Carbon Fibre Light Switches!


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James91h
James91h
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Just thought I'd share a recent(ish) mini project of mine - the carbon fibre light switch.

I used the resin infusion method to provide a flawless finish, followed by a CNC machined finish for the edges and centre cut out.

I have some up for sale on Ebay as we speak (not sure on advertising rules on here so wont link)









The Mould:


Edited 8 Years Ago by James91h
Warren (Staff)
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Unfortunately we cannot see the pictures due to the silly photobucket 3rd party hosting scam.


Warren Penalver
Easy Composites / Carbon Mods - Technical Support Assistant
James91h
James91h
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OK, have tried a different image host. Hopefully you should be able to see the images now!


Warren (Staff)
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Images working perfectly now. 

They look pretty damn impressive!! would certainly add a modern twist to any room and much nicer looking than plain boring white plastic!


Warren Penalver
Easy Composites / Carbon Mods - Technical Support Assistant
Dravis
Dravis
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Very impressive looking "end product" --

There is however a very large "But"  ... :-O
Carbon fibres are Conductive to electricity, so unless you have a nice thick layer of clear coat or gelcoat on both surfaces the nice looking light switches could give you a nasty (schocking ) surprise!!!

You should CAREFULLY consider selling these items !


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James91h
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Dravis - 10/10/2017 9:31:26 AM
Very impressive looking "end product" --

There is however a very large "But"  ... :-O
Carbon fibres are Conductive to electricity, so unless you have a nice thick layer of clear coat or gelcoat on both surfaces the nice looking light switches could give you a nasty (schocking ) surprise!!!

You should CAREFULLY consider selling these items !


Hi Dravis thanks for the feedback,

Would the metal (chrome plated) originals not be even more conductive of electricity?

Regards,

James
Dravis
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Surely the metal crome plated ones have a backing of some sort of plastic/bakelite??  If your CF ones use the same construction, you won't have a problem :-)
It does look like you have no backing on the CF versions you are showing in the pictures? The problem can arise if one of the live wires in the contact comes loose and comes into contact with the CF front panelPinch


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Do not adjust our mind, theres a fault in reality :-)
Edited 8 Years Ago by Dravis
Warren (Staff)
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I suspect with the peel ply finish on the back, there will be a thin layer of resin over the carbon so no easy direct route to conduct. Plus being a very high resistance conductor you will likely just trip the light circuit fuse if it could come loose and get enough contact to conduct.


Warren Penalver
Easy Composites / Carbon Mods - Technical Support Assistant
Dravis
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The RCCB relay will most likely be tripped,  (Residual Current to ground - protection relay, if you have such a thing in GB?) This could happen even if no one actually touches the outer surface of the switch.  Even a very high (Kilo-ohm range) connection to an artificial ground can trip the relay, so the CF fibres are easily conductive enough to "tickle" you, and trip the relay ..  depending on the connection and CF fibre resistance, you may get anything from a sharp "sting" to just a tingle, both with the annoyance of loosing all power in the house and having to find and reset the RCCB.

Of course, none of this will happen if the back of the switch plate has some (even a thin) layer of insulating resin -- Smile Better safe than sorry? I would certainly not welcome a lawsuit form someone who bought the very nice lightswitches, and got "tickled" by 240 V -- or had their freezer cut out when on holiday -  Blink

I was a partner in a small company some years ago, who made and installed "power controls via the internet" systems .. Our system developed a fault that triggered the RCCB and blacked out a Vets clinic ... They had two very large chest freezers, containing all the euthanized animals prior to sending them to destruction .. Lets just say that the clean up cost the company a fair bit of money ... PinchPinch



"Sapere Aude"... Dare to KNOW!

The written word is the only truly efficient vehicle for transmitting a complex concept from mind to mind...

103% of all people do not understand statistics...

Do not adjust our mind, theres a fault in reality :-)
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