Quote:
Originally Posted by iBrakeLate
DRY CARBON FIBER VS PRE PREG CARBON FIBER
Also the quality of the product is evident in the weave. On a good quality product the weaves should be straight, and no waves in them. When the material is poorly laid it often has weaves in them, this is usually a clear indication that "dry carbon fiber" material is used. Funny enough you see some companies advertising "dry carbon fiber" as a superior product, they are either misleading consumers or misusing the term "dry carbon fiber".
Usually a higher quality carbon fiber product will be made from pre-preg carbon, this simply means the carbon weave is impregnated with resin to being with.
You can go on YouTube and there are lots of videos that show what pre-preg carbon fiber is.
Also further things to note is the clear coat that is used on the carbon products. Usually products are clear coated to have a gloss or satin finish.
If the carbon and resin is being manually applied, the quality of the resin will show on how clear it is. Some lower quality resins are not perfectly clear and will always have some bluish/greyish tinge to it, this is visible more under direct sunlight than shade.
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One thing to note... "Dry Carbon Fibre" is another word for "pre-preg carbon fibre".
It's a simplification of pre-preg to show the one of the key manufacturing differences between the "wet" and "dry" carbon fibre.
"Wet" Carbon fibre is as you described in your original post. It's laid then wet resin/lacquer is applied to build the the carbon piece. As you rightly said, this carbon is often combined with fibreglass to reduce the cost - and ultimately the durability and quality.
"Dry" Carbon fibre is pre-preg. The "Dry" part of the name is simply relating to the fact that no additional resin or lacquer is applied to the carbon before it is baked, hence it being "dry".