Gelcoat surface problem


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Zymka
Zymka
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Yes, I like it when its flatter , because the top layer looks much better when fillaments are laying straight, I don't know how to say , you know when you brush gelcoat with a brush, you get uneven surface of carbon beneath the gelcoat, so when i spray it without thinning I get some hills and holes, which will be visible as well, especially when using 12k carbon weave.
So thats great news , I will sand it down to make it flatter 

Thank you Waren and Hanaldo for your help!
Hanaldo
Hanaldo
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You can sand it no problem, just be careful not to pre-release it from the mould surface if you're using a high slip release agent. 

That said, you know that orange peel won't show up on the final part when you're using an in-mould coating yeh? It doesn't need to be perfectly flat, as long as it doesn't have runs. Which is more likely with thinner material. 
Zymka
Zymka
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I haven't tried without thinning for bigger panels, as I liked the flat surface when I sprayed thinner gelcoat. Perhaps this is the problem. I will spray without thinning next time.
 Would it be okay if I sand a little to flatten the surface of gelcoat after it is cured, will it still have a good bond to laminate?
Warren (Staff)
Warren (Staff)
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HI Zymka,

Have you tried without the Styrene? I suspect thinning down the GC50 has meant that during the cure it has pulled from the surface a bit more perhaps shrinking back a bit more as the extra styrene evaporates off during the cure.  Also the GC50 is typically the correct viscosity for spraying onto a mould so thinning it down may have reduced the surface tension of the gel making it more prone to pull away from the surface like you have seen as it cures.

We do not recommend thinning of GC50 with styrene in the majority of cases.

Warren Penalver
Easy Composites / Carbon Mods - Technical Support Assistant
Zymka
Zymka
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That might be possible, my oven isn't very precise, and I did instant jump from 50 to 60C, I kept the part inside the mould and released only after postcuring. Also I havent postcured the mould itself, but It heated up to 70-80C when laminating, so I thought it wouldn't need postcuring anymore.
Alright, I will try to cure more carefully next time. Thank you for your answer
Hanaldo
Hanaldo
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Yeh that looks like shrinkage to me. To be honest, it sort of looks like uneven post-curing. Does your oven heat evenly? Or did you release the part from the mould before doing the elevated temp? 
Zymka
Zymka
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Good day everyone!

  I have been doing some carbon fiber stuff with vacuum infusion, and have had great results for most smaller parts. But once I make a bigger flat panel (bonnet top) I get this problem:
The gelcoat has small holes mainly between the fibers
This is how I made the parts:
PVA + wax on surface
sprayed gelcoat about 0,6mm GC50 + 15% styrene and 2% mekp , let it cure fully overnight
twill carbon 200gsm + 2 layers of 313gsm biaxial carbon fiber
peeply, perforated film,  mesh
infused with in2 mainly with fast hardener(as I ran out of slow one) and feeded with extra resin after clamping vac hose
postcured 10h at 50C and 5h at 60C

http://www.talkcomposites.com/Uploads/Images/c3e9b3fb-afe4-4f63-bd34-a48e.jpghttp://www.talkcomposites.com/Uploads/Images/675ed7ec-605d-4ae8-a4bb-8f55.jpg


Could this be because of the part shrinkage when postcuring?

Thanks!
GO

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