oCarbon.com - looking for a few members to help us develop carbon fiber interior trim
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1967 Pro Touring turbo LSX Camaro
I think what Cougar was saying is that he thinks you're mistaken if you think people are paying 3-4k to have CF wrapped on their E55 interior trim.
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GLI
The point is, real carbon fiber work is expensive and not for everyone. We like to think we have competitive pricing, but it still isn't cheap. There are plenty of inexpensive carbon fiber parts from Asia all over eBay, but chances are, you won't be happy with the quality. All carbon fiber is not equal. In the end, you get what you pay for.
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1967 Pro Touring turbo LSX Camaro
Kind of. The CF fabric likely all comes from the same place, and broken down over the amount it takes to do each part is very cheap, as is the resin. As I'm sure you know what is expensive is the labor. Do you do all the work start to finish in house, here in the US?
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Former Vendor of MBWorld
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GLI
Kind of. The CF fabric likely all comes from the same place, and broken down over the amount it takes to do each part is very cheap, as is the resin. As I'm sure you know what is expensive is the labor. Do you do all the work start to finish in house, here in the US?
However, the cost of materials should not be marginalized. All fabric does not come from the same place. Cheap fabric from China has gaps in the weave and easily distorts. Resin should not be overlooked. Using a cheap resin results in shrinkage and yellowing. We use epoxy that is very expensive, as it has UV inhibitors in it to keep it from yellowing. We also use automotive clearcoat that is the best in the industry.
Not skimping on materials to keep the costs low for the masses ensures that our parts stay black and clear and look good in several years instead of looking like garbage in 6 months. We've all seen cheap, yellowing and cracked carbon fiber hoods on Hondas. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to guess if those hoods were made with cheap materials or not.
So could we sell our parts for cheaper? Absolutely. But that would mean cutting corners, using lower quality materials, and not offering a warranty. I'm not looking to be the Wal-Mart of carbon fiber. I'd much rather sell a super high quality part I'd be happy to put in my own car.
Last edited by oCarbon; Jun 5, 2013 at 01:49 PM.
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From: Orlando
1967 Pro Touring turbo LSX Camaro
The difference in the cost is almost all the labor though which is how the Chinese do it so cheap. They will work all week , 12 hour days for less than an American princess will get for ine eight hour shift and they have no regard for cigarette breaks, lunch breaks, and health insurance 
You can sing about the great materials all day, but breaking it down on a per piece basis it still is very cheap to wrap things in carbon fiber and shoot urethane clear on it using nice stuff.
And the cheap Honda hoods everyone got used to seeing turn yellow did that because they
1- werent really a carbon hood,t hey were a fiberglass hood made with isophalic polyester resin, and one thin cosmetic layer of 2x2 carbon weave dropped into the mold first to give it a carbon look.
2- never got clear coated so the UV from the sun just baked that poly resin into cookie crisp because it was never intended to not have a topcoat or gelcoat.
So you could definitely still sell a whole interiors worth of trim for 5-600 and make money... It would just mean you either a- make less money, or b- hire guys from the home depot parking lot to do it and eliminate the cost of Chinese logistics
For the record I'd do neither of which if I were you. I have enough CF to wrap a whole car in my garage still from when I used to make stuff when i was in college .. And I'll still pay you to do it for me because that **** sucks. My sister lives in my old house still and the garage has little pieces of carbon and Kevlar permanently epoxied to the floor like prehistoric bugs trapped in amber
You can sing about the great materials all day, but breaking it down on a per piece basis it still is very cheap to wrap things in carbon fiber and shoot urethane clear on it using nice stuff. And the cheap Honda hoods everyone got used to seeing turn yellow did that because they
1- werent really a carbon hood,t hey were a fiberglass hood made with isophalic polyester resin, and one thin cosmetic layer of 2x2 carbon weave dropped into the mold first to give it a carbon look.
2- never got clear coated so the UV from the sun just baked that poly resin into cookie crisp because it was never intended to not have a topcoat or gelcoat.
