Has anyone here ever done any carbon fiber work? I want to give it a shot and could use some tips.

LOL i was thinking this last week too, after watching someone do some cool stuff with it on tv.  so i would like any info too.  cydex, i think i spelled that right, looks like CF but comes in sheets that can be heated and shaped.

There are companies on line that sell carbon fiber by the yard and all the epoxy resin and other supplies. I just wonder how similar it is to fiberglass as far as the proccess goes.

Carbon fiber would be cool to experiment with.

Much better then plexi, if you have a cylinder of CF (big or small) and run it over with a car it is nearly impossible to break. Great stuff VERY strong.

There are companies on line that sell carbon fiber by the yard and all the epoxy resin and other supplies. I just wonder how similar it is to fiberglass as far as the proccess goes.

the guy i saw using it on tv put the fiber over a mold, put a very tight thin rubber sleeve over it, pushed/squeezed in the resin and then used a vacuum pump to suck the air out.  there was prob a lot that wasnt shown...

There are quite a few books about on boat or canoe building with kevlar fibre and I'd imagine the process would be pretty much the same.
Regards Charlie

MMM   Composits    Before I got big into
my Suzuki I wanted to build an ultralight but
I wanted it to look more like an airplane instead
of a stick model ultralight, so I got a book on
the subject, Composit Aircraft Construction, I
think it was about $15-20 and I think it is available
from Spruce Aircraft Specialty   they are online too
so it should be an easy find

Carbon Fiber, is strong light and good for parts,
on the down side, it's also brittle, like if a rock
hits it, the fibers fracture in that spot and create
a weak spot. This isn't a problem with hoods and
body panels, but in a stressed part it could fail
and cause catastrophic failure (read not good in
an aircraft)  this also becomes a crash problem
when the part breaks and thousands of needle
sharp CF splinters want to make you into a human
pin cushon    The solution is to overlay the CF
with Kevlar (bullet Resistan Vest Matierial) to add
impact resistance, strength and toughness in event
of a crash, most of the CF parts you see are simulated
and are not real, but the look is cool.

The vacuum molded parts are very strong and light,
they use the vacuum to mold the parts to an exact
shape, so you need to make a mold that is also the
shape you want, vacuum also draws off the extra resin
so the part is as light as possible, you could use a good
old household vacuum, it really just needs to be reliable
so it doesn't stop half way through the cure time, which
depending on the speed of the resin can be 1-24 hours.
Longer cure time is stronger, and you can set up a ridgid
table and use a heavy Vinyl sheet like 1/16 - 1/8 inch thick,
rolled over at the edges of the table with spring clamps and
wood slats about 1x2 or 1x3 and vacuum applied from under
the table, put the mold on the table, the resin coated CF or
?? you are using seal with the Vinyl and start the vacuum, wait
for the cure to get to the green stage (where you can trim with
scissors still) remove the vacuum and trim, allow to finish setting
and then finish the part (paint or what ever) once you have the mold
or shape, you can make as many of these parts as you can sell
if that is what you wish.

Enjoy

Wild