First Infusion completed

General Composites Discussions Composites Talk
#1

I learned a few things during the process:o First no no was not wrapping the vacuum line end completely in peel ply and then breather fabric. I just used a small piece of breather fabric doubled up under the vacuum line and it did nothing for me. My fault for setting it up wrong.

Second problem was a leaking bag that i could not for the life of me get to stop leaking, so i just proceeded. The vacuum was a full 29hg. This Robinair kicks butt… great pump. Thanks for those who said to get one. Very quiet operation too.

Third problem was i placed my lines on the wrong sides of the mold, i should have put them on the two furthest sides. maybe not but it just seemed that way to me from watching it infuse. The resin reached the vacuum line before the entire part infused. I had resin flowing 2 feet up the vacuum line before the entire part infused.

Fourth problem was i used hot water tub to set my epoxy resin container into, it worked the air out of the epoxy like freaking fast and nice. Problem was it shortened the pot life and i really cut it close to full infusion. I’m telling you… slightly heating up the resin mix with warm/hot water those air bubbles exit FAST. Both parts fully infused in about 15 minutes.

I won’t know how the two parts came out until i’m ready to demold them. I’ll take a couple photos and post them once the parts come out and are trimmed. In the meantime here are some photos of my first infusion.
http://s210.photobucket.com/albums/bb186/Fastrr_photos/?start=0

#2

you should degass the epoxy before infusion

#3

Popped yer Cherry eh Fastrr? Cool!

It’s a lot like watching paint dry or grass grow but much more exciting!!! :stuck_out_tongue:

Can’t wait to see it out of the mold. Keep the pics comin’!

When I got leaks I found most of them using those cheap “spy ear” things off of e-bay (item #120149832296). $2 each and they do work! I kept a tube of “acoustical sealant” (Lowe’s $4) w/caulking gun to seal the leaks (just don’t get it on the carpet). It’s incredibly messy but works really well. A lot easier than trying to find tiny leaks and plugging them with butyl tape. Last part I did I got a perfect seal using it.

Keep up the good work!

Rick

#4

Were you able to see the photos ok?

Thanks Hojo… I will continue to use the warm water… maybe the water was just too hot, as i don’t have a thermometer to test temperature. Maybe i’ll invest in a small hand held thermometer.

I think, but not certain, that the leak or leaks were near the lines where they are taped to the bag.

Next time should be better. I love how clean it is doing infusion… not one single drop of epoxy on me or anywhere else except where it should be. I’m thinking wet lay up is for the birds.

#5

you shouldnt use the warm water to get the air out of the epoxy, you need to degass it for 2-5 minutes, this will get rid of all the air in the epoxy. and you should also invest in good bagging material, otherwise you will always have holes in your bag, trust me…

#6

bagging material used was Stretchlon 800. It’s possible it got a small hole, don’t know for sure… more likely is the gorilla snot around the hoses didn’t completely seal.

Degassing? Like a vacuum chamber you mean?

yeah Knotty it was fun this being the first time. I can honestly say preparing for the infusion is way easier than building the mold. Hopefully with time i’ll get better at mold making and infusion.

#7

yes, place the rein inside your pressure pot for 3-5 minutes

#8

Fastrr, i`m pleased you have taken the leap into the world of infusing, it will be an addiction from here on in lol.

Ok just my 2 cents worth.

1/ The resin line in needs to be on the flow media with path to flow media in mold sections, flow media too close to vac line, stop it 75% from edge of mold end.
2/ Stretchalon not a good choice for infusions, it will suck down into flow media and restrict flow.
3/ Yellow thicker tape much better than black, in any case try putting a double depth of tape on the resin in and vac out this should stop the bag leaks.
4/ The vac out line should not be on the carbon fibre only the peel ply. The problem here is the vac side flange needs to be much wider. Stop the resin flow 75% up the infusion the vac will pull the resin the rest of the way. No resin in the vac line then and you will be able to turn the pump of whilst still maintaining full vacuum.
5/ This part should infuse completely in around 2 to 3 mins if your using infusion resin and mold and resin is warm.

Hope this helps, these are just my observations from a couple of mins looking at the pics, there maybe a few more points i have missed but these are the main ones.

Good luck on the next try.

Baz

#9

Thanks BazNos. Yep… i put my resin inlet line and vac line on the wrong side. LOL… that was why the green flow medium was closest to the vacuum line… simple mistake because i was in a hurry and this was my first infusion. The resin I use is not infusion specific, but i contacted the distributor and he said it’s fine for infusion if I use the slow hardener… which i did. Once this bagging material is used up I’ll try another type. I only have like 7 yards of the Stretchlon 800. Is the other Stretchlon bagging material any better for infusion? Both lines were on top of the peel ply when i set the bag up … maybe the photo makes it look like it wasn’t.

I’ll degass the resin before my next infusion.

Next mold, i’ll make the vacuum side flange wider than the 3 inches this mold has.

Good tips, thanks guys:cool:

#10

use stretch bag 2000 made by richmond, northern fiberglass sells it

#11

K, on that.

I just demolded the parts. I had a spray glue issue… it did not completely disolve, but i know why. The other issue is there are a few small spots where the carbon did not get any resin, dry spots. Can i brush or roll on some epoxy to wet those spots out and also give the part a full coating of epoxy? I can wet sand epoxy down with no trouble for me, to give it a level flat surface.

photo below. There are six layers of 10oz twill fiberglass cloth sandwhiched between two layers of 6oz c/f twill. The distortion of the weave on the right side part… well crap happens. Those center triangular recesses get cut out anyhow.

#12

for a part like that you should not use spray adhesive. spray adhesive should only be used to hold pieces from moving, but your is basically flat. also when you use spray adhesive you can cause bridging problem. you want your material to be able to move. you should shape your material once it is under vacuum using a rubber squeegie under half pressure, once you know your material isnt bridging go full pressure. a good way to regulate that is to leave your resin inlet tube open till your happy with how your material is set. close the tube, check for leaks. disconnect vacuum, see how long it takes to loose pressure. then infuse. yes you can put resin on those dry spots, should be ok.