How to Make Carbon Fiber Products

Carbon fiber parts are often used in motorcycles.

Carbon fiber is a widely used material that was invented in the late 20th century. It has some of the highest tensile strengths of known materials, and it is extremely low weight. This makes it especially useful for the aerospace industry. It is also widely used in motorsports and other competition sports. Although carbon fiber is hard to bend, it is easy to compress it or crack it. It is also relatively expensive compared to other materials sharing similar properties such as fiberglass.

Things You'll Need

• Styrofoam
• Knife
• Carbon fiber cloth
• Resin
• Polythene bag
• Vacuum
• Paint brush
• Tape

Instructions

1. Form a styrofoam mold of the product you are trying to make. Use the knife to carve this out of styrofoam. The mold should represent the shape of the space inside your product, and the carbon fiber will be formed into a layer that surrounds this mold.

2. Wrap your styrofoam mold in carbon fiber cloth. Cut it so that it fits exactly over the styrofoam, and leave no gaps or double-layers. The carbon fiber cloth should now be in the exact shape of the desired final product.

3. Keep your polythene bag and vacuum cleaner on hand ready to use.

4. Heat the resin until it becomes at a consistency that it is possible to paint your carbon fiber with it. This temperature depends on the resin you are using. The higher you heat it, the easier it will be to apply an even layer and the longer it will take to cure.

5. Use your paintbrush to coat the carbon fiber with the resin. Try to apply it evenly all around.

6. Immediately place the resin-coated carbon fiber inside the polythene bag and seal it with tape while leaving a hole just big enough for the nozzle of the vacuum cleaner.

7. Insert the nozzle of the vacuum cleaner partially into the polythene bag and turn it on, sucking out all the air and creating a vacuum inside the bag.

8. Immediately after all the air has been sucked out, press shut the hole in the bag and remove the vacuum cleaner nozzle. Seal it off with the tape so that no air can enter the bag. This vacuum seal around your carbon fiber will apply constant pressure to it and help it holds its shape while the resin is curing.

9. Place the vacuum-sealed bag in a warm place (ideally 59-77 degrees Fahrenheit). Allow it to cure for however long the directions specify. The curing time differs from resin to resin.

10. After the resin has cured, cut open the bag and remove the mold from the inside of the carbon fiber part. You now have a carbon fiber part of your own design.

References

• Carbon Fiber 101