Fiberglass chop or cloth sheet?

[vwfye]

just curious if there is a more popular way.

 

[johnson_steve]

I use both. I find the cloth much better for compound curves and the chop is stronger (and thicker.) I tend to use cloth for the outer few layers and chop on the inside to add strength.

 

[Swagger]

I was looking online at a composites vendor and they had an interesting product that caught my eye. I'm sure there are lots fo you guys that know thins already, but....

it was a...well....cloth for lack of a better word that was about 1/4" thick and very light, looked kinda like fluffy felt. The way the tech that answered my email described it was that you make your shell out of a layer or two of twill then lay this thick stuff inside and soak it with the resin of choice. It's supposed to be incredibly strong but stays light because it ends up like hardened close cell foam....

Anyone heard of something like this? I can't find the vendors site now, I was kinda just clicking links at the time....

 

[rockcitycafe]

cloth is actually a lot stronger by weight than mat, but mat builds up so much quicker, it makes the project a lot faster. mostly I use mat, with some cloth sometimes for reinforcement. I've also found that by adding urethane foam "ribs" in between your cloth layers, you can build in a lot of stiffness to a cloth part

 

[osfleming]

I just got through building a seat Thursday, then took the bike to work Friday. On the way to work I hit a bump and where the bump meets the flat part of the seat the fiber separated with the resin. How do I make binds stronger to handle bumps in the road. I have wire screen (the thick drain screen) could I use that to give it added strength.

 

[vwfye]

make sure there was enough glue (resin) in the string (fiberglass) in the area that was weak. sometimes it is just too dry.

 

[osfleming]

That was probrably it cause the thread that is showing is white. But when I build the seat again can I use Wire Screen in the finished product.