Fibreglass with 1x carbon fibre layer for aesthetic body panels?

Hi All,

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I have just been thinking about making some composite body panels for a project bike I&#;m working on. The panels aren&#;t very large at all, not load bearing in any way - basically they&#;re just there to stop the bike from looking really weird.

I have been wanting to try out a few pieces in carbon fibre, but to make a 100% CF part is a bit beyond my budget at the moment. So I was thinking about maybe a CF outer layer, with the rest made up with fibreglass? I don&#;t know if this is even feasible, or a good idea&#; I have a lot of research to do but I just thought I would ask in case it&#;s just a flat out bad idea? If it&#;s better just to wait until I can afford to do a 100% CF part, I will wait.

The other thing I just wanted some clarification on - I have been reading about using CF with polyester resin, and how the resulting part will not be as strong and the resin will likely break down before the CF. How about making the exact same part using glass and poly resin? Is that combination somehow more durable? Or if I want to make durable, half decent parts do I need to use epoxy resin full stop?

I just want to get a bit more of an understanding on this before I dive in and start making plugs etc. Thanks very much for any info!

For more information, please visit fiberglass carbon fiber.

Cheers,

Conrad

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buzzy said..
Marks on the money in relation to compression loads. Carbon slightly outdoes glass in this area as it is about 5 times stiffer than glass. This also means that failure of carbon is catastrophic. (still maybe need a bit of glass)
Carbon under the heels takes the weight of landing etc. due to its layup with the pvc core and inner cloth. when weight is applied the core bends downwards the layers under the core are under tension and the outer layers are under compression. the correct layup of carbon and glass, etc. on the outside helps prevent buckling of the fibres that lead to delamination and laminate breakdown.
Compression is not a force that is at right angles to the cloth. It is a force that is internally applied to the fibres on the outside of a composite that has a force applied externally. Below image shows those forces. If the compression layup cannot handle the forces it will buckle or wrinkle and fail leading to delamination and cracking of the core.

Compression has nothing to do with sharp impact or knocks and bumps, this is impact forces that carbon does not like.


Board makers are putting carbon around the rails to help stiffen the boards while keeping weight down, not for impact resistance.
Carbon has become more popular in board construction due to it have approximately twice the strength to weight ratio than glass, assisting to keep boards light and hopefully kind of strong.....well maybe.......ok, sometimes, but not if it says Textreme on the label.
This video has no relevance to sailboards as you do not make a board by just laying up layers of glass and carbon. Proper core composite layups have a lot more going on than what this video is about.
P.S. I'm not a carbon fan, you can make a decent board without the use of it.

Marks on the money in relation to compression loads. Carbon slightly outdoes glass in this area as it is about 5 times stiffer than glass. This also means that failure of carbon is catastrophic. (still maybe need a bit of glass)Carbon under the heels takes the weight of landing etc. due to its layup with the pvc core and inner cloth. when weight is applied the core bends downwards the layers under the core are under tension and the outer layers are under compression. the correct layup of carbon and glass, etc. on the outside helps prevent buckling of the fibres that lead to delamination and laminate breakdown.Compression is not a force that is at right angles to the cloth. It is a force that is internally applied to the fibres on the outside of a composite that has a force applied externally. Below image shows those forces. If the compression layup cannot handle the forces it will buckle or wrinkle and fail leading to delamination and cracking of the core.Compression has nothing to do with sharp impact or knocks and bumps, this is impact forces that carbon does not like.Board makers are putting carbon around the rails to help stiffen the boards while keeping weight down, not for impact resistance.Carbon has become more popular in board construction due to it have approximately twice the strength to weight ratio than glass, assisting to keep boards light and hopefully kind of strong.....well maybe.......ok, sometimes, but not if it says Textreme on the label.This video has no relevance to sailboards as you do not make a board by just laying up layers of glass and carbon. Proper core composite layups have a lot more going on than what this video is about.P.S. I'm not a carbon fan, you can make a decent board without the use of it.

Yep. I recon the best sandwich will have extra glass on top to resist crush and deform', and kevlar under for tension strength. And maybe a double layer sandwich of lots of deck grip, closed cell foam of you jump to the clouds!

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