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SV Carbon Tank project for Zoran

Using a flexible plastic putty knife, I carefully break the seal between the splitter plate and the flange area, trying REALLY hard not to disturb the seal between the tank and the mold. I want that in place through the curing of the other 1/2 of the mold.

Once the splitter/flange seal is 'popped', I just give the splitter a good rap with a hammer in the direction that will drive it straight up off the tank - parallel with the flange.

Ta-Da again - a nice flange all set to suppport the layup of the other 1/2 of the mold.

What I'll do first is to drill a number of counter sinks - not all the way through - in the flange. So this first side flange will have the female part of what becomes a quick and easy 'locking / locator'. When I go to fit the two halves together in the future, the nubs on the one side will lock into the counter sinks in the other and guarantee that the two halves are perfectly aligned. Kinda cool - another accurate, quick and easy technique.

So here's the result so far - ready for wax, PVA (after some tape over that gas cap area) and lay up. Hope to get to that later today.

2188530-pc180001.jpg
 
I went to Home Depot today and picked up one of the oil filled heater units to see if that might be a stop-gap solution to the hot room. Turned out it worked pretty well so, depending on just how cold it is, I may be able to get away without having to build an entire room inside the garage.

Once things we're warmed up a bit, I did the layup of the other 1/2 of the top mold.

One of the big challenges for me is waiting until everything has cured sufficiently before I start messing with it. I'm like a little kid who can't wait...I am getting better so I expect I'll leave this to sit for a couple days before I pop it out.

But once it's out, I'm set to make the plug parts using my splash mold! Here's where the 'important' work really begins as I narrow the tank and determine the final top-bottom interface design.

What I mean by that is I won't copy the stock shape that has the seam running down the side of the tank. I'm planning to eliminate that vertical seam so the top part will actually have a horizontal surface that the underside can bond to. It's a bit hard to describe - the pics will make it easy to see what I'm up to. Look for those in a future post. For now, here's the other half of the top splash mold in cure state.

Time invested to this point: ~ 10 hours. I'm happy with that.

2188733-pc180002.jpg
 
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Man, this is SOOoo freaking Cool
 
apprentice

tygaboy -


i'd be down to help ya out, as i've done some CF and fiberglass stuff myself in the past (see pics), but you live all the way the frock in Petaluma, which is just way to far of a drive from Pleasant Hill



 
And just to help illustrate the 'do whatever works' approach I'm taking to the splash mold part of the project, here's my latest effort at speeding up the cure process a bit. But don't tell my wife! :shhh
Might be able to pop the mold later this evening!

2189591-pc190001.jpg
 
Impressive work Chris! I bet the process gets alot easier/faster after a few tanks huh?
 
1FastF4i said:
Impressive work Chris! I bet the process gets alot easier/faster after a few tanks huh?
Click to expand...

Thanks for the kind words. Easier? A little. But it's the time that's the hard part. Lots of small steps to make a little progress and then wait, wait, wait for things to cure.
 
It's so near Christmas, I just COULDN'T wait to unwrap something! The fireplace autoclave worked wonders so I figured I'd pull the first side off. It's been curing long enough for a splash mold....

It's so cool to pull parts out of molds. It's the big pay off for all your hard work - or the agony of defeat shoved right into your face if you've screwed something up...

The composite is sealed against the tank and as you start to pry it off, the air sneaks in under the glass and you can very clearly see where the mold has released and where it hasn't. It's like watching the tide come in as the air pocket makes it way across the surface of the part.

I use plastic putty knives, popsicle sticks and other non-abrasive items and gently force them under various places in the mold. Then I use a plastic hammer and bonk (gently) the places that aren't released. Once I can see everything is released, it's time to exert a bit of lifting force here and there until...POP! The composite comes free from the part.

And it turned out just fine. FYI, this pic is right off the tank - I haven't even washed off the PVA. And as far as finish, shiny is really good. Composites will pick up EXACTLY the surface of the mold. I've had parts come out with wax swirls built into them - you couldn't feel them but you could see them. I'll get into more detail about this as I'm prepping the plug.

For now, enjoy the first 1/2 of our top splash mold.

2190273-pc190002.jpg
 
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A bit of trimming (I use a pair of metal cutting shears, of all things...) and sanding, just to smooth the edges and we're almost set to begin making the top of the plug.

I think I'll end up making the underside first, though.

2190278-pc190003.jpg
 
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Splash mold is done!

Decided to pull the other side off this evening. I'm going to have a bunch of work to fix the overall plug so this splash mold is not critical. OK, OK, I admit it - pulling parts out is fun! Plus, I just want to get on to the important stuff.

So here we are, a complete splash mold for a dented gen 1 SV tank. Wow, that's got to be worth maybe, what? A nickel .98?

The inside of the underside mold and the outside of the tops:

2190562-pc190001.jpg
 
I love this thread.

Hey tygaboy, what's the ballpark cost for materials for this project?
 
I think someone asked this a while ago, but I didn't see or missed the answer. When you're done with either a glass or CF tank, does the fuel go right in it? Or into a bladder?
 
lizard said:
I love this thread.

Hey tygaboy, what's the ballpark cost for materials for this project?
Click to expand...

Glad to hear you're finding this interesting - that was the hope!

Cost of materials isn't bad. I think I'm going to use a 2x2 twill weave carbon as I think it's prettier than the plain weave. Eiither weave can be had for under about $30 per 50" wide yard. I'll use less than $100 worth of carbon fiber, then there's the Kevlar - maybe about $50 for that. Hard to estimate the epoxy but less than $75...I'd bet I'm into a tank for under $250.
Just don't ask abuot the time invested...I'm into the splash mold for about 11 hours and it's the easy part.
 
HellFyre said:
I think someone asked this a while ago, but I didn't see or missed the answer. When you're done with either a glass or CF tank, does the fuel go right in it? Or into a bladder?
Click to expand...

The epoxy can stand up to the fuel but before I bond the top to the bottom, I like to paint the inside with a tank sealer. Once the tank is all together, I slosh a bit around the top/bottom seal, just for extra insurance.
Product wise, I've been using POR-15. 2 years in the carbon tank on my SV and all's well.
 
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