Making a motorcycle dash

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Making a motorcycle dash

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HairyBiker	HairyBiker posted 12 Years Ago HOT Topic Details
Group: Forum Members Posts: 4, Visits: 20	Hello, great to have a forum like this. Thumbs up! I am looking at creating a carbon fiber copy of my motorcycle dash. I do have some questions regarding the method connected to this, but first of all I was wondering if I'm good off with an Epoxy Mould Making Starter Kit, together with a Carbon Fibre Laminating Starter Kit. Will I have enough material to make a copy of this dash? Thank you! Yours sincerely Nat
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BoostSamurai	BoostSamurai posted 12 Years Ago HOT Post Details
Group: Forum Members Posts: 34, Visits: 413	Just to clarify, what exactly do you intend to copy? Do you just want the gauge surround to have a carbon fiber look or do you want to actually copy and construct what I assume is the gauge holder/binnacle. If it's just the gauge surround (i.e. the black bit around the gaugess) then you can probably get away with just skinning it, probably no need to 'copy' it I would say. JZX World Forums
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HairyBiker	HairyBiker posted 12 Years Ago HOT Post Details
Group: Forum Members Posts: 4, Visits: 20	Hello BoostSamurai, yes, I was a bit unclear, sorry about that. What I need to do is replicate the actual gauge holder (black ABS plastic in the photo) but cover up the holes for the original gauges. I am doing this in order to fit one of these: I don't have a picture of the OEM gauge assembly without the gauges, but it will look like the photo in my previous post, but with the gauges below taken out of it: So what I guess I need to do is cover up the gauge holes in the OEM plastic gauge holder in order to create a mold that is perfectly plane. Then after I create a carbon fiber copy (without the holes), I then make a hole for my new speedometer? I hope this is not too confusing, am I making sense here? Thank you, Nat
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wozza	wozza posted 12 Years Ago HOT Post Details
Group: Forum Members Posts: 688, Visits: 5.4K	Please don't take this the wrong way but for a first go that part is not that straightforward to reproduce with Infusion or by skinning for that matter. The return and tight edges etc are not that easy to lay-up. It may be easier to modify the original housing using foam and bodyfiller to create a less complex shape. Take a mould from that and then either wet-lay or Infuse the new part in CF. That way you can keep the original mounting points etc. Just my thoughts and you can obviously ignore me if you like and see if anyone else has some better suggestions Oh and welcome to the mad house. Warren Carbon Copies Ltd Edited 12 Years Ago by wozza
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HairyBiker	HairyBiker posted 12 Years Ago HOT Post Details
Group: Forum Members Posts: 4, Visits: 20	Thanks for the reply, Warren. I tried to make a picture of what the dash I'm trying to replicate will look like without the gauges: Could I perhaps cover up the holes with some flash/release tape, or use filling wax? Or like you say, use foam to create a flush surface? Thank you for your help and patience with me, Nat Edited 12 Years Ago by HairyBiker
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wozza	wozza posted 12 Years Ago HOT Post Details
Group: Forum Members Posts: 688, Visits: 5.4K	Hi Nat, the quickest and easiest option would be to either buy or lay-up some flat sheet, trim it to fit the shape of the recess, cut out the hole for the new Clock and then bond the sheet into position. That would give you a Carbon "look" Carbon Copies Ltd Edited 12 Years Ago by wozza
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HairyBiker	HairyBiker posted 12 Years Ago HOT Post Details
Group: Forum Members Posts: 4, Visits: 20	Okay, I will definitely consider this. Just curious (and a bit pig headed, I fear), but would I be able to create a mold and then wet lay in CF? Or will the curvature of the dash make it too difficult using this technique? How much material would I need? Would two starter kits suffice? My first idea was to do as you suggested and just use a ready made flat piece of CF, but then I watched one of the tutorials here and became intrigued by the possibility of making a complete CF copy of the whole dash. And very interested in learning this technique. Am I biting off more than I can chew? /Nat
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wozza	wozza posted 12 Years Ago HOT Post Details
Group: Forum Members Posts: 688, Visits: 5.4K	PM sent Carbon Copies Ltd
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Warren (Staff)	Warren (Staff) posted 12 Years Ago HOT Post Details
Group: Administrators Posts: 2.5K, Visits: 8.5K	I agree with Warren, flat sheet is easiest option and likely to yeild best results for a novice. Wet lay is perfectly possible but will take practice to make a good one. Out of Autoclave pre-preg would be good too but not a cheap option! Warren Penalver Easy Composites / Carbon Mods - Technical Support Assistant
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