Another absolute masterclass on how a tutorial should be written, filmed, paced, and edited. You guys are by far the best in the space. The new tips/best practices are sprinkled in generously & appropriately therefor even after this many years I always learn something or notice something that I want to implement next time. Cheers to you and the whole Easy Composites team!
Thanks Erik, we appreciate your feedback and kind comments. I'm sure you can imagine, there's a lot of work goes into trying to get that balance right and so we when get this sort of feedback it let's us know it's worth it :)
@@leoa4c Nothing and everything. I've had the crazy plan of taking a stock roadster and building a completely custom chassis for it. Not that I'd have the required skills, but skills can be acquired...
I bought some of your products in an attempt to make my part, but have failed multiple times. I’ve accidentally dropped the part and had to remake it a couple times. I finished it incorrectly and that led to a molding disaster. My latest attempt, after repairing again, involved sending the part to a professional body shop and they painted it with a very nice paint. I haven’t attempted to do anything with it yet because I can’t deal with another failure and the part looks so nice now. I must add that it also has a core because it’s hollow. I was warned about making a complicated part as a first attempt, but as usual I just ignored the naysayers. They were right, by the way. I saw in a previous video where you used a glass reinforced paste substance for making a mold. I think I will order this and give it another go. Your videos do inspire. Thanks
Thanks Will. Sorry to hear that your first project didn't go to plan but it's absolutely our mantra to advise customers to start with smaller, more manageable projects. You'll inevitably make some mis-steps along the way and so it's far better to make them on smaller, less consequential parts. If nothing else, this costs a lot less (money and heartache). I do hope you persevere with and and of course do get in touch if you need any help selecting the right products. The glass reinforced tooling pastes are excellent products for those with limited experience (and often those with plenty of experience!).
These videos are so well thought out. The one part that amazes me is how you manage to get the bag to actually seal perfectly. I've tried dozens of times, and not once managed a perfect seal, no matter how much time I spend looking for and fixing leaks. I've gotten the leaks so small that they can't be heard and been unable to locate them, but they still fail the drop test. I was trying to seal a much more complicated mold though.
Hi Jim, thanks for your comment. Creating leak free bags does take a lot of practice and something that will naturally come with more time. Large complex shapes naturally are more difficult as there are more curves and contours to deal with. Check out our tutorial in finding and fixing leaks for more detail th-cam.com/video/2vEKODxJu7I/w-d-xo.html
It's always a fantastic time watching your videos, thank you! I'm about to start watching the whole beginners playlist again, for the second time. You guys simply rock! 🤟 PS Yesterday I had an idea - like what if 3d carbon weave existed? Strong at any direction or angle. That could be fun!
Triaxial reinforcements exist with fibers at 0/+60/-60 that are qausi-isotropic in a single layer. There are also 3D woven fabrics that have fibers in the Z direction as well. The latter are harder to source
another video of yours which I saved up in a watchlist for when I might need it the future when I want to start with carbon. thanks for these great tutorials!
great video. I use their stuff and have called them for specific advice and Easy Composites are spot on. In particular with this video the update of using duct tape for the mesh and pipe is great. The explanation on inlet and outlet for the vacuum lines is also very helpful. As someone who does this it still provides small snippets of improvement in knowledge. Thanks guys
Another wonderful video! Everything here is always explained in a comprehensive, direct, fluid manner, without exception. From the overall steps to the little tricks that make the difference, everything gets explained. And if a subject hasn't yet been explored here, either on Twitter or at the website or with the tecnical team, an answer will be found in very short order. This is why I like EC's products. Yes, cheaper ones can definetly be found online, but these are sure to work, and work well. I feel that I can trust them because the videos show the results. Results not only in regards to cosmetics, but mechanical properties of various materials as well. That's really important for "peace of mind".
Thanks very much for the feedback, we really appreciate it. We do work hard on these videos, and the technical content on the website and support channels; it's great to hear we're getting it right. And yes, our whole ethos is to make sure products work as well as they possibly can, and to know that they work with each other (or don't); so much failure and disappointment in composites comes from incorrect or inferior materials, or combinations of materials that are just plain incompatible with each other. We aim to eliminate that as much as possible. Anyway, thank you for your business.
i wish easycomp products are available in indonesia. just from watching i already trusted to all of your products and excited to try my self!!. a very detailed video, and ill make this as my guide to make carbon parts for my motorcycle.
awesome video as always. Have had a few failed and successful parts under my belt and it really is important to pay attention to the resin brake/break area and pleating of the bag.
Yes, full agreed on both of those points. Pleating of the bag so critical to ensure that you have PLENTY of bag and the resin break is a key part of ensuring that you don't end up needing to run a lot of resin into the catchpot whilst you're waiting for those last corners to infuse!
Hey i love your videos and am fascinated with using 3d printed moulds for rapid prototyping of composite parts but I've seen some people using a 3d printer to make a negative mould out of a more heat tolerant filament then giving it a layer of gel coat? Could you guys do a video exploring using 3d printing with pre-preg please? Thanks!
Nice video, took me a decade to find all of that stuff in one single video. I spray a clear coat in my molds and gel coat color details, great way to hide seam lines.
Thanks for the comment. We do occasionally 'in mould' coat ourselves and if it all goes to plan it can be a great solution. Generally though, even though it's slightly more work, we do often stick to the more conventional approach of a clearcoat once the part's made. In mould is great if it works but if anything goes wrong with the infusion then an in mould coating makes any reparations more difficult.
Thank you very much. We put a lot of work into these videos (literally many weeks) in front and behind the camera so it's really nice to see our efforts are noticed and appreciated :)
I want to make a full suspension mtb so I am watching many videos only from your channel because you explain everything very clearly I hope so I would be able to build a mtb successfully
Thanks! It sounds like a great but challenging project. Check out our full MTB build case study we made a few years ago for some tips if you haven't see it already. th-cam.com/video/UWSePEV88tw/w-d-xo.html
@@easycompositestv Thank you so much ! But I have doubts 1. Is the process of making carbon fibre parts as same as of making fiberglass parts ? 2 . To make the frame , can I first make a clay frame then harden it and put the half hardened clay frame into a box filled with clay and let it dry to make the mould ? Please reply to my doubts , it would help me a lot
@@shlokchandankhede5693 A bike frame is really suited to prepreg methods of manufacture where the resin is already impregnated in the fibres and cured at temperature under vacuum. You would need a high temperature mould in order to process this prepreg material. Usually a carbon fibre mould tool would be the preferred option for processing carbon fibre material as the CTE of both parts would be closely matched. This helps to avoid things like pre release which can cause distortion as both part and mould will expand and contract at roughly the same rate.
You're welcome; that's great to hear. It's another video that would have been very useful to us when we were starting out. As a lot of our content is getting quite technical, we like to revisit some of the basics as well.
Thanks for putting the time/effort/money into creating these fantastic and high quality guide videos - very helpful! Side question - do you guys (or anyone from your company) ever attend SAMPE or CAMX?
Thanks for your comment it really is great to hear that the time and effort we put into making these tutorials is worth it. We occasionally visit some of the composite shows to see what's new but we don't tend to display any stands.
Great video as always! It would be interesting to see a comparison between the Fusion Fix and Fusion Fix EP. If the EP really doesn’t leave residue on surfaces, that would be a game changer for me. Maybe consider a quick spotlight video on the second Chanel?
