Nice work and that CF looks beautiful.
Have you though about adding a simple neoprene gasket or similar soft foam? To help with vibrations and also seal up some of the dust as a bonus. Just around the edge i think it might help!
I’m almost embarrassed to ask… but this is an aesthetics post right? Has anyone tried out carbon fiber vinyl? Obviously it provides none of the structural benefits of real CF, but it seems like the look and appearance of CF can be replicated this way. Car detailers do it a lot. It appears to be a simple solution if one only wants something to “look” like CF. I was surprised by how closely you can get it to hug corners with just a heat gun.
i could be grossly mistaken… but it looks as if @lowGuido’s pintail deck was vinyled and only the boxes are CF.
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True story. My deck is just standard 9 ply covered with carbon look vinyl. It is only the box that is real carbon.
I have toyed with the idea of making a full carbon deck. But havent gone there just yet.
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@lowGuido any tips on good vinyl to use? I wasn’t sure if it would mount to wood. Did you have to sand the paint off of your board first? I found a deck with the perfect shape and stiffness, but U-G-L-Y graphics. I was thinking I would spray paint it or use vinyl like this to cover it up.
The best carbon vinyl is 3m all the way. You will have no problem applying it directly to the wood. So long as you thoroughly prep the area first. 3m also has an adhesive promoter that brushes on before applying the vinyl. I like to use it specially in any nooks and crannies that you want the vinyl to stick to.
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I sanded one board before applying the vinyl and the other board i didn’t. The board that I didnt sand has started to lift around the edges. so I guess sand and clean the board first.
I have used 3m vinyl as well as many other different no name brand ones. its hit and miss. I did get one no name brand that was as good as the 3m and a fraction of the cost, but I also got another that was rubbish.
the stuff that was good as 3m was this stuff: http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/BRAND-NEW-3D-Carbon-Fibre-Car-Vinyl-Wrap-Sticker1270mm-X-3000mm-FreeSqueegee-OZ-/161278333507?hash=item258cf01243 thats whats on my decks.
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Thanks @King1017 and @lowGuido. When you say that you sanded your board first, do you mean that you sanded it down to bare wood and then applied the adhesive promoter, or do you mean that you scuffed the painted surface for better adhesion? I’m going to give this a try on my new deck! Great solution to ugly graphics!
besides a final wipe with a tack cloth before applying vinyl - what did you wipe it down with?
I usually use denatured alcohol - anyone else use something else?
And a heat gun is helpful as well right? I’ve only done some flat surfaces.
so what I did was sand down the deck and wipe it down. then I applied a coat of black paint. (originally I was going to lay one layer of real carbon so I didn’t want the light wood peering out from behind the dark weave)
after considering the cost Vs the benefit (a lot Vs none) I decided to vinyl wrap it instead and perhaps leave the carbon for a full deck project later. so I put down the vinyl with a heat gun.
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@lowGuido @King1017 I tried this tonight! I partially sanded my board, cleaned it with denatured alcohol, prepped with tack cloth, and then applied the adhesive promotor from 3M. Waited five minutes. The adhesion went well and the vinyl molded to every corner with little effort. I used my heat gun around the corners and at the drop just to get the vinyl to sink in.
But I wasn’t able to make nice straight cuts to finish it off, as I trimmed away the remainder, I realized that I had no idea how to do it well! All of the instructions I watched online about applying carbon fiber vinyl were for car parts, where the vinyl edge is “tucked” somewhere and not visible.
So here’s the result:
Any tips on getting a straight line with vinyl? I’m going to give it another try!
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dont worry about it. looks fine. if you really have to you can rub a small file around the edge to make it even.
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I does look good, I understand your want for it to be perfect. I used to own a vinyl print and install place a few years back. Whenever I wanted a perfect straight line that followed an edge nicely I would use a vinyl squeegee (the kind you use to help apply the vinyl) as my straight edge. I would put it between the surface that I didn’t want to Mar up and my blade and smoothly cut. There are videos out there demonstrateing what I’m talking about.
Also make sure before you start a cut to have a brand new sharp blade. Another tip would be for the size of cut it is to trim a skate deck you should try to do it one smooth cut without stopping
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@lowGuido @King1017 Thanks for the encouragement and advice! Has anyone ever tried this stuff? Seems like it might help.
Yeah that stuff is awesome.
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Yeah i have used that cutting tape on cars before where I wanted to cut the vinyl on a line that not the edge of the panel. heres a hood that I did.
but for what you are doing it is totaly over kill. just get a new sharp blade and run it down the wood. same as if you were cutting the grip tape.
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PS i reckon a mod should split this into 2 topics, one for carbon fibre and one for carbon vinyl wrap.
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Agreed @lowGuido. @onloop could we move this to a CF Vinyl thread? Sorry for hijacking the thread here @lox897.
Looks awesome @lowGuido! I tried to follow the grip-tape method, but the vinyl doesn’t have a much structure as GT, and it would fold and wrinkle as I cut. I’m wondering now if the blade I used was too dull. It was brand new as of yesterday, but I also used it to cut new grip tape for the board just before applying the vinyl.
sounds like you need a fresh blade if the vinyl is wrinkling. I buy a box of replacement box cutter blades and use a fresh one every time.