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View Full Version : A few questions about carbon fiber beforehand...

AshLilyNeko
03-12-2014, 09:37 PM
Hey all,

So I'm planning on covering my dash with carbon fiber fabric, for several reasons. Mostly, I have some cosmetic damage I would like to repair, plus I like the look of it more than what I currently have in my interior.

I've read about a thousand DIY posts all over the web, and my main concern is that if you don't coat the fiber, it is prone to tearing. The other is that the epoxy everyone uses to coat their carbon fiber with yellows over time, due to deterioration from UV rays.

I tried looking at the vinyl products out there, but they aren't supposed to adhere well to an uneven surface (see 07 dash for example of this, haha) and that they can split and be ruined by heat.

I live in Texas, so heat and UVs are pretty much unavoidable.

I was wondering if another solution could be to use multiple clear coats of an auto-body finish instead of the epoxy. I was thinking this would solve the yellowing and heat issues since it is already designed for use on autos.

Would this work? Opinions? I might just buy a sample of carbon to test it on, I just don't want to spend a lot of hard work making something that is going to be ruined in the process of using it in its intended way.

Would love to also hear from others who have carbon fiber interiors and how well that has held up, as well as other DIY options for redesigning my interior.
CTScott
03-12-2014, 10:09 PM
One of our members on here (fnkngrv) has a buddy who recently started a business doing hydrodipping. fnkngrv recently had his valve cover done and it came out perfect. I was just talking with him a couple of days ago about the size of items that his buddy can currently handle, as I have a spare dash top and was thinking that hydrodipping it carbon fiber would be so much better than adding the material thickness of real carbon fiber and resin.
fnkngrv
03-12-2014, 10:35 PM
We are kicking around the idea of actually doing a dash cover if Scott wants to be a Guinea Pig. We would need to have folks understand that just like clearcoating CF you would still run some risks if not properly taken care of however the discoloring problem....well it wouldn't be a problem we don't think.
ezhacker1
03-12-2014, 11:36 PM
oooh, this sounds exciting. The off grey interior , especially the dash is boring. Cant wait to see some results, i love the valve cover results.
Brian
03-13-2014, 01:47 AM
If you use a good quality resin and don't leave your car parked in the sun all day you probably won't see any yellowing for at least a couple of years. I have some dash pieces wrapped and there is no yellowing at all and it's been close to 3 years
AshLilyNeko
03-13-2014, 04:58 AM
@fnkgrv - that actually sounds pretty cool i haven’t seen much about hydrodipping, do you dip the actual material or is it more like an image transfer kind of thing?

@brian - if you don't mind me asking, what type of resin did you use? i have been trying to get in touch with my old sculpture teacher since she casts in resin a lot but she hasn't gotten back to me yet :( is there a surefire way to tell the good from the bad? and where did you purchase it? also, if i have to park in the sun, would putting a sunscreen up help at all? thanks :)
fnkngrv
03-13-2014, 02:48 PM
Your best bet is to google hydrodipping.

As for Brian's work with CF and resin my interior pieces he did for me back in 2010 are still perfectly fine with no discoloration as of yet. I have had the car parked outside all over the country.
Brian
03-13-2014, 04:22 PM
@fnkgrv - that actually sounds pretty cool i haven’t seen much about hydrodipping, do you dip the actual material or is it more like an image transfer kind of thing?

@brian - if you don't mind me asking, what type of resin did you use? i have been trying to get in touch with my old sculpture teacher since she casts in resin a lot but she hasn't gotten back to me yet :( is there a surefire way to tell the good from the bad? and where did you purchase it? also, if i have to park in the sun, would putting a sunscreen up help at all? thanks :)


West Systems 105 resin with 207 hardener. Google it for the best prices. I usually get mine from sollercomposites.com but you can find it a little cheaper some other places. A sunscreen would help along with a good UV resistant clear coat, like U-POL.
jcboy
03-13-2014, 05:43 PM
carbon fiber vinyl (the glossy one, as opposed to the matte one, see below) or brushed aluminum vinyl will work well if you buy the sheets, not the precut ones. the reason i say so is to properly do a vinyl wrap you would have to wrap around the edges a bit and when it hardens (after using a heat gun to shape it), it will provide mechanical strength to prevent it from peeling off--in addition to the adhesive.

other than that, i won't know anything about real CF in interiors, much less preventing the yellowing of the resin.

HTH.

http://www.fastmotoring.com/index.php/2010/05/toyota-vios-trd-sportivo-2010-review/

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