Thanks for the comment, this is a very interesting question and absolutely deserving of its own video, either a spotlight, or possibly the main channel because it's an important part of a lot of projects. To summarise though, FusionFix EP will leave a residue but it can't be seen and doesn't remove easily. Strong solvents (like acetone) can remove the residue which will leave a very faint 'dither' on the surface. For most parts in most circumstances, we think you wouldn't need to do anything (i.e. just leave it as is) which *is* a game changer. If you thought the part might be exposed to strong solvents (like acetone) then you would want to remove the residue. But, to be honest, you'd probably need to be thinking in terms a tougher coating for parts that will be exposed to harsh chemicals/solvents anyway.
We have a dedicated tutorial on tube manufacturing, and we do have more complex moulding videos on this list so keep an eye out for those coming in the future. studio.th-cam.com/users/videovqlR74PlVgM/edit
Spectacular!! I have questions about curing resin-infused parts: I've read and heard of people post-curing their finished parts, but I didn't catch any mention of that during this video. Is this a good practice in strengthening the part, or wholly unnecessary when creating resin infused parts? If it is a legitimate method, what resin system do you recommend, and at what temperatures and intervals should the part cure for? Are there any additional materials we may consider adding during or before the post-cure process? Thank you so much for creating these guides, this channel has the absolute best videos on carbon fiber.
Post cures are primarily done to improve heat resistance of the parts eg for engine bay parts or parts used in hotter climates. You will also gain some improvement in mechanical performance too. But it is not essential. All of our resins have the full post cure cycle listed in the TDS if you wish to do one.
@@easycompositestv Awesome, thanks for the reply. I live in a region that reaches up to 45°C for the better part of the year, so I reckon I'll post-cure all of my parts. Placing my order now!
Great video! It would be great if you covered resin infusion on thick parts (like 15mm thickness) and challenges met when using complex shapes with UD or Bi-AX layers. I'm currently at the stage of designing a shell structure with a 10mm long perpendicular collar around the part, made with layup that acts like a quasi-isotropic material, and there isn't a lot of tutorials on yt covering that topic.
You have to be careful with very thick laminates to avoid resin exotherm and also enough time to fully wet out the fabric with resin. UD does not infuse well as there are very few gaps between the fibres for resin to flow.
When are you guys gonna do a car door and trunk bumpers and quarter panels. Can’t wait I plan to make a full carbon car. You guys make the best how too’s on carbon.
I'd like to build a wheelchair seat, including the fenders, seat base and back. Is there a limit to the height of the part from infusion point to vacuum inlet? I would assume that you can't pull resin up hill past its vapor pressure point. Is it advisable to have more than one resin inlet to ensure wetout? I would assume that you would watch the flow front and clamp the hose that was flowing too much resin, to keep it from reaching the vacuum port too soon. Is weighing the laminate fabrics, minus the cut off pieces a suitable way of determining resin volume? Knowing the void volume for each component would seem to be a good way to get the resin volume correct. Thank you for the really well done videos. They make your product seem very appealing.
Hi, sounds like an interesting project. I might be missing something but I think that almost all of your questions are answered quite specifically in this video, so it might be worth giving it another watch through (there's a lot to take in!). In the section where we talk about infusing 'up hill' we don't talk about 'vapour points' because that wouldn't really be the limiting factor (100% solids epoxies, like IN2, are non volatile). There would be a theoretical limit to how far resin can be lifted vertically by vacuum but you won't be near that point with the project you're describing. As I say, pretty much everything else is covered in the video. Also, watch our 'In Depth Guide to Resin Infusion' video, and our video on vacuum bagging, and our video on 'Membrane Products in Resin Infusion'. Between those 3 videos, you'd have a degree level understanding of resin infusion, all for free!
Well, I have enrolled in a CADD class at my local community college and will use that to learn how to make my molds that I want. I will be making an intake manifold for my single cylinder motorcycle that I am making. This video answered questions on which fabric to use. My question to you is, would you be willing to look over a PDF of my design to give input for ease of manufacture and such or would you charge for the consultation?
Hi Bryan, Great to hear that you've started to learn CAD, it really can be a super useful tool for a number of projects and a great transferable skill. If you want to send the design over to our technical inbox technical@easycomposites.com we can take a look over it for you. We wouldn't be able to provide full a consultation service but can offer general advice and guidance.
as this is a beginners guide. can you use any vacuum pump available? I have a CNC Mill with a vacuum chuck, with a 'bigger' Vacuum pump attached. what are the specs i need to look out for? Thanks for doing very helpful videos! even as i have no intend to use them, i really enjoy watching them! keep up the great work please!
The weight saving benefits can be great compared to original OEM parts. On an R8 this is a cosmetic trim panel so replacing both on a track/race car is almost 6kg of saving alone!
Hello Easy Composites, I love your products and tutorials, this is how all companies should operate! I would really love if you could come up with a tutorial on how to properly build a surf board in carbon fiber in the same fashio you showed the bike frame one. I know there are plenty of DIY videos out there already but the quality of the videos you produce is outstanding and it would quickly become probably the reference tutorial on the topic in no time with a lot of views and sales ;)! p.s. is there any video on how to join two shells made with molds? For example how to build a kayak that has bottom and top casted separately and then joined? p.p.s. A nice tutorial about how to make a foil wing would also be amazing!
Building a full sized surfboard would require a pretty large oven and given that they tend to need a foam core for secondary buoyancy in the event of failure to the skin they are possibly not suited to the same process. Additionally the fact that the circumference needs to be fully joined means that the same method with the internal bags couldn't be used. The deck and hull of a kayak would typically be infused or hand laminated and then manually joined together by laminating braided tape over the 2 halves. A foil wing is on the list to cover at some point. 😁
@@easycompositestv Ah right, the bike was done via prepreg. I see that generally surf boards are manually laminated but I was really interested in good practices on how to properly overlap top and bottom shells and how to reinforce screw points, fin points and possibly a windsurf attachment point since everybody does it differently. I was expecting something in that sense for the kayak, is there an existing video already on how to join two hulls via braided tape? I thought about doing it this way: prepare two shells with just 2 layers, join them via braided tape, apply two more layers around the whole shell like for a surf board. I cannot wait for the foil video, actually make it a video series: front wing, fuselage, rear stabiliser, mast! :D
@@IvanGOrtolan Because the 2 parts are made in a mould you generally don't want to put more material over the nice smooth finish. Therefore the hull and deck will be made strong enough in the initial phase and then joined internally by hand laminating tape over the internal joint. In some cases the process is also repeated on the outside with a narrower tape for additional strength.
@@easycompositestv I get the point but laminating the joint from inside in a kayak is going to be pretty hard since the only opening would be the small hole where you sit or did I mistake what you meant? Another example would be a jetsurf hull , looks like a surf board but it's empty inside. My plan would be on creating a shape out of foam, use that to make two shells and then join by laminating all around, assuming I don't want the foam inside
@@IvanGOrtolan Correct, it can be quite a tricky job and usually involves a brush attached to a stick in order to laminate the internal seam. Your proposed method sounds similar to the mouldess construction method we showed in this tutorial. th-cam.com/video/0Yaggj16S08/w-d-xo.html
Paul, Thanks for your videos, can you address setting up an infusion being completed in steps first half the part, then adding more reinforcement and a second section infusion
It's a bit of an unconventional way of working but in theory you could allow the first one to cure and then repeat. The peel ply backing will provide enough of a texture to infuse directly too so you should be able to lay the material on top and repeat the process.
