Thank you, Ik it's a wee bit idiotic to leave a comment on a 12 year old video and hope this reaches you, but this is easily the best tutorial I've found on the subject. Thanks!

I have a lot of experience with carbon and a little trick is to mist a light layer of super 77 spray adhesive or equivalent on the under side of the cloth. this allows you to cut edges without fraying so easily :) A light layer will not effect epoxy or other resins

This is a great product that worked very well for me. I followed the instructions to the letter and I would just emphasise the need to give thin, even coats of the clear resin. I was a bit heavy handed with the first resin coat and ended up keep having to wipe drips away from the lower edge of the item I was coating. When it was cured, I had to sand away the excess but thereafter with thinner coats, everything went well and I'm very pleased with the end result.

This is one of the best things i have ever seen in my whole life. A lot of Repect to you carbon mods. love this kind of DIYs and people like you who show how its done. I hope you have an awesome bussiness with it.

Thanks Cossietone, We remember how hard it was trying to get the info and the materials, people who know 'how' don't normally want to share the secret... I don't think they want to admit to how easy it is! The secrets are all coming out now! Carbon Mods

@dazzelya: Where you're dealing with tight curves (and angles) it's sometimes neccessary to add a cut line in the fabric. This allows you to really stretch the fabric over the worst of the curves and then have a separate, less distorted piece for the remaining surfaces. A great tip to get a nice clean cut line in the fabric is to spray the fabric with plenty of hairspray before cutting it. That way, when you do you're left with a sharp clean line that doesn't frey. Hope this helps!

The results look unbelievably good. That sure wasn't the guy's first time doing that.

Hi Delsol, The base coat is very sticky so it can hold the carbon tightly against the surface of the part even on very sharp corners. It is also posible to do parts in multiple pieces, where joins might be necessary/desirable. If you were to do one side of a cube with a cut, you would apply the carbon and then trim it at the corner once is was 'tacked' down... this would leave a very neat cut right on the corner that wouldn't be visable... simple! Thanks for the question.

Hi Transam, the best way to get a neat line between a skinned area and an unskinned one is to mask out the area you don't want the carbon to be, then apply the base-coat, when it goes to 'tack' remove the mask then apply the carbon over the line, then you want to carfully scalpel down the line, mask it off after and apply the top-coats. you should get great results this way!

If you think any grease or contaminents have got into your process somehow (off your hands, rags etc.) then this is good advice. If you're working very clean and changing water reguarly then this isn't always neccessary. We didn't wipe this part down between coats, kept it clean and it was perfect.

I just did my jetski pole with clear resin. It is important to have the first coat is black it helps to hide inperfections in the carbon fiber and when you sand it to flatten it out it hides the thin parts. I did 4 coats of clear ontop of carbon fiber and looks awsome I should have done a smaller part my first time but am very happy with my first thing I have ever done

Hi Yonchvader, well, firstly, steel can be cut and sanded too. The main reason it's much easier with carbon is because carbon fibre's strength works differently to steel, it's a bittle material with poor 'elongation to break' properties which means fibres can be individually broken easily (which is why sanding is so effective). Weight-for-weight however the tensile strength is higher than steel which is why it's referred to as 'stronger' than steel.

A little tip I've found when skimming is instead of using the tape that can be messy and awkward I use small bull dog clips to fasten the c/f fabric tightly to the piece, the last thing you want are air voids between your fabric and piece. 2-3 coats of clear resin and a final wet sand with 1200 wet paper, then I use a dremel to remove the hardened excess c/f fabric from the back and sides, and finally 1 coat of 2k lacquer, dry via IR light and you have a perfect finish every time.

Hi Tulaconalas, normally this kit is used for the look, however the materials used are the very best in structural performance too, so it would be fine to use this process to strengthen you speedboard, people have used these materials for making there own wakeboards and surfboards you may want to use more than one layer of carbon to get ultimate strength though. I hope this helps you out.

This is very useful for other projects too, I'm doing a carbon fibre skateboard and this is very helpful, thanks

The fabric we're using in this video (which is included in the kit) is standard 2/2 twill, 3k carbon fibre. We do also sell a version called ProFinish which includes an almost invisible epoxy powder bonding on the reverse to make it much stiffer and easier to handle/do cut lines. For flatter parts or where you need to make neat cut-lines ProFinish is a great choice but for more contoured parts (like this mirror) then I would stick with the standard 2/2 twill and just get used to handling it.

