Beginners' Guide to Out-of-Autoclave Prepreg Carbon Fibre


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Matt (Staff)
Matt (Staff)
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Hi Everyone,

21 page tutorial guide with lots of detailed photographs throughout explaining the complete process from start to finish for simple out-of-autoclave prepreg carbon fibre. Available to download completely free using the link below.

This guide will accompany our new Prepreg Carbon Fibre Starter Kit and will of course be followed up with a video tutorial in the not too distant future.

Please provide any feedback on this tutorial here. If anything is unclear of could be explained better (or you spot any mistakes) then please let me know; I can use your input to improve the guide for everyone and ensure that the video tutorial is spot-on.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts and particularly to seeing your results if you follow this guide yourself.

Best regards, Matt

Matt Statham
Easy Composites / Carbon Mods - Technical Sales
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chihuahua46
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When i open the pdf file,i return to the home page of the forum...why????
matvd
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chihuahua46 (06/01/2013)
When i open the pdf file,i return to the home page of the forum...why????

Matt (Staff)
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Hi folks,

In response to those who have had problems opening the PDF attachment I'm afraid I don't know why this might be. The guide is in PDF format so you'll need Acrobat Reader from Adobe to open the guide. Just in case it's anything to do with the forum here's a direct link to the Beginners Guide to Out-of-Autoclave Prepreg Carbon Fibre in PDF format. If you're having trouble viewing the PDF then we've also added an article to the learning zone in html and should be perfectly viewable by anyone. We also include handy links in the top right of the article pages to the products we've mentioned/used.

UPDATE: I've just added the Prepreg Carbon Fibre Starter Kit to our website. Available with or without vacuum pump and in Regular and Professional size. If anyone wants to get into prepreg carbon fibre parts then there's never been a better time! Have fun.

--Matt

Matt Statham
Easy Composites / Carbon Mods - Technical Sales
Edited 12 Years Ago by Matt (Staff)
Matthieu Libeert
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thx for that great looking kit you've put together.I was going through te materials an saw this in the description for the prepreg
    Variable Temperature CureThis remarkably adaptable pre-preg can be cured at variable temperatures ranging from 80°C to 150°C. Curing down at 80°C is within the scope of simple oven provisions and means that a wide range of cost effective mould materials can be used.Alternatively, at up to 150°C the pre-preg will reach full cure in a matter of minutes meaning that very high production volumes can be achieved off a single tool.


    Does it mean you lay everything up, put it 4 minutes in an (normal) oven, at 150°C and you can remove your part after 4min for demoulding? Will there be a difference of finish,strength or chemical resistence? 


    I see that for the mouldmaking for prepreg you suggest your uni-mould system, but it goes till 90°C, If you'd like to go to that 150°C what should you do? Aluminum mould, Other resin?
    Will all the other materials in the kit go till 150°C?

    Last question, is there a difference between a throughbag connector and a silicone connector? Because I already have some silicone connectors for resin infusion....




Matthieu Libeert
Founder MAT2 Composites X Sports
website:
www.mat2composites.com




Edited 12 Years Ago by Matt (Staff)
Matt (Staff)
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Hi Matthieu,

Does it mean you lay everything up, put it 4 minutes in an (normal) oven, at 150°C and you can remove your part after 4min for demoulding? Will there be a difference of finish,strength or chemical resistence?


Good question! - In theory, yes, that's about what it means but this only refers to the Vari-Preg prepregs (so the 200g Vari-Preg and the 400g Vari-Preg), not the Easy-Preg surfacing prepreg. The 5min cure time is taken from the manufacturers cure profile datasheet which does indicate a cure time of around 5 mins at 150'C although having worked with this material for years now (at the higher temperatures) I would say that a cure time of more like 15mins-20mins would be preferable even at this hgih temperature to ensure a full and even cure throughout the laminate. Even still, it's a very fast cure at this temperature.

In terms of demoulding, we would always suggest bringing the mould down closer to room temperature before demoulding the part, this ensures the best surface finish quality. If you demould at 150'C (not to mention the fact that the mould is very hot and difficult to handle safely) it's likely that some print through could occur on the surface. We would wait for the mould to be down at maybe 40 or 50'C before demoulding. In a high volume environment this can be done by forced cooling of the mould if necessary.

