• Hello Guest, welcome to the initial stages of our new platform!
    You can find some additional information about where we are in the process of migrating the board and setting up our new software here

    Thank you for being a part of our community!

Volvo 122S Build Thread: Scope-creep the Sequel

NEXT

I decided to do the trunk next. The trunk that I have, which I thought was good...but was really just bondo, had to go. I made the mold in a previous episode last summer. I need to get going (not that I'm not working) the weather is closing in on us and it's starting to be a pain to work in the garage. There is no point in taking things like the oven apart and putting it away for the winter to return when the weather is better. I'm going to keep pushing on until the panels are built. Then all this space-devouring stuff (molds/oven/tables/filth/dust etc) can return to the shed and I can get moving on the other needed pieces.

I spent about 2 hours getting the old trunk lid to just fit the hole. It NEVER fit and I HATE panels that don't fit. This one had been sat on or walked on or something and was too flat. So I propped it up on a few tires and bent it back into shape. It actually worked.

48974541542_d75e368c36_b.jpg


48974541887_85118f0aeb_b.jpg


That's better. Top line fits nice, sides fit nicely and the bottom edge...well it almost fits.

So I primed the mold and got ready for the material layup.

48974360221_31f30f80fd_b.jpg


Six layers of carbon fiber this time. 4 of the 370 gsm harness weave and 2 of the 150 gsm biaxial. There is also a core to make the centre of the panel as stiff as possible.

48973813918_00ae79f135_b.jpg


All in this part weighs around 3.75 kg (original steel skin was 6.75 kg - but one is like foil and the other I could walk on.

Get the sucker all bagged up and ready to infuse.

48974360101_0029493d2c_b.jpg


Composite Envisions were nice enough to send me a little care package after my first couple of videos! So new clams, a sign and a few other things. These guys are fantastic.

48974542152_90bc1acbce_b.jpg


A day or so later.

48973813683_48b01966aa_b.jpg


My first problem with a part! I wasn't patient enough with the release agent application and...well watch the video when it comes out. This was epic.

48974359816_bfb1cfcd76_b.jpg


It's also proof of a couple of things. The parts are amazingly strong (this is pre-cure - they get better with heat) and priming saved the mold. I would have destroyed the mold without the primer.

I'll sand it off and shoot the primer again - no big deal.

48974541947_1138b5875d_b.jpg


Fits the opening pretty well.

48973813338_de0fbc0f02_b.jpg


Ya, that'll do.

48973813243_b7792f5108_b.jpg


Next up is making a frame mold. I was going to use the steel part...but it's a little rusty and thin and really, I was just being lazy. The only problem, something isn't right.

48974359546_c9d4e9989c_b.jpg


7 mm gap.

48973813453_ec2326303e_b.jpg


I checked everything and decided to carefully fit the frame to the opening. Three hours later it's done. The metal flange is pretty shot. I had to shrink some areas to get it to pull into the body. The way the panel worked in steel was fine. You could work these areas with the skin on and move them to be in an acceptable state (as seen at the top of the post) but in carbon fiber, that is not possible. You can't bend it to fit. It has to fit out of the mold. I worked out that the skin was slightly the wrong shape right out of the mold. It will also flex enough to meet the frame. So now I have to make a super strong frame mold and build a super strong frame. Then the skin has to bend to the frame - not the other way around. So that'll take another couple of weeks to sort out.

Updates will follow.
 
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/A0Cs084p9AM" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
 
Still working on the carbon fiber parts...

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Re-uJ0uEaW4" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
 
Chugging right along folks.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/cSMa3AADEE8" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
 
I really will get a proper post done in a while. Flat out in the garage and we're colder than the north pole right now. So for now...carbon fiber hoods always impress.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sTzRC66IrqM" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
 
Excellent work as always Craig!
This will certainly be a testament to your skill for years to come.
 
Excellent work as always Craig!
This will certainly be a testament to your skill for years to come.

Cheers - I sure hope it's been worth the effort. I've done entire builds in less time than it's taken for these carbon fiber parts. Back doing some sheet metal work and it feels great to do something more quickly.
 
It's been too long. I'm out in the garage every day...every damn day. Producing all these parts in carbon fiber has been a massive undertaking. It's all turning out very well, but the work is harder than I thought and while it's light (and these parts are way over-built - probably twice what they could be) and worth it I really can't wait to finish it up and get on with some of the larger mechanical pieces that need to be completed.

So to join the fenders and trunk, is a hood.

49442295787_599ca0f718_b.jpg


49442066606_718bf18837_b.jpg


The skin needs a frame.

49442066541_886a71096c_b.jpg


Starting to look like a car again...now you can see why I'm not selling fenders to the folks asking.

49442295387_0d74c18dd4_b.jpg


Needs to drop a bit. I've seen it done twice...other times I've seen it done it's been wrong. This, to my eye, is right.

First, let's get the sheet metal to fit. So nice to work in steel.

49442295252_a81b4c0269_b.jpg


Sectioned, dropped and filled.

49442295132_e08eb02b9b_b.jpg


A little filler and we're ready to get these molds made and have this last panel done. Should be done this stuff in February sometime.

49441636028_86a8d7fa8a_b.jpg
 
Back
Top