Hi Plooke, you could use normal carbon fibre epoxy laminating resin as the first coat, however you may get problems with the level of 'tack' and quality of bond to the part, also with it not being black you might get visable gaps between the weave on the surface, I would say if you can get hold of some skinning base-coat, it would make your life much easier! Any more questions please ask.

@pballer72: The resin we use doesn't actually exotherm very much so that wouldn't be a problem. The tricky bit would be finding a temperature that the wax would melt at but that wouldn't harm the part. The resin we use in this skinning kit is happy up to about 80 degrees C so you'd need a wax that melts before then.

Hi Taff, we spent a long time getting the right resin for the job, you are right though, epoxies are generally tough to polish well, our system flats out and polishes by hand perfectly, if you wish to machine polish you must ensure the part is fully cured and the head set at a low RPM otherwise the surface can soften with the friction generated heat and a good shine can't be acheived. We don't know of anyone who has experienced problems polishing our system to a full gloss. Thanks for asking.

I didn't buy their kit but this "how to" really helped me a lot. Thanks!

Been skinning quite a few years, also thanks to the clip which got me started back then .. but as I look at it now, I can't help to feel a little annoyed. If you look at these parts you can clearly still see marks and pits in them..which would all be solved if they wouldn't advise people to use a rattlecan to apply clearcoat. Use real clear laquer applied either by yourself or by a pro with a regular spraygun and it will look so much nicer. I've skinned parts for some high end vehicles for which those specific parts were not available in CF .. If I handed over the parts like this .. ppl wouldn't come back at all :-) Props on the sanding and applying resin though, can't go better than this :-)

Hi Tuga77, The reason that we reccomend snading after the first coat it because there is often small 'nibs' and sharp spots that are best being removed early to allow the subsequent top-coats to build a fairly flat surface. if you don't have any of these small problems areas then it's fine to continue without sanding, thanks for the question. Carbon Mods

Hi Simon, Yes, you can drill through the carbon skin without any problems. You should always make your appertures slightly too small and then open them out using a file or abrasive paper - this will prevent any cracking or chipping of the skin.

Hi Dazzy2para, You can Have joins in the fabric, normally the cut is made when the top-coat has part-cured (still slightly tacky) you overlap the carbon at the join and then carfully cut along the desired the seam line with a knife and remove the exccess material. so in short yes a sphere would be possible with one seam/join running around it. Thanks For the Question. Carbon Mods

@mlinecomposites1 : Actually, if you put the carbon onto the basecoat at the right time (when it's firm but still slightly tacky) you can lift it back up again before you put any pressure on if it's not lined up quite right. We did a bonnet the other day and the carbon went down a little out of line, it was easy enough to lift it up and get it right second time. Once you press it firmly down, it's down for good.

Good thorough video, nice job, I did see a couple of imperfections but the process was good and enough to be able to repeat and take time to get it perfect, although it's a fine art and takes years to get a very good job, definitely easier to sit back and criticise.

@bloodieduckies : Skinning is the process of making something look like it's a carbon fibre part by adding a single layer of carbon fibre to the outside of it. Laminating (although the word sounds like the same thing!) is the traditional name in composites for actually layering reinforcement (i.e. carbon) and resin into a mould to make a composite part (i.e. a carbon fibre part) so laminating is making carbon parts, skinning is covering existing parts with a layer of carbon.

Hi AcryllicWonder, We have made our kits to give you the best start possible, I wish they were around when I started! as for a steering wheel, I would say that you've picked a tricky part to skin, and a very very tricky part to mould, I would suggest starting with some simpler parts such as interior trim, where you should get great results straight away, then move onto the more complex parts as your experience builds, Thanks for the interest, Carbon Mods

@dotless : It would be possible but motorcycle exhausts run pretty hot so we would suggest using the 'HIgh Temperature' version of the kit. It's exactly the same but uses a special resin system that's dimensionally stable (doesn't expand or contract) up to about 160 degrees C (which should be fine for most exhuast systems). The you just follow the same steps. The HT kit is listed on our site too.

@28hypnotic : Yes, you can file it. We use Perma-Grit tools (which are a range of tools with Tungsten Carbide grit on them), they do sanding blocks and files etc. The main advantage is that they don't really blunt or clog but for a cheaper alternative you can't beat a range of different grits of abrasive paper around a block. Start with coarser grits and work your way up to finer grits. By the end you can have a perfect smooth glossy adge.