I've watched many of your videos, fascinated by the process and the result. I think I have a potential project - a carbon fiber replacement for the Targa top on my Porsche 914. I converted it to electric drive so this would be a fitting complement to the 'modernization' of the car. I may attempt it next summer, I have to think about making the mold and figuring out how to attach the latching hardware.
Hi Mike, you converted your 914 to electric! Amazing project. For sure a carbon Targo top would go well with that. You're quite right that the attaching/latching hardware and accuracy would be the challenging part. Not impossible but a Targa roof is more complicated than a conventional static body panel. I hope you do it though, and be sure to reach out to our technical team if you need any advice on material or process selection. I wish you all the best with it.
To be honest, if you combine the uni mould user guide which is the mould making tutorial to accompany this part with this video then you have the full guide to replicate parts. Regardless of their origins, the process of replicating a car panel, bike panel etc will be exactly the same. th-cam.com/video/Ne2rolKJajw/w-d-xo.html
Great video. i just miss a video about how to make the backside of a part. i mean a lot of parts do need some clips og something like that to attach to the car. how do you do that? this video show how to produce the "outside" of a part right? where will this exact part be used and how do they mount it? thanks again for great videos.
This is a great question with unfortunately no straightforward answer. Often you can salvage the clips or brackets off the original part and bond them in place. Alternatively you can use carbon fibre angle or other materials to fashion something similar to the original. Bonded studs such as BigHeads can also help when bolting panels in place. www.easycomposites.co.uk/inserts-fasteners
Hi Paul, amazing video! Was wandering if instead of using the 650 carbon cloth for reinforcement, could you use a layer of Kevlar? I love the look of the 210 carbon but would love the added strength of Kevlar integrated behind the carbon! Thanks in advance 😁
Thnk you for the video. I was wandering if you could tell us how you make or attach the foundations for screw or bolts and nuts. Is there anyway of making them out of carbon fibre sheets?
Fasteners/mountings/fittings etc is something that we get asked about a lot so it's certainly a topic we plan to cover in a future video. You can indeed fabricate some clips/mountings out of carbon fibre sheet. Another common solution is to make brackets or fittings out of folded or machined aluminium and then just bond them on to the reverse side of the carbon panel using an epoxy or MMA adhesive.
@@easycompositestv Thanks for answering. I have already watched almost everything and enjoyed them all. I await and look forward to the video for the mountings. Thank you again.
I love your videos. Does EasyCo have products stocked in the US? (yet? I thought I heard something about the possibility). Shipping from the UK keeps me from buying all these awesome kits.
We've got a solution launching next month which should really help out our US customers. It's not going to be 'full fat' US subsidiary that we do plan to open one day but it should be good option for US customers and take all of the sting out of the international shipping so keep an eye out on our website and socials for an announcement coming soon.
Let's say I want to make a small aircraft fuselage as one piece inside a two side closed mold (has a door opening), how would you do that? spool prepreg tape on the walls? maybe wider tape for less curved areas. Or try bigger cloth. It would be maybe 1.5meter diameter and 8 meter long teardrop. It might be slightly awkward but the traditional two sides later bonded together is so much work and such a betrayal of the material strength. Then a huge bag inside it.
Making such a size and shape as a singe piece moulding would certainly be a challenge, but not impossible. For sure you'd need a split mould, as you describe. Then, assuming the door opening is large enough for you to work inside, I'd probably turn the whole thing over so the door/hatch is underneath; much easier to work this way and you're not standing on the reinforcement as you get in and out. Then it depends on the process you want to use. Prepreg would be easier to laminate but you'd need to be able to oven cure the whole 8m+ structure, which is probably not practical, and so you'd be left with resin infusion (mechanically better but more complicated to set up) or a conventional wet layup. Assuming you're looking for the best performance then that means infusion. To do this, start by flash-taping the seams on the splits (so they're airtight) and then lay in the reinforcement; you'll need a fair bit of spray adhesive to keep it on upside down in a cylinder. The resin flow will be much more complicated and hard to predict on this shape so you'll need to use microporous membranes (DD Compound MTI hose etc) to maintain airflow and avoid dry spots. Then, the whole thing in a massive bag which would almost certainly need to be an envelope bag (so, you're bagging the inside and outside of the mould, like a giant elongated donut! If you're serious about the project, get in touch with our technical team and we can give you more detailed advice on products and processes. And, good luck with it!
@@easycompositestv thanks for the thorough answer. infusion upside down is probably tricky, I'm thinking prepreg is the easiest if it's sticky enough to hold in place. It would be for series production so making an oven is not really a problem. It's just a 2x2x10meter metal shed with a lot of insulation and a few electric heaters, as long as it doesn't require high pressure. 1bar vacuum should be plenty high performance for at least a first generation. Unless prepreg needs higher pressure? 120 degrees isn't much more than a sauna. Another alternative I've seen is running thermoplast tape and heating it as it is laid down. I'm guessing they still do autoclave afterwards but otherwise pretty neat. I'm thinking a roll on a kind of painting stick for the distant tight areas, maybe even a camera on the stick to really see what you are doing because the fuselage tapers down to near nothing at the end. Ideally a robot would do it all but that's a high starting point. Manual at first. You don't have tape roll on a stick products? I don't see prepreg tape on your site, that doesn't exist? I'm assuming wet layup upside down wont be tacky enough to hold anything. Tacky cold prepreg might be the best initial approach. And if prepreg tape isn't readily available then cut strips and manually roll up. Slightly more work. Interesting to vacuum bag a big internal piece but it's an aircraft, all things considering, not that bad. the prices they charge for planes these days, it's nothing. A skilled worker could probably easily make one a day or more. An ideal production might be to weave a sock on a precise metal positive mold and then 3 negative metal molds clamp it. But that's expensive. Especially because the positive mold would have to be many pieces to get out again :) A very precise balloon might work.
Brilliant videos, thank you for sharing. I am interested in producing larger tubes, say 300mm diameter x 1000mm x 3mm wall, how would I go about this. Do you have any videos and tips on this process?
Really a tube of this diameter is most suited to a winding method or a split moulding technique like we show in our complex tube tutorial. th-cam.com/video/bBbOUDDJv4Q/w-d-xo.html For smaller diameter tubes you can follow the method shown in our tube making tutorial but being able to apply the pressure to the mandrel by hand might be more difficult on the larger diameter. th-cam.com/video/vqlR74PlVgM/w-d-xo.html
Very nice, as usual. I am watching some videos on this topic and a question is coming to my mind. Is the vacuum bag absolutely necessary for the resin spread? My thinking is, as the resin is a slightly viscous fluid, what happens if I just paint the bi/tri layered carbon fibres with a soft but thick paintbrush and applying multiple coats would get a better depth of texture and if allowed sufficient time lying still, should be having a good surface finish without brushstrokes showing up. Would this work? Every other thing explained remains the same though.
do you have any videos on how to make a mould to make a bumper ?? what are your thoughts on 3d scanning a bumper and then having a mould made and how do you make a diy mould
For making body panels you can use the process in the mould making tutorial we mentioned in this video. You can also check out our bonnet making series which starts with taking a mould off an existing panel. th-cam.com/video/UgKvDw1E60E/w-d-xo.html If you have capabilities to 3D scan the part then this can be used to make a plug. You will need access to a large 3D printer or CNC machine in order to produce the physical pattern. Form there you can then make the mould. Alternatively check out our other tutorials for pattern making by hand.
