![]() Roll stock reinforcements, such as woven roving or knitted fabrics, can be used in conjunction with the chopped laminates. Additional layers of chop laminate are added as required for thickness. The laminate is then rolled to thoroughly saturate the glass strands and compact the chop. Continuous strand glass roving and catalysed resin are fed through a chopper gun, which deposits the resin-saturated “chop” on the mould. Process Description – As with hand lay-up, gel coat is first applied to the mould prior to spray-up of the substrate laminate. Although production volume per mould is low, it is feasible to produce substantial production quantities using multiple moulds. In the spray-up process the operator controls thickness and consistency, therefore the process is more operator dependent than hand lay-up. A chopped laminate has good conformability and is sometimes faster than hand lay-up in moulding complex shapes. Spray-up or chopping is an open mould method similar to hand lay-up in its suitability for making boats, tanks, transportation components and tub/shower units in a large variety of shapes and sizes. ![]() With skilled operators, good production rates and consistent quality are obtainable. ![]() There is a minimum investment in equipment. Major Advantages – Simplest method offering low-cost tooling, simple processing, and a wide range of part sizes. Moulds can range from very small to very large and are low cost in the spectrum of composites moulds. Moulds – Simple, single-cavity moulds of fibreglass composites construction are generally used. Low density core materials, such as end-grain balsa, foam, and honeycomb, are commonly used to stiffen the laminate to produce sandwich construction. Subsequent layers of fibreglass reinforcement are added to build laminate thickness. FRP rollers, paint rollers, or squeegees are used to consolidate the laminate, thoroughly wetting the reinforcement, and removing entrapped air. The laminating resin is applied by pouring, brushing, spraying, or using a paint roller. When the gel coat has cured sufficiently, roll stock fibreglass reinforcement is manually placed on the mould. Process Description – Gel coat is first applied to the mould using a spray gun for a high-quality surface. Production volume per mould is low however, it is feasible to produce substantial production quantities using multiple moulds. Hand lay-up is an open moulding method suitable for making a wide variety of composites products including: boats, tanks, bathware, housings, RV/truck/auto components, architectural products, and many other products ranging from very small to very large. The means used to transport the resin, in many cases, characterizes the specific process method. A major factor in this operation is the transfer of resin from a drum or storage tank to the mould. The heart of the open moulding process is saturating fibre reinforcement with resin, then using manual roll-out techniques to consolidate the laminate and remove entrapped air.
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