Water in my carbon fiber wing?

[Tomster]

And you see no signs of water near the flanges they embed on the underside of the wing to attach to the uprights?

You mean where the end plates attach to the wing? That's the only way I can see water getting into the hollow body of the wing. If the wing is tilted up for track setting, the water drains are now higher and water will pool and seep into the body of the wing.

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[Tomster]

The only way I could see this being an “issue” is if a decent amount of water is trapped and then allowed to freeze. It would seriously suck ending up with a cracked carbon fiber wing.

true, but I am in the south where freezing isn't much of an issue. I will see what the manufacturer has to say about this.

 

[WD Pro]

On push bikes (some carbon), I have used small (approx 8mm) black vinyl dots to seal drain holes (which are about 3mm on a bike frame).

You can buy them off eBay, a stack of sheets with literally hundreds of the little things on them is only a few £’s

Make sure the item is fully empty / dry and then apply them.

Obviously the volume of that wing will be a lot greater than a bike frame, so temperature swing may cause them to lift and vent a little air when it’s been baking in the sun. Just make sure you press them down firmly before washing it again.

On carbon they will virtually disappear and probably be less obvious than the bare drain hole.

Just throwing some ideas around for you

WD

 

[2020GT500]

The only way I could see this being an “issue” is if a decent amount of water is trapped and then allowed to freeze. It would seriously suck ending up with a cracked carbon fiber wing.

Also not sure anyone would want 1-2 lbs (worst case scenario) of water sloshing around when out for a "spirted" closed circuit run... freezing was my initial thought...

 

[kilobravo]

At least CF doesn't rust, Tom.

KB

 

[Epiphany]

You mean where the end plates attach to the wing? That's the only way I can see water getting into the hollow body of the wing. If the wing is tilted up for track setting, the water drains are now higher and water will pool and seep into the body of the wing.

No. The embedded flanges, 2 of them, that are on the underside of the wing that attach to the uprights. I ask if you see water there because they would be the lowest point on the airfoil with any type of penetration. If everything is sealed up good there no water could escape there. I'm not talking about water getting in at that juncture but rather, could it get out.

 

[Tomster]

No. The embedded flanges, 2 of them, that are on the underside of the wing that attach to the uprights. I ask if you see water there because they would be the lowest point on the airfoil with any type of penetration. If everything is sealed up good there no water could escape there. I'm not talking about water getting in at that juncture but rather, could it get out.

If you are referring to the mounting points of the wing, no, water is not leaking out of them either. Water is getting in and leaking out somewhere around the end plates.

 

[kilobravo]

I'm gonna see if a little air pressure on one side will do anything, Tom but I don't have it in the track setting. Trying to save gas, don'tcha know? <BIG grin>

But as long as it stays within the CF envelope, I'm not gonna worry too much. Howsomever, if you figure out a way to get it out short of removing the darn thing, I'm all ears amigo.

KB

 

[Epiphany]

I understand where it is getting in. My point has to do with what they intentionally sealed and what they leave open. If they bond the winglet ends to the airfoil are they leaving a channel whereby the drains on the end plates are carrying moisture to an open cavity? Sounds like yes, as if they don't seal the foil at the ends but they do seal the flanges that protrude from the underside of the wing, the opposite of what I'd think they should be doing.

 

[Tomster]

I understand where it is getting in. My point has to do with what they intentionally sealed and what they leave open. If they bond the winglet ends to the airfoil are they leaving a channel whereby the drains on the end plates are carrying moisture to an open cavity? Sounds like yes, as if they don't seal the foil at the ends but they do seal the flanges that protrude from the underside of the wing, the opposite of what I'd think they should be doing.

I've got an email in to the mfg. Let's see what they say.

 

[Epiphany]

I looked at a real deal GT4 airfoil and I'm not sure how the factory one compares in terms of construction. Other than endplates being bolt on or bonded, and upright attachment flang differences, my guess would be that the two are fairly similar.

GT4 wing uses a contoured aluminum extrusion section that bookends a foam core. Not sure how permeable it is but it looks to be pretty much closed cell.

So if the drain on the OEM wing intersects any open portion at the end of the airfoil I could see this happening. What I'm looking forward to hearing is if the OEM uses a foam core end to end.

 

[Tomster]

I looked at a real deal GT4 airfoil and I'm not sure how the factory one compares in terms of construction. Other than endplates being bolt on or bonded, and upright attachment flang differences, my guess would be that the two are fairly similar.

GT4 wing uses a contoured aluminum extrusion section that bookends a foam core. Not sure how permeable it is but it looks to be pretty much closed cell.

So if the drain on the OEM wing intersects any open portion at the end of the airfoil I could see this happening. What I'm looking forward to hearing is if the OEM uses a foam core end to end.

You know, I'm glad you posted this.... I used to repair surfboards a long time ago. Fiberglass is probably similar to carbon fiber to work with.... I was thinking of building my own knockoff wing for the street. All you would need is a properly shaped foam core, and the rest is just cloth layering and resin and a little elbow grease. I'd probably just paint it black.

Anyway, I will hopefully hear from the mfg soon about my wing. I dont think water should be accumulating in my wing.

 

[Tomster]

I received a message back and was told that the body is open per the design and the drain slots are part of that feature etc....

So they say this is normal.

The takeaway from this is that if you leave your wing at the track setting, the drain holes are no longer at the very bottom of the wing and water can (and will) collect. I would suspect that water would find its way to the drain upon acceleration over multiple cycles. The other option would be to leave the wing at the street setting when washing the car or after a heavy rain should that occur.

I'll have a look later and see if I can get a better view around the drain holes to see how exposed the open body really is.

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