Using an ultrasonic leak detector is worth its weight in gold when dealing with bag leaks. Also weighing your cloth on a gram scale is a good estimate for how much resin you need.
We do cover this in our tutorial on finding and fixing leaking vacuum bags but yes you are correct they can come in handy for more regular users, albeit at a cost. Weighing the fabric gives you the total weight for the reinforcement but you still need to calculate the consumption in the consumables.
I've been toying with the idea of getting one of my longtail races boat's made from carbon could i use this method to produce one , would you be able to guide me in the mould building process as the boat's i race are traditionally made from light ply , would love to hear from you guys with your opinion cheers from Thailand 🇹🇭
If you’re based in Thailand then it’s unlikely you’ll be buying your materials from us so in terms of technical support you’d need to ‘self serve’ from all of the video information and guides we’ve published but I can say for sure that all of the information you would need for the whole process, from mould to part, is available on this channel and our website if you’re willing to put the time in 😀.
Infusion for such tight profiles isn't all that suitable and will be difficult to place consumable sin the correct locations. Not only that but you would need to consider the joining of the 2 mould halves. Prepreg on the other hand would be a much preferred option which is why we chose this material for our downhill bike frame.
You can get away with it in some circumstances for sure, but in our experience, polyester is very hit-and-miss. If you have a polyester mould, test it first (rather than have a part stick in the mould, ruining the mould and the part). Often, you'll get away with it, but when you don't, it's not worth it. It's much less likely to be a problem on old moulds (that have seen many releases) but new polyester moulds cause a lot of problems (we know, we have a technical support line that takes hundreds of calls a day!). Any composites veteran knows that there's a hundred ways to do everything in composites, we just go with the most reliable methods that are likely to help people to avoid the most common problems.
Yes, you can post-cure the IN2 resin system. If it's practical to do so then it's generally considered a good idea. Post curing will improve the mechanical performance by a few percent and will raise the Tg (temperature tolerance) of the component. It can also speed up the cure, which can be very useful in high volume production. Please see the technical datasheet for the IN2 resin for suggested post cure cycles.
How difficult would it be to make a monolithic piece like a Ford GT 40 front or rear clip would be possible to do it at home in the garage? Assuming a person had plenty of practice?
Absolutely possible; we have customers who have made full clam shells for supercars/kit cars in their kitchens - our mantra is always to start small and learn as mistakes are somewhat inevitable when starting out but its perfectly reasonable to make such parts once you gain experience.
I'd like to use this method to replace body panels on a project car. However, I've seen many DIY'ers warm against galvanic corrosion. What is that? How do you properly prevent it?
Fiber glass layer on the contracting parts, Lets say a front fender. Along the bolt holes, use glass fiber on the first and last layer. To sandwich the carbon fiber. It can be a small patch or long strip, whichever you prefer. You can dye the epoxy too.
Galvanic corrosion is really only an issue in presence of an electrolyte when 2 dissimilar materials are joined together. Often the resin on the surface of the part or the adhesive used to bend the carbon fibre to the metallic component is sufficient to insulate the 2 materials.
Hi Brian. We have an entire tutorial dedicated to cutting and trimming composite parts which covers this in detail. th-cam.com/video/EWzN6GZeEzs/w-d-xo.html
The only time that there's a benefit in making a mould from carbon fibre is when you're using a high temperature process (like prepreg) and you're making carbon fibre parts. The reason for this is because at temperature, the CTE of the material (the mould and then component) really matters. Having a mould that has the same thermal expansion as the component you'll be making in it is advantageous. However, for room temperature processes, there's not really any advantage to a carbon mould. What could be an advantage would be a low-to-no shrinkage resin system. Uni-Mould (like the mould used in this video) is very low shrinkage and an epoxy mould would be even lower shrinkage. So, the shrinkage of the resin makes a lot more difference than the reinforcement, for room temperature processes.
Hello, I'm looking to make parts for airsoft gun. The parts are very complex, geometrically speaking, which makes the moulds very complicated to make. What technique would you recommend to simplify their production and demoulding?
I watch your videos purely based on how smooth, clear and enjoyable the instructions are :) People pay for details mentioned in your videos.
Thanks Sonny, we put a lot of work into these (literally many weeks per video) so it's great to hear that the detail and effort are appreciated.
Fantastic production 10/10
Another absolute masterclass on how a tutorial should be written, filmed, paced, and edited. You guys are by far the best in the space. The new tips/best practices are sprinkled in generously & appropriately therefor even after this many years I always learn something or notice something that I want to implement next time.
Cheers to you and the whole Easy Composites team!
Thanks Erik, we appreciate your feedback and kind comments. I'm sure you can imagine, there's a lot of work goes into trying to get that balance right and so we when get this sort of feedback it let's us know it's worth it :)
As soon as my workshop is up, I'm SO ordering some of your starter kits...
Great to hear, we look forward to working with you when the time's right.
I will start building an experimental aicraft in three years from now.
Out of curiosity, what will you do with your shop?
@@leoa4c Nothing and everything. I've had the crazy plan of taking a stock roadster and building a completely custom chassis for it. Not that I'd have the required skills, but skills can be acquired...
Best composite channel on YT :)
Haha, thanks. I'm not sure there's too many out there. Just as well!
Thank you again, guys. I made some composites projects and they were impossible without your tutoroials.
That's just what we want to hear! Thanks for your comment and good luck with any future projects.
Easy composites and USCSB are two channels I “shouldn’t” be excited about, but when either drop content 🎉🎉
I bought some of your products in an attempt to make my part, but have failed multiple times. I’ve accidentally dropped the part and had to remake it a couple times. I finished it incorrectly and that led to a molding disaster. My latest attempt, after repairing again, involved sending the part to a professional body shop and they painted it with a very nice paint. I haven’t attempted to do anything with it yet because I can’t deal with another failure and the part looks so nice now. I must add that it also has a core because it’s hollow. I was warned about making a complicated part as a first attempt, but as usual I just ignored the naysayers. They were right, by the way. I saw in a previous video where you used a glass reinforced paste substance for making a mold. I think I will order this and give it another go. Your videos do inspire. Thanks
Thanks Will. Sorry to hear that your first project didn't go to plan but it's absolutely our mantra to advise customers to start with smaller, more manageable projects. You'll inevitably make some mis-steps along the way and so it's far better to make them on smaller, less consequential parts. If nothing else, this costs a lot less (money and heartache). I do hope you persevere with and and of course do get in touch if you need any help selecting the right products. The glass reinforced tooling pastes are excellent products for those with limited experience (and often those with plenty of experience!).
That graphic is the best example I've seen describing the needed setup. Excellent!
Wow! Another Masterclass from Professor Dude!!!
Another awesome tutorial, thanks to the whole EasyComposites team!
Thanks for watching Lionel.
Again an awesome video from the supermen of Carbon and Infusion.... thanks.
These videos are so well thought out. The one part that amazes me is how you manage to get the bag to actually seal perfectly. I've tried dozens of times, and not once managed a perfect seal, no matter how much time I spend looking for and fixing leaks. I've gotten the leaks so small that they can't be heard and been unable to locate them, but they still fail the drop test. I was trying to seal a much more complicated mold though.
