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Cabin Top: Carbon Fiber Overhead to paint transition

ERushing

Well Known Member
Good Morning,

The Aerosport overhead console is finally mounted on the cabin top and I'm starting to work on the cabin top cosmetics and overhead to cabin top transition.

For those who have kept the carbon fiber look, how have you made the transition from carbon fiber overhead to paint on the cabin top above and around the door opening? I'm struggling with how to make the transition along the shadow line of the overhead console look good and not have a ridge of paint or overhead clear coat.

Any advise would be appreciated.

In the photo below, the shadow line will be the bottom edge of the green fine line tape. I'll sand the clear coat between the green tape and the raw carbon fiber/ flox blend line. I'm planning to put a single piece of thin fiberglass tape over the transition and then micro to near the shadow line. Sand smooth, fill, paint. But that transition from the actual shadow line to the paint has me perplexed. I'm planning to use a single stage PPG product for paint so no clear coat on the paint.

A3133C06-A36C-4735-B17A-388D7F7D7689_zpsxohrbxzn.jpg


Thanks for your help!
 
Last edited:
Interested in seeing some pictures as well. I've got a molded in overhead console and I'm wondering about the transition also.
 
I'll be finishing mine in a few days. My plan is to mask the console and blend up to the exposed flange with micro, with the micro faired to the same thickness as the flange. Then remove the console, finish and paint the interior of the top, and finally glue in the console.
 
I'll be finishing mine in a few days. My plan is to mask the console and blend up to the exposed flange with micro, with the micro faired to the same thickness as the flange. Then remove the console, finish and paint the interior of the top, and finally glue in the console.

Similar to what I did, but mine was bonded in first with flox. Then I Micro'd to blend. It was pretty easy to keep the console masked off while I painted the rest of the cabin top. YMMV.

I found a few pictures from the build:

FP11012017A0002D.jpg


FP11012017A00035.jpg


FP11012017A00036.jpg
 
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