Also, anybody here with experience in laying carbon fiber? I was thinking about covering the wooden mould in tape, so i can use the tape to make the mould sit flush with the board. I figure as long as i cover the tape with release agent, the enclosure should still release when the resin dries, and at the same time protect my board from any resin getting on it. Anybody think this is a good or bad idea lol? This is my first time laying carbon fiber.
@Namasaki Thanks man. I’m really hoping since the board is wood that there won’t be any interference. Worst case scenario, I will find a place to mount the receiver outside of the enclosure.
Nice dude! Looks really professional!! I had an eye on your build last month, but this is the first time I seen it finished. I was actually thinking about mounting my LCD on the top side like you did, but might mount it on the enclosure instead. Undecided.
Ya, my build been a work in progress for long time.
I used to have mine mounted on the enclosure but then I would have to stop and flip my board to check battery.
Now I just look down.
I was inspired by the Raptor design to mount the meter and switch on top.
Today I am going to attempt to lay the carbon fiber. I covered my wooden mould in tape and tapped it to the deck to make the enclosure sit flush with the deck. Then I covered the entire mould in release wax.
NICE! Looks like it’ll be a great setup. Couple things to comment on and somewhat late to the party…
1 - motors. Dual 5055’s should work great. I ran dual 5065’s (200kv’s iirc) on an old setup and they worked GREAT for me. And i’m huge (6’8"/2m and 265/120kg), so no small feat moving me along. Gearing is key.
2 - CF. I disagree somewhat. yes expensive, but that’s because you went vacuum (simplifies, but $$$). Still a great project and skill to learn.
Also on CF/Epoxy - and likely too late if you’ve already begun - Packing tape and saran wrap/plastic-wrap are both good as the Epoxy doesn’t stick!
Will follow and look forward to seeing this build! Best of luck.
@sl33py this information is definitely not too late lol
Murphy’s Law - Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.
So my first carbon fiber lay was a total DISASTER. I definitely spoke too soon when I said, “It all went pretty smoothly.”. I was completely done, literally walking away, already patting myself on the back when i hear a “SNAP!!”. When i came back I had seen that my wooden mould had collapsed. I screamed in frustration. I’m pretty sure the whole neighborhood heard me.
The epoxy I was using has a working time of 70 minutes. At this point, it was way past 70 minutes. I had no other choice but to open the bag and try to fix it. I was able to wedge some pencils underneath the wooden mould to support it, which was only semi successful. At this point, I was also out of vacuum bagging, so i had to try and recycle the old bag i used earlier.
If you look closely, you can see a dent on the right side where the wood is sagging.
On a positive note, this was a lot of fun and it was indeed a great learning experience, but now I am out of carbon fiber, vacuum bagging, and tape.
I really hope my enclosure doesn’t turn out too bad. I would like to use this one for the time being until i get enough money to buy more materials and give it a second shot.
Thanks for the info @sl33py, I’ll definitely look into packing tape and saran wrap.
sorry man - that’s no fun. Yeah, i was playing with vacuum bagging and it’s pretty impressive how much force it exerts on the deck! What i learned the first time is that Poly resin is AWFUL. Stinks, doesn’t stick to anything except itself… I ended up removing it from my board w/ just my hands and started over w/ epoxy the second time (and sanded to bare wood - i was an idiot).
I’ve since done some hand layup and will be re-trying some bagging next. I started small w/ reinforcing (and cosmetic) on some simpler decks (better than the blank wood and a bit stronger). Will be doing an enclosure next and might try vacuum again. But using solid MDF to make sure and support it fully and not have any collapsing issues like you saw here.
Your bagging material may be re-usable! Cut the butyl tape off of one side and if you have room to still squeeze the board in leave the other 3 sides? Or if you have enough excess to make it a bit smaller but still fit?
release film - need new, but Breather fabric - you can use blue shop paper towels! It’s just there to soak up the excess resin. Doesn’t need to be the thick white fabric - just do several layers of the blue shop paper towels instead.
As for CF - i’ve found an ebay seller that has been really reasonable (not sure where you are at - likely only would work if in the US). Elite Motoring. I’ve also gotten from Fibreglast, but a bit more $.
Fingers crossed it’s ok!
I have a ton of pics and stuff i’ve learned playing with CF and epoxy. Using a quick copy/paste from @Rye’s “Ballerina Badass” build thread:
Hey @sl33py I meant to ask you, 1- What receiver remote are you using? There seems to be a lot of chatter around the forum around issues with these 2- Did you notice any increase in issues with the CF deck? If not did you come up with a work around somehow?
Hey Rye! I have Kama/Weiceivers and GT2b’s. That’s it. GF loves the kama, but it does get drops in areas with lots of wifi interference (apartments along Alki where we ride). She likes the thumb throttle and doesn’t like the trigger of my badwolf GT2b’s.
I don’t have any CF enclosures yet. I’ve only done the bottom and top surfaces, but no enclosures yet. I plan on sneaking the Rx reception wire out a hole to get clear air and signal.
Well. despite my wooden mould collapsing, I was able to salvage a pretty decent enclosure. All things considered, I think it looks pretty legit. #happycamper#firsttry
Here is where I shoved in some pens at the last minute to support the wooden mould after it collapsed. I cant believe I was able to salvage this disaster when it was well past the epoxy’s working time. The lesson to be learned here is to never underestimate the strength of the vacuum. When i sealed it back up, I didn’t have enough bagging to make an actual bag, so I had to seal it against the table, which caused the deck to flex when under vacuum pressure. Hopefully it didn’t do any damage to the deck. It seemed to go back to its regular shape after I released the pressure.
