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Date:         Thu, 6 Sep 2007 20:34:11 -0700
Reply-To:     Don Hanson <dhanson@GORGE.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Don Hanson <dhanson@GORGE.NET>
Subject:      Carbon fiber van tops...?
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="Windows-1252"

a Van top from carbon fiber, while it would be very trick, from a practical standpoint makes little sense. Unless you're Bill Gates or Jay Leno or someone with lots of money to spend on a questionable project. The amount of material you'd use to make the part...fiberglass or carbon fiber.. is a lot. Glass fabric is a little heavier and not quite so stiff, but it is about 1/100th the cost of carbon fabric..In a piece as large as a Westie style roof, you might save oh, say 20-30 lbs, by using carbon fiber rather than the normal glass, but you'd probably spend $500 doing it...You could save almost that much weight just by vacuum-bagging a fiberglass lay up and being very careful with the fabrication.. Now, in a racecar or a bicycle or an America's cup yacht or an airplane...that kinda dollar per lb. may be worth it..but for the top of a Vanagon? Prolly not to normal humans... Don Hanson


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