DIY Fiberglass/Carbon Fiber?

[DrKelso]

Hey guys

I was contemplating learning how to lay fiberglass/CF just for fun I've been looking around on line and the only information I can find on making your own CF/FB pieces is either simply overlaying or just making trim pieces. I want to find out what it takes to make a structural piece such as a front splitter or something like that.

If anyone can point me towards any useful info, I'd greatly appreciate it

[stevet47]

I dont have any specific links, sorry. A few years ago I tried my hand at some fiberglass and it was pretty easy. The only problem I ran into was that I didnt account for the thickness of the materials....ie The mold looked great, but once I put a few layers of fiberglass over it, it washed out the details.

Try google, there are thousands of resources out there. If you are looking for structural stuff, maybe lurk on boat building sites.

[Scratch&Dent]

Wouldn't you want the mold to be an image of the outside, and add layers toward the inside?

[stevet47]

Originally Posted by Scratch&Dent

Wouldn't you want the mold to be an image of the outside, and add layers toward the inside?

You could do it either way, but that is much harder. I went with the method used for sub boxes, stretch fabric over a form. I was making a GPS pod for the dash of my truck. If I had used 1 layer on the outside, removed the form, then added more to the inside, it probably would have looked better.

[kylerwho]

tagging this for a future reference.

[Gbaby2089]

^x2......................

[GD3_Wagoon]

i'm not certain but wouldn't a structural piece made from CF need a great deal of force during the curing process .. i'd imagine pressing the layers of CF against each other would add for greater strength versus just laying each CF sheet atop one another.

i've never worked with the stuff but i'm very interested in finding out -- subscribed!

[Scratch&Dent]

That's how they make the CF parts for cars. One layer at a time, they lay it on the wet epoxy, then smooth out and remove the bubbles, then new layer of epoxy, up to the number of layers they want. Then, a layer of plastic gets put on to keep the epoxy from sticking to the inside of the mold, which gets installed and pressed into place with bolts/clamps. Then, the whole thing goes into the oven.

This comes from my memory of watching "How It's Made" and a documentary show on the McLaren F1.

[stevet47]

Originally Posted by chaaree

i'm not certain but wouldn't a structural piece made from CF need a great deal of force during the curing process .. i'd imagine pressing the layers of CF against each other would add for greater strength versus just laying each CF sheet atop one another.

i've never worked with the stuff but i'm very interested in finding out -- subscribed!

Yes. The reason is that pressure squeezes out the excess resin making the ration of fiberglass/carbon fiber to resin more optimal making a stronger part, and because there is less resin, the part is lighter. Plus, because it is stronger, you could use less layers of fiberglass/carbon fiber and retain the same strength, with will be an even lighter part because you used less layers.

To do this you can either hand lay the carbon fiber/fiberglass like you normally would, then vacuum bag it. (I forget what it is called, but you put a release material between the bag and the part which also soaks up the excess resin).

Or, an even better way is to layup the part dry (no resin) vacuum bag it, and use the vacuum pressure to pull resin through the part via a hose system. This is called vacuum infusion, and is how any super high quality part is done.

[JCrimson]

Dr. Kelso! did you get hacked by iKona??? lawlz.

nah on the real though. can wait to see your work and creativity.