Hi Jim, thanks for your comment. Creating leak free bags does take a lot of practice and something that will naturally come with more time. Large complex shapes naturally are more difficult as there are more curves and contours to deal with. Check out our tutorial in finding and fixing leaks for more detail th-cam.com/video/2vEKODxJu7I/w-d-xo.html
It's always a fantastic time watching your videos, thank you! I'm about to start watching the whole beginners playlist again, for the second time. You guys simply rock! 🤟
PS Yesterday I had an idea - like what if 3d carbon weave existed? Strong at any direction or angle. That could be fun!
Triaxial reinforcements exist with fibers at 0/+60/-60 that are qausi-isotropic in a single layer. There are also 3D woven fabrics that have fibers in the Z direction as well. The latter are harder to source
another video of yours which I saved up in a watchlist for when I might need it the future when I want to start with carbon. thanks for these great tutorials!
great video. I use their stuff and have called them for specific advice and Easy Composites are spot on. In particular with this video the update of using duct tape for the mesh and pipe is great. The explanation on inlet and outlet for the vacuum lines is also very helpful. As someone who does this it still provides small snippets of improvement in knowledge. Thanks guys
Hi Denis,
Thanks for your feedback, it's great to know that we can still provide handy tips to those already experienced with composite processes.
It was very nice to see you again, thanks!
Another wonderful video!
Everything here is always explained in a comprehensive, direct, fluid manner, without exception. From the overall steps to the little tricks that make the difference, everything gets explained.
And if a subject hasn't yet been explored here, either on Twitter or at the website or with the tecnical team, an answer will be found in very short order.
This is why I like EC's products. Yes, cheaper ones can definetly be found online, but these are sure to work, and work well. I feel that I can trust them because the videos show the results. Results not only in regards to cosmetics, but mechanical properties of various materials as well. That's really important for "peace of mind".
Thanks very much for the feedback, we really appreciate it. We do work hard on these videos, and the technical content on the website and support channels; it's great to hear we're getting it right. And yes, our whole ethos is to make sure products work as well as they possibly can, and to know that they work with each other (or don't); so much failure and disappointment in composites comes from incorrect or inferior materials, or combinations of materials that are just plain incompatible with each other. We aim to eliminate that as much as possible. Anyway, thank you for your business.
I always appreciate it. Good to watch, usually learn something.
Beautiful stuff. To think it's possible to whip up your own carbon fiber panels that are consumer friendly is awesome.
The results from this process still amaze us to this day, even after seeing thousands of parts made with this method.
OMG! A new vid out! not got time to watch it now but very happy it is and will sit down later and watch it without interruption!
Haha, fair enough. Nice to hear it's going to get your full attention :)
You guys are incredible. When the times right, I will be purchasing from you. Thank you for all the info you put out!
Thanks for watching, that's great to hear. We look forward to your order when the time comes.
Reminds me of a full flood-brush-in.
The more-Longer you can brush the better.😂🇮🇪
best composite website and channel ever...
i wish easycomp products are available in indonesia. just from watching i already trusted to all of your products and excited to try my self!!. a very detailed video, and ill make this as my guide to make carbon parts for my motorcycle.
Hi Anthony, yes unfortunately the DG classification of our goods does prevent us shipping to certain regions.
@@easycompositestv well i hope soon your company grows bigger and are able to ship worldwide
@@anthonyw1583 Unfortunately the issues are more with the courier network being able to transport DG classified goods.
awesome video as always. Have had a few failed and successful parts under my belt and it really is important to pay attention to the resin brake/break area and pleating of the bag.
Yes, full agreed on both of those points. Pleating of the bag so critical to ensure that you have PLENTY of bag and the resin break is a key part of ensuring that you don't end up needing to run a lot of resin into the catchpot whilst you're waiting for those last corners to infuse!
Im genuinely excited to start a project. Thanks guys!!!!🎉
Hope you enjoy it!
Extremely well explained.
Yayy, a new video 🎉 Could you please make a video on working with Fiberglass?
We do have plans (not sure when) to do some fibreglass basics tutorials so please stay subscribed and hopefully they will come along in due course.
@@easycompositestv Thanking you so much, really looking Forward to it !
Your videos remind me of US War Department training and instruction videos from the mid 1940's. All gold standard stuff!
Haha, thanks. We'll have to take a look at a few of those, maybe we could still learn something!
Hey i love your videos and am fascinated with using 3d printed moulds for rapid prototyping of composite parts but I've seen some people using a 3d printer to make a negative mould out of a more heat tolerant filament then giving it a layer of gel coat? Could you guys do a video exploring using 3d printing with pre-preg please? Thanks!
"Bigrep HI-TEMP Filament" can apparently withstand 160C before deforming or softening. Could you guys try something like that out potentially?
This channel and fortnine are the gold standards for TH-cam videos.
Nice video, took me a decade to find all of that stuff in one single video. I spray a clear coat in my molds and gel coat color details, great way to hide seam lines.
Thanks for the comment. We do occasionally 'in mould' coat ourselves and if it all goes to plan it can be a great solution. Generally though, even though it's slightly more work, we do often stick to the more conventional approach of a clearcoat once the part's made. In mould is great if it works but if anything goes wrong with the infusion then an in mould coating makes any reparations more difficult.
Bonjour Paul, super vidéo, Merci 😊
this video is Flauwless....pure perfection......cudos to aal the crew infront and behind the cameras....
Thank you very much. We put a lot of work into these videos (literally many weeks) in front and behind the camera so it's really nice to see our efforts are noticed and appreciated :)
I want to make a full suspension mtb so I am watching many videos only from your channel because you explain everything very clearly I hope so I would be able to build a mtb successfully
Thanks! It sounds like a great but challenging project. Check out our full MTB build case study we made a few years ago for some tips if you haven't see it already. th-cam.com/video/UWSePEV88tw/w-d-xo.html
@@easycompositestv Thank you so much !
But I have doubts
1. Is the process of making carbon fibre parts as same as of making fiberglass parts ?
2 . To make the frame , can I first make a clay frame then harden it and put the half hardened clay frame into a box filled with clay and let it dry to make the mould ?
Please reply to my doubts , it would help me a lot
@@shlokchandankhede5693 A bike frame is really suited to prepreg methods of manufacture where the resin is already impregnated in the fibres and cured at temperature under vacuum. You would need a high temperature mould in order to process this prepreg material. Usually a carbon fibre mould tool would be the preferred option for processing carbon fibre material as the CTE of both parts would be closely matched. This helps to avoid things like pre release which can cause distortion as both part and mould will expand and contract at roughly the same rate.
@@easycompositestv Ok thank you so much !
Great video, well made as always.
thanks for this excellent video, like the others posted on this channel has been very useful and enlightening, I learned some new things.
You're welcome; that's great to hear. It's another video that would have been very useful to us when we were starting out. As a lot of our content is getting quite technical, we like to revisit some of the basics as well.
Thanks for putting the time/effort/money into creating these fantastic and high quality guide videos - very helpful!
Side question - do you guys (or anyone from your company) ever attend SAMPE or CAMX?
Thanks for your comment it really is great to hear that the time and effort we put into making these tutorials is worth it.
We occasionally visit some of the composite shows to see what's new but we don't tend to display any stands.
это потрясающе! да начнётся путь!)
Great presentation
Thanks for watching!
Amazing video, as always!
Excellent presentation 👏
Thanks for watching.
great channel and website.
your videos are awesome, wish your products were easier to get to the US
We are working towards making it simpler for our US customer to place orders. Keep an eye out for an update in the near future.
Excellent.. Learned a lot
I've appreciated your good work Mark. This was a great overview! Cheers
It's Paul, but you're very welcome Michael!
