Project Carbon Fiber

[Jam]

so this is my first time working w/ carbon fiber and I plan on wrapping various interior pieces w/ a 2x2 twill of it. I will be doing the shifter plate, the door handle bezels, the radio bezel, the gauge cluster and possibly some other parts. I first started off with the shifter plate...... I hate the fact that GM placed a cup holder right where your arm rests for the shifter so I did a cup holder delete (we have 3 other cupholders anyways lol). I shall be CFing the shifter plate tomorrow. I will be sure to post pictures as this project progresses :nod:

- JAM

[Jam]

here are some pics of the cupholder delete.

the materials needed were:
- various grits from 60-180
- orbital w/ sanding attachments
- Expanding Foam
- Bondo Body Filler / hardener / squeegee
- Drill gun
- patience of course

http://i631.photobucket.com/albums/uu33/TransAmJam/DSC01203.jpg
Drilling these holes at the bottom of the cupholder provides extra strength for the expanding foam to hug onto.
http://i631.photobucket.com/albums/uu33/TransAmJam/DSC01222.jpg
http://i631.photobucket.com/albums/uu33/TransAmJam/DSC01221.jpg
http://i631.photobucket.com/albums/uu33/TransAmJam/DSC01225.jpg
http://i631.photobucket.com/albums/uu33/TransAmJam/DSC01235.jpg
http://i631.photobucket.com/albums/uu33/TransAmJam/DSC01228.jpg
http://i631.photobucket.com/albums/uu33/TransAmJam/DSC01237.jpg
http://i631.photobucket.com/albums/uu33/TransAmJam/DSC01238.jpg
http://i631.photobucket.com/albums/uu33/TransAmJam/DSC01242.jpg
sandable primer
http://i631.photobucket.com/albums/uu33/TransAmJam/DSC01249.jpg
http://i631.photobucket.com/albums/uu33/TransAmJam/DSC01257.jpg

Carbon Fibering tomorrow. =]

[btownws6]

wow never thought of filling that it looks good

[Jam]

wow never thought of filling that it looks good

thanks for the kind words. I just hated having a cupholder there. plus it gives a more aggressive interior look. aesthetically pleasing > ergonomics.

[BigAls87Z28]

Could have just picked up a third gen center console...
At least it moves the window switches to a nicer place.

[Jam]

Could have just picked up a third gen center console...
At least it moves the window switches to a nicer place.

i'm not a fan of the third gen center console or anything affiliated with third gen interiors.

[btownws6]

i'm not a fan of the third gen center console or anything affiliated with third gen interiors.


yea i hear ya they are a little strange

[maroman88]

wen i finally got a 4th gen... i was more then excited to have ONE cupholder... never did i think someone would get rid of it... just weird, i use it allllll the time

[Mike]

wen i finally got a 4th gen... i was more then excited to have ONE cupholder... never did i think someone would get rid of it... just weird, i use it allllll the time

next time you have a cup in it, imagine your car is a six speed..........that cup holder is USELESS in manual cars. the only one worth keeping is the one that folds out

[Czop418]

yea in m6 cars the cupholders are pointless for holding drinks. The only thing i ever seen in them is the occasional pack of smokes or a lighter lol.

[Jam]

next time you have a cup in it, imagine your car is a six speed..........that cup holder is USELESS in manual cars. the only one worth keeping is the one that folds out

exactly!!! for cars equipped w/ manual transmissions that cupholder is mainly used for spare change...it's just pointless.

[btownws6]

yea my cup holder has my change in it lol its always in the way of the shifter fail GM, and the flip out one sucks for anything bigger then a snapple

[V]

i used my cupholder to hold my radio remote or cellphone

[sweetbmxrider]

looks pretty good. i dono how this carbon fiber is gunna look though.

i have the ipod cupholder, holder. its a good spot for it.

[LTb1ow]

Not bad.

I would be worried it will crack, but does look nice.

[V]

I would be worried it will crack, but does look nice.


once wrapped with CF, it wouldnt be noticeable really if at all

[Jam]

looks pretty good. i dono how this carbon fiber is gunna look though.
it may not be for everyone, but I think it would look badass. it's all part of my plan on revamping the interior. fourth gen interiors are really compatible platforms for customizing.
Not bad.

I would be worried it will crack, but does look nice.
thanks, but the pictures you see are before I went over everything with another layer of bondo. the bondo adheres to the expander foam quite well and I've dropped the shifter plate on the floor a couple of times during the process and the vibrations didn't seem to create any cracks in the bondo; if it was just plastic + bondo, then ya I would see where you're going w/ that, but there are three materials to adhere to. plus, after a few layers of carbon fiber it will reinforce the material.

