Door panel fiberboard repair?

[Coledavis01]

Has anyone successfully repaired a damaged piece of fiberboard on a door panel?
The lower 3 inches or so on my Super Bee drivers' side front panel has been wet at some point causing it to warp and tear in a few spots where several of the clips go.

Have a couple of ideas; first is peeling the vinyl & backing material far enough so I can sand it flat and then fill the warped areas with fiberglass & resin, cut the trim clip holes and use trim adhesive to put it back together. Thought about using a couple of flat surfaces to sandwich it and use a clothes iron or steamer to get it back flat as possible?

Other idea is cutting just the bad section off and cut a new piece of fiberboard, using fiberglass on either side to repair it but worried it may not be strong enough.

End goal is to avoid having to buy a new panel as the vinyl is in great shape while also not too keen on having to retrace & cut the entire panel if possible.

Any input is much appreciated.

Thanks all!

 

[69a100]

If you can remove the vinyl from the board, you can use the warped section as a pattern to make new ones then reattach the vinyl to the board. Cr8crshr and I redid his panels as they were like yours. We just got a big sheet at the home center. Good Luck

 

[Coledavis01]

If you can remove the vinyl from the board, you can use the warped section as a pattern to make new ones then reattach the vinyl to the board. Cr8crshr and I redid his panels as they were like yours. We just got a big sheet at the home center. Good Luck

Thanks 69a100. Would like to avoid having to replace the entire board if possible but if it comes to that do you have any tips on how to not mess it up?
Not worried about getting the pattern right, but what backing material did you guys use if unable to reuse the original stuff & for the corners where the staples are do you recall what you did to reattach it?

 

[69a100]

If you have the panels off you can see what type of board it is. They sell the same kind of stuff at Lowe's or Home Depot, it's just a fiber board like a thin sheet of plywood, smooth on one side, bumpy on the other. I don't remember if they are stapled or not. If so a staple gun with short staples works, We just used a general purpose spray glue like 3m stuff. We used a wallpaper scraper to get the material off the old panels. Go slow peeling it off, having a extra set of hands helps here. What the factory used is not a super sticky glue that would make it impossible to remove the vinyl. Hope this answers your questions.

 

[Baller]

Interesting. 69a100 did you install any thin foam between the vinyl and the pressboard? It appears that on my '70 door panels there is a thin foam between. Being cheap as my wife would say, I've considered redoing my panels to get rid of the wrinkles in the vinyl.

 

[Coledavis01]

Picked up the fiber board last night, a 4' x 2' sheet was under $7.00 with tax at Home Depot. They had 1/8" & 3/16" and went with the 1/8" and will compare tonight to make sure I picked the correct thickness.
On the backing I was wondering the same thing Baller, there is a padding material between the vinyl & fiberboard that i'm going to try and salvage.

Will post what I come up with over on my restoration thread.

 

[Baller]

Good luck. The foam backing on mine disintegrated when I tried to peel the vinyl off. I'll definitely follow your resto thread as I'm curious how you'll make out.

 

[Coledavis01]

Thanks Baller, will give it a go this weekend and get pics up.
Thinking if the backing does go to crap could clean the remaining off with acetone then use a thin foam from Michaels/Hobby Lobby to replace it. Know it won't be factory original but not worried about a door panel.