Couple of tips/tricks

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Here's a couple of little diy things that could come in handy for
someone out there. I've used them both in one way or another.

A nicely presented little tutorial on vac-bag molding small fiberglass
parts of your own design.

http://www.webbikeworld.com/t2/carbon-fiber-motorcycle-parts/

Another tip I like involves drilling perfect holes in glass, marble, stone, etc. It's an old trick that involves a thin wall metal tube of the size you wish your hole to be. Notch the tube at the cutting end to keep a small supply of compound at the face while drilling. Chuck the tube in a drilll press (larger diameters require some adapting to the chuck). Support the panel or plate with a piece of scrap glass underneath, mold a shallow clay dam around the spot where you are going through, and fill with a thick slurry of grinding compound.

If cutting through something with a less than perfect surface (slate tile) you'd want the smooth side down and supported by another smooth surface of scrap - when the drill starts to break through the other surface, it won't chip through, similar to drillling large holes in wood with something backing it up.

Now bring the tube down on the glass with enough speed that you won't create excessive heat, keep light pressure upon it with a spring or shock cord on the handle of the press, and leave it be for a while to do its job.

There are quite a few sources of info on the web for this. This method is messy, time consuming, and requires some fiddling with speed, pressure, and choice of grit - all depending on the size of the hole and the material to cut. BUT, for the diy'er, access to practically any imaginable size of thin walled tube is at hand, and alternative bits (esp for large diamter holes) are extremely expensive, especially for occasional needs.
 
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