Carbon Fiber, Specifications? Options

[Todd Enlund]

I want to make a few Carbon Fiber parts for my car... but I'm trying to decide on which fabric to purchase. Twill vs plain weave, weight, and tow size. I will be using the CF primarily for it's cosmetic value, so appearance is my primary concern. I believe that twill is my choice for weave, and I'd prefer as light a weight as possible... but I'm not sure what "tow size" is. I'm guessing that it has something to do with the size of the weave, and the heavier the cloth, the larger the tow. For example, 5.7oz cloth has a 3K tow, and 11oz cloth has a 6K tow. 5.7oz would be my preference, but I'm concerned that the weave may be smaller than I want as far as appearance goes, and I may be better off with 11oz.

Anyone have any experience, and can offer some advice?

I plan on vacuum bagging with epoxy resin.

[charliew]

The cost of carbon along with it's availability has really gone up and will stay costly because of the military consumption. My son has a CF hood with some damage to the edge and I still haven't figgured out how to fix it without painting over the repair. I have bought fg supplies from Fiberglast and they are very helpful with advice on most applications.
I ran across a supercar made out of wood composites and they had several ideas on vaccuming composites. It's a college project and if you've got time it's worth checking out. They have a very high tech car going. http://www.joeharmondesign.com/index.html