37 replies to this topic

[philly c]

Hey all

ABS do a carbon fibre weave roof skin and so do curley but the curley one is £433.35 vat and the abs 362.25 inc vat

Thoughts please is it worth paying that bit more
Phil

[insamoufonyx]

just wondering whats the point in a carbon fiber roof?

[mini93]

weight...be suprised how much the single skin weighs...and it looks cool

[Dave 1293]

[attachment=51830:IMG_0098.JPG]

Weight saving and look the nuts... got my car down to 598kg with cage

by the way i got a curley one... better finish

Edited by Dave 1293, 29 February 2008 - 01:23 PM.

[biggav]

Hey all

ABS do a carbon fibre weave roof skin and so do curley but the curley one is £433.35 vat and the abs 362.25 inc vat

Thoughts please is it worth paying that bit more
Phil

ABS may also give extra forum discount!!!! send a PM to "Body stylist".

[philly c]

My zcars shell roof is very badly dented so i am going for the carbon roof will look amazing with the carbon miglia arches and the focus st oraqge paint!!


Many Thanks

Phil

[JetBLICK]

Speaking from my own experiences, the type of carbon parts available at the moment for the mini, due to the way they're made, are not really what you would want to be using if purely for aesthetic purposes. They look fantastic when you first get them, but give it a year out it the sun and with the heat from the engine (if you have a bonnet) and the lacquer starts to go a milky colour and it looks rubbish. Just my opinion.

By all means buy it for its physical properties... but be weary if buying purely for it to look pretty. And with such a high price on CF material at the moment, there are better value options, namely carbon kevlar which is stronger and a similar price - it just doesnt look as pretty - which isnt really an issue if you have it with a proper gel coat and paint it.

Just my 2p

[Dave 1293]

my roof's been on 1-2 years now and no sign of milking up.. depends how u treat them. I cover mine up when i don't use it. so the sun (when its out) doesn't ruin the look.

[Jammy]

I believe you can also coat them in a UV protection...?

[philly c]

i think the uv protection is a great idea jammy!Is that like apolish based product or something totally different?


many thanks Phil

[mini93]

iv got a CF bonnet on my project mini, had it on there since 2005 and not milked...has chipped the gel coat off to the fibres bt thats because i forgot to do up my straps and it flipped

[Sam Walters]

As jetblick its all down to the way they are made.

its a simple case of polyester resin vs epoxy resin

polyester resin will yellow over time and can spider crack quite easily

epoxy resin will not go yellow and wont crack as easily.

you would have to ask with the supplier.

[Custom_Minis]

We found the milkyness (sp) was down to the resin we were using. There are many different types available. Since changing the type we use we've not had a problem reported.

If going for a roof, get the whole roof in carbon, not knocking the one above but I'm not a fan of the 6" black border. Likewise, the only other ones on offer come with a black stripe down the middle. Both methods are the result of using 1000mm wide carbon roll. The Mini roof is a little over this resulting in the split method or fat border.

Carbon is available in wider rolls but as said above carbon is expensive at the moment, very!

Its your personal choice on which you go for, I'm biased anyway and love carbon as you'll see in our build diary.

Les

[philly c]

Les do you produce a carbon fibre weave roof at all?
If so could you PM me a quote?

Would be most greatful


Phil

[JetBLICK]

my roof's been on 1-2 years now and no sign of milking up.. depends how u treat them. I cover mine up when i don't use it. so the sun (when its out) doesn't ruin the look.

iv got a CF bonnet on my project mini, had it on there since 2005 and not milked...has chipped the gel coat off to the fibres bt thats because i forgot to do up my straps and it flipped

Baaaa, mine must get used and abused too much then Anyways, i think you'll find the novelty soon wears off when you have to keep explaining to people who are non the wiser, why you havn't painted your roof/bonnet/boot/watever It instantly becomes un-cool if you have to explain to everyone why its cool!