Carbon Fiber Seat
March 2022 - June 2023
One of my first composite projects since joining the UC Davis Formula Racing team was to manufacture a carbon fiber seat under the supervision of my friends Vi Bui and Brandon Hochestler. The seat was the most difficult part out of the many we had to manufacture that year.
The carbon fiber seat was my first experience doing a wet layup, assembling a composite plug, and post-processing a finished part.
Manufacturing Process
Making the Plug
Vaccum Bagging the Plug
Demolding
The plug, or the “mold that makes the mold” is made of high density polyurethane foam. Our team was donated large 4’x8’x2in” sheets of this foam to use for making the plug. To manufacture the contour of the plug, we used a CNC router to cut out each layer and glue together, eventually building the final, very large plug.
Prepping the Plug
After assembling the entire plug and A LOT of sanding until the foam was “baby butt smooth” it is finally time to make the composite mold. But before we could start adding layers of fiberglass onto the plug, we had to prep the mold so that the mold could release from the plug as smoothly as possible.
They way we did this was by applying over 15 layers of Honey Wax mold release, which were donated by Stoner Molding Solutions. To apply the wax, we use a sponge to wipe in a circular motion onto all surfaces, focusing on the contours with sharp corners and deep wells. After each layer, we fan the wax using cardboard (clearly we are very professional technicians) until dry before repeating the process.
Composite Mold Layup
With the wax on, we began by mixing small batches of epoxy resin and using foam brushes to apply a thin resin layer on the plug. Then we drapped our first layer of fiberglass and saturated it with epoxy resin, making sure to be diligent of bridges in the sharp corners and deep wells. By layer three we decided to add one layer of scrap carbon fiber. Three more layers of fiberglass were added on top for a total 6 layers of fiberglass and 1 layer of carbon fiber. For some areas, we said relief cuts to avoid wrinkles.
Post Processing
Final Part!!!!
