pocket rocket
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| posted on 6/2/11 at 09:25 PM |
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new carbon parts for sales
Hi Guys,
Over the past few weeks iv been working on making moulds to start producing carbon parts, so far its been parts for MR2's and S15's
because a couple of friends of mine have the cars and asked me to make parts for them.
In the next few weeks i will have finished the current run of moulds and will be turning my attention to kit car parts, when i had my mev rocket i
planned to replace all the pannels with carbon but never got around to it 
Anyway, what im after are ideas and sugestions, what parts to people really want??? the long term plan is to produce a full 7 kit, body, wheel
arch's... the whole car  but thats a way off yet.
once i have a few ideas i will set to work on the moulds and will be joining the site as a trader as 'Go Race Composites'
the parts will be well priced, as an example a carbon bonnet for a MR2 is between £350 and £400 and i can make them and sell them for between £200 and
£250.
thanks in advance for all ideas and sugestions,
regards,
Phil. 
Dam...iv consused my ability with my intentions!
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mookaloid
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| posted on 6/2/11 at 09:31 PM |
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Aeroscreens and wings might be a good starting point
"That thing you're thinking - it wont be that."
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rusty nuts
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| posted on 6/2/11 at 09:37 PM |
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With the price that Sierra steering column cowlings are fetching they may be worth considering?
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snapper
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| posted on 6/2/11 at 09:39 PM |
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As an I initial view I would look at carbon replacements for glass panels, wings bonnets scuttled aero screens, but also look at the smaller items
that people can buy on a whim, things like those little nose canards and the aero things that clip on lower wishbones.
People are more likely to buy the small cheaper stuff which will add capital to your business.
I eat to survive
I drink to forget
I breath to pi55 my ex wife off (and now my ex partner)
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pocket rocket
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| posted on 6/2/11 at 09:40 PM |
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Thanks mook,
looking at the wings, what size do you think people will be after or should i have a full range from 13 to 18"
also i quite liked the flat top wings for the mev but most people have the normal round wings on 7's... again should i have both in stock?
Dam...iv consused my ability with my intentions!
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Miks15
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| posted on 6/2/11 at 09:41 PM |
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I would quite fancy some carbon wings, but not at carbon mods prices, so if a pair (mabye even a bit like the "aero" wings they do) id be
up for.
Take a look at what the competition is making and see if its viable for you to make cheaper, then go for that.
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tomgregory2000
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| posted on 6/2/11 at 09:55 PM |
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What layup method are you using?
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pocket rocket
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| posted on 6/2/11 at 09:56 PM |
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thanks snapper and miks... both great ideas.
i remember looking on the carbon mods stand at stoneleigh last year, gutted i couldn't afford any of the parts they sold.
now don't get me wrong, there is ALOT of prep work involved in making the moulds, and if your a novice like me there can be some resin wasted if
you mix up a bit to much and it goes off before you can use it but on the whole the carbon cloth, grp matting, gel coat etc isn't that costly
and i really think that carbon parts on the whole are over priced... im planning to correct that!!!!!!
im not saying that carbon mods etc is a rip off... i just think with no over heads and it being a weekend business for me i can sell the parts with no
need to make the same profit margins
Dam...iv consused my ability with my intentions!
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pocket rocket
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| posted on 6/2/11 at 10:00 PM |
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Tom - standard wet layup, if i start doing full body parts i will look in to vacum bag i think.
i don't have an oven to bake the parts but temp in the workshop is controlled with a number of heaters and i have a digital thermometor up at
either end to keep temps between 18 and 22 ... which is hard in this weather 
Dam...iv consused my ability with my intentions!
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Davegtst
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| posted on 6/2/11 at 11:48 PM |
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I reckon some naca ducts to go on the nose cone would sell quite well. Dashboard blanks might be good too. As long as the quality is good and you
are cheaper than someone like carbonmods you should do quite well.
[Edited on 6/2/11 by Davegtst]
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pocket rocket
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| posted on 7/2/11 at 10:08 AM |
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Thanks guys,
my next question is would anyone be interested in lending me a part or parts they would like make up in carbon?
the idea is that i would borrow the part for a couple of week to take a mould from and then return the part to you along with a carbon copy of it at
cost... so a front wing would be about £30 ish
Dam...iv consused my ability with my intentions!
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brookie
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| posted on 7/2/11 at 11:04 AM |
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do some interior trim parts m8 should make u some money, stone guards as well
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thefreak
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| posted on 7/2/11 at 11:39 AM |
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How about some flat sheets?
I picked up a couple a few years ago to play about with making a dash, then they changed the regs concerning the bottom edge so now I'm going to
use them as interior panels but cant get a couple of longer ones to match for a decent price.
I've even been and bought a sliding wardrobe door with a mirror to attempt my own, but if someone can produce for reasonable costs, I'd
send my money that way
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Neville Jones
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| posted on 7/2/11 at 11:55 AM |
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At £30 for a front wing, you'll be working for about £5/hr, when you factor in costs of tooling and materials. This doesn't factor in
utilities and rent if applicable. Then there's business rates.
And if you're planning on using gelcoat, then you're starting off on a loser anyway. Gelcoat goes with poly resin,...???? complete waste
of time, money and materials when used in conjunction with carbon fibre.
As a novice, you need to start with learning the basics, what resins to use with what fibres, and how to work with all of that.
Not putting you down, but if you're going to do a job, at least do it properly the first time.
Carbon mods are way overpriced, but you won't last long if you undercut them by a large amount. Think about it before you jump in blindly.
Cheers,
Nev.
[Edited on 7/2/11 by Neville Jones]
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Triton
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| posted on 7/2/11 at 02:15 PM |
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If you are new to it all then play with fibreglass first. It's not rocket science I grant you but it's not as easy as it looks.
Carbon fibre is an altogether different can of worms, bloody expensive worms as well and you WILL have a lot of cock ups.
Don't let me stop you though, buckets of patience is the key oh and work clean especially with C/F
My Daughter has taken over production of the damn fine Triton race seats and her contact email is emmatrs@live.co.uk.
www.tritonraceseats.com
www.hairyhedgehog.com
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carbonmods
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| posted on 7/2/11 at 10:59 PM |
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Hey Phil,
I'm sure we've met a few times at the shows. I wish you all the best if you're setting up making carbon parts. Through our Easy
Composites division we're as committed to helping people make their own parts as we are to making quality parts through our Carbon Mods brand so
if you need materials or equipment then be sure to get it touch. It might seem like a conflict of interest but in reality making a successful business
out of manufacturing carbon fibre parts needs incredible hard work and if you're going to do it then I'd rather be supplying you! Some
people here might be of under the impression that our prices are high and yet there isn't a company selling any similar parts cheaper; the
prices are just a reality if we are to stay in business.
Like Neville says working in a garage with little or no overheads, no VAT to charge, wages to pay, rates, public liability, product liability etc then
you might be able to pass on some savings and if you can then great; I'd love to provide you with your carbon and epoxy and maybe even a resin
infusion or pre-preg system.
Whilst you might be able to wet lay some parts, many simply arn't possible to make in this way and you'll need to look to resin infusion
or pre-pregs. As soon as you're vacuum bagging don't forget to factor bagging film, tape, breather, release film, peel ply, maybe infusion
mesh etc into your costs. If it's pre-preg then you're looking at £40/sqm rather than £20/sqm for your carbon, per layer! - Things start
to add up quicker than I dare think about!
Anyway, all the best and we'll see you at a show soon. Our Rocket is progressing nicely (admittedly more down to Paul than me) but we're
seen things progress well before only to then get sidelined!
All the best, Matt
Carbon Mods - www.carbonmods.co.uk
Performance Carbon Fibre Components
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pocket rocket
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| posted on 8/2/11 at 05:19 PM |
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Hi Matt,
Many thanks for your reply and thanks for the advise on pre-preg fabric over wet lay up. I was very please to read your post, my plan isn't to
storm in and upset anyone's business so your offer to supply fabric/resins etc was very welcome.
Its true that i'm a novice and to reply to some of the other posts as well, its quite a learning curve and CF is much harder than GRP to work
with but its going very well so far and its not the first time iv made moulds to make my own CF parts so i know it can be a PITA when it doesn't
go right.
I'm also making parts from GRP for some friends that drift at santa pod and will do grp parts for kitcars as well at a later date.
Like Neville and Matt have said i have no overheads and i do it in my own time and don't pay my self a wage as such, to be honest i enjot doing
it (at the moment anyway) and so far have made parts for my friends cars at cost because i like doing it :-)
I'm looking forward to this years shows, any chance the CF rocket will be ready?
regards,
Phil.
Dam...iv consused my ability with my intentions!
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hicost blade
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| posted on 8/2/11 at 05:35 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by carbonmods
Hey Phil,
I'm sure we've met a few times at the shows. I wish you all the best if you're setting up making carbon parts. Through our Easy
Composites division we're as committed to helping people make their own parts as we are to making quality parts through our Carbon Mods brand so
if you need materials or equipment then be sure to get it touch. It might seem like a conflict of interest but in reality making a successful business
out of manufacturing carbon fibre parts needs incredible hard work and if you're going to do it then I'd rather be supplying you! Some
people here might be of under the impression that our prices are high and yet there isn't a company selling any similar parts cheaper; the
prices are just a reality if we are to stay in business.
Like Neville says working in a garage with little or no overheads, no VAT to charge, wages to pay, rates, public liability, product liability etc then
you might be able to pass on some savings and if you can then great; I'd love to provide you with your carbon and epoxy and maybe even a resin
infusion or pre-preg system.
Whilst you might be able to wet lay some parts, many simply arn't possible to make in this way and you'll need to look to resin infusion
or pre-pregs. As soon as you're vacuum bagging don't forget to factor bagging film, tape, breather, release film, peel ply, maybe infusion
mesh etc into your costs. If it's pre-preg then you're looking at £40/sqm rather than £20/sqm for your carbon, per layer! - Things start
to add up quicker than I dare think about!
Anyway, all the best and we'll see you at a show soon. Our Rocket is progressing nicely (admittedly more down to Paul than me) but we're
seen things progress well before only to then get sidelined!
All the best, Matt
That easy-preg looks like fun
I could spend a lot of money playing with some of your kit
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