Carbon Fiber Valve covers???

General Composites Discussions Products Talk
#1

Ok…I am new here…today as a matter of fact. So, I first of all want to say that having found this site has basically made my day!!!

Here is my dilemma…I am looking at fabricating valve covers (and ALOT of other things…maybe I will start with the small stuff first…but wanted to throw this question out first to start off). I found a company that makes valve covers in carbon fiber for my car (well for a Cobra…but same engine) and they want like close to $2000 for the set…I am NOT about to pay that much for a set of valve covers. So, I would like to know, what I would need as far as materials, and tools and the such to do this. I printed out the pdf tutorials (both of them). I would also like to know, if this is a far fetched idea or not…am I in over my head or what…I have some knowledge on forms and such, because I worked (still do off and on) as a car stereo installer, and have used fiberglass before. Any helpful hints would be appreciated.

Thanx in advance…the new guy (Ray)

#2

Welcome to the forum Ray. This forum is relatively new so I’ll do my best to help out and hopefully you’ll get a second opinion or two.

Gotta catch some zzzz right now because I gotta get up for the LB Gran Prix tomorrow. I will come back and answer as many questions as possible.

Evan

#3

Thanx Evan…good lookin out. Like I said, I JUST found this site last night…and was not sure how long it was in effect, but now I know that it has not been for long. I appreciate ANY help that you may be able to give me. I also checked out the carbon-werks.com website…and I might have a few questions on that lines as well, as far as costs for some ‘custom’ things that I might want to have done.

Thanx

#4

Hey Ray,

Finally getting a chance to sit down and read your original post more carefully. You’ll need a bunch of different materials and a complete list is not possible unless I can see what the piece you’re trying to make looks like. Can you take a picture of the valve cover?

Other than that, you’ll need basics stuff from the pdf help file. I know you will need a few more things on top of that list but I’ll hold off until I know for sure.

#5

I will see if I can get some pix, but I can tell you that they are the same valve covers that are on the newest Cobra. I have a 95 Lincoln Mark VIII, and the engines are the same (with the exception of the placement of the oil filler). I am not sure if that helps, but if I can get some pix I will post them…thanx

#6

Ok I will try to see if I can find some pics too in the mean time.

#7

Here are some pics… I hope at least one of them is the right one.



#8

#9

While we’re on the topic of engine covers…how tough would it be to do E36 coil and fuel rail covers? I pulled them off, but the mounting points pose a problem for CF. I was thinking that maybe some rubber bushings and the appropriate fasteners would do away with the need for those plastic “feet” inside, but I’m not sure… I was thinking of doing some sort of mold for the inside (so I can get that inner gasket on the coil cover in the right place, and make the outside part smooth, rather than ridged).

It’d be nice to have all my CF parts done with the same fabric on the outside, so they all match. Some blue carbon/kevlar would be great, but that also means I can’t just go out and buy some parts and make others…

#10

You’re heading the right direction Corwyn. My suggestion would be a 2 parts piece with the top section being cf and the bottom mount points made out of glass. Making it smooth all the way through would be the way to go. It’s not worth the trouble making it the exact same way as the stock piece.

#11

Yes…those are basically it…does it look difficult to do…or should I have a company try to do them for me?

#12

Ray,

Are you referring to the very last picture? If so it looks like a 2 piece cover and from what I can see it’s not that difficult to do. I’m assuming that you want complete replacement and not overlays so you’ll need to make a mold off of your stock valve cover and make a new piece from the mold.

There are a few links in the Tutorial forums that you can look at and see what materials you’ll need to make the mold first. As for the rest of the material, you’ll need some cf (enough for 2 layers) and back it up with another 3-4 layers of fiberglass. Epoxy and all the other little stuff is already in the PDF tutorials. Let me know if you have any specific question(s) and I’ll do my best to help.

Evan

#13

No…I am not talkin the last pic…that is a pic of a Lincolns engine bay with the beauty covers installed. I am referring to the actual valve covers that you can see in the pix above, but not that specific pic you are referring to. This is basically what I am talking about…take a look at this pic compared to the others…

#14

Ok I see where you’re getting at now Ray. That looks like a fairly complex project even though the shape is straight forward enough that you can try.

You’ll need to make a mold from the original valve cover and build your piece from there. You’ll also have to measure the thickness of the original piece and try to get it your piece to be as close to that as possible for fitment. You will need to reinforce the mounting points with additional layers of Kevlar to prevent breakage. I am not sure if you will need specific types of resin that won’t react to oil/fluid, etc.

$2000 is expensive but I think the price is justified. This piece is built using high pressure autoclave for maximum strength that won’t shatter/crack under high heat and vibration.

If you’re going just for the look, you can just do overlay of the existing valve cover. Or you can take it to a local composite shop and see if they can make you one cheaper. Good luck.

Evan