Hello guys.
Is it possible to fix cracks in a carbon fiber part?
It’s very possible. Can you remove the leather trim though? That will be the troublesome bit, as you need to be able to sand the part down and add a bit of resin.
Hi Hanaldo.
Yes,The leather piece is separated from the knob, and in fact it’s very easy to remove.
I was thinking about sanding and adding layers of epoxy, but the crack looks pretty deep.
Probably down to the CF itself.
I have very little expiriance with CF, mostly with part skinning, so I’m not sure how to approach that, and any advice will be appreciated.
Thanks innadvance,
Meir.
You will probably find that regular laminating epoxy is far to thick to penetrate that crack. I’d wager that Duratec Sunshield would do it nicely (it’s my solution for everything I know, but it’s a great product), or potentially a penetrating epoxy like Megapoxy HX. The Duratec can normally be thinned 10% with MEK or Duratec thinners, and then dabbed on the surface of the crack with a pop stick and it will normally fill the crack quite easily. Then it’s just a case of flatting back the surface and polishing it up again.
It is however quite likely that you will need to sand the resin down to the surface of the carbon. This isn’t as big a deal as you might be thinking, on a piece that size it would probably only take 20 minutes with 120 grit. Then reapply 3 coats of resin, letting each cure to a tack in between. Let the 3rd coat cure fully before flatting it down with 120 again, then do one last coat before flatting it down and compounding it up to a gloss again.
I’d say there’s a total of about 2 hours work in that, 4 if you’re completely new to it.
Where is the crack? I can’t see it:o
Bottom of the gear knob, just above the boot. Appears to be 2 cracks.
Meir, after looking at the images again I just realised I wasn’t referring to the leather trim. I’m sure the leather boot is easily enough removed, but can the silver piece that is part of the gear knob be removed?
Thank you again.
Just to make sure I understand you correctly.
You are basically offering two methods to approach the issue?
One with a low viscosity resin, and the other with a “regular” one?
Or in any case I will need to sand the part to the bare CF?
Thanks in advance.
I will remove the part from the car later this week, and will see if the silver portion comes off.
Will also take some better pictures 