[Jam]

once wrapped with CF, it wouldnt be noticeable really if at all

ya what he said. I just hope that I don't get any air bubbles when doing the part where the TCS switch and the cig lighter are located, luckily a friend who has done this before is going to guide me.

[madness410]

are you getting the sheets of sticky stuff from autozone or whatever? i saw this thread on a honda forum, its more less for cosmetics but its actual carbon fiber..

http://www.b20vtec.com/forums/exclusive-imports/365692-custom-carbon-fiber.html

[Jam]

are you getting the sheets of sticky stuff from autozone or whatever? i saw this thread on a honda forum, its more less for cosmetics but its actual carbon fiber..

http://www.b20vtec.com/forums/exclusive-imports/365692-custom-carbon-fiber.html

I'm buying the 2x2 twill off my friend, and the releasing wax, epoxy/hardener, etc I bought myself. cool link you posted

EDIT: didn't read your post fully through. haha no I'm not making a thread about me putting on carbon fiber vinyl cutouts on my interior lolol. I'm actually wrapping it in it.

[madness410]

arrite cool sounds good..good luck with the project keep us posted.

as for that link..yeah its cool, it gives the carbon fiber link but for most of the ricers on that site thats all they need..if anything it HURTS their car by adding more weight. but if you are just going for the look on your center console id say that would be good for it, but those honda boys...are something else..

[Jam]

arrite cool sounds good..good luck with the project keep us posted.

as for that link..yeah its cool, it gives the carbon fiber link but for most of the ricers on that site thats all they need..if anything it HURTS their car by adding more weight. but if you are just going for the look on your center console id say that would be good for it, but those honda boys...are something else..

yeah it's senseless to wrap/skin carbon fiber onto body parts....just do a damn mold lazy asses. it's almost as ridiculous as those people who spraypaint their cars to look like carbon fiber by mixing different base coats (silver, dark silver, silver metallic, dark grey metallic) ....its retarded.

[1986IROCZ28]

yea in m6 cars the cupholders are pointless for holding drinks. The only thing i ever seen in them is the occasional pack of smokes or a lighter lol.

true story lol

[Jam]

well the guy that's supposed to give me the carbon fiber today backed out and told me to pick it up in midweek. ARG!! to be continued..

[procamaroz28]

nice!! thats a big diff. from what u showed me in the morning...

[rbaksi]

looks great I thought about filling mine in but I like that cupholder

[Jam]

looks great I thought about filling mine in but I like that cupholder

thanks man.but you probably don't drive manual then. cause most m6 drivers will beg to differ.

[Teds89IROC]

Looks good, only thing I'd suggest to anyone doing this is to sand down the edges of the cupholder before you fill it with foam so you don't see a seem when you're all done. If you're covering it with CF then it probably won't show through. I like it.

[Jam]

thanks ted but yeah those pics are before I went over it w/ one more coat of body filler. and the carbon fiber will definitely hide the little minute imperfections.

[Jared1970Chevelle]

can your friend get big weave carbon fiber?

[Jam]

I'm just using what he has left over. I'll check out his stash and let you know when I see him.

[Jam]

Update: don't think I forgot about this... the person I was relying on to supply me w/ the carbon fiber dicked me over. I just came to the realization today... so I ordered the stuff myself:

- Epoxy resin 1 quart w/ slow hardener
- 3K 2x2 Carbon Fiber Twill 50"Wx12"L
- carbon fiber friendly degreaser
- home depot mixing sticks (free)
- polishing compound
- UPOL UV Resistant High Gloss Clear Coat (http://www.autobodytoolmart.com/u-pol-clear-1-high-gloss-clear-coat-up0796-pc-15130-1062.aspx)(amazing stuff)
- 3 White Bristle Laminating Brushes
- and a couple of different wet/dry grits

to be continued...

[NastyEllEssWon]

http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i125/Jsaul83/DSC01929.jpg?t=1250780285

http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i125/Jsaul83/DSC01927.jpg?t=1250780285





well since mr. jam has been banned on the site...id think id do everyone here a solid and show you the finished results of the project carbon fiber.



enjoy justin :rofl:

[sweetbmxrider]

link?

little rough around the edges :-?

[Blacdout96]

Well thats what happens when you lay it on a product without doing a vacuum mold. To get that glass smooth version, it takes special epoxy, and certain layers to put over it while doing the vacuum mold to accomplish that. Although pure race cars interiors arent needing to me astetic and can often look like this.

btw, why was jam banned?

