DIY Carbon Fibre Skinning Honda Dio AF18 Front Panel

In this episode I will be carbon fibre skinning the front panel from a Honda Dio AF18. I bought the Carbon Fiber Kit from G-Carbon on Facebook and the AF18 front panel from AAA Scooter Parts.
I hope the video will be helpful to you guys out there and if you have any questions then feel free to drop it into the comments section.
As always, like, comment, share and subscribe to Thai Torque for more 2 Stroke scooter action and other motorsport content from here in Thailand.
Peace!

[@BrandonS350]

That looks phenomenal!

[@thaitorque8847]

Thanks man. Much appreciated! Stay safe dude 👍

[@vishnus632]

Wow it's amazing work bro ..❤

[@diobatangueno]

dude this is amazing!!!great work...be trying this soon.

[@enriqueznathanielnicoled.1069]

Uy si idol haha abangan namin yan!🔥

[@diobatangueno]

Nakakausap ko na yan. Kukunan ko sana ng pyesa sa thailand kaso ngpandemic

[@akotosiamiel2014]

nice tutorial tho!! I’ve learn alot how to make cf motorcycle parts. Thanks for this nice video @thai torque .My fellow Filipino friends know how to do that they are so selfish. Thanks again God bless!🇹🇭🤟🔥 real hardcore teach people to be successful!

[@akotosiamiel2014]

Can we chat on messenger tho?

[@prithvirajkanne]

Amazing, thank you for the idea.

[@flee_N_Elude78]

Bro that looks sick

[@thaitorque8847]

Thanks man. It was definitely worth all the time and hassle that went into making it. I'll get round to doing some more parts soon.

[@marquisethomas5611]

This is gonna be my new hobby

[@thaitorque8847]

Go for it dude! As frustrating as it can be, it is so satisfying when you finally get the finish you want. 👍

[@marquisethomas5611]

@@thaitorque8847 thanks, i will

[@FisherMan1390]

Cool idea

[@thaitorque8847]

Thanks man. I've been wanting to do a project like this for ages. Surprised how nice it turned out in the end. Now I just need an AF18 to put it on.

[@siriusdorian9114]

well done mate..

[@thaitorque8847]

Thanks man. 👍

[@SynthCityMusic]

Fantastic content @thaitorque! You’ve certainly gained an additional 5mph just for the bling factor and of course carbon fiber makes everything look faster hahaha. Keep the vids coming, waiting on your review of the TWH black manifold.

[@thaitorque8847]

That's a good thing because I'm planning on using the panel on a drag scooter build so will need all the extra MPH possible! Haha. As for the TWH black manifold, I don't think I'll be doing a specific review of it but it definitely made a huge difference to throttle response and how quickly the bike takes off. For sure one of the best 'bang for buck' upgrades I've done.

[@SynthCityMusic]

Thai Torque thanks! I’ll look into getting one of those manifolds. Here over in Saudi, the Filipino drag boys use them with VFORCE reed blocks meant for most 125cc mx bikes, always wondered if they made a big enough difference compared to the cheaper Ct manifolds. Their scoots do rocket for sure, but of course with any racer, everything is secretive hahaha! Good luck with your build! I’m built, yet still on the quest for that extra 1mph 🙇🏽‍♂️ hahaha!

[@thaitorque8847]

The manifold setup you mentioned would be awesome. It's the TWH big black manifold with V force4 Reed cage. As far as I'm aware the manifold needs some work to make the cage fit but it does work and would give some serious gains on a setup like yours. 👍

[@hakampamungkas202]

I hope you make another carbon fiber skinning videos in the tricky part. thank you

[@thaitorque8847]

You never know man! Stay tuned for more content coming in the next few weeks! 👍

[@hakampamungkas202]

I'll subscribe man

[@chrikimck]

It was a video from two years ago, but your video was very helpful.Can I sand the 1st resin coated sandpaper 150g 2nd resin coated sandpaper 400g 3rd resin coated 600-1000g?😊

[@goofyplayz9]

Did u wet sand the clear coat and buff it off with a rubbing compound?

