Great videos. Thank you for posting them. Gives me something to aspire too.
That was great to watch! Not sure how much practical value I’ll be able to add to my own projects… (I can dream, I suppose!) but very interesting to see what goes into producing a product like that.
I’m glad that you guys enjoyed it.
such an awesome video, thanks for sharing, learned something new!
Great video!
How to you ensure that the halves are seamed together properly? What are you doing with the heat gun?
The seaming flap contains multiple layers of fabric. I wet this flap out by brushing on the resin and then hitting it with a heat gun to reduce the viscosity of the resin. This allows me to wet-out several layers in one go. If you watch the video closely you can see the bubbles in the flap disappear as the heat gun goes by.
The seaming is done like the illustrations below. You can do very complex shapes with this technique. You just need to think ahead about where the flaps are located so the molds can slide together and catch the flap.
Make sense?
Yes,Thanks, I figured it was something like that
so ive watched this video a few times and its just as amazing as the first time i saw it… but i have a few questions, the while lines along the mold are the keys? what exactly is it (since is differs from the color of your mold)
are there little channels in your mold right where the seams meet for excess resin to flow out?
what’s youre mold made out of?
what is that dremel attachment you have at the end to trim your seam? never seen that before and looks interesting!
sorry for all the questions!
See in RED below:
Adam, can I ask what type of clear gelcoat you’re spraying into your mold? I’m having trouble finding good, sprayable epoxy gelcoats. Thanks!
It’s not a gel coat. This part just gets a clear lacquer in the mold. This provides a nice glossy finish with very little added weight. This is a very weight critical part and gelcoat would be too heavy. See this thread for options besides gelcoats: http://www.compositescentral.com/showthread.php?t=7622
Great, thanks! So you pretty much just sprayed an automotive finish into the tooling, and it laminated onto the part when it cured? was it cured/hardened before you introduced the wetted out reinforcement?
Edit: nevermind, saw that you answered the question in your write up! Thanks!
For other people’s reference…
How long should the IMC cure before the layup can performed?
I typically let the paint/clear significantly cure before performing the layup. I only use epoxy layup resins, due the requires of the parts that I produce, and have never had adhesion issues with the IMC. I do NOT scuff the surface before layup. I often sprayed the mold at the end of the day and performed the layup the need morning. With some lacquers I would do the layup 1 hour after spraying. If the IMC is tacky everything can still work fine. There is the risk that the IMC and the resin will commingle and foul the cure of the resin and/or paint. I’ve found that some combinations will have a tacky surface and poor release if the IMC isn’t allowed to cure enough. Most 2K paints can be quickly force cured with IR lamps or low temp ovens (140*F) to speed the process. High velocity products can be zapped with IR lamps and reach a near full cure in less than 30 minutes. I have limited experience with PE and VE layup resins. Their lower adhesive properties my cause interface issues between the IMC and resin. Again, testing should be performed to insure that the interface between the IMC and resin is adequate.
I watched both videos and enjoyed them completely. Thank you for sharing.
When you got to the trimming part and used that dremel with your ‘special’ attachment, at first I was like WTF? Then it suddenly clicked what it was and how it was set up, then I thought “that’s effing brilliant!”
Nice work all round!
Hello wyowindworks, what class of plastic is made the bladder, and where can I buy? Also the paper between the plastic and solder.
I seen in the video you apply 60 of pressure, but what scale is? Psi? Thanks.
The plastic is .001" thick drop cloth plastic from Ace Hardware. It is some type of poly. The paper is silicone impregnated baking paper. I get it at my local grocery store. This part is made with 80 PSI.