Spare tire well subwoofer box

[Sawbladz]

So my old sub box had a lot of issues. It had absorbed a bunch of water that leaked into the hatch and was full of mould. This was even more gross than it sounds. It looked like food that was left outside in the heat for 2 weeks inside this box. Sure that was good for my health.

So, I decided to use the spare tire well for my sub box. I removed the spare tire a year or so ago anyways since my rear wheels are a larger diameter than stock and I have a BBK. This makes the spare useless no matter what. So, I discovered that I could use the well as a mould for the fiberglass part of the box. I had never worked with fiberglass before so I had to go by what the guys on the internet said to do. It turned out decent but there are some things I would do differently next time and I'm sure it would turn out better.

Here are some pics I have taken along the way. Not done yet but it's getting close.

Test fitting the top board.

Protecting the well. Kinda overkill but I wanted to.

 

[GrimJack]

Nicely done. Want to make me one too?

 

[Sawbladz]

Hells no!!! I barely wanted to finish mine after I started!

 

[supraman7mgte]

Thats how I made the bottom of my sub box in the rear seat.Only I used duct tape(a lot)

 

[GrimJack]

Hells no!!! I barely wanted to finish mine after I started!

That's the problem... I've done these before, and after you've done one, you tend to wish you hadn't. They sure do work well, though.

Next time, I figure I'm going to find someone parting out a shell, and cut out the hatch floor. Then I can build most of it in the garage, and give the fiberglass resin a good month to cure before I put it in my car. Hopefully it won't stink quite so bad that way.

 

[te72]

Looks nice, one question though: how did your old sub box get so moldy? Your hatch doesn't seem to have any real bad rust issues... not at first glance anyway.

Gives me an idea for a mold though, I'll be putting mine where the rear sets were (and cage now is), I'm wondering if I'd be able to use the bottom of the seat itself as a mold for the bottom of the box... Never done fiberglass myself, and a good friend of mine is wanting to do my box for me in FG as a practice.

 

[Sawbladz]

There is some rust in the bottom of the well. In the three spots where the black rubber pads were. It will be fixed as soon as I have the cash to fix the rest of the body. It's not really bad and if anything the hole seems to allow the water that collects to drain from the well and limit further rusting. I keep the well coated in oil at all times except when I built this box.

Grim: That would be ideal if for no other reason than you could work on a bench. The height of the hatch floor seems to be about perfect for putting my back in agony while I applied the tape or resin. It would also make it so you could do the job in stages and position the mould so that you weren't applying resin to a vertical surface. That was my biggest problem.

 

[Sawbladz]

Here is my progress as of today. Got the primer sprayed and am now trying to get some paint mixed to match the trim colour.

 

[Canuckrz]

Nice job but that wire panel really isn't the best idea to use, especially in a sealed box. A lot of potential for it to leak air or blow out. They usually just suggest drilling holes pulling the wires through and siliconing the holes.

Just out of curiousity how far above the well does it sit? And did you measure its volume?

 

[Sawbladz]

The panel will be screwed and sealed in place with silicone. Not too concerned with it leaking. I want it that way for ease of removal when I get to the track. With this setup there is no need for tools. Hopefully later today I will get to paint but if this weather doesn't warm up I might need to wait till the weekend.

 

[GrimJack]

If you want it to be easy to remove at the track, I'd suggest getting a couple big ass handles from a commercial speaker place and mounting them in cutouts on either side of the top.

 

[Sawbladz]

I had planned on doing something similar until I test fitted the sub box and realized there was sufficient space under the edge of the box on each side to allow my fingers under. Should be pretty easy to lift out since it won't be that heavy. Damn rain clouds are making me wait till friday to paint the box. How long will it stink of fiberglass for? It is still really strong and it has been outside since the fiberglass was laid.

 

[GrimJack]

The fiberglass won't be entirely cured to the point that it stops emitting gas for quite some time. Depending on how much hardener you used, it could be two months. Luckily, you'll get used to it before then, so it will only be your passengers that get annoyed by the smell.

I'm betting it'll be heavier than you think... try putting it on a chair, load everything that will be in it on top, then stand behind the chair, bend over the back and try to lift it up. Then remember that you'll also have to deal with some friction against the sides of the spare tire well once it's actually in the car, so it's going to be even harder than that.

The last one I built went into the car empty pretty easily, but after I'd mounted the speakers and amps, I couldn't lift it out alone.

 

[Flateric]

Way back in the day when my stereo was a big important part of my car (Like around 17 years ago) I had 4 10" subs mounted in the spare tire well just like that. They were isobaricly (sp?) fired, opposed and man they could seriously boom your guts out.

Nowadays I don't even have a stereo in my car again and strangely I don't miss it a bit. Funny how priorities change completely.

I recently picked up a pair of Ultimates (800RMS 1600peak) subs at an auction in town here simply because for $40 for the pair how could I say no? Not a chance they will ever go in my car though, they are way way to heavy. I used a scale and the pair come in at just a hair over 120pds for the 2 of em. I was hoping to use them for some type of home theater setup, but I'm not sure thats even possible because each of these subs has dual voice-coils and I know next to nothing about audio. In car or otherwise.

But putting these in the back of your car would be like hauling a bunch of bricks around with you all the time. Granted really bass-y bricks.

 

[noslowsupra]

looks good man, about how much did it cost you to build that if you dont mind me asking?

 

[FullNelson]

Just because they are dual voice coil doesnt mean you cant use them for home, as long as you calculate the correct ohms for the DVCs.


How many cubes does this enclosure hold?