Engine Bay: Carbon Fiber and SUPER polished project!!!

[4inchMAF]

i thought id make this thread to cover my ongoing engine bay project.

the plan: polish EVERYTHING metal and wrap EVERYTHING plastic in CF and hide all wires under custom CF panels.

ive been laying CF by hand and polishing parts for a little while now. i though id share some of the stuff with you guys, as its all B5 parts i do...

this is the motor setup:
GT28RS eliminator
3" inlet/3"maf
AEB head
Unitronic 440cc file
Delphi 4400cc injectors
034 High Flow Exhaust Mani
3"test pipe to 2 1/2" catback


NEW MOTOR SETUP:

Kinetic T3/T4 50 trim (.63 4-bolt discharge with V-Band adapter) Now a Garrett...because the Kinetic DIED IN A MONTH!!!
Tial 38mm WG
ATP clone T3 side mount log manifold
ATP BT DownPipe V-Band
Greddy FMIC/custom piping
Oil lines pieced together from ATP (man i hate giving them money)
Custom inlet pipe
Unitronic 440cc file
Delphi 440cc injectors


this is the intake mani i finished last month that i will be using on this:



here is a close up of the polished valve cover with an 034 coil cover i laid carbon over (i didnt know they just sold them with CF at the time i made this):


i just finished polishing this T3/T4 50 trim (its replacing my GT28RS Eliminator):

before:


after:


some carbon fiber and polished parts installed:




some pics of other stuff on the car i made (and am in the process of making):

CF B-pillars:


Radio Surround:


Im working on this set of door trim right now (it hasnt been sanded yet):


FINISHED THE TRIM:













WRITE UP FOR HAND LAYING CF:



here is an engine cover i cut to seperate just the part that covers the fuel rail/injectors/coolant pipe.....i polished a valve cover and am using a carbon fiber coil pack cover...so this piece will match the CF coil cover (and Carbonio intake)... here is the process of how i made this part:

first i wrapped the part in CF cloth (2x2 twill weave):

the back (not so pretty):

this is the resin:

just mix it 2:1

then apply with a paint brush (making sure to go over it with the brush ALOT to get all the little bubbles out (this pic is before i spread it around):

this is after the first coat dried...looks like shit, huh?:

after the second coat:

and after the third coat:

also after the third coat:




then i do the unthinkable!!!! i scratch the hell out of it with 220 grit sand paper:


this is necessary because when laying resin by hand (as opposed to using vacuum bagging techniques) the resin dries kind of bumpy

i start with 220 to REALLY get it as flat as possible, then rinse it off (looks nice, huh?:


i then go on to use 320 grit, then 400, then 800, then 1000, then 1500, then, 2000, and lastly 2500!!!:


however, only the 220 (to start with) then 600 or 800, then the 1000 are necessary ( i just went crazy because i just so happen to have EVERY grit you can think of..and the more you move up to just the next grit, the smoother it will be...but it isnt necessary)

this is after i did all the sanding and rinsed it off:




all that it needs now is a coat of clear coat. when the clearcoat dries i will use a plastic polishing or automotive clearcoat polishing product such as "Plast-X". after that it will be UBER glossy!!!!!!!!!

this is the process i use to make ALL my CF parts......

i will add a polishing write up soon (as i have another part to polish soon).

i will update this often.....

[evilgabbie]

great handy work =)

gj man

[Maki]

Good work! I'll keep an eye in the thread.

[speedydragon]

the crappy back kind of makes it look even more one of a kind. I like how the back looks, raw and fresh.

[VTAudiA4]

Where do you get your cf material from?

Also, thanks for the write up.

[blmlozz]

Where do you get your cf material from?

Also, thanks for the write up.

probaly ebay, you can get lots of scrap CF and small 2x2 weaves like that for *cheap*

[D.C. Designs]

wow great job and can't wait to see the engine all polished and carbon fibered :)

[lowandslow4now]

Nice write up and good job I wish I had the time to do all that.

[slopoke]

sexy!

[offroader1006]

nice intake mani.


CF looks great

[4inchMAF]

nice intake mani.

i thought you would appreciate that :) (i got the mani from him then polished the crap out of it...)

CF material is all from EBAY. i NEVER by ANYTHING for my car from ebay...but this is a little different....Resin is from EBAY as well.

ill take some pics of some other recent stuff ive done lately and post them at the top....
thanks for the kind words too. i think anyone can pick it up. i never even tried fiberglass first. i jumped head first into the "hard" stuff (my first piece..it was some A4 interior trim...came out great)...

[JumboBlack1.8]

I've been wanting to do this for the longest while.....now that I've got my engine done, the interior will be the next project (just CF trim and shift surround)...

When you hand wrap the plastic parts in CF, do you use some sort of Spray-on adhesive to get the cloth to stick? Sorry for the dumb question

[VTAudiA4]

I think he just used the resin and then layered the material on top.

[JumboBlack1.8]

Looks like your right. Just found this link:
http://diyautomods.com/2008/03/03/hello-world/

I bet we're gonna be seeing a wave of DIY CF-trim threads in the near future.....i know for sure that I'll be doing it

[A4Rob]

Looks like your right. Just found this link:
http://diyautomods.com/2008/03/03/hello-world/

I bet we're gonna be seeing a wave of DIY CF-trim threads in the near future.....i know for sure that I'll be doing it

Definitely. You will all see more CF in my car as well

[Sigma 3]

Looks like your right. Just found this link:
http://diyautomods.com/2008/03/03/hello-world/

I bet we're gonna be seeing a wave of DIY CF-trim threads in the near future.....i know for sure that I'll be doing it

hmmmmNice work sir

[onemoremile]

Just be sure that you get resin that won't discolor over time from the heat and temperature variations.

Otherwise, looks great. FYI- it takes a lot less time to make a cheap vac bag setup than it does to do all that sanding.

[4inchMAF]

I think he just used the resin and then layered the material on top.

you can put resin down and put the cloth over it. but the best way, that ive done anyway, is to just spray the piece with 3m headliner sprayglue (be sure to let the glue tack up first then put the cloth around it. also, AND THIS IS IMPORTANT, be sure to let the glue dry completely before putting on the resin or the spray glue can interact with the resin if its still wet)

[4inchMAF]

BUMP for all the new pics i just added up top....

this is what the raw cloth looks like

[geeky]

holy crap. I'm REALLY liking that engine bay. If i may ask, where did you get all the resin, cloth, and materials, and how much did it cost?

[f15046]

If you could post a link to the Ebay auctions where you bought the materials, that would be great.

[Charlescrs6]

You don't vacuum bag do you? I want to do my mirrors but I'm pretty sure vacuum bagging would be essential for those.

[Sigma 3]

Just be sure that you get resin that won't discolor over time from the heat and temperature variations.

Otherwise, looks great. FYI- it takes a lot less time to make a cheap vac bag setup than it does to do all that sanding.

It would be great if you would do a vid dhowing how. Kind of a project vid on how to do projects

[4inchMAF]

You don't vacuum bag do you? I want to do my mirrors but I'm pretty sure vacuum bagging would be essential for those.

not yet. ive done mirrors by hand..... within the next month or so i will be learning the vacuum process....i cant wait!!!!

[The Russian]

very nice, i'll try Carbon next time, been working with fiberglass so far

[JumboBlack1.8]

Did you make a mold for those B-pillars or is that just an overlay of the existing piece (if so, how hard was fitment)?

this thread is so inspiring haha

[Charlescrs6]

not yet. ive done mirrors by hand..... within the next month or so i will be learning the vacuum process....i cant wait!!!!

hmm. One of my teachers is a CF pro and knows all the bagging techniques so I'm going to attempt to get him to help me. How'd you wrap the mirrors without creases?

[VMRWheels]

Nice cf work. The finish is look really nice on the final piece. Good luck with the rest!

-Charles@VMRWheels
www.vmrwheels.com

[SoFresh]

Looks good, I just dont like how you used 2x2 twill CF on your custom mani/fuel rail cover when the rest of the CF in the engine bay isnt 2x2 twill. Other than that, looks good.

[fred2ka4]

Nice work!!

[4inchMAF]

Looks good, I just dont like how you used 2x2 twill CF on your custom mani/fuel rail cover when the rest of the CF in the engine bay isnt 2x2 twill. Other than that, looks good.

ill make another when i get some more plain weave... i have a bunch of engine covers i can hack up

[Pete@IE]

This is a part I want to make for my e36, I want to do them out of carbon though.

My plan is to model them in 3d, cnc machine some molds out of styrofoam and bondo / gelcoat the molds. I could do them out of aluminum but for a 1 off it seems like a waste. Then I would vacuum bag them.

I'm not really sure about how to nicely wrap that shape though with a minimum of seams and such.

[JumboBlack1.8]

Anymore progress pics, especially polishing steps and products? I'm gonna start on my CF projects next week.....just need some more inspiration. Great work

[4inchMAF]

ive been pretty busy doing interior stuff..... i can post pics of that if you like!!!
im about to swap out my Eliminator 50 trim for a full T3/T4 50 trim setup.... so that is where most of my focus has been for the last week and this week..... this staurday im doing the install and using the shops polishing equipment to do some MIRROR finish stuff!!! cant wait!!!

[JumboBlack1.8]

Yup....I'm interested. I wanna see those pics too.....haha....I'm buying some resin and CF tonight, then starting hopefully by the weekend....would love to see what you've done

[4inchMAF]

where are you getting your supplies from? be sure you get a resin that will not change color after prolonged exposure to heat....

[JumboBlack1.8]

I'm gettin the exact same stuff that you used....found a vendor on Ebay that supplies it. And I think I've found some good CF to use. Its a 36" x 50" piece....I'm hoping thats enough to do the trim and shifter surround, and maybe another small piece here and there

[A4Rob]

I'm gettin the exact same stuff that you used....found a vendor on Ebay that supplies it. And I think I've found some good CF to use. Its a 36" x 50" piece....I'm hoping thats enough to do the trim and shifter surround, and maybe another small piece here and there

It should cover no problem.

[biketsai]

Good stuff man. Do you think you can PM me what all materials you are using/supplier? Im not so sure yet of how I am going to make my vacuum whether its a Food Saver or a homemade one with a vacuum pump. TIA

Chris

[Sigma 3]

can you guys post a link to the vendor? and more pics please!!!