[NastyEllEssWon]

jam was banned for playing tommy toughnuts with mods, admins and owners :lol:



http://www.ls1tech.com/forums/appearance-detailing/1136399-project-carbon-fiber-2.html

[Blacdout96]

Ahh.. Yeah I have about 3ft X 18ft structural 3M carbon Fibre I got from when I worked at Viking, Im dying to use it on something. It's structural not visual, so it wouldn't dlook pleasing to put on a part such as that, but my god is this stuff light.

What he should of done was take one giant piece, lay it over, and cut out the approiate holes ( shifter, etc) leaving leftover to hang. when epoxy is applied, carbon fiber, fiberglass, and such can be bended and moved in a way to make it smooth without having to add aditional layers for areas you think it wouldnt bend to. I'll have to grab some carbon fiber from one of my friends and cover something and give you guys a step by step photo and written sticky of how to do it, sounds good?

[sweetbmxrider]

that would be cool to learn. could probably apply it to vinyl for the dash pad, right?

[Blacdout96]

Yeah, you can apply it to just about anything. the surface just has to be prepared right. our dashes are almost ready to be used since its a rough surface, but anything like armorall and other wax cleaners would have to be removed. In all fairness, choosing the right carbon fiber and epoxy resin instead of the cheapo stuff will pay for itself in the long run. I've seen people apply fiberglass resin to c.f., which can be done, but cracks over time, and also creates a yello haze to it after being exposed to the sun for a while. buying the right c.f. specific with last years longer, which is why you don't see alot of peopel using c.f. on their own, not only is carbon fiber expensive, but the resin is worse in price.

[WildBillyT]

jam was banned for playing tommy toughnuts with mods, admins and owners :lol:



http://www.ls1tech.com/forums/appearance-detailing/1136399-project-carbon-fiber-2.html

It was more than that. People flex nuts at us all the time, and we ban almost nobody.



Leave it at that please.

[NastyEllEssWon]

bah i just thought these results were pretty funny and decided to share them with njfboa to complete this project thread :lol:

[Blacdout96]

It's kind of a train wreck to me. not bad for a first timer, got the epoxy to cure, but theres alot of care, and time that should of been used to havea better outcome. Wish he would of handed it over to me, would of came out better.

[Mike]

i like the ashtray and cup holder delete......maybe ill do one minus the cf.....maybe wrap it in vinyl or maybe just get it super smooth and paint it ebony

[PolarBear]

It's kind of a train wreck to me.

That epoxy looks super thick, I doubt he used a squeege to wet out the fabric.... You can get parts to look nice without vacuum bagging :-?

[Blacdout96]

It's a better process, making sure you get the epoxy throughly through the threads, and also forms a tighter, more uniform seal on molds, giving itthat mirro finish. Personally, unless its a body panel, vacuum molding isnt necessary, but it wouldnt hurt to give a little show. the dullness on the console is fine, I like that, doesnt look chincy, it's got that authentic carbon fiber look, but the fit and finish didnt come out to hot. If you look at any modern day race car, besides the exterior panels, they have that dullness.

and yeah looks like the console was angled a certain way, allowing the epoxy to puddle near where the cigarette lighter was. It doesnt take much to make it look good, but it can take shortcuts to make it look like crap. Once again I know it's his first time, but a little patience could of gone farther with the finish. he could of used an epoxy roller to get any air bubbles out and spread the epoxy out. it's like a dollar tool thats disposible.

[PolarBear]

It's a better process, making sure you get the epoxy throughly through the threads, and also forms a tighter, more uniform seal on molds, giving itthat mirro finish.

Rarely does a part come out of a vacuum mold with a mirror finish. It is smooth but it is very porus as the vacuum pulls out the excess resin. You really need to clear coat a overlay piece or in a mold you need to apply a gelcoat first to get a nice finish.

[transmaro93]

hey adam... did i call this one or what?? hahah member we talked about this a while back... hahah oh well at least he gave it a shot.... cant kill em for that...

[Teds89IROC]

oh man :lol:

Ahh.. Yeah I have about 3ft X 18ft structural 3M carbon Fibre I got from when I worked at Viking

as in Viking Yachts?

[bubba428]

yup viking yachts...R&D I believe

[Jersey Mike]

Where'd you find those pics? That the final product? (I thought I read that he was going to wrap it one more time..)

[transmaro93]

wrapping it one more time isnt going to help that....

[Blacdout96]

oh man :lol:



as in Viking Yachts?

Yeah, asked my boss if we could get it in, when the 3M guy came in, he asked for a sample, sample turned into 3ftX 18ft lol. I got people there still that could buy it by the roll for me dirt cheap, but I haven't been in the composite hobby in like a year, I want to finish my Camaro before i go back to testing my heat insulation and doing custom parts.