The Easy-Preg surfacing prepreg also has a variable cure profile and will cure faster at higher temperatures but for the very best surface finish in an oven-only (out of autoclave) environment we recommend a cure temperature of  90-100'C. Curing at a higher temperature does not allow the resin long enough in its liquid state before cure to flow and settle as well as it does curing at 90-100'C so for this reason, when using Vari-Preg with Easy-Preg (i.e. the way we show in the guide and the way they are designed to be used in the Prepreg Starter Kit) then certainly start off with a 90-100'C cure for around 8hrs. By all means experiment yourself after that with different cure profiles but we know you'll get great results from a longer 90-100'C cure when working out-of-autoclave.

I see that for the mouldmaking for prepreg you suggest your uni-mould system, but it goes till 90°C, If you'd like to go to that 150°C what should you do? Aluminum mould, Other resin?
Will all the other materials in the kit go till 150°C?


Uni-Mould is happy enough at 90-100'C which is the recommended cure temperature for this system anyway. Providing a Uni-Mould mould has been correctly post-cured prior to use you will have no problems at all at 100'C and so, given the many advantages to the system (namely realistic price and excellent polishability) then we almost always choose to make our prepreg moulds out of Uni-Mould. For higher temperature moulds, aluminium, stainless steel and high temperature epoxies (including prepreg itself) all make suitable mould materials. In all instances, Easy-Lease Chemical Release Agent will provide a reliable release barrier for the materials mentioned above.

Last question, is there a difference between a throughbag connector and a silicone connector? Because I already have some silicone connectors for resin infusion....


Yes, they're quite different. Rather than me explain here, just take a look at these two product pages (which include a picture and a description). If you've got a Resin Infusion Silicone Connector then you'll recognise that already. Take a look at the Through Bag Connector and you'll see it's quite different. The main reason is that no resin will flow through the junction when doing prepreg so the fitting can be much better and more substantial that one that's designed to have resin flow through it (and cure inside it).

Matt Statham
Easy Composites / Carbon Mods - Technical Sales
Matthieu Libeert
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thanks Matt,
This makes everything clear!
I'll give it a go soon

Matthieu Libeert
Founder MAT2 Composites X Sports
website:
www.mat2composites.com




Tim Ane
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Matt (Staff) - 1/20/2013 8:15:25 AM
Hi Matthieu,

Does it mean you lay everything up, put it 4 minutes in an (normal) oven, at 150°C and you can remove your part after 4min for demoulding? Will there be a difference of finish,strength or chemical resistence?


Good question! - In theory, yes, that's about what it means but this only refers to the Vari-Preg prepregs (so the 200g Vari-Preg and the 400g Vari-Preg), not the Easy-Preg surfacing prepreg. The 5min cure time is taken from the manufacturers cure profile datasheet which does indicate a cure time of around 5 mins at 150'C although having worked with this material for years now (at the higher temperatures) I would say that a cure time of more like 15mins-20mins would be preferable even at this hgih temperature to ensure a full and even cure throughout the laminate. Even still, it's a very fast cure at this temperature.

In terms of demoulding, we would always suggest bringing the mould down closer to room temperature before demoulding the part, this ensures the best surface finish quality. If you demould at 150'C (not to mention the fact that the mould is very hot and difficult to handle safely) it's likely that some print through could occur on the surface. We would wait for the mould to be down at maybe 40 or 50'C before demoulding. In a high volume environment this can be done by forced cooling of the mould if necessary.

The Easy-Preg surfacing prepreg also has a variable cure profile and will cure faster at higher temperatures but for the very best surface finish in an oven-only (out of autoclave) environment we recommend a cure temperature of  90-100'C. Curing at a higher temperature does not allow the resin long enough in its liquid state before cure to flow and settle as well as it does curing at 90-100'C so for this reason, when using Vari-Preg with Easy-Preg (i.e. the way we show in the guide and the way they are designed to be used in the Prepreg Starter Kit) then certainly start off with a 90-100'C cure for around 8hrs. By all means experiment yourself after that with different cure profiles but we know you'll get great results from a longer 90-100'C cure when working out-of-autoclave.

