Rep Power: 424

I cannot find any website of any help. I want to wrap some stuff up in carbon fiber. I have a general idea of what's involved, but not a totally clear picture. Has anyone messed with CF at all. I'm not making custom parts, I don't think I need molds since I'm wrapping things that exist. Just as far as bonding it and hardening it goes, what am I gonna need? Any sort of DIY websites or places that sell CF and supplies would be helpful.
If this seems kinda broken... I'm not exactly sure what to ask cuz I don't fully understand it, so I'm just throwing stuff out.

 
Rep Power: 359

You can tack it down with 3m spray adhesive.
Don't use to much or it will soak through and screw it up.
The apply resin and hardener as needed.

here is one link, I'll post more when I find them:

http://www.ffcobra.com/FAQ/cf.html

http://www.superstreetonline.com/techarticles/54702/

 
Rep Power: 0

buy carbon fiber vinyl, lol. it looks just liek it, my friend covered some dash pieces in it and i couldnt tell the difference

 
Rep Power: 424

I don't want it for appearance. I want it because it dissapates heat. I don't want crap.

 
Rep Power: 364

I can't answer your question but....

are you sure that just wrapping the part in CF is going to get any postive effect with heat dissipation? I would think that a CF wrap would give some nice aesthetic results, but that little on the standard part wouldn't do anything. Just my thoughts...

 
Rep Power: 424

There will be extra insulation under the CF, but CF does get rid of heat pretty well. The weave has so much surface area and room for air to go that it has lots of area to ventilate I don't plan on sealing it in with that shiny stuff... I just want it to harden leaving the dull grey finish... and ok, I admit it, it looks much cooler than plain old insulation.

 
Rep Power: 337

carbon, prperly applied, has no thermal properties even resembling heat dissapation.

in fact, the fibers are so small, that carbon and glass are very suceptible to heat failure through combustion. add resin, which is also very flammable, and you have a bad bad combination.

any aftermarket glass part that sits near a heat source (like a hood, for example) will have additives in teh resin to retard flames. becuase otherwise itll go up in smoke.

thermal conductivity is not the same thing as heat dissipation!

 
Rep Power: 337

but to answer yoru question, you cna go to USA composites or TAP plastics to get carbon, youll also want to use an epoxy resin rather than a polyester resin, I would reccommend a medium cure marine grade resin (if you shop at TAP) becuase it is the most transparent. the others have a yellowish tinge to them, fully cured.

as to yoru surface area, thats all taken up by teh matrix of resin, so technically only a small percentage, if any actual fibers, are actually exposed to air.

and if you are doing carbon for cosmetic purposes (i know your not, but this is for everyone's information) NONE of the weave contacts air. because you need that resin layer on top to give it the 3D effect.

vaccuum bagged carbon (which is to say, structural carbon) is actually pretty ugly. but a SHITload stronger than cosmetic carbon

 
Rep Power: 424

oh ****... I was thinking of that black ceramic stuff.... dammit. Oh well, if I wrap it underneath with insulating stuff, I can still get the cool effect on the outside.

 
Rep Power: 337

powerder coating helps thermal properties, and you can get it in whatever color you want