Yes we ship to the US everyday, a kit typically costs £16.00 which is about $25 so all in with current exchange rates it would total $93 on your doorstep, as for working on ceramics it would bond quite well especially if wrapped around onto the back... not sure about dishwasher safe, there's no real reason why it wouldn't be however we couldn't guarantee it. i would imagine the worst that would happen would be losing the glossiness. Hope this helps, Carbon Mods

This is all exactly right. The standard twill weave we supply is only 0.3 in thickness. The top coats will take you up to about 1mm. Changing to a lighter carbon fabric will only have a very slight effect since a thinner fabric would be 0.2, the rest of the process would then take it up to 0.9mm (although in reality it will vary more than that).

Hi rinjingan, Yes you can use vinylester or polyester resins, however they do not perform as well as epoxies and often their clarity is not as high. All top composite workshops will use proper carbon fibre laminating epoxies like we supply. Thanks for asking, Carbon Mods

@arun ranjit Actually, if you buy the kit off the Carbond Mods website you should find that you can buy the kit with Alufibre cloth as an alternative to carbon fibre. Alufibre is a silver version of the carbon so sounds like what you're after.

Hi emj0001, You Can get a great finish with either larger parts such as bonnets and roofs we would recommend a clear-coat or laquer as it is quicker. if you are looking for a flawless finish from laquer you can flat and compound this using the same method. Thanks, Carbon Mods

@MillieMills77 : You can clean epoxy off the brushes uses Acetone. It's not a chemical you can generally buy at a hardware store and it's not one we can ship safely but any fibreglass supplier will have it or you can buy nail cheap nail polish remover, which is basically acetone (don't get one with 'moisturisers' or other additives).

Hi SummerTheFuzzy, It's totaly fine to go over the top of a painted part, just sand it back a bit so that the basecoat bonds properly to... simple!

Yes you can, although i would recommend you just use a simple laminating technique and minimise the numbers of layers of resin for weight purposes. We do stock a wide range of fabrics on our Easycomposites website including lightweight carbons and woven fibreglass often used in aero modelling,

Hi Kapullas, yes, this is perfectly possible although sometimes the time saving that you would imagine (by not making a mould first) doesn't actually materialise because you'll spend so much longer flatting and polishing the finished part that you would if you'd taken a mould off the nice, smooth, glossy part in the first place. The other thing to consider is that a part made in this way (without a mould) would be larger than the original, unlike if you made a mould off the original first.

Hi Urbanfirth, @ 20deg it takes 8 hours to cure so it can be sanded/polished. It will have 'tacked-off' and additional layers of resin can be added after around 3 hours. Hope This helps, Carbon Mods

Hi DaveVU2, There is no real way to soften epoxy far enough to reseal cracks in it, I would recommend trying laminating epoxy brushed on the area, then heat it with a heat gun to lower it's viscosity, in many cases this will allow the resin to capillary into the damage and reseal itself, you can then wipe away the resin from the surface. Thanks for the question and good-luck with the repair, Carbon Mods

It depends what type of foam the canopy is made from. If it's Depron then the bond will be ok but it won't be fantastic. If it's PU foam, styrofoam, or PVC foam then the bond will be a lot better. You should ensure that the canopy (or anything you are covering) is keyed-up properly (with coarse abrasive paper) which will help the 'skin' stick to any material.

If you use epoxy resin (like we do in the video) to skin the part then it would be a good idea to use a 2k lacquer over the top of the part to provide UV protection to parts that will spend a long time in the sun. An epoxy gelcoat wouldn't be necessary because it wouldn't actually add this protection. An alternative (really when making parts, not when skinning them) is to use an epoxy compatible polyester gelcoat like GC50 - this provides UV stability to epoxy based parts.

@0livia9991: Hi Chris, you can use any standard body-filler to prepare your body panels before skinning. In fast, because the skin is so solid and you're going to do so much flatting the quality of the part underneith is unimportant. We've just filmed a video (not edited yet) which shows us skinning a whole bonnet (hood). The bonnet itself had lots of scratches and a couple of bits of body filler. The end result was stunning. I'll be uploading it soon. We can do your size, no problem.

@Monk3yman77 : Yes, sort of. The trick is just to skin straight past the edge (no curling the fabric) and then when it's cured to cut it off and sand the edge smooth. This method works really well for getting very neat edges, especially when you have other parts that the skinned part needs to meet up with perfectly.

