Kit Car Floor


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OliilO
OliilO
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I'm contemplating rebuilding my kit car (Mac#1 seven-alike) over winter and am looking to replace as much as I can with resin infused CF equivalents - davro and  brian2fast's topics have been invaluable so far.

The car currently has a 1.6mm Al floor with a maximum unsupported span of about 500mm. I've a few questions about the feasibility of replacing this with a composite replacement from those with more experience.

Attachment - bond or rivet? I'd instinctively rather rivet in case I need to remove the floor in future but what are likely issues with this? I have some concern about corrosion/different materials reacting and also the proximity of rivet holes to the edge of the composite floor.

Layup - I'd initially look to follow the guide of replacing the original thickness with a similar thickness of composite and want to include some Kevlar for impact/penetration resistance. Would something along the lines of 200gsm CF - 300gsm 45 degree CF - 300gsm Kevlar - 300gsm 45 degree CF - 200gsm CF sound about right?

Or would a Soric cored sheet be a better proposition, with a solid CF perimeter for attachment?

Thanks in advance,

Oli
Edited 8 Years Ago by OliilO
davro
davro
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Hi Oli,

I have thought about doing the floor on my kitcar floor but I would like to make something a little more complex and incorporate a vortex generator into the floor, I'm just waiting for Fusion360 to build in CFD simulation have heard it's on the list Smile

Regarding the stack, I would go for a complete carbon fiber floor with very little if any kevlar, 
and for the unsupported spans, I would consider adding shapes into the sheet in choice patterns with maybe some Soric in places to stop the sheet resonating, kind of like bead rolls in metal sheeting, I would do this by adding profiles or Soric into position onto my glass table before laying up the carbon stack for the area. 

As for 
Attachment - bond or rivet, I would go with a bit of both as the aluminum sheet floor on mine is attached with both as suggested by the kitcar manufacturer bonded and riveted with bighead rivets, kind of makes sense to bond it as well as rivet it in order to stop any vibrations and seal the floor from the elements.

When I eventually get around to the floor on mine I will go for a one piece floor with options for bolt on skirts and attach it to the chassis in such a way that it is bolted with countersunk cap (allen) bolts into place with hardish foam in place of the bonding to stop vibrations and for easyish removal. Something like this ...
Edited 8 Years Ago by davro
Hanaldo
Hanaldo
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I agree with Davro regarding ditching the Kevlar. Remember that Kevlar is only stronger than carbon once the laminate has failed, so if it is in the layup then it's only there to hold things together in the event of failure. Overall impact resilience comes from the stiffness of the laminate, so it's better to make the laminate stiffer to resist impacts which means carbon is the better choice. S-glass fibreglass would actually be the best choice for impact resilience and overall laminate strength. 

 If you are worried about penetration then perhaps a small amount of Kevlar to protect the driver from anything coming through the floor, but keep it localised. 

Davro would know more about these kit cars than me, so his suggestions are probably good. I have built floors for Stohr F1000's, which may be pretty similar. These floors are generally 2 layers of fibreglass with 15mm honeycomb in the middle section and 10mm divinycell in other areas like the rear diffuser section and sides. The areas with no core are 5mm solid fibreglass. I would look closely at that layup and save a bit of weight/thickness by doing it in carbon. 
GO

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