[@johanmarine]

U have this for sales???

[@jstrndm945]

Wtf, 2k clear coat was the best one you can find on the market now. If it run, just sand it down with 1500 to 3k sand paper and buff it off. Added: becarefull when you're using polyester resin as a partner of carbon fiber, make sure it was 'tacky' as it should, not too dry, otherwise the carbon are gonna peel right off when its time to end and your piece gonna be trushed. Thats it, keep the good work buddy

[@top1mvp]

hey bro good work there ! can i ask you with the process? after applying base coat resin and covering the fairing part with carbon fiber how many coats of resin did you do? did you do sanding before doing another coat?

[@thaitorque8847]

One thing to consider is that there are many different carbon fibre kits out there and therefore the processes may vary. For example, a kit I used in UK had a very different process to this one. As for this one, I put 3 thick coats of the resin ontop of the carbon fibre. There was no sanding between coats iirc. 👍

[@trovadorramos3764]

What is mono composition

[@wsmaga]

That front panel looks awesome, but that's a whole lot of work and days.

[@thaitorque8847]

You're right. It took a lot of time, a lot if sanding, and a lot of patience. Even though there were a couple of setbacks along the way, the outcome is really nice. Now I just need an AF18 to put it on! Thanks for watching.

[@wsmaga]

@@thaitorque8847 i couldn't imagine doing a complete set of panels. That would take forever. 😆

[@thaitorque8847]

You got that right! But not as much more time than you think. Just the sanding stages would take forever. Props to the guys who have made full panel sets in the past!

[@esthebengonzcop4561]

Donde consigo para mi honda dio zx

[@ultralinx200]

So that is polyester resin? Samurai paint 2k Clear coat is a good paint, its goodest one tbh. But still in this case you are looking for Uv protection, i didn't sure it had that protection

[@thaitorque8847]

Currently it is just coated in the resin that came with the kit. Then a layer of samurai 2K which didn't work out so I sanded it back and then coated in acrylic lacquer. Maybe in the future I'll have a go at giving it a fresh coat of samurai 2K. You're right, that really is good quality lacquer. 👍

[@savvou92]

Do u have any link to buy new plastics parts from my dio af18 ? Cause in my country I can’t find

[@thaitorque8847]

There are a few places selling new plastics here in Thailand. Usually the cost is around 180USD for a brand new set of outer plastics. Drop me a message on my Thai Torque Facebook page and I'll show you what's available. 👍

[@claeswikberg8958]

thats not how you sand out low spots, you have to get them out with the coarser sandpaper , THEN proceed to the finer grits. also, you could have just sanded the epoxy to a finer grit then polished it, avoiding any clear coats. as you most likely cant use degreaser on that clear. though it was shiny in the end.

[@thaitorque8847]

Thanks man! I'll give that a go next time 👍 I'd never planned for having a super perfect finish with this project and was more about using the 2K spray clear can to see how it would come out but as you saw I totally wrecked the 2K stage by being too hasty. Live and learn, I guess. Thanks for checking out my video though pal.

[@E9XJD]

Did you get any solvent pop or any other issues with the clear when it got heat on it, have some real issues with my finial finish on carbon parts sadly

[@thaitorque8847]

There have been a few defects that have appeared over the long term. There's 2 or 3 spots where the clear seemed to go brittle and crack off but it's not too bad. Its frustrating when this kind of thing won't go your way but keep at it dude! 👍

[@E9XJD]

@@thaitorque8847 during the summer I done the trim in my car but the heat seemed to cause loads of tiny bubbles to appear in the clear coat of the piece, was frustrating to say the least but most of this stuff is trial and error lol A lot of people on the forums seem to insist on curing the carbon parts after the piece is done, I’m not sure how baking a large trim piece is possible though.

