Pre-preg carbon??

[5way]

Hey guys,

I'm about to embark on a board building odyssey, with the help of a couple of friends of mine in very useful industries...

Just out of interest, is/has anyone using pre-preg carbon in thier decks? I'm talking about both hobbyists and industry....

Pretty sure most of the decks I've seen/heard about are made with wet layup, but wasn't sure....

Alex (wefunk) are your's wet laid???

Anyone come up with any reasons why not to use pre-preg???

TIA.

Sam (5way)

[SailFastTeam]

The thing about pre-preg carbon is that:

a. needs to be keep at low temps
b. needs to be "cooked" at high temps while in a mould / press

and for board building the extra strengh is not worth the effort. but thats just my guess.

[Paul from cambridge]

Some prepreg's can be baked at low (warm) tempatures. Make sure you know what you are geting.

[5way]

thanks guys,

One of the 'industrial partners' I'm working with owns one of the top carbon suppliers in the world (see pics below for some of thier recent work...) so the materials handling and autoclave aren't a problem....

I also am of the mind that other than the temperature/clave requirements, using pre-preg will mean a lot less rejects, no blems in the weave (cause I know longboarders are such tarts - I'm one of them!), and a superior overall product..may even work out that the deck's can be a lot thinner and lighter for the same strength/stiffness...so, even though the initial material cost is higher, the reduction in defects should mean the material pays for itself over wet layup.

Really just wondering why no-one else is using it (at least, I don't think anyone else is using it - does anyone know if PPS/Roe/wefunk/clb et al use wet layup, and if so, why???)

TIA,

Sam

[scratch]

I'm planning on using pre-preg on my next foamie... ( a few weeks) from what I've heard and read, it's the way to go.... I've seen how nice it comes out on some yacht appliacations, I plan to just keep it in a cooler till lay up then put in a hot-box...
I'll post results when I do it...

[grey HAM]

I think the reason that pre-preg isn't commonly used in the skate industry is mostly a matter of economy. If you're building a serious number of boards you have to worry about ordering quantities, how fast it will be used and availability (and for carbon that's a big IF since the US is at war and the aerospace industry needs it). Pre-preg needs either to be used quickly (4-5 day shelf life in some cases) or kept in a freezer. That's ONE BIG FREEZER! if you're making board in quantity.

Other considerations are that it would be best to use aluminum tooling for heating purposes. The cost of one of these moulds could escalate upwards of 5-10 thousand. You'd have to sell a whole lot of high end skateboards to make your money back after all of the setup.

but, that's just my two cents. It can be done creatively or with proper planning I am sure.

I'd love to see how your board works out.

[5way]

[Carbon8]

DO IT !!!!!

theres a reason why Formula one use it, why America's cup use it, it is THE best, you can engineer it to perfection and with access to the right equipment why not do it? I'm sure most builders here would love to have access to this sort of technology...
good luck have fun
let us know how it goes yea? we love pictures!!

[5way]

It's gonna be a while - I've got shedloads on at the mo', both at work and at home, and I have to fit things around my grandad (he lives with me).

BUT, when (and I do mean when, not if) I get my first deck done, you can be sure I'll be posting pics - I need huge amounts of creative criticism... my aim is to have three or four designs that I can develop more and more - so I'll also need test riders!!!

Another quick question, but does anyone see a problem with having threaded inserts in the core of the deck (supported so it won't crack) instead of drilling holes and using standard hardware. (as in, to attach the trucks, you use a short bolt screwed directly into the deck rather than all the way through and secured with a nut)

Sam

[scratch]

Problem is, if you strip the threaded inserts, yer screwed (har)
Also the shear load you will place on the foam were it connects to the inserts would be crazy... That would be the first place the foam would fail... if the inserts were placed in a block of wood and the wood in the foam you could get away with it...
Cheers & good luck with this! I hope to have a pre-preg board to post soon as well!