With some shapes it is a good trick to wrap the skinned object in tight fitting glad wrap. Glad wrap does not stick to epoxy. When the epoxy is dry, the glad warp is removed,, and the object has a beautiful smooth finish.

Hi Buhrrito, To make a hood/fender you could do either, in fact we are just about to launch a video showing this exact process on a hood/bonnet, as for what the pros do; for a complete one off this skinning process is normally used, however for mass production moulds would be made and the parts would be moulded, check out our other videos for info on this. Thanks for the question. Carbon Mods

@dutchguywillem : This certainly depends on the temperature you're working at. We recommend an ambient temperature of 20 degrees, this is what most epoxies are designed to cure in and if it is 20 degrees you'll be at the 'tack' stage in around 4hrs. It's worth checking fairly reguarly; if you catch it just right it makes the job a lot easier!

@carbonmods thanks for your replay I was checking my inbox everyday so you finally did it. lol. This is what I am doing, I have the core already, I am planning to put a light coat of fiber glass to add some stiffness, My dilemma is that I work for a paint company that also make industrial epoxy coatings for water tanks and Disney parks. I have 50% off for every item, including epoxy coatings, but the company does not make epoxy resin, which apparently is the best glue for carbon fiber and...

@Keitho958 It gives a sticky layer for the carbon to adhere to, it also masks the part colour as the carbon has tiny holes in the weave. I also use the black (gel/epoxy coat) to paint the underside of parts afterwards. Glovebox lids for instance. Been using this stuff a while and it's very good.

Very nice tip!!! without mould is a very nice product/result. Congratulation for the idea!

@F1BOY2007 : Yes, it's 200gsm we use in the kit. It's the most common weight of fabric. The weave is 2/2 twill, also the most recognisable of the carbon weaves. When you say what thickness it's made of I guess you're talking about the finished 'skin' of carbon fibre not just the fabric before it's coated in resin?) in which case the finished skin adds about 1mm or less to the part.

@bloodaid: Well, the reason we're doing it for parts like this is to give them a completely genuine carbon fibre finish. As a side effect, adding 1mm of carbon fibre and resin to the outside of a part would add considerable strength but in the case of a mirror it's strong enough already so the reason for the 'skin' is cosmetic. You could use the same process to cover something very thin and light (like papier maché) then you would re-inforce the part considerably.

@red666A : For a set of mirrors like that, you're looking at doing them over a period of 2-3 days, of which you'll spend most of your time either waiting (for the resin to cure) or sanding and polishing. There's probably 5hrs worth of sanding and polishing in a set like that.

Hi Ddizzle287, Generally a helmet can be done in 1 peice fairly easily, the best way is to start from the crown and allow the cloth to drape from there, Thanks for the question Carbon Mods

@groundhabit : Well, a few things might help. The first is to skin straight over things like the button holes, not trying to go down into them and wrap it round inside - this would end up a mess. One the part is skinned you can drill through and then fettle the button holes to have nice clean sharp edges. Also, skin straight past the edges of the moulding and trim those off when it's all cured too - much neater. Also, consider using a lighter carbon fabric or maybe a 'ProFinish' fabric.

Oh! The EasyComposites guy!

@malibooroo : TT mirrors really are very domed and would be right at the limit of how far the weave could be distorted without the need for a cut-line. If you do need a cut-line I'd suggest using our ProFinish carbon (so that you can have a perfectly neat join-line) and doing it in two peices - this will reduce the amount of distortion needed considerably.

Hi ReALiT22, It's fine upto 80deg C (176F) We are currently developing an 'engine bay' version of the kit that will take much higher temperatures. Thanks for the question.

@rnr04072 : Yes, it works in exactly the same way. In fact, the blue/black carbon fibre is an option on the product page when buying the Skinning Starter Kit.

@drzflyest4 : No, the masking tape is just a temporary measure to hold the carbon in place whilst the basecoat cures. Generally, you'll have completed removed any carbon/resin from the inside/reverse of the part after you trim and finish the excess material off earlier in the process.

At first I was thinking it will be an awful result but in fact that's great job !

