hello all im new to the site.
im from swindon and drive a lexus soarer and mazda mx5....right now down to the nitty gritty.
i was adviced that someone from here could help me out with my carbon fibre boot so im posting to hopefully get the help i need :S
i was going to pm a couple of people but i dont think im aloud yet because im new.
i bought the boot for my mx5 thinking that it would be show condition...it cost me £550+ so didnt expect any less really.
i receive the boot and it turns out that its no where near show condition. in the condition its in at the moment it would need spraying but ideally i wanted to leave the carbon showing.
the bloke said that because its real carbon and not just covered this is the best job you can get from it? not sure if this is true or not.
my question is...do you think i could get away with getting the boot relayered with carbon so that i can leave it with a carbon finish?
oh and also he aloud for me to have break light when i dont want one, but i will just not knock it out if you get me.
sorry to blab on..heres a few pics.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v54/Tomcat/carbon%20boot/LPIC1327.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v54/Tomcat/carbon%20boot/LPIC1323.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v54/Tomcat/carbon%20boot/LPIC1322.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v54/Tomcat/carbon%20boot/LPIC1321.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v54/Tomcat/carbon%20boot/LPIC1320.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v54/Tomcat/carbon%20boot/LPIC1319.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v54/Tomcat/carbon%20boot/LPIC1317.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v54/Tomcat/carbon%20boot/LPIC1316.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v54/Tomcat/carbon%20boot/LPIC1314.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v54/Tomcat/carbon%20boot/LPIC1313.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v54/Tomcat/carbon%20boot/LPIC1326.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v54/Tomcat/carbon%20boot/LPIC1325.jpg)
sorry alot of pics there.
the fitment is perfect just shame about the finish.
thanks all.
aj.
Might be able to machine polish it.
It might be dry carbon aka pre preg in which case you would need to laquer it.
this wouldnt solve my problem though :(
if you look closely at the picture of the tip of the spoiler part its been sanded so the carbon is no longer showing there, theres even a couple of small holes in it :(
also theres a join in the carbon, a line showing the join along one part of it.
thanks for the advice anyway.
aj.
Sorry thought you were more worried about the finish.
There shouldn\'t be any mis formed bit\'s i would say it was like a factory second if it did.
ermmm :(
the bloke from the company said that thats the best that can be done from REAL carbon fibre, not sure i belive that myself though.
but hes in the usa and i cant see him paying $$$ just for me to ship it back make another and ship it again for little old me in the uk.
just my luck i guess.
cheers aj.
LOL... here goes ;)
Dry carbon wet caron twill weave carbon, he\'s talking out of his arse carbon ;) You can get a morror glass like finish on any layup! basicaly the finish of the final product is down to the condition of the mould used! if the mould is has a dull matt finish then so will the moulding, likewise, if the mould has a high gloss finish this will be transferd to the moulding! as for the joint in the bootlid, there is no excuse for this, The rolls normaly come in a 1.2m wide roll which is more than big enough to do a MX boot lid! even if the joint was on the peak of the spoiler section this would be OK, but trust me, the only part of that outer skin that would cause a problem is the peak of the spoiler, but nothing major!
The other thing to keep an eye out for is if they have used UV stable resin or a clear gell coat, the reason for this is that if they haven\'t you will end up with fogy streaks running through the resin!
But if it is literaly a shine you are chasing, the only way around this would be a body shop & some laqure!
At the end of the day, if he says it\'s impossible to get a gloss finish with carbon, just ask him how companies like RE:Amemiya, Mazdaspeed, feed, etc. get the glass finish to their bonnets, doors, defusers etc.
Hope this helps
Jono
you can sand it softly and then have a painter spray it with varnish. be aware that he uses the right varnish and that it\'s UV resistant or everything will get yellow in some time.
Unlike what most people think, carbon parts are not made for show quality, they are made too be strong and leightweight. Appearance is not a fundamental term of use for carbon.
Quote from: Speedworks;551424you can sand it softly and then have a painter spray it with varnish. be aware that he uses the right varnish and that it\'s UV resistant or everything will get yellow in some time.
Unlike what most people think, carbon parts are not made for show quality, they are made too be strong and leightweight. Appearance is not a fundamental term of use for carbon.
i`ll agree with that, if your after lite weight then the parts are usually a little shabby on the overall finish but the part should be made with oversized layers of carbon and not joined, else the part will be week and pointless, if its for show the same process applyes but most often than none the parts would be smoothed off and clear coats applyed to give you the shine, a good way to see how this would look it to poor water over the boot and you`ll see what it`ll look like clear coated..nice n shiney :)
That boot is pretty shocking and for the money im sure a company here would prob have done it? im doing a carbon boot for a skyline the now and it aint costing that n thats including the mould making :) love the ideal tho but id be on the fone to them and get it sorted.. id want another boot in perfect condiction..
Quote from: Tomcat;551327ermmm :(
the bloke from the company said that thats the best that can be done from REAL carbon fibre, not sure i belive that myself though.
but hes in the usa and i cant see him paying $$$ just for me to ship it back make another and ship it again for little old me in the uk.
just my luck i guess.
cheers aj.
Worth asking. That\'s an awful job and I\'d be wanting compensation..
£550 from US too seems much. As per interloper, I\'m sure many venders on here/other forums could have matched that and been down the road incase of issue..
You could get a length of carbon cloth and re-lay the top bit, more expense but at least the boot wont be a total loss if the company wont do anything about it..
thankyou all again for your replys.
just getting this boot laquared etc is no good for what im after but thats for giving me the option on that.
i think the only option is to get this one relayed on top, but i just thought about that and realised that this will then make it stick out from the rest of the car because of the extra thickness :(
interloper393 would you be interested in taking this boot and making another for me with a good quailty finish?
or anyone else?
cheers aj.
oh and when i bought it is when the doller to the pound started to get bad :(
to be honest i think illl be wasting my time moaning at them trying to get money back etc, after i bought it i found out a few other people have had problems with the same company.
shame really as the fitment is perfect.
aj.
you`l only be adding about 2mm onto the thickness bud, your not really guna notice it, and you can round the edges slightly to help smooth it off... id give it a go for you but this is my first boot build lol, dunno how shes guna turn out but should be fine as iv done quite a few moulds before... i`ll let you know how it goes then may attempts yours :)
if you go fo rthe light weight (thin) carbon mating, you should only be adding about 1mm!! best thing to use is UV stable epoxy resin as it tends to be a little thicker than the polyester and you won\'t have to as much finishing.... all you would need to do is aply 2 coats after the initial layup, let it set, sand it flat & buff it up to a high gloss finish!
Jono
wow that finish is shocking! id take one look at that and stick it straight on the first plane back to the usa and be demanding my cash back!!! sorry for your misfortune mate :(
ok cheers interloper :)
you make it sound so easy Jono :god lol
cheers pearl, wish it was that simple i just cant be arsed with the hassle to be honest. if i cant get it sorted some other way i will just have to paint it and change my plans :(
cheers aj.
do u have another boot? i dont mind trying to do the overlay, just worried incase i make it look worse lol
if you make it look worse will it come of easy enough?
i dont mind paying you to try as long as if it messes up it wont cost me loads of £££ lol.
i have the standard boot yes.
cheers aj.