Great video as always! It would be interesting to see a comparison between the Fusion Fix and Fusion Fix EP. If the EP really doesn’t leave residue on surfaces, that would be a game changer for me. Maybe consider a quick spotlight video on the second Chanel?
Thanks for the comment, this is a very interesting question and absolutely deserving of its own video, either a spotlight, or possibly the main channel because it's an important part of a lot of projects. To summarise though, FusionFix EP will leave a residue but it can't be seen and doesn't remove easily. Strong solvents (like acetone) can remove the residue which will leave a very faint 'dither' on the surface. For most parts in most circumstances, we think you wouldn't need to do anything (i.e. just leave it as is) which *is* a game changer. If you thought the part might be exposed to strong solvents (like acetone) then you would want to remove the residue. But, to be honest, you'd probably need to be thinking in terms a tougher coating for parts that will be exposed to harsh chemicals/solvents anyway.
Is amazing how many parts are damaged due to bad seal or vacuum. Thats how you know you have a good technician. Never rush over this step.
Great video, would love one for carbon fibre tubes/nose cones/tail cones for an aerospace project tricky to wrap my head around how to do it this way
We have a dedicated tutorial on tube manufacturing, and we do have more complex moulding videos on this list so keep an eye out for those coming in the future. studio.th-cam.com/users/videovqlR74PlVgM/edit
Spectacular!! I have questions about curing resin-infused parts: I've read and heard of people post-curing their finished parts, but I didn't catch any mention of that during this video. Is this a good practice in strengthening the part, or wholly unnecessary when creating resin infused parts? If it is a legitimate method, what resin system do you recommend, and at what temperatures and intervals should the part cure for? Are there any additional materials we may consider adding during or before the post-cure process?
Thank you so much for creating these guides, this channel has the absolute best videos on carbon fiber.
Post cures are primarily done to improve heat resistance of the parts eg for engine bay parts or parts used in hotter climates. You will also gain some improvement in mechanical performance too. But it is not essential. All of our resins have the full post cure cycle listed in the TDS if you wish to do one.
@@easycompositestv Awesome, thanks for the reply. I live in a region that reaches up to 45°C for the better part of the year, so I reckon I'll post-cure all of my parts. Placing my order now!
Great video! It would be great if you covered resin infusion on thick parts (like 15mm thickness) and challenges met when using complex shapes with UD or Bi-AX layers. I'm currently at the stage of designing a shell structure with a 10mm long perpendicular collar around the part, made with layup that acts like a quasi-isotropic material, and there isn't a lot of tutorials on yt covering that topic.
You have to be careful with very thick laminates to avoid resin exotherm and also enough time to fully wet out the fabric with resin. UD does not infuse well as there are very few gaps between the fibres for resin to flow.
Fantastic video. Thank you
Is easy composites in the US yet?
Awesome videos, that looks like an audi r8 side panel. Came up beautiful .
That's exactly what it is. Just need the R8 to go with it now!
love your guys vids
so freaking good!!!!
Thank you for another great video. Are you guys going to start doing in-person Composites Training Courses & Open Days again at your facility?
It is something we want to get back to offering at some point yes, it a fine balance between working on new videos and other projects.
When are you guys gonna do a car door and trunk bumpers and quarter panels. Can’t wait I plan to make a full carbon car. You guys make the best how too’s on carbon.
The process is basically the same for all body panels.
I'd like to build a wheelchair seat, including the fenders, seat base and back.
Is there a limit to the height of the part from infusion point to vacuum inlet? I would assume that you can't pull resin up hill past its vapor pressure point.
Is it advisable to have more than one resin inlet to ensure wetout? I would assume that you would watch the flow front and clamp the hose that was flowing too much resin, to keep it from reaching the vacuum port too soon.
Is weighing the laminate fabrics, minus the cut off pieces a suitable way of determining resin volume?
Knowing the void volume for each component would seem to be a good way to get the resin volume correct.
Thank you for the really well done videos. They make your product seem very appealing.
Hi, sounds like an interesting project. I might be missing something but I think that almost all of your questions are answered quite specifically in this video, so it might be worth giving it another watch through (there's a lot to take in!). In the section where we talk about infusing 'up hill' we don't talk about 'vapour points' because that wouldn't really be the limiting factor (100% solids epoxies, like IN2, are non volatile). There would be a theoretical limit to how far resin can be lifted vertically by vacuum but you won't be near that point with the project you're describing. As I say, pretty much everything else is covered in the video. Also, watch our 'In Depth Guide to Resin Infusion' video, and our video on vacuum bagging, and our video on 'Membrane Products in Resin Infusion'. Between those 3 videos, you'd have a degree level understanding of resin infusion, all for free!
Well, I have enrolled in a CADD class at my local community college and will use that to learn how to make my molds that I want. I will be making an intake manifold for my single cylinder motorcycle that I am making. This video answered questions on which fabric to use.
My question to you is, would you be willing to look over a PDF of my design to give input for ease of manufacture and such or would you charge for the consultation?
Hi Bryan,
Great to hear that you've started to learn CAD, it really can be a super useful tool for a number of projects and a great transferable skill. If you want to send the design over to our technical inbox technical@easycomposites.com we can take a look over it for you. We wouldn't be able to provide full a consultation service but can offer general advice and guidance.
This is so sick
as this is a beginners guide. can you use any vacuum pump available? I have a CNC Mill with a vacuum chuck, with a 'bigger' Vacuum pump attached. what are the specs i need to look out for?
Thanks for doing very helpful videos! even as i have no intend to use them, i really enjoy watching them! keep up the great work please!
As specified in the video, the pump needs to achieve 5mbar or better vacuum levels,
thank you for your great video
3409 Gram - 610 Gram = 2799 Gram reduction. WOW
The weight saving benefits can be great compared to original OEM parts. On an R8 this is a cosmetic trim panel so replacing both on a track/race car is almost 6kg of saving alone!
Any plans to open a US or Canada location? I would like to buy your product, but shipping cost seem to be high from the UK. Love your videos.
At present we can only ship from the UK via standard courier services.
looks like an R8 V8 side blade
It is!
Knew it !
Hello Easy Composites, I love your products and tutorials, this is how all companies should operate! I would really love if you could come up with a tutorial on how to properly build a surf board in carbon fiber in the same fashio you showed the bike frame one. I know there are plenty of DIY videos out there already but the quality of the videos you produce is outstanding and it would quickly become probably the reference tutorial on the topic in no time with a lot of views and sales ;)!
p.s. is there any video on how to join two shells made with molds? For example how to build a kayak that has bottom and top casted separately and then joined?
p.p.s. A nice tutorial about how to make a foil wing would also be amazing!
Building a full sized surfboard would require a pretty large oven and given that they tend to need a foam core for secondary buoyancy in the event of failure to the skin they are possibly not suited to the same process. Additionally the fact that the circumference needs to be fully joined means that the same method with the internal bags couldn't be used.
The deck and hull of a kayak would typically be infused or hand laminated and then manually joined together by laminating braided tape over the 2 halves.
A foil wing is on the list to cover at some point. 😁
@@easycompositestv Ah right, the bike was done via prepreg. I see that generally surf boards are manually laminated but I was really interested in good practices on how to properly overlap top and bottom shells and how to reinforce screw points, fin points and possibly a windsurf attachment point since everybody does it differently.
