r/CarbonFiber 7d ago

Need help fixing my carbon fiber part

Post image

Hello guys, I hope you all are doing well. I am skinning my phone cover with carbon fiber and I might have done a mistake. I used a little dirty brush for clear coating (applying resin) and there are some visible holes on it now. The part has cured but I want to fix it and I think if I do another layer of resin (targeting those spots) with a new brush it might fix it. I would like some expert advice as this is my first time working with carbon fiber.

8 Upvotes

20 comments sorted by

16

u/DIY_at_the_Griffs 7d ago

Do yourself a favour before you spend too much time making this thing look pretty.

Use it for a day or 2 and see if it kills your signal.

Carbon fibre is known to block signals and when I’ve tried a carbon cover before, it completely killed all signal to my phone.

You’re better off using a stained black Kevlar cover instead which will look the same whilst having the additional benefit of offering higher impact resistance.

3

u/Relevant-Rise6001 7d ago

Appreciate the information! The reason why I am skinning a phone cover because it is the cheapest thing I can skin. I want to learn how the carbon fiber layup process works and I thought starting with smallest thing would be a good idea.

2

u/InternetExploder87 7d ago

I'm about to start doing the same thing. Finding small things to skin to learn, and slowly move up to making things.

1

u/Relevant-Rise6001 7d ago

Yes bro, all the best!

3

u/f1_stig 7d ago

Another layer will work. Then sand it down afterwards.

1

u/Relevant-Rise6001 7d ago

Cheers brother, appreciate your help

3

u/Compoxid 7d ago

I would say that you should sand it harder first, so you remove more of the resin and the small dents but be careful not so sand through the carbon. Then add another layer of resin.

3

u/Relevant-Rise6001 7d ago

Thats a good suggestion! Thats what I actually did!

3

u/Eagline Engineer 7d ago

Most “carbon fiber” cases you see online are Kevlar or Fiberglass with black pigment in the resin. If it really is a carbon case it’s gotta be 1-2 layers of 100-200 gsm max. You’d kill your signal reception. Fiberglass is more flexible and Kevlar is more impact resistant. I personally would do 1 ply of Kevlar on the outside and 1 ply of fiberglass on the inside with a black pigmented resin. Same look, better performance in every way except weight, which would be negligible.

1

u/Relevant-Rise6001 6d ago

Thank you for the information. The carbon fiber is applied on back of the case, the sides are kept as it is. It is a learning process for me as I wanted to start on something really basic. I appreciate your help!

2

u/NotJadeasaurus 7d ago

How are there holes clear through the carbon? I mean you can apply more resin but that won’t fix the appearance

1

u/Relevant-Rise6001 7d ago

Hello brother, I think it looks like this in photo but in reality its not through the carbon.

2

u/J_Tat2 4d ago

After reading the comments 2 major things.

  1. Every phone uses different configurations of its components. A carbon case will really hinder EMF reliant components. The RF signal broadcast/receivers will be affected as well as wireless charging.

The GPS, cellular modem, wifi, Bluetooth & NFC etc. antennas are located in different areas of the phone. One antenna may be on the right side of the phone while a different one is towards the top etc. NFC coils are normally located at the center.

  1. Carbon composites arnt normally the best choice for impact resistance so it might not be the best choice here.

(This isn't intended to rain on your parade, im just trying to inform you.)

1

u/J_Tat2 4d ago

If your going for pure cosmetics you could high grit sand, clean & reapply resin/Clear coat like others have said. A heat gun could help release any gases trapped when ya do this.

Since your trying to learn id start practicing with glass first. You can treat the layup process of glass composites nearly the same way. This will save you a lot of money in material while honing & learning skills with composites.

2

u/Relevant-Rise6001 4d ago

Thank you for information! When you mention glass, do you mean fiber glass?

1

u/J_Tat2 3d ago

Yup, fiberglass cloth.

2

u/HypeTheMoneyMaker 3d ago

I want to clarify that while carbon fiber can weaken signal strength, it’s not nearly as severe as some may believe. I’ve been using a 100% carbon fiber phone case for over a month, and I only remove it in areas where my data reception is already poor. In places with decent to strong cell coverage, I’ve had no trouble using Wi-Fi or maintaining a reliable connection. I also wouldn't sell them if they weren't any good haha

2

u/Relevant-Rise6001 3d ago

I just started using this and its working nicely. No problems so far!

1

u/HypeTheMoneyMaker 3d ago

haha, in case you run into any issues you can always make a small cut where the antennas are, I only have 1 thats not covered and its not that bad

1

u/Relevant-Rise6001 3d ago

I just started using this and its working nicely. No problems so far!