Go to easycomposites.co.uk. In their carbon fiber section they have all of your standard twills, weights, and weave sizes. if you scroll down a bit you'll see one of the options with a blue "PROFINISH" on it. That's what you want. It comes slightly pre-infused with resin. It won't separate or fray when it's being formed to a mold or cut (unless you're really rough with it). Also, try using carbon fiber shears because they won't pull when your cutting. Good luck!

Well done and explained 👏

Hi faYte0607, It's very easy to wrap around corners and curves because it's real carbon fibre and not vinyl. the weave can move freely against itself this allows it to conform around complex curves, unlike vinyl which can often wrinkle where there is an excess. Thanks for the question, Carbon Mods

Hi MIAStrat, The Resin used for the top-coat is a very UV stable one... obviously no epoxy is 100% UV stable, however we have never experienced or known of anyone who has experienced problems using our system. I hope this helps.

@krios50 : -30 degrees to 50 degrees should not be a problem. Much above 50 degress and you would want to use our High Temperature Skinning Kit which can take temperatures up to 200 degrees C (for engine bays, heat shields, gearbox covers etc.).

We've got quite a few different weave patterns available, especially on our Easy Composites website. These include the new 'giant print' spread weave carbons, plain weave, twill (like you see here) and others. Nothing I'd describe as a hexagon print but a huge range nonetheless.

This type of technic does add some added strength to the part you are covering as well as good looks. It all depends on your application more fiber in different directions usually adds stiffness and strength.

this video is absolutely amazing!! a fuckin fello in my class was really irritatin me like hell dat there is 1ly 1 person in chennai(india) who does carbon fibre kits, but thanx 2 u coz i've planned 2 start a garaga of my own n gonna start makin coool custom body kits!!! MAY GOD BLESS YOU!!

It looks so easy when you guys did it.. I had trouble with the base coat and hardener the carbon weave didn't want to stick to the 'tacked' surfaced... So I gave up and wasted pretty much $90 got frustrated too...

@Saferetias: The small version of the kit (as shown) is £47 (for UK/Europe customers) or £40 if it's going out of Europe (USA for example). In USD this is about $59. We also do a large version of the kit and a bonnet/hood sized kit (with a massive 1.6m x 1.25m peice of fabric!).

@thmisaac : We actually sell a 'bonnet/hood skinning kit' specially for skinning a car hood. That kit includes a piece of fabric that's about 5' x 4'. If that's not big enough then yes, we sell everything separately and can make a kit up to any size you need. The hood kit includes instructions for skinning a hood with lots of tips and a video on the way!

This is Art Attack for grown ups!!

Hi Dipacalypse, You could use the topcoat on a prepreg part, however you would probably be better having it lacquered/clear coated, using a good quality automotive system. any decent spray-shop should be able to do this for you. Hope this helps, Carbon Mods

@summitsvift : It's the 'Carbon Fibre Skinnin Starter Kit'. We also have the special 'High Temp' version and also a 'Large' version. They're all listed in the 'Carbon Fibre Kits' category.

@oldhpirs4 : It depends on how difficult the parts you try to make are. Really detailed or intricate parts with lots of tight corners can be very difficult or even impossible to skin (or replicate completely) in carbon without at least a bit more equipment. If it's simpler shapes or items then it's perfectly possible to do a good job of making these even as an enthusiastic beginner.

Yeah I get you. Sometimes it's hard for a beginner for things the first time. It can definitely be done it just depends on how long it's gonna take to get done. I myself don't like making overlays because it takes to long. I would rather make a mold for the part to be made out of. This calls for a more accurate part, but I understand this is for someone who's just starting out.

@Bonerific0 : Rear diffusers are a tricky shape, either to skin (like in this video) or to actually make. Our advice for skinning would be to use ProFinish carbon (see our website) so that you can make all of the fins and flat parts up in separate sections. This way you won't struggle with the massive weave distortion that would be neccessary to get the fibre into and out of the fins and back onto the flat sections (if possible at all). With lacquer over the top you won't see the joins.

Hi again faYte0607, It's normally very straight-forward normally you would leave the carbon 'bridging' over the hole and then trim it out after the first coat of top-coat. I hope this helps, Carbon Mods

@lolligheidddd : Yes, metal is a good starting point. Make sure it's keyed up well. We haven't seen any problems with skinned metal parts.

@mlinecomposites1 : Precisely. If people want to make the part out of carbon fibre (not just skin it) then we have our mould making kit and laminating kit. If they want to go further than that and make some pretty high-end light weight parts then we have our full resin infusion kit too.