I was expecting something in that sense for the kayak, is there an existing video already on how to join two hulls via braided tape? I thought about doing it this way: prepare two shells with just 2 layers, join them via braided tape, apply two more layers around the whole shell like for a surf board.
I cannot wait for the foil video, actually make it a video series: front wing, fuselage, rear stabiliser, mast! :D
@@IvanGOrtolan Because the 2 parts are made in a mould you generally don't want to put more material over the nice smooth finish. Therefore the hull and deck will be made strong enough in the initial phase and then joined internally by hand laminating tape over the internal joint. In some cases the process is also repeated on the outside with a narrower tape for additional strength.
@@easycompositestv I get the point but laminating the joint from inside in a kayak is going to be pretty hard since the only opening would be the small hole where you sit or did I mistake what you meant? Another example would be a jetsurf hull , looks like a surf board but it's empty inside. My plan would be on creating a shape out of foam, use that to make two shells and then join by laminating all around, assuming I don't want the foam inside
@@IvanGOrtolan Correct, it can be quite a tricky job and usually involves a brush attached to a stick in order to laminate the internal seam. Your proposed method sounds similar to the mouldess construction method we showed in this tutorial. th-cam.com/video/0Yaggj16S08/w-d-xo.html
Tolong buat freediving fins tutorialnya 😁
Paul, Thanks for your videos, can you address setting up an infusion being completed in steps first half the part, then adding more reinforcement and a second section infusion
It's a bit of an unconventional way of working but in theory you could allow the first one to cure and then repeat. The peel ply backing will provide enough of a texture to infuse directly too so you should be able to lay the material on top and repeat the process.
I've watched many of your videos, fascinated by the process and the result. I think I have a potential project - a carbon fiber replacement for the Targa top on my Porsche 914. I converted it to electric drive so this would be a fitting complement to the 'modernization' of the car. I may attempt it next summer, I have to think about making the mold and figuring out how to attach the latching hardware.
Hi Mike, you converted your 914 to electric! Amazing project. For sure a carbon Targo top would go well with that. You're quite right that the attaching/latching hardware and accuracy would be the challenging part. Not impossible but a Targa roof is more complicated than a conventional static body panel. I hope you do it though, and be sure to reach out to our technical team if you need any advice on material or process selection. I wish you all the best with it.
This is awesome. Thank you very much.🔥🔥🔥
Cheers Andrey, you're welcome :)
Maybe you can try and make a tutorial on creating motorcycle fairings from carbon fiber :)
To be honest, if you combine the uni mould user guide which is the mould making tutorial to accompany this part with this video then you have the full guide to replicate parts. Regardless of their origins, the process of replicating a car panel, bike panel etc will be exactly the same. th-cam.com/video/Ne2rolKJajw/w-d-xo.html
Thanks a lot for the guide!
You're very welcome, thanks for watching.
Great video. i just miss a video about how to make the backside of a part. i mean a lot of parts do need some clips og something like that to attach to the car. how do you do that?
this video show how to produce the "outside" of a part right? where will this exact part be used and how do they mount it?
thanks again for great videos.
This is a great question with unfortunately no straightforward answer. Often you can salvage the clips or brackets off the original part and bond them in place. Alternatively you can use carbon fibre angle or other materials to fashion something similar to the original. Bonded studs such as BigHeads can also help when bolting panels in place. www.easycomposites.co.uk/inserts-fasteners
Hi Paul, amazing video! Was wandering if instead of using the 650 carbon cloth for reinforcement, could you use a layer of Kevlar? I love the look of the 210 carbon but would love the added strength of Kevlar integrated behind the carbon! Thanks in advance 😁
You can absolutely use a combination of materials in order to combine or blend properties and get the desired result.
Thnk you for the video.
I was wandering if you could tell us how you make or attach the foundations for screw or bolts and nuts. Is there anyway of making them out of carbon fibre sheets?
Fasteners/mountings/fittings etc is something that we get asked about a lot so it's certainly a topic we plan to cover in a future video. You can indeed fabricate some clips/mountings out of carbon fibre sheet. Another common solution is to make brackets or fittings out of folded or machined aluminium and then just bond them on to the reverse side of the carbon panel using an epoxy or MMA adhesive.
@@easycompositestv
Thanks for answering.
I have already watched almost everything and enjoyed them all.
I await and look forward to the video for the mountings.
Thank you again.
I love your videos. Does EasyCo have products stocked in the US? (yet? I thought I heard something about the possibility). Shipping from the UK keeps me from buying all these awesome kits.
We've got a solution launching next month which should really help out our US customers. It's not going to be 'full fat' US subsidiary that we do plan to open one day but it should be good option for US customers and take all of the sting out of the international shipping so keep an eye out on our website and socials for an announcement coming soon.
Let's say I want to make a small aircraft fuselage as one piece inside a two side closed mold (has a door opening), how would you do that? spool prepreg tape on the walls? maybe wider tape for less curved areas. Or try bigger cloth. It would be maybe 1.5meter diameter and 8 meter long teardrop. It might be slightly awkward but the traditional two sides later bonded together is so much work and such a betrayal of the material strength. Then a huge bag inside it.
Making such a size and shape as a singe piece moulding would certainly be a challenge, but not impossible. For sure you'd need a split mould, as you describe. Then, assuming the door opening is large enough for you to work inside, I'd probably turn the whole thing over so the door/hatch is underneath; much easier to work this way and you're not standing on the reinforcement as you get in and out. Then it depends on the process you want to use. Prepreg would be easier to laminate but you'd need to be able to oven cure the whole 8m+ structure, which is probably not practical, and so you'd be left with resin infusion (mechanically better but more complicated to set up) or a conventional wet layup. Assuming you're looking for the best performance then that means infusion. To do this, start by flash-taping the seams on the splits (so they're airtight) and then lay in the reinforcement; you'll need a fair bit of spray adhesive to keep it on upside down in a cylinder. The resin flow will be much more complicated and hard to predict on this shape so you'll need to use microporous membranes (DD Compound MTI hose etc) to maintain airflow and avoid dry spots. Then, the whole thing in a massive bag which would almost certainly need to be an envelope bag (so, you're bagging the inside and outside of the mould, like a giant elongated donut!
If you're serious about the project, get in touch with our technical team and we can give you more detailed advice on products and processes. And, good luck with it!
@@easycompositestv thanks for the thorough answer. infusion upside down is probably tricky, I'm thinking prepreg is the easiest if it's sticky enough to hold in place. It would be for series production so making an oven is not really a problem. It's just a 2x2x10meter metal shed with a lot of insulation and a few electric heaters, as long as it doesn't require high pressure. 1bar vacuum should be plenty high performance for at least a first generation. Unless prepreg needs higher pressure? 120 degrees isn't much more than a sauna.
Another alternative I've seen is running thermoplast tape and heating it as it is laid down. I'm guessing they still do autoclave afterwards but otherwise pretty neat.
I'm thinking a roll on a kind of painting stick for the distant tight areas, maybe even a camera on the stick to really see what you are doing because the fuselage tapers down to near nothing at the end. Ideally a robot would do it all but that's a high starting point. Manual at first. You don't have tape roll on a stick products?
I don't see prepreg tape on your site, that doesn't exist?
I'm assuming wet layup upside down wont be tacky enough to hold anything.
Tacky cold prepreg might be the best initial approach. And if prepreg tape isn't readily available then cut strips and manually roll up. Slightly more work.
