Is this carbon fiber unusually flexible? Low grade?
Posted: Thu May 10, 2018 9:59 pm
I bought these carbon fiber rods from Aloft Hobbies. They are 1mm×6mm×1m. While I realize that 1mm is quite thin, and that they resist flexing better in the 6mm dimension, they are still less stiff than I expected. Here is a video of me wobbling it in the 1mm dimension. However, I am able to slightly bend it in the 6mm dimension by hand, although that's harder to demonstrate on video.
https://youtu.be/7Yh0zUhM8Ow
I bought them to run through the neck and body of my instrument, as I want very high stiffness for piano-like tone. I was planning to glue multiple of these together so that they're 2×6mm, or 3×6mm.
When I was shopping online for carbon fiber, I decided that I needed a length of 92-100cm (or 36"-40"), preferably in the upper end of that range. Before I considered this 0.236"² and this 0.125"×0.325" rod from Rock West Composites (cut into appropriate lengths by their service), and also this 0.187"×0.325" from DragonPlate. But those are more expensive. DragonPlate may appear cheaper than Rock West Composites, but they require a shipping quote by e-mail, which ended-up being $46 for me on-top of the $30 minimum order.
I chose Aloft Hobbies instead because it's much cheaper. But they are not nearly as stiff as I expected. I read here that stiffer grades of carbon fiber have a higher "msi". I shouldn't be surprised if Aloft Hobbies are a lower grade, given the lower price, but I don't want to choose the more expensive option if they don't provide specifications to prove that they are high-grade.
Do you think this carbon fiber really is too floppy for it's size, or is this just usual for carbon fiber if this size?
https://youtu.be/7Yh0zUhM8Ow
I bought them to run through the neck and body of my instrument, as I want very high stiffness for piano-like tone. I was planning to glue multiple of these together so that they're 2×6mm, or 3×6mm.
When I was shopping online for carbon fiber, I decided that I needed a length of 92-100cm (or 36"-40"), preferably in the upper end of that range. Before I considered this 0.236"² and this 0.125"×0.325" rod from Rock West Composites (cut into appropriate lengths by their service), and also this 0.187"×0.325" from DragonPlate. But those are more expensive. DragonPlate may appear cheaper than Rock West Composites, but they require a shipping quote by e-mail, which ended-up being $46 for me on-top of the $30 minimum order.
I chose Aloft Hobbies instead because it's much cheaper. But they are not nearly as stiff as I expected. I read here that stiffer grades of carbon fiber have a higher "msi". I shouldn't be surprised if Aloft Hobbies are a lower grade, given the lower price, but I don't want to choose the more expensive option if they don't provide specifications to prove that they are high-grade.
Do you think this carbon fiber really is too floppy for it's size, or is this just usual for carbon fiber if this size?