Laying up and vacuuming the space for batteries and electronics

Hey!

Still waiting for my blank, eps 300, to come out of the cnc.

I would like some tips regarding the gassing, epoxy+carbon, of the space for the electrics and batteries. I was thinking about making a plug and do the “box” separately to be glued into the board before laying down carbon on the board.

Any one tried this? I would use peel ply on areas that would be in contact with the carbon for the board.

I could reuse the plug and make “compartments” for other boards.

What do you think?

Moulding the hatch seperately is by far the best idea! Makes life a thousand times easier and also means no need to sand the inside once it’s off the mould. Plus the whole reusable factor…

Mmm i thought so to. Only issue is strength. My guess is that the entire structure becomes weaker if laminated in two separate sessions.

No, strength won’t make a difference. Look at how all boats, surfskis etc are made.

Ok! I will give it a try. Will report back ASAP.

Good idea but with a mould it takes more time because a mould needs good finish and the walls should not be 90 degrees, otherwise its hard to take the box out of the mould. I just built a box for an inflatable and I had to destroy the mould…


I guess if you glue it into the board you could just put 2-3 Layers of glass or carbon into the mould, no need for a sandwich.

I did a did a quick test on a smaller part and it ended just like yours :slight_smile: Now I’ve done my homework and invested in release agents, wax and all the other good stuff needed.

I don’t care much about finish since it all will be covered by the lid. Just need enough material to protect the eps.

Thanks!

For me, the right plug looks like a foam food tray. Some meat trays have their inner surface covered with a anti-stick material (PE ?) looking ideal for vacuum bagging something inside (female plug). The plug could also be a male one and have this shape but made out of wood covered with release agent.

Meat tray vacuum bagging

Then you have these styro /EPS fish transport boxes with adjusted lids you find for free at your local fish shop. Using a hot wire + EPS glue, you can easily cut them to your dimensions. They can easily be glued to a board and vacuumed bagged with carbon fibre
EPS Food box

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