Interesting to vacuum bag a big internal piece but it's an aircraft, all things considering, not that bad. the prices they charge for planes these days, it's nothing. A skilled worker could probably easily make one a day or more.
An ideal production might be to weave a sock on a precise metal positive mold and then 3 negative metal molds clamp it. But that's expensive. Especially because the positive mold would have to be many pieces to get out again :) A very precise balloon might work.
Brilliant videos, thank you for sharing. I am interested in producing larger tubes, say 300mm diameter x 1000mm x 3mm wall, how would I go about this. Do you have any videos and tips on this process?
Really a tube of this diameter is most suited to a winding method or a split moulding technique like we show in our complex tube tutorial. th-cam.com/video/bBbOUDDJv4Q/w-d-xo.html For smaller diameter tubes you can follow the method shown in our tube making tutorial but being able to apply the pressure to the mandrel by hand might be more difficult on the larger diameter. th-cam.com/video/vqlR74PlVgM/w-d-xo.html
Thank you for this video!
You're very welcome. Thanks for watching.
i love it
Very nice, as usual. I am watching some videos on this topic and a question is coming to my mind. Is the vacuum bag absolutely necessary for the resin spread? My thinking is, as the resin is a slightly viscous fluid, what happens if I just paint the bi/tri layered carbon fibres with a soft but thick paintbrush and applying multiple coats would get a better depth of texture and if allowed sufficient time lying still, should be having a good surface finish without brushstrokes showing up. Would this work? Every other thing explained remains the same though.
Brushing resin on would just be a wet lay process. Resin infusion relies on being under vacuum to work and hence a vacuum bag is essential.
Could you please do a video on advanced wing making techniques
This is something we have on the list of topics to cover.
@@easycompositestv Many FSAE/FS teams would greatly appreciate it if you posted that video before the end of the year 😛
do you have any videos on how to make a mould to make a bumper ?? what are your thoughts on 3d scanning a bumper and then having a mould made and how do you make a diy mould
For making body panels you can use the process in the mould making tutorial we mentioned in this video. You can also check out our bonnet making series which starts with taking a mould off an existing panel. th-cam.com/video/UgKvDw1E60E/w-d-xo.html
If you have capabilities to 3D scan the part then this can be used to make a plug. You will need access to a large 3D printer or CNC machine in order to produce the physical pattern. Form there you can then make the mould.
Alternatively check out our other tutorials for pattern making by hand.
@@easycompositestv Thank you
Using an ultrasonic leak detector is worth its weight in gold when dealing with bag leaks. Also weighing your cloth on a gram scale is a good estimate for how much resin you need.
We do cover this in our tutorial on finding and fixing leaking vacuum bags but yes you are correct they can come in handy for more regular users, albeit at a cost. Weighing the fabric gives you the total weight for the reinforcement but you still need to calculate the consumption in the consumables.
Instant classic
I've been toying with the idea of getting one of my longtail races boat's made from carbon could i use this method to produce one , would you be able to guide me in the mould building process as the boat's i race are traditionally made from light ply , would love to hear from you guys with your opinion cheers from Thailand 🇹🇭
If you’re based in Thailand then it’s unlikely you’ll be buying your materials from us so in terms of technical support you’d need to ‘self serve’ from all of the video information and guides we’ve published but I can say for sure that all of the information you would need for the whole process, from mould to part, is available on this channel and our website if you’re willing to put the time in 😀.
Do RIT for a bike frame !! PLEASE !! 😊
Infusion for such tight profiles isn't all that suitable and will be difficult to place consumable sin the correct locations. Not only that but you would need to consider the joining of the 2 mould halves. Prepreg on the other hand would be a much preferred option which is why we chose this material for our downhill bike frame.
I have used polyester gelcoat molds with epoxy many times without issue. Vinylester is not really necessary
You can get away with it in some circumstances for sure, but in our experience, polyester is very hit-and-miss. If you have a polyester mould, test it first (rather than have a part stick in the mould, ruining the mould and the part). Often, you'll get away with it, but when you don't, it's not worth it. It's much less likely to be a problem on old moulds (that have seen many releases) but new polyester moulds cause a lot of problems (we know, we have a technical support line that takes hundreds of calls a day!). Any composites veteran knows that there's a hundred ways to do everything in composites, we just go with the most reliable methods that are likely to help people to avoid the most common problems.
May we cure it in the owen and if yes, what temperature and time. Also how much does it add to mechanical or any other properties. Thanks
Yes, you can post-cure the IN2 resin system. If it's practical to do so then it's generally considered a good idea. Post curing will improve the mechanical performance by a few percent and will raise the Tg (temperature tolerance) of the component. It can also speed up the cure, which can be very useful in high volume production. Please see the technical datasheet for the IN2 resin for suggested post cure cycles.
@SuperfastMatt taking notes
I like your video very much!!! could i know the tube size you using?
The PVC tubes are 6mm ID. The spiral is 3mm ID.
Now I am just sitting here thinking about making a new roof panel for my Audi wagon. Non-sunroof panels are NLA, and I hate my sunroof.
Roofs can be quite tricky, given their size and strength required but infusion like this would be the way to go.
How difficult would it be to make a monolithic piece like a Ford GT 40 front or rear clip would be possible to do it at home in the garage? Assuming a person had plenty of practice?
Absolutely possible; we have customers who have made full clam shells for supercars/kit cars in their kitchens - our mantra is always to start small and learn as mistakes are somewhat inevitable when starting out but its perfectly reasonable to make such parts once you gain experience.
Sir..can you make video tutorial how to make vacuum chamber
What is the compressive strength of carbon that is achieved with the Forged Carbon Fibre Development Kit?
Спасибо!
I'd like to use this method to replace body panels on a project car. However, I've seen many DIY'ers warm against galvanic corrosion. What is that? How do you properly prevent it?
Fiber glass layer on the contracting parts, Lets say a front fender.
Along the bolt holes, use glass fiber on the first and last layer. To sandwich the carbon fiber. It can be a small patch or long strip, whichever you prefer.
You can dye the epoxy too.
Galvanic corrosion is really only an issue in presence of an electrolyte when 2 dissimilar materials are joined together. Often the resin on the surface of the part or the adhesive used to bend the carbon fibre to the metallic component is sufficient to insulate the 2 materials.
Could you show us the trimming tools used?
Hi Brian. We have an entire tutorial dedicated to cutting and trimming composite parts which covers this in detail.
th-cam.com/video/EWzN6GZeEzs/w-d-xo.html
Question: What is better to make a mould from fiberglass or carbon fibre?
The only time that there's a benefit in making a mould from carbon fibre is when you're using a high temperature process (like prepreg) and you're making carbon fibre parts. The reason for this is because at temperature, the CTE of the material (the mould and then component) really matters. Having a mould that has the same thermal expansion as the component you'll be making in it is advantageous. However, for room temperature processes, there's not really any advantage to a carbon mould. What could be an advantage would be a low-to-no shrinkage resin system. Uni-Mould (like the mould used in this video) is very low shrinkage and an epoxy mould would be even lower shrinkage. So, the shrinkage of the resin makes a lot more difference than the reinforcement, for room temperature processes.
@@easycompositestv thank you for the detailed information, I have afew car panels to make.
Hello, I'm looking to make parts for airsoft gun.
The parts are very complex, geometrically speaking, which makes the moulds very complicated to make.
What technique would you recommend to simplify their production and demoulding?
It depends on the part, but with many being 3D in nature, often the forged carbon approach is better suited.