carbon fiber source and price

degarb

Flashlight Enthusiast
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Oct 27, 2007
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A youtube video "carbon fiber for dummies" , chart claims carbon fiber has taken off since 2006 and is dropping in price. He also predicts it will be the automakers future choice material.

The possibilities of the stuff for home repair, tinkering, and manufacture, boggles the mind. As well as edc, headlamp, and wrist-light (practicalization and production).

I knew most aircrafts (a 2008 book I read, which also described something called "chicken rivets") were being made of the stuff, replacing aluminum. But never thought about using the stuff. The stuff just grabbed again my attention yesterday. ....

So, anyone know of a good source for a good amount of the stuff cheaply (in relative terms)?
 
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Its a great and amazing material, but can be dangerous and tricky to work with, do some reading up on it before trying to work with any of it, just handling it wrong can lead to trip to the hospital.

Typical CF in products has a finish one it, but the plain old raw CF can splinter into millions of microscopic splinter, that are poisonous, and painful, not something you want to have removed from your hand, not like wood splinters XD, and then you need to worry about the carbon poisoning.

Its very strong and is a amazing material though, but its strength comes from how its laid up / the weave or whatever, it can be as strong as diamonds one way, but totally brittle and weak on another axis.

I used to shoot carbon arrows, and when you retrieve an arrow from the target you would ALWAYS without fail use the arrow puller (Rubber circle thing wrapped around arrow) as trying to pull it out by hand and slipping on it and getting splinter = world of hurt / trip to hospital if it splintered into your hand.

So if your sanding it or grinding it or working on it in anyway, masks, goggles and gloves along with some kind of extraction system would not be a bad idea.

Everything from the epoxy used and the weave determine how well it will perform and if it will be suitable for a certain application, there are whole company and RnD departments just for research on this amazing material, it funny as every bike MFG claims they have the bes fiber ect, although general trek's CF bikes are very good, as they have there own Inhouse CF Factory, but that for another fourm....Its not something work with on a whim, its a very technical material, unlike say a piece of wood than anyone can go pick up and work on with tools and a knife ect.

So a lot of research is required if you don't know anything about it.

As for were to buy it I don't have a clue.
 
I bought a lot of stuff from these guys. The sleeving is really cool for making tubes:

http://www.sollercomposites.com/

I am thinking for first carbon projects: A Metal Halide bulb protector for my portable MH light. And then, a smartphone case (where in past I make from aluminum: sleeker, tougher (withstand hundreds of psi + h2o) than store cases.)

I must admit, I have never worked with fiberglass cloth. Maybe this would be a more practical alternative. Maybe use coil stock aluminum for bulb protector + fiberglass + foam core. Dunno. Weight is important, since I am getting a electronic ballasted MH, as a lighter,smaller alternative to the 30 lbs magnetic start light. Hoping smaller and lighter will equal use on smaller jobs.

Naturally, I wonder how far, how many small projects $50 would get me.
 
I am thinking for first carbon projects: A Metal Halide bulb protector for my portable MH light. And then, a smartphone case (where in past I make from aluminum: sleeker, tougher (withstand hundreds of psi + h2o) than store cases.)

I must admit, I have never worked with fiberglass cloth. Maybe this would be a more practical alternative. Maybe use coil stock aluminum for bulb protector + fiberglass + foam core. Dunno. Weight is important, since I am getting a electronic ballasted MH, as a lighter,smaller alternative to the 30 lbs magnetic start light. Hoping smaller and lighter will equal use on smaller jobs.

Naturally, I wonder how far, how many small projects $50 would get me.

Although you can use CF cloth the same way you would use fiberglass cloth, much of the stuff it sounds like you want to use it for/make would require vacuum forming & oven curing. Look up some of the processes for making CF products, it's not a cheap & easy process.
 
Although you can use CF cloth the same way you would use fiberglass cloth, much of the stuff it sounds like you want to use it for/make would require vacuum forming & oven curing. Look up some of the processes for making CF products, it's not a cheap & easy process.

Yeah the vacuum process looks like they are simply getting excess epoxy out for maximum lightness. (Not too hard on small parts, using a throwaway vacuum bag.) I do not see why a cf part could not be pressed between a positive and negative mold to squeeze excess epoxy out of the sides (making trimming necessary).

Finally got a partial quote, 3K carbon for $10, but a qt of epoxy will cost you $50.00 No word on how far this would go. (I assume you would need 4 to 7 layers, maybe hybrid it with another material might as "'CF for Dummies' demo of wood+CF=unbreakable.)
 
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