[@arnel9221]

whats the epoxy primer use? the black one

[@thaitorque8847]

That is used as a base coat for the carbon fibre cloth to stick to the panel. The reason it is black is because the panel originally was a light colour. By colouring the base coat of epoxy black, it keeps the carbon fibre looking darker.

[@petefabila1865]

Will there be a reaction if this is tovbe covered with ceramic coat?

[@thaitorque8847]

Good question! To be honest, I'm not sure if ceramic coating would cause any issue with the acrylic lacquer. It wouldn't be a huge job to just re-lacquer the panel once per year. Just a case of sanding it down with some 600grit paper and then apply a couple of layers of clear coat. Hope this helps 👍

[@ultralinx200]

It's fine, at least for me now

[@tonimattila7523]

Sepultura !!

[@thaitorque8847]

Well done for noticing! Max Cavalera was the king of Thrash IMO.

[@jesusvazquezmurillo614]

hello good job, keep it up, what kind of resin do you use, thanks

[@thaitorque8847]

Thanks for checking out my video. The resin was a 3 part mix consisting of resin, activator, and "mono" chemical. This resin set a lot quicker than previous resins I've before. So much so that I was able to get 90% of the work done in 1 day. Of course, the generally high temps in Thailand help to harden the resin quicker in general.

[@jesusvazquezmurillo614]

I speak to you from Spain. I use epoxy and the truth is that it takes several days, what type of resin is it? and what is mono? Thank you very much for answering, greetings

[@thaitorque8847]

To be honest, I'm not sure what the "mono" chemical was. The fact is, I don't speak enough Thai to be able to have a conversation about what is the mono chemical with the kit seller. I just follower the instructions (which my friend translated for me) and it seemed to come out nice. Initially I was apprehensive because of the suggested curing times but it seemed to work out just like a standard 2 part epoxy resin/hardener mix. Sorry I can't help you more there.

[@jesusvazquezmurillo614]

THANKS FOR YOUR COLLABORATION. GOD BLESS YOU. IF YOU EVER WANT SOMETHING FROM SPAIN, CALL ME.

[@jesusvazquezmurillo614]

Hello again I have already found out, it is a polyester resin with its hardener and ACETONE (mono)

[@kingabrahamcarino1075]

Hey bro What kind of resin they are using in thailand?it was so fast drying Is mono? Is monomer?

[@jstrndm945]

In this video, he is using polyester resin

[@stevenguy2630]

@@jstrndm945 that won’t last real long

[@jstrndm945]

@@stevenguy2630 thats not really what is he asking

[@al-elchannel5898]

what is dye? is it the same as cobalt?

[@thaitorque8847]

I'm not sure it's the same as cobalt or not. The dye was a thick, black grainy paste used to add colour to the base coat so that the colour of the adhesion surface wouldn't show through the carbon fibre.

[@rhyvynalferez5098]

Can I buy some thailand parts? I'm from Philippines

[@thaitorque8847]

Yes, of course. Drop me a message on my Thai Torque Facebook page and we can sort it out 👍

[@naphatjinnikorn1921]

สวัสดีครับ

[@712tedr]

What is mono in 4:10 ?

[@thaitorque8847]

I'm not 100% sure what it is because the instructions were in thai and bottles were labelled in thai. I asked my friend to translate for me just for the method. Someone pointed out mono might be acetone but not sure about that. Sorry I can't be more help there.

[@jaguarlab65]

nice! whant to do the same!!!

[@thaitorque8847]

You should give it a go. There will most likelt be a company selling carbon fibre skinning kits in your country. It's not as hard as you think. Having a set of digital scales helps a lot for getting the ratios correct. If you get your mixing ratios correct, follow the drying times, it will most likely be a success. Give it a try on something basic first.

[@kierdemata9312]

So u put resin and then spray it with samurai 2k paint??

[@thaitorque8847]

Yes, pretty much that. Using the lacquer at the end saves a lot of time for buffing the epoxy. