Carbon Fiber Fun

[RojoRacing]

So after stopping into my local carbon fiber place and finding out they aren't setup for walk in customers but I can order online and will call my stuff there. After a 30 min wait because everyone who knew anything about carbon was in a meeting I was finally shown a sample piece of both the 0.2mm and 0.6mm options in small 8x8" pieces. The 0.6mm was super rigid and felt like total overkill for a simple wheel cover. On the otherhand the 0.2mm piece was very flexible but at the same time it was so light weight it didn't seem to flex a who lot under it's own weight. The 0.6mm is overkill and the 0.2mm may work but I'm worried about buckling on the disc brake side due to the shallow angle of the dome(almost flat like drive side spokes). If they had a 0.3mm option I'd be sold but right now I'm unsure.

As I was surfing around for more options just now I came across this company that offers 0.25mm sheet in the standard 2x2 weave but then they also have a few decorative options that would look incredible in the sun at the right angle. The only catch is the decorative options only come as thin as 0.5mm. http://www.protechcomposites.com/track-high-gloss-carbon-fiber-sample-4-x-4-5mm/

Now that I finally got my cast off my right hand I can finally start messing around with these ideas. Today I made a mock up cover out of the 1/32" nylon I have which is far to flexible to be a true option but at least I could get a feel for the need diameter for an optimal fit. The nylon buckles everywhere and with my tight clearance between the disc brake caliper and the spokes it rubs about 30% of the rotation. This really stresses the need for a perfect no wave fit on the rotor side to prevent caliper rub. Another option I thought of was 0.2mm on the non rotor side and 0.5mm of the rotor side. This would keep weight down and allow for a stiffer option on the rotor side, I could even go with that cool decorative track style finish only on the one side since you never see both sides of the bike at the same time.

 

[RojoRacing]

I just thought of a new issue. If I go with that cool patterned finish mentioned in my previous post I wont want an ugly plain black strip of electrical tape mating it to the carbon wheel. Does anyone here know of a quality electrical style tape that comes in clear?

 

[ReklinedRider]

I just thought of a new issue. If I go with that cool patterned finish mentioned in my previous post I wont want an ugly plain black strip of electrical tape mating it to the carbon wheel. Does anyone here know of a quality electrical style tape that comes in clear?

What about using the double sided adhesive they mention, on the inside of the disc to attach it to the wheel, where it won't be seen? Concerned it may come off?

Yea that is a cool looking finish on that CF sheet!

 

[RojoRacing]

What about using the double sided adhesive they mention, on the inside of the disc to attach it to the wheel, where it won't be seen? Concerned it may come off?

Yea that is a cool looking finish on that CF sheet!

Well I couldn't order it with the adhesive already on the material because it adds weight and I only need it on the outer edge. I do have the same 3M tape that is used with the GoPro mounts but in a much thinner 0.20" thickness which would hold the covers on even if the bike happened to be picked up by a passing tornado. The issue with the two sided tape idea is you'd be left with a sharp raised edge for the air to pass over and the electrical tape idea is cool because it makes that transition silky smooth.

 

[super slim]

Jason, could you use the double sided tape for the bond, and use clear shower silicone gap filler for the transition to the rim?

 

[RojoRacing]

Jason, could you use the double sided tape for the bond, and use clear shower silicone gap filler for the transition to the rim?

I could but then I'd be scraping silicone off my rim and covers after the race because the idea of covers is you only use them in the race, that's why they are remove able.

 

[ReklinedRider]

The issue with the two sided tape idea is you'd be left with a sharp raised edge for the air to pass over....

That's what I was wondering. Oh well.

 

[Rick Youngblood]

I just thought of a new issue. If I go with that cool patterned finish mentioned in my previous post I wont want an ugly plain black strip of electrical tape mating it to the carbon wheel. Does anyone here know of a quality electrical style tape that comes in clear?

Jason, I've used this. You may want to check it out.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BOE8BM/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Bentas]

Here's a couple pics of my first go at working with carbon fibre.
Managed to cut and epoxy a carbon fibre road stem into the handle bar end of the boom ( the boom was a carbon rowing oar) and fabricated an alu clamp for the BB end ,still get all the adjustment arm and inseam but eliminate the need for a slider , significant weight saving .
Just need to find a light that will fit in the front of the boom.

 

[Emeljay]

Bentas,
Where did you get that clamp attaching the boom to the bottom bracket?

 

[Bentas]

Hi Mark
I thought long and hard after having issues with my last carbon boom and alu slider, I'm lucky enough to have access to an alu welder/engineer, I had the right diameter alu tubing and the part with the two grub screws , (perks of being a homebuilder for years) gave him a drawing of what I wanted ,had it back in a week, happy with th result.