I see that for the mouldmaking for prepreg you suggest your uni-mould system, but it goes till 90°C, If you'd like to go to that 150°C what should you do? Aluminum mould, Other resin?
Will all the other materials in the kit go till 150°C?


Uni-Mould is happy enough at 90-100'C which is the recommended cure temperature for this system anyway. Providing a Uni-Mould mould has been correctly post-cured prior to use you will have no problems at all at 100'C and so, given the many advantages to the system (namely realistic price and excellent polishability) then we almost always choose to make our prepreg moulds out of Uni-Mould. For higher temperature moulds, aluminium, stainless steel and high temperature epoxies (including prepreg itself) all make suitable mould materials. In all instances, Easy-Lease Chemical Release Agent will provide a reliable release barrier for the materials mentioned above.

Last question, is there a difference between a throughbag connector and a silicone connector? Because I already have some silicone connectors for resin infusion....


Yes, they're quite different. Rather than me explain here, just take a look at these two product pages (which include a picture and a description). If you've got a Resin Infusion Silicone Connector then you'll recognise that already. Take a look at the Through Bag Connector and you'll see it's quite different. The main reason is that no resin will flow through the junction when doing prepreg so the fitting can be much better and more substantial that one that's designed to have resin flow through it (and cure inside it).

Hello 
my question is about thickness of carbon fiber fabric used in out of autoclave technique. is there any limitation of thickness used in out of autoclave?
in case of 2 mm thick fabric, can curing be possible in oven with 1 atm pressure?

alebassa
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Matt (Staff) (19/01/2013)
Hi folks,

In response to those who have had problems opening the PDF attachment I'm afraid I don't know why this might be. The guide is in PDF format so you'll need Acrobat Reader from Adobe to open the guide. Just in case it's anything to do with the forum here's a direct link to the Beginners Guide to Out-of-Autoclave Prepreg Carbon Fibre in PDF format. If you're having trouble viewing the PDF then we've also added an article to the learning zone in html and should be perfectly viewable by anyone. We also include handy links in the top right of the article pages to the products we've mentioned/used.


--Matt


For those who cannot open the link with the guide..
 
At the beginning I had the same problem... It's just because you need to log in before you click on the link, otherways you will get to the forum start page..


Alessandro
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Matt (Staff) - 12 Years Ago
     A good read :)
Jack.Strong - 12 Years Ago
Warren - 12 Years Ago
chihuahua46 - 12 Years Ago
matvd - 12 Years Ago
Matt (Staff) - 12 Years Ago
matthieutje65 - 12 Years Ago
Matt (Staff) - 12 Years Ago
                             thanks Matt, This makes everything clear! I'll give it a go soon
matthieutje65 - 12 Years Ago
Tim Ane - 5 Years Ago
alebassa - 12 Years Ago
Leon - 12 Years Ago
Matt (Staff) - 12 Years Ago
fgayford - 12 Years Ago
Matt (Staff) - 12 Years Ago
fgayford - 12 Years Ago
Warren - 12 Years Ago
fgayford - 12 Years Ago
brasco - 12 Years Ago
fgayford - 12 Years Ago
Warren - 12 Years Ago
Matt (Staff) - 12 Years Ago
fgayford - 12 Years Ago
Matt (Staff) - 12 Years Ago
mikew - 12 Years Ago
Element6 - 12 Years Ago
WilliamsHPF - 12 Years Ago
Matt (Staff) - 12 Years Ago
WilliamsHPF - 12 Years Ago
WilliamsHPF - 12 Years Ago
Matt (Staff) - 12 Years Ago
fgayford - 12 Years Ago
Jack.Strong - 12 Years Ago
WilliamsHPF - 12 Years Ago
             Haha, OK, not a problem :)
Matt (Staff) - 12 Years Ago
matthieutje65 - 12 Years Ago
Matt (Staff) - 12 Years Ago
TomDesign - 12 Years Ago
Warren - 12 Years Ago
ajb100 - 12 Years Ago
Tim Ane - 5 Years Ago
Hanaldo - 5 Years Ago
Tim Ane - 5 Years Ago
                 debulk every couple layers and you should be fine
SleepingAwake - 5 Years Ago
Hanaldo - 5 Years Ago
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Hanaldo - 5 Years Ago
raygun - 5 Years Ago

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