Carbon fiber Ferrari & Maserati shield

General Composites Discussions Showcase
#1

Well guys, I decided to get crazy again. So here goes. This is going to be a double sided carbon fiber shield with a foam core. The concave side will be done in tribute to Maserati. It will house a carbon fiber 3 dimensional 12 inch trident. The trident will be removable just incase you want to be Poseidon for Halloween. There will be a 2 inch strip of 4x4 twill surrounding the entire perimeter.

The convex side will be done in tribute to Ferrari. I had the Ferrari prancing horse embroidered into the center of a peice of 4x4 twill.

Should make for a decent paper weight.

#2

This will be the base plate or backbone of the trident. I will be building foam atop these backbones which will then be refined and sculpted by hand.

#3

I really enjoy seeing some of the different stuff people are making I think it is great you are doing something different that isn’t just a hood for a car or trim. More pictures of your process would be great.

#4

Ask and thou shalt recieve.
First I found a pic of the trident which I trace from my computer screen onto tracing paper. I then cut the shapes out and use them as stencils to transfer the image onto multiple pieces of 1/16 inch balsa. Youll see why I use multiple layers of balsa later. After the image is transfered, i hand cut all of it with an exacto knife, sand my edges out smooth and true, and surround the perimeter of each piece with 4 inch wide speed tape. The tape creates an empty, walled cavity in which to pour in an expanding urethane foam. Once the foam has set, I trim the excess and begin sculpting with a filet knife and finish the contours with 80 grit sandpaper.

#5

Trident spier with speed tape dam in place and ready to get foamy.

#6

I barely used enough foam to saturate the spier entirely and it still almost spilled out of the top of my tape dam.

#7

Sorry for all the single pic postings as well. The ol trusty lap top finally threw in the towel, so im operating from the iphone. My Fred Flinstone thumbs work wonders on this microscopic keyboard.

#8

Getting closer and closer.

#9

Here is a little taste of the Ferrari side of the shield. This is just a rough layout of what is to come. The Ferrari letters will be masked off when I lay down the red paint so afterward they can be removed to expose the carbon underneath.

#10

The evolution of foam.

#11

Here is a better picture displaying why I use layers of balsa. It gives a clear centerline that I use to reference how far im sanding away the foam. That way I can maintain perfect symmetry throughout all of these complex contours. It is incredibly easy to go too far without some governing line or fixture to guide you. I dont consider myself to be a professional sculptor and this project has definitely upped my level of respect to those who are.

#12

Here is the only part of this project that I didnt have a definite plan for. At first, I was just going to do 3 solid oval discs stacked atop one another. Since that would completely separate the top from the bottom, it would also eliminate much of the detail work and several of the multi Vseams that I have incorporated within the trident. I just cant cover up all of this meticulous craftsmanship (pats my self on the back). So I am doing 3 tapered halos that will surround the trident. This will allow the trident to pass through the rings instead of the rings cutting the thing in half. This pic is a half assed mock up of the original idea.

#13

I am still refining the shapes but this is a basic depiction of how the halos will surround the trident and allow you to see into the center as well.

#14

Here is a pic of the beginning stage of the layup process. Nothing special or fancy about it really. I paint the foam with flat black epoxy so that I dont end up with any light spots between my warp and weft. This is incredibly important since there will only be one layer of carbon covering the foam. The lighter colored “peek through” as I refer to it, ruins the whole thing in my opinion. I leave plenty of excess hanging out past the edge since I am not vacuum bagging this either. If you try to keep it too close to the edge, the carbon will actually rise up off of the part as the resin cures and shrinks. The stress cuts, or darts that you see in the first two pics also aid in reducing the lifting effect. I dont like to vacuum bag cosmetic parts only due to my own personal opinion of appearance. I think that visually hand laid carbon has a much deeper 3dimensional effect as opposed to the flattened out rectangular look that results from the compression of a good vacuum. I always use some sort of vacuum process when making structural pieces of course.

#15

Here are a few more pics of the lay up. I adhere as many pieces of carbon as I can all at once, making sure not to let one interfere with the other. Then I saturate the fabric with just enough resin to wet out the carbon down to the foam. I usually run a gloved finger over the area as extra insurance and to press out any air bubbles. Then I trim off the excess with a razor blade, sand down any uneven edge lines and repeat this process until carbon is everywhere.

#16

Here is where I am with the Ferrari side. There is still a little paint work to be done, I kinda forgot about dotting the i, so it has been colored on with a marker for the mean time. After I fix that up and fill this one little void, I will also be adding the S and F just beneath the horse.

#17

Oh and I almost forgot to tell everybody to go to you tube and check out the latest project that I have been lucky enough to be included in. This is going to be so bad ass.

http://youtu.be/ygEHc56hajI

#18

Tell me: you’re the driver… :slight_smile:

#19

Nope. I have never made a single pass at an actual drag strip. I have left my fair share of rubber on the roads of Mississippi in my earlier years.

I get to fabricate a couple of pieces for the Adrenaline Rush package that is being designed by the guys at Redline Motorsports. I’m excited as he’ll about this one. I will do a build thread here as well, if it’s allowed.

#20

Wow - you’re at it again, eh?! Looking good!!! :smiley:

Great idea on the divider in the middle of the sculpture piece.

I just wanted to ask for some more detail about how you go about wrapping something like that - do you wet out all the carbon so there’s nothing sticking up, or do you let it cure and trim off anything that’s sticking up? Or just wet out enough to hold the fabric on, trimming the rest of the dry fabric before you completely wet it out? I’m just wondering how you can end up with a good looking part, no random pieces and edges of carbon all over?

Say, what ever happened with that giant key you were working on… did that get finished or are you still getting carried away with it? :stuck_out_tongue: :laugh: