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This has been on my mind for a while now, and after seeing ff_drift_lol's version, I decided to give it a shot.
Images will be up soon
Materials:
4x8 Sheet of Plywood
Carpeting or any other covering you'd prefer
Glue and or Staple Gun
Sandpaper (any grit you feel could round out 800 works fine)
Tools:
Sharpie
Reciprocating Saw
Skilsaw (If you want to (5))
Jigsaw
Table Saw
Palm Sander
1.Use two tables or an equivalent to balance the sheet of plywood on, this will be the table for which you work. In my case, I used a portable saw rack.
2. Once the temporary work station is setup, remove the trunk base from the car and set it on the plywood. From here, dismantle the base by separating the particle board and foam from the thin top carpet layer. There is a thin layer of glue holding the carpeted layer on so be careful not to tear is. Also remove the plastic handle. All you need to keep is the top carpet layer.
3. Now that the carpet is dismantled, place it onto the plywood. This is now your stencil. Align the bottom of the carpet layer with the edge of the 8 foot length side. This will make for less cutting and a guaranteed straightedge for the table saw.
4. Trace out the carpet layer with the sharpie onto the plywood.
5. Its challenging enough to deal with a 8 foot sheet of wood. So either use the Skilsaw or Reciprocating Saw and cut the board in half. This will leave you with your template and a manageable piece of wood to work with.
6. For this part, I took the square and clamped it to my Table Saw. This provided a low flat surface to cut on. Clamping the board to any table will work just as well. Push the boards edge that you are going to cut a good 1 1/2 feet off of the table and clamp the board down. (Be sure the clamping is tight, for this project pulsates a fair amount and that can be dangerous with Reciprocating Saws)
7. Use the Reciprocating Saw to cut stress cuts into the wood, ending on the traced line. The cuts can be an inch away from each other or less. These stress cuts relieve pressure allowing the Jigsaw to make its way around the trace without the blade sticking, twisting or snapping.
8. Use the Jigsaw and follow the line all the way around the traced outline.
9. Once the Jigsawing is complete, you can now see the shape of your trunk's base. Use the palm sander to sand out any imperfection.
10. The Cobalt's original trunk base layer was flexible so that it could be removed. The sheet of plywood obviously does not have that function. Therefore, the Table Saw comes into play. Line up the fence (straightedge) with the board. This requires only one cut to fit into the trunk. The cut should be in the middle of the board, as far away from any curved edges as possible on both sides.
11. The fitment should be instant. It's wood however, so finagle the back piece (piece touching rear seats) in first. Then do the same with the second half. Once fitment is good, remove both halves.
12. Here is where you can get creative. Apply your carpeting or linoleum or decorative wood. You can add a handle or you can use the stock plastic one. You can also insert it back into your trunk and apply hinges, therefore the half covering the battery will be able to rise but stay in place.
And there you have it. Any questions, concerns feel free to PM me.
Images will be up soon
Materials:
4x8 Sheet of Plywood
Carpeting or any other covering you'd prefer
Glue and or Staple Gun
Sandpaper (any grit you feel could round out 800 works fine)
Tools:
Sharpie
Reciprocating Saw
Skilsaw (If you want to (5))
Jigsaw
Table Saw
Palm Sander
1.Use two tables or an equivalent to balance the sheet of plywood on, this will be the table for which you work. In my case, I used a portable saw rack.
2. Once the temporary work station is setup, remove the trunk base from the car and set it on the plywood. From here, dismantle the base by separating the particle board and foam from the thin top carpet layer. There is a thin layer of glue holding the carpeted layer on so be careful not to tear is. Also remove the plastic handle. All you need to keep is the top carpet layer.
3. Now that the carpet is dismantled, place it onto the plywood. This is now your stencil. Align the bottom of the carpet layer with the edge of the 8 foot length side. This will make for less cutting and a guaranteed straightedge for the table saw.
4. Trace out the carpet layer with the sharpie onto the plywood.
5. Its challenging enough to deal with a 8 foot sheet of wood. So either use the Skilsaw or Reciprocating Saw and cut the board in half. This will leave you with your template and a manageable piece of wood to work with.
6. For this part, I took the square and clamped it to my Table Saw. This provided a low flat surface to cut on. Clamping the board to any table will work just as well. Push the boards edge that you are going to cut a good 1 1/2 feet off of the table and clamp the board down. (Be sure the clamping is tight, for this project pulsates a fair amount and that can be dangerous with Reciprocating Saws)
7. Use the Reciprocating Saw to cut stress cuts into the wood, ending on the traced line. The cuts can be an inch away from each other or less. These stress cuts relieve pressure allowing the Jigsaw to make its way around the trace without the blade sticking, twisting or snapping.
8. Use the Jigsaw and follow the line all the way around the traced outline.
9. Once the Jigsawing is complete, you can now see the shape of your trunk's base. Use the palm sander to sand out any imperfection.
10. The Cobalt's original trunk base layer was flexible so that it could be removed. The sheet of plywood obviously does not have that function. Therefore, the Table Saw comes into play. Line up the fence (straightedge) with the board. This requires only one cut to fit into the trunk. The cut should be in the middle of the board, as far away from any curved edges as possible on both sides.
11. The fitment should be instant. It's wood however, so finagle the back piece (piece touching rear seats) in first. Then do the same with the second half. Once fitment is good, remove both halves.
12. Here is where you can get creative. Apply your carpeting or linoleum or decorative wood. You can add a handle or you can use the stock plastic one. You can also insert it back into your trunk and apply hinges, therefore the half covering the battery will be able to rise but stay in place.
And there you have it. Any questions, concerns feel free to PM me.
