, we can't speak for any of the videos you may have seen outside of Polyvance's channel. Thanks for watching!
*INSTRUCTIONS ARE NOT CLEAR ENOUGH. Got my hand stuck in a table saw*
ImStricken06 Same :(
after that make a 360 and go away !
Hope it was a Saw Stop Saw
The how-to is not clear. At the start you don't show the preparation of the plastic prior to laying the steel mesh. When you lay the steel mesh, you don't mention if you just lay it on the scuffed plastic bumper or if you applied a compound on the plastic before embedding the mesh.
Clean the bumper with a plastic cleaner and then scuff it. Then you can lay the mesh on the scuffed bumper. Here is a more recent FiberFlex tutorial that you might like more: kzhead.info/sun/dNOOfaimf3NuooE/bejne.html&lc=Ugzmf3q7IZxZNxn81K94AaABAg
I used products like this in my shop when they 'hit' the market in the early 2000's, a good idea in theory, but in practice, mostly a total waste of time, not to mention ridiculously expensive!!! I even still have the 'strips' in the top of my Toolbox somewhere but in the end I just decided to stop fooling myself & buy a Leister heat gun & do it properly!
This works as well as hot air welding but is much slower. This type of welder can repair some thermoset plastics as well, which a hot air welder cannot do under any circumstance. Technique, plastic ID, and prep have a lot to do with making a successful repair and if your repairs are not successful, please call Polyvance's 800 number and you can immediately talk directly to someone who can help you figure out what is going wrong.
Scott Bixler welder?! It is nothing more than a SOLDERING IRON you moron!!! You clearly didn't bother to read what I wrote & are a rep for them, you can dribble your sales crap/technical jargon all you like pal but it won't wash with ME, nor with anyone who does this on a daily basis, are you seriously trying to lead people to believe this is a viable option while professional plastics repairers still use heat guns because as I said, it's mostly a waste of time because it mostly doesn't work!!! I threw it in the crap heap 15 years ago because THAT'S WHERE IT BELONGS!!!
Yes, its a soldering iron type heating element manufactured for use with special tips that are not compatible with soldering irons. Professionals use airless welders in conjunction with their hot air and nitrogen welders simply because there are certain repairs that need custom shaping, reinforcing, or the use of urethane rod, which cannot be used with a hot air welder. Due to the slower speed, they seldom use it exclusively, however nearly everyone who has a hot air welder keeps an airless welder on hand for certain repairs and as back-up if their hot air welder quits.
I'd make a bollox of that.. end up buying a new bumper
Use finest mash than this one. Its not necessary to use other fibers,just same typo of plastic like bumper is. Also its better to melt plastic from outside into plastic, not using fiber on plastic.Cuz u wont able to use filler properly.
I'm not really sure what is being asked, but if I'm getting it right, I think you are saying the fibers weaken the bond? This is not true. Carbon and glass fibers are homogeneously blended into the FiberFlex which increase the tensile strength of the material and increase the toughness of the repair. Stainless steel mesh is added if even more strength is needed to repair high stress areas, like tabs or cracks at stress points.
A new or used bumper is cheaper... especially off ebay
Cheap means not an original part from the manufacturer. Especially from Ebay. If you don't have enough budget to buy brand-new then you can find clean used part for your car. It should be OEM by manufacturer
Every car is different, as is every amount of damage. Of course some bumpers will have too much damage to repair. But a new bumper isn't always cheap. Some cars have very hard-to-find bumpers that are expensive. That is why many people choose to have their bumpers repaired (or repair it themselves).
For example whole weekend I repaired my BMW E36 vert's door mount brackets. Because BMW stopped the production. So, this means that I will not be able to find that part anymore. I had to fix and repair the broken parts. In the mean time thanks for your video
Flight Mania, thank you for watching! Some people just don't understand that new parts can be very hard to find, and they think we are repairing parts for no reason. We are glad you understand. We hope our products and videos help you in your plastic repair endeavors.
Polyvance. I understand that some parts are impossible to be find made in production, its just more efficient to buy the same part in some ways instead of fixing
Gee man what a mission, all you had to do was weld the plastic.
Yes. We could have fusion welded the plastic, no problem. This is our FiberFlex rod, which can be used to make an adhesive weld on plastic when you can't find an ID symbol or do a weld test. It sticks really well to Polypropylene and TPO.
waw
id just buy a new one
Most of the time, repairing a bumper is cheaper than buying a new one. Especially if you have a car where new bumpers are hard to find.
Thanks for the video. Some moronhit and run my car the other night.
teletubbies
Why not get a new bumper for 109$ and get it painted?