@MikkoMuhis Yes, it will certainly add some strength to a fibreglass part if you add a layer of carbon fibre over the top. It is only one layer though so it's not going to be a huge increase in strength. If you want it much stronger then you could add additional layers of carbon fibre.

@CritikylMass : Yes, you could add reinforcement to a compound bow to make it more powerful, ideally you would want to be using unidirectional carbon fibre not a biaxial woven cloth (like you see in this video) - we sell unidirectional cloth on easycomposites.co.uk - You would need to heavily 'key' the limbs with abrasive paper, wet them with epoxy, layer on the UD carbon, wetting it as you go, and then ideally you would want to squash the carbon down with something to consolodate whilst curing

Nice, The polished part looks much better than the clear spray part..

Hi Low402, People use this method for skinning hoods all the time, the kit here isn't big enough to do one, but you can get all of the materials in larger quantities on our website. Thanks for the Question, Carbon Mods

@9kevin : Yes, there's no reason why you couldn't just start laminating straight onto the outside of the foam bike frame pattern. The basecoat is special because (a) it's black and (b) it stays tacky for a long time making it perfect for the careful positioning of the carbon for a single skin. What you'll be doing it wrapping many layers of carbon around the frame making the black nature of the basecoat and the tackiness unneccessary.

In the video a simple off the shelf rattle can automotive lacquer was used. In an ideal world a 2 pack lacquer would be used as they have a better UV resistance than rattle can products, however this is not always financially viable or practical for smaller parts.

depends on the part and how long you are prepared to spend working on the part. Both can achieve a great finish (as seen in the video).

@wayakuza111 No, you can't I'm afraid. The carbon effect vinyls are generally cast PVC which is very difficult to bond to plus when it gets coated in resin the resin fills the texture of the carbon pattern and it actually stops looking like carbon fibre. If you're going to the trouble of the rest of its, why not just use carbon inside and get the proper genuine appearance!

Instead of using a clear coat, you can use a small amount of alcohol and resin and wipe it on and it will create a clear shine. But the resin needs to be thinned out a bit. It's what I would do for carbon bits for the race car I worked on

if your worried about thickness, choose the thinnest TWILL WEAVE carbon fiber sheet you can find (twill weave looks better than plain weave). Plan on the final product being at least twice as thick as the actual sheet. If you use 1/2 mm sheet, expect the final thickness to be more than a millimeter. Both the fuel door and the hood should provide more than enough extra space to accomodate for this slight change.

@gsxr1300fan123 : Everything is harder the first time you try it and skinning with carbon fibre is no exception. What we normally suggest is that you have a practice run on something small and insignificant so you can learn the technique and make any mistakes on that trail run before wasting time/material making a mistake on a larger part. I don't think a motorcycle helmet would be particularly difficult but like I say, start small first!

this is awesome i have carbon sheet trim inside my car..im going to upgrade to this

@TheWhoTheWhereTheHow: The fabric itself is about 0.3mm. When you use it in this skinning process then the fabric and the resin together add about 1mm.

@turboboost27 : The kit is £39+VAT (if you lice in Europe). You wouldn't pay the VAT if you don't so it would just be the £39 (which is about $57 US. The High Temp version (I mentioned above) is a little more. Also we have a Large version of the kit which has a peice of carbon that's 1sqm (3' x 3') and an even larger one for skinning bonnets/hoods (over 5' x 4'). Check our site for all the prices on those.

If your covering a part, that for whatever reason requires the carbon fibre cloth to be cut so that it will lie properly, how would you go about making the seam invisible? Also, is there a specific tool to cut the carbon fibre cloth properly? Or will any old pair of household scissors do? THANKS!! I also like that your videos are short, succinct, and to the point. Thanks again

@Lazethakid : Yes, there's no reason why you can't do this. Composites hoods could be made in a variety of ways using a variety of materials and the closer those materials are to the 'skin' you add the better but even if it's a different resin system (polyester for example) then it should still bond well and give a new lease of life to your faded C/F hood.

@psasmh1 : Adding a layer of real carbon fibre to the outside of a part will certainly add some strength to the part. If you wanted to add more strength (as much as you want really) you could just add extra layers of carbon. This would be great if you were using this process to add a layer of carbon onto the outside of part you'd shaped yourself out of foam for example.

I took the cheap way and did it with carbon print stick paper, worked ok but this looks ALOT better