What You Need for Your Own Carbon Fiber Projects at Home

1. What You Need for Your Own Carbon Fiber Projects at Home Most of our customers are commercial clients who purchase supplies for their manufacturing applications. Our inventory is expansive enough to handle most commercial needs. Nonetheless, we sometimes sell materials to DIY fabricators who want to dabble in carbon fiber at home. It's all good. One of the things we most appreciate about carbon fiber is that you do not have to be an expert to work with it. The material is very forgiving for home applications. Maybe you want to fabricate new blades for your drone. Perhaps you are looking to create a replacement part for the body of a classic car you're working on. These sorts of things are quite doable if you have the right tools and supplies. This post outlines what is normally required for carbon fiber projects at home. We sell most of what you need, so do not be afraid to give us a shout. Also please bear in mind that there is a learning curve. You don't have to be a pro, but it might take you a few tries to get it right. Carbon Fiber Fabric Unless you are running a braiding machine or 3D printer, your DIY projects are going to start with carbon fiber fabric. This is fabric woven from microscopic carbon fiber threads that have been spun together to create a material that resembles yarn. You can purchase either dry fabric or material already impregnated with epoxy resin. The latter is known in our industry as a prepreg. To determine how much you need for a given project, measure the dimensions of your tool (mold) and calculate the area. Then multiply that by the number of layers you intend to use. That will give you a general idea of what that particular job calls for. Epoxy Resin and Hardener Next, you are going to need epoxy resin. This is the product that forms what we call a carbon fiber reinforced plastic when added to the fabric we just talked about. Understand that there are distinct kinds of epoxies for different uses. If you're not sure what you need, just ask us. You will also need epoxy hardener. This is a substance you add to your resin in order to facilitate the curing process. You will need a hardener that matches your epoxy choice. Note that the right hardener makes all the difference in the world.

2. Everything Else The fabric, epoxy resin, and hardener are the three most important things you'll need. But in order to do the job right, you also need a few other things. First is a wax product that will help you release your finished part from its tool. The wax is not absolutely necessary, but it sure makes life easier. Then you will need:  Stirrers– You will need something to mix up your resin and hardener. We recommend either tongue depressors or popsicle sticks. Both work just fine.  Brush & Squeegee– You'll need a brush to apply the epoxy along with a squeegee for uniform distribution. Don't spend a lot on your brush as you're going to throw it out anyway. A moderately priced horsehair or nylon brush will do the trick. That's about it in terms of the application itself. You will probably want latex gloves and eye protection as well. Assemble all the above and you'll have a DIY kit with which you can do quite a bit. Practice on a few unimportant projects and you'll get the hang of it. Once you learn how to do it, you will be fabricating all sorts of carbon fiber parts for your DIY projects.