So you could definitely still sell a whole interiors worth of trim for 5-600 and make money... It would just mean you either a- make less money, or b- hire guys from the home depot parking lot to do it and eliminate the cost of Chinese logistics
For the record I'd do neither of which if I were you. I have enough CF to wrap a whole car in my garage still from when I used to make stuff when i was in college .. And I'll still pay you to do it for me because that **** sucks. My sister lives in my old house still and the garage has little pieces of carbon and Kevlar permanently epoxied to the floor like prehistoric bugs trapped in amber
You're correct that the labor is expensive, and is the majority of the cost. We control the manufacturing process from start to finish in our own facility here in the US.
However, the cost of materials should not be marginalized. All fabric does not come from the same place. Cheap fabric from China has gaps in the weave and easily distorts. Resin should not be overlooked. Using a cheap resin results in shrinkage and yellowing. We use epoxy that is very expensive, as it has UV inhibitors in it to keep it from yellowing. We also use automotive clearcoat that is the best in the industry.
Not skimping on materials to keep the costs low for the masses ensures that our parts stay black and clear and look good in several years instead of looking like garbage in 6 months. We've all seen cheap, yellowing and cracked carbon fiber hoods on Hondas. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to guess if those hoods were made with cheap materials or not.
So could we sell our parts for cheaper? Absolutely. But that would mean cutting corners, using lower quality materials, and not offering a warranty. I'm not looking to be the Wal-Mart of carbon fiber. I'd much rather sell a super high quality part I'd be happy to put in my own car.
However, the cost of materials should not be marginalized. All fabric does not come from the same place. Cheap fabric from China has gaps in the weave and easily distorts. Resin should not be overlooked. Using a cheap resin results in shrinkage and yellowing. We use epoxy that is very expensive, as it has UV inhibitors in it to keep it from yellowing. We also use automotive clearcoat that is the best in the industry.
Not skimping on materials to keep the costs low for the masses ensures that our parts stay black and clear and look good in several years instead of looking like garbage in 6 months. We've all seen cheap, yellowing and cracked carbon fiber hoods on Hondas. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to guess if those hoods were made with cheap materials or not.
So could we sell our parts for cheaper? Absolutely. But that would mean cutting corners, using lower quality materials, and not offering a warranty. I'm not looking to be the Wal-Mart of carbon fiber. I'd much rather sell a super high quality part I'd be happy to put in my own car.
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From: Las Vegas, NV
1000Hp Diesel Trucks, 2019 E63s
The point I was poorly trying to make is that no one with a 20K-30K is spending 3K-4K on CF interior trim pieces. I think 800-900 is a good deal and seems totally reasonable. Like Sir-Boost-a Lot said this **** is a pane is the ***, I've had enough of my own experience with it to know not to do it myself
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Former Vendor of MBWorld
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GLI
We're right in that range. It won't be that cheap forever, it will go up a bit in the future.
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From: Orlando
1967 Pro Touring turbo LSX Camaro
Thread Starter
Former Vendor of MBWorld
Joined: May 2013
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GLI
Lots of interest, but no one has pulled the trigger yet. I might be willing to lower the price a little bit for those who want to be daring and get a custom fabric (silver, red, blue, or one of the custom black weaves).
Shoot me an email at matt@ocarbon.com if you'd like to set something up.
Shoot me an email at matt@ocarbon.com if you'd like to set something up.
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From: Bloomingdale,IL
2004 W211 E55K, GL550
Work looks great and price is reasonable if its under 1k. Wish I wasn't engaged or I would have jumped all over this unless u guys want to give me a early wedding present lol.
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From: Northern VA
2012 F150 FX4 Ecoboost, 03 e46 M3 (sold), 05 E55 (build is on), 03 Escalade (going to sell)
Lots of interest, but no one has pulled the trigger yet. I might be willing to lower the price a little bit for those who want to be daring and get a custom fabric (silver, red, blue, or one of the custom black weaves).
Shoot me an email at matt@ocarbon.com if you'd like to set something up.
Shoot me an email at matt@ocarbon.com if you'd like to set something up.
Former Vendor of MBWorld
Joined: Jan 2013
Posts: 547
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From: Northern VA
2012 F150 FX4 Ecoboost, 03 e46 M3 (sold), 05 E55 (build is on), 03 Escalade (going to sell)
Just confirmed my order with Matt. Will be shipping my pieces out this weekend. Will keep you guys posted with after pics.
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Former Vendor of MBWorld
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GLI
Many more pics here: http://ocarbon.com/blog/
We can, but the fabric is very expensive and would have to be special ordered. It would add $200 to the price.
