"Vigilante 6.0 Vengeance" project

Wooooouuuuhhh !
Epoxy resin
Vacuum process
Infusion system
Isn't too much for someone who never did laminating before ???

Starting with classic polyester resin ( eventually vynilester ) have been always
a good school ???? But I agree epoxy and infusion gives so good work!!!
Seems all your 917 project is done like so ? and it's really so perfect !!!!
Witch part have you tested in infusion ? ( will you do some update on your nice WIP thread ?? )
 
Wooooouuuuhhh !
Epoxy resin
Vacuum process
Infusion system
Isn't too much for someone who never did laminating before ???

Starting with classic polyester resin ( eventually vynilester ) have been always
a good school ???? But I agree epoxy and infusion gives so good work!!!
Seems all your 917 project is done like so ? and it's really so perfect !!!!
Witch part have you tested in infusion ? ( will you do some update on your nice WIP thread ?? )

Yes you`re probably right Mic, I found it hard enough with wet lay up poly to start with but have learnt a lot on the way.
No the bodies we have done so far are just poly/csm/2x2 twill as I did the moulds for polyester not epoxy and the flanges would be marginal for infusion. Although we have another project in the pipeline that I intend to use infusion on, some way off yet!
I did a door and some other parts for another project using infusion, I was very impressed with the strength/weight of the finished parts. But much to learn still regarding the process.
Am I right in thinking I read somewhere that there is a polyester resin created for infusion?? I am sure I did.
A link to a fantastic forum where all things glass/carbon/aramid etc is discussed, may be worth a look Jackal???
Composites Central Forum - The #1 forum for composites discussion
 
Got it, now I'm really styling. Thanks.

My opinion says just go old school with your molds. Polyester or vinyl ester and wet lay-up is fine. Maybe some core in the flat areas for stiffeness. Save the epoxy, vacume bag, carbon fibre, infusing for your finished parts where a bit of weight savings and strength gain is benificial. Ya, epoxy shrinks a bit less and is stronger, but will a mm here or there really make a difference? Do you really need to pull 1000's of parts from these molds or will 100's do? For sure your wallet can tell the difference. It will also take the fun out of it if you have to learn too many new technics at once. Just make sure the mold has enough of a flange to attach a vacume bag if you want.
 
Got it, now I'm really styling. Thanks.

My opinion says just go old school with your molds. Polyester or vinyl ester and wet lay-up is fine. Maybe some core in the flat areas for stiffeness. Save the epoxy, vacume bag, carbon fibre, infusing for your finished parts where a bit of weight savings and strength gain is benificial. Ya, epoxy shrinks a bit less and is stronger, but will a mm here or there really make a difference? Do you really need to pull 1000's of parts from these molds or will 100's do? For sure your wallet can tell the difference. It will also take the fun out of it if you have to learn too many new technics at once. Just make sure the mold has enough of a flange to attach a vacume bag if you want.

This is perfectly resumed !!!!
I have ( for my job) done hundred and hundred carbon fiber parts from the more complicated to the simpliest and when it's time to built parts for me personnaly I just want to use vinylester and simple way to built masters and molds
Carbon can be used for a private only for "look " in the first ply and stay on easy and simple process
I really do not see any reasons it will be better to use any complicated and expensive process !! Specially because you are using a frame tube for your chassis ( so stiffness is obtained differently ) and because it is you first composite project

But as usual it's your project and your own choice
Bon courage
 

Jackal

CURRENTLY BANNED
Thanks Doug and Mic,

I appreciate all the info and views I can get. Alot of food for thought.

I do not have any experience with carbon fibre or vacuum bagging. My experience with fibre glass is limited to fixing broken motorcycle fairings and surf boards! :stunned: And that was more than a while back! But I am keen and excited if not a bit nervous about it!

I agree that the molds must be made with Poly-ester resin (as I understand very little shrinkage) and this I would of done wet lay-up anyway. The bagging I was thinking of only doing when I pull the parts.

How easy is impregnated carbon fibre to work with? Or do you need it oven baked?

Cheers
Jackal
 

Jackal

CURRENTLY BANNED
I might go for these Lenzo rims. Rears are 19" x 10.5" and front 19" x 9.5

They cost R10000 Which is about $1100. What do you guys think?
 

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Thanks Doug and Mic,



How easy is impregnated carbon fibre to work with? Or do you need it oven baked?

Cheers
Jackal

You might wrote how difficult is ..... LoL !!!!

forget this ; to do preimpregnated carbonfiber you need

A very big fridge to stock carbon rolls as you cannot let these up to minus 15°c (and use them on the time written onto the roll 3 to 5 months)

carbon fiber epoxy mold because they need to be cured at same temp than the parts so .....

Very big Autoclave ( it's an oven able to have vacumm inside and out side )
cost are from 60000 to 500000 euros as they have vacuum pumps and electronics system to cure parts following an hardening process extremly precise and depending of how the part is so each item need a specific programm to enter on the autoclave computer

I know some guys having tried to avoid all this professional process using sort of big painting furnace and look like vacuum system because they wanted to show that their part where in " Prepeg " !! But if you watch the result iis no more than a normal cured wet system epoxy added by vacuum bag and sometimes very dangerous stuff because they used Polyester mold in doing that simili process and when curing at 50 or 60 ° C the styrene have migrated into some plies and when they tested delamination there was a catastrophic result indicating that something wrong was there on big parts as front bonnets or large floor pan !!!!!
And nothing to tell about how the poor polyester molds where totally deformed due to this abnormal temp they had to suffer

Plus the fact that Prepeg that cures at low temps are twice the price and very rare to find and not avaible in many thickness or wave constitution
And most of these specific low temp clothes have to be cured after unmolding at 90 °C to get the right " strength ratio " named TPG

SO ...........................
 
Ha ha
I would love to be in South Africa ; Bailey cars have one 917 kit I would be happy to built one and race her in your very fun historic races !!
There in Europe you need very real and historic cars ... homologated etc etc so very very very expensive for a retired raceman like me !!
 

Jackal

CURRENTLY BANNED
Here are the mags I've decided on. Difficult to find 10.5 " for the rear. Will take 315 tyres. Should arrive Friday.
Make: Lenso

Rim sizes 19" x 9" front (tyre: 245 x 35 x 19)
19" x 10.5" rear (tyre 315 x 35 x 19)


Cheers
Jackal
 

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Jackal

CURRENTLY BANNED
:) I see I posted those last pics twice....

Anyway, received the mags on Friday.

Here's pics of the rear rims.

Cheers
Jackal
 

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