making foils?

[sigurd]

Hello all, any of you have any experience in making carbon foils?

Is prepreg suitable? What kind of weaves/knittings/tapes/rovings do you use?
Where to get it?

[John ilett]

I believe pre pregs to be the most suitable material as apart from being stronger/lighter it is also much more durable. The durability of the tips and edges is biggest let down of most foils.

www.fastacraft.com

[sigurd]

Thanks for the pointer,

how do you align the fibers, do you use only unidirectional? do you use some chordwise or at 45 deg to resist torsion?
Are you using two female molds, then bonding the two foil parts together?

[mothingmiller]

hi,

i have reciently built hydrofoils using wet lay up, and although i agree that a pre preg foil is superior, there is a place for a wet lay up.

the way i manufactured the foil is described in a paper i wrote, and can be found at:

www.angelfire.com/retro/chrismiller

i would recomend you download the word version as the html version is a little screwed up.

the foils i have built are very stiff and plenty strong enough. the cost of the foil was abot £10 - £20. if you want more info about the lay up, or mold manufacturer just ask.

chris

Just got a set of foils for a special project I'm working on. They are the second set of hydrofoils I've gotten from John Ilett in Perth, Western Australia. Workmanship is excellent for these all carbon foils; I can't say enough about the quality and workmanship!
You might want to check out his offerings.....