why don't you make a 2 piece negative mold out of foam of the stock unit or whatever form you want and then make the piece from that, isn't that how it's normally done?

 

I kind of thought of that and here was my idea. Heat the Aluminum sleeve and have it cut/bun it's way through a block of foam - leaving you with the form??? It got complicated from there as I would think getting the temp right and not having the foam burn up.... Then where do I find the right foam - closed cell... any thoughts?

I always had fun with plaster - set up time would be a bit ridiculous but that is one solution that I know I could do and source and it would work.

 

Negative mold... Ok that would require vacuum impreg of the fiber - I was going to try to wet lay it and then apply coats of epoxy for the finish

 

here, this should help you out tremendously (read the entire thread, it's long):

http://www.bayarearidersforum.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=145975

 

here, this should help you out tremendously (read the entire thread, it's long):

http://www.bayarearidersforum.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=145975

you found it!!! i've been looking for that forever
SV650 CARBON TANK <-- for the search function ;D

yes, i think your best bet would be a 2 piece negative mold. or maybe filling the aluminum tube up with plaster and sanding etc to get a perfect finish to lay the carbon?

hell if i know - my composite experience is limited

 

What about making a form out of some blue wall board foam? Buy 1/2 sheet, cut it up and glue a couple sections toghters so youv'e got a big enough chuck. Once you've got a big enough piece simple shape it w/ a sander and viola!

 

Depending on how perfect a job you want to do, you can just wrap the cans you have with a garbage bag then lay up the carbon over top. The epoxy won't stick to the garbage bag or eat through it. If you get the garbage bag smooth enough you can do a nice job and save a bunch of time from making a mold.

Craig

 

What you might want to do is search the net for carbon oval or round sleeves. I bought some a while back you can just get the sleeve material in diff. sizes ans shapes to fit diff. pipes. Saw some on ebay a few times. Swap the aluminum for CF and your done.

 

Just how nice of a finished product do you want, and how much time are you willing to spend?

I have done a lot of work with composites and mold making. If you want good results, you can expect to put in a lot of work into making a good mold: the part is only as good as the mold. Any imperfections will transfer to the new part with striking clarity.

Do NOT just use plastic bag over the pipes, the end result will be nasty.

If you want to spend the time (it really is a long process) I would be more than happy to type up a how-to complete with links to good websites.

Loren

 

I just took a quick look at the thread posted above: it does a fine job of showing all of the steps. If any parts are unclear let me know and I can go into more depth.

Loren

 

you found it!!! i've been looking for that forever
SV650 CARBON TANK <-- for the search function ;D

yes, i think your best bet would be a 2 piece negative mold. or maybe filling the aluminum tube up with plaster and sanding etc to get a perfect finish to lay the carbon?

hell if i know - my composite experience is limited

i was looking for it for a long time too and actually gave up until this thread came back up... funny it didn't take that long for me to find it this time *scratches head*

 

Wow that thread is awesome! I think my winter project ON.

 

I am given to understand that DP will soon make CF cans identical to the current stock items

 

I made some about 6 years ago by cutting a piece of PVC tubing into 3 sections, taping them together to maintain the shape, do the layup, & then colapse the tubing from the inside & remove.

 

If the stock cans are round, use PVC pipe as the mold & put the carbon on the inside of the PVC. Nothing should be structural so you can make some real thin, one-ply carbon that should be flexible enough for slight diameter changes by tightening the roll. Pull the cured carbon & trim, slicing the roll length-wise and rolling the carbon into a slightly tighter diameter to match the stock can diameter (or much tighter if your PVC is much bigger than the stock can diameter) with that seam on the inside face of the bike. If you're real clever you can butt the seams and install an inner strip.

THIS IS THE END-VERSION:

-------------------------
EPOXY HERE
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OR

------------------------- -------------------------
EPOXY HERE
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If you're just looking for bling, make a carbon heat shield for the existing cans - would be much easier/simpler, IMO.