It isn't that easy. Some bumpers are very hard to find and are very expensive. Of course, you would have to look at the individual situation and look at the amount of damage and check the cost of a new bumper for the specific car. Then you can figure out which is more cost effective. Every case is different. Not all bumpers are $100 and not all damage is the same. Many times, though, repairing is cheaper than buying a new bumper.
or you can use cheap nylon cable tie that you melt on recicled home moskito screen XD
Not exactly. If the substrate plastic that you're welding to is made of nylon, it might work, but the chemical makeup of plastic is very important when you're welding. If you try to weld a nylon cable tie to a polyethylene base, it can peel right off. Whereas with FiberFlex, the chemical makeup allows for strong adhesion to almost any plastic surface. Thanks for watching!
So what type of plastic is FiberFlex????
Most cable ties are not nylon. The black ones are poly of some type.
Mjpc tech User while using your old soldering iron of course :))))
#ziptiestrong
that ain't going to pass a test in a chemical plant welding on pipes
Your right! It is not suitable for chemical pipes.
I don't think he was in a chemical plant welding pipes
Not a welder. You could do this with a torch and a quarter
dont know why mechanics love heavy metal, Please choose neutral easy to the hear or not music at all, other than that great video
dont know why people like pop, but i m trying to withstand that instead of telling what they should or shounldnt
Has no one ever heard of speedgrip? Literally made of dark matter
They guy is a thug. No gloves!!!! I mean who needs glove when plastic only melts a temps above 200*F. He'll be good I guess.
It looks like the same one harbor freight sells
We came out with our Uni-Weld ribbon in 1995. We eventually modified the formula to make it stronger and stickier. We released the modified formula in 2000 as FiberFlex. If you look at the manual for the similar Harbor Freight product, it has a copyright of 2008. Their welding tool is 80 watts, where ours is 200 watts. We have been dealing with this product longer, and we know the ins and outs of it well. Polyvance has always focused on plastic repair and refinishing. Our plastic repair materials and tools are not part of a "me too" product line; plastic repair is all we do. We thoroughly test our products to assure ourselves, and our customers, that the product works. Because we specialize in plastic repair, we know our products very well. When our customers use Polyvance's repair products and repair methods, they can feel comfortable knowing that they are using tested products from a company dedicated to plastic repair.
It looks awesome strong, but the amount of time it takes to do it all, you could have bought a used bumper from a junk yard for less than this trouble.
Not necessarily. Maybe the used bumper you get is an aftermarket bumper with fit issues. Maybe the bumper from the junkyard needs to be painted to match your car. It could also have damage or ugly dents that need to be repaired. Chances are, you aren't going to find a perfect used bumper from the junkyard, and you will have to spend time doing something to get it to look good on your car. So, you might be better off spending time to repair the OEM bumper that came with your car.
Thank you for the rock music. So sick of shitty music on all videos these days.
.
Welder... LOL.. So I guess a soldering iron is a welder.. So what is a soldering iron?
While this airless welder tool may be similar to a soldering iron, it is also very different. Most soldering irons have a wattage of around 20-60 watts. Our airless welder is 200 watts. While this isn't a fusion weld (a co-hesive bond between the plastics), this is an adhesive weld where the FiberFlex is sticking to the base material. So it is accurate to call it an airless welder.
Valueless Dollar It doesn't have to be metallic. As it says, it's like brazing, but the original material is melting and binding with the plastic strip, so it is welding.
Please... Stop comparing this to welding or brazing... Just don't. Stop.
How would you describe melting two pieces of material together to form one piece, or using a different melted material to bond two pieces of dissimilar material? No, its not metal welding, but the concept is identical. If you can think of more accurate words to describe the process for plastic, please let us know.
Fiberflex is complete garbage, it's extremely frustrating having to fix plastics repairs where someone used fiberflex and it didn't hold. Use the plastic rod recommended for the plastic your repairing, universal rod is crap.
half inch. bro it is 2018 use metric
JosheyG34 bro, it’s 2018, 95% of KZhead videos are made in America. Where everything is delightfully standard Instead of metric. Because Americans set the standard for the rest of the world 🌎 get with the program.
The content might be good but why are you having to talk over the crappy music? Sorry but I had to turn it off.
This video is over 5 years old so we can't do anything about the music. But the music has been changed on our newer videos. We manually add captions to all of our tutorials, so you can turn those on and mute the video if you can't stand the music.
Easier to use fibreglass and much cheaper quicker and less hassle
Don't play any music... Sooo Frustrating Quit watching the video
Sorry guy, the music is a turn off. What are you trying to accomplish? Teaching, or expressing your 'coolness'?
Or. Use zipties for 1 dollar
ZIp ties are a different type of plastic than a car bumper. It would be like trying to weld aluminum with steel filler rod. It just won't work.
Plastic sucks.