 

[Emeljay]

Thanks for quick reply, was hoping it was stock product. It looks nice along with the CF boom on your bike.

 

[RojoRacing]

Well I just ordered a couple carbon panels to make my wheel covers. I ended up going with the 0.5mm track design carbon instead of the normal pattern in 0.25mm. They may be a heavier then everyones favorite Catalyst wheel covers but then they should be much more stable and strong. I won't be climbing with them so the weight would have a minuscule effect I believe.

 

[RojoRacing]

Ok so the track carbon finish is cool but the 0.5mm thickness is definitely overkill. This stuff is way stiffer then I expected and weights about as much as abs plastic covers at 200 grams a side or 400 grams a wheel. The positives even though the weight no less then the cheaper plastic covers they are far stiffer so no chances of the surface warping during use. They are going to much more durable and easy to attach without warpage. Oh and they look effing cool with the track pattern.

I'm going to order that 0.2mm stuff from the local place tomorrow and give it a shot with that stuff. I'd like to get each side to about 100 grams. One set of covers may be going up for sale depending on the outcome.

 

[Rick Youngblood]

Nice job Jason. How did you cut and join the ends?

 

[RojoRacing]

Nice job Jason. How did you cut and join the ends?

I did just like described in the link to that other forum I think I posted a few pages back. Basically cut the OD with heady duty scissors(going to be much easier when I try with the thinner 0.2mm stuff) then used a 1-3/4" hole saw to cut the ID. Then I used a strait edge and a razor and tried to cut the overlapping part off but failed to make much progress. Finished the cut with my scissors and then lightly sanded the edge perfectly strait and smooth with a foam sanding block. I used a scrap piece of left over carbon to cut a 1" strip then used it to glue the seem together with normal two part epoxy from Home Depot. Now that I've done it once I'm sure I can make a new set in about 30 mins.

$180 for the material, 1 hour labor, then the cost to ship your wheels to and from my shop for that perfect custom fit. It could be a new little side job for me. I'll just have to keep it on the down low so all those members waiting for head rest clamps don't find out I'm overall looking them

There was one issue that I thought about and mentioned a month ago but failed to remember while making the disc brake side cover. I forgot about the limited clearance between my spokes and brake caliper. After I took the above picture I had to open my 1-3/4" ID hope to about 3" or so to dish the ID edge right against the spoke crossings and clear the caliper. This required me to cut in a new seem since my epoxy was well on its way to full cure by that point. So now I've got two seems opposite each other on the disc side with a 3-4" hole in the center that's mostly hidden from sight by the 5" rotor. I don't want to leave the hole there because the wind will want to trying and enter the wheel as it passes over so I may go quick and dirty with some black tape or I may fit a smaller steeper cone piece out of carbon that'll cover up to the hub flange. Sadly my second seam has a slight gap between the mating edges because I needed to flatten out the overall dish with the second cut and thus I had already removed more then I should have with the first seam. So lesson learned and it only cost me $100

If I didn't have disc brakes it would have been perfect the first time

I'll return with more pics after I finish the 0.2mm covers and get the new totals on the weight.

 

[super slim]

Jason have you tried the disc wheel on your big descent yet, or are you going to try it out at lower speeds first?

 

[RojoRacing]

No I haven't ridden the new disc wheel, in fact I have t ridden all week because no time and I've been working on the bike. So I bought one piece of 0.2mm thick carbon sheet to test it out on one side before spending $80 more on the other side. As expected the o.2mm is easier to cut with my scissors but to my surprise everything else was much harder to do. This stuff is as thin as it gets and is just barely stiff enough to hold its form with the minimal dishing need for my disc brake side. The overlap I need to cut off is a mear 1.5mm at the outer edge and tapers to nothing at the inner cutout. It so flimsy that you can't help but shift it and displace it when trying to apply the tape before gluing it. A lot more double checking for a final fit is required for a perfect fit with this thinner stuff. On the bright side this stuff weights nothing, it literally floats away if you don't tape it down. Took me about 4 hours to figure out this one side but the disc brake or drive side is going to always be harder because of the minimal dishing needed. The other side should be much easier to do tomorrow if I can grab another piece of carbon from my supplier.

I also used some carbon fiber looking vinyl and remade my storage box as well as enclosed the triangle of my swing arm stays. The looks makes me wish CruzBike would make the whole Vendetta in carbon with a satin 3k weave finish. The air should flow around and off my storage box a lot cleaner now. I wonder if the racing sanction body would consider what I did reason enough to kick me out of the non fairinged category.

 

[DavidCH]

Gosh... That's a clever idea. That must improve timings for sure. Love it.

 

[super slim]

Jason, the Carbon Fiber mods look stunning, and functional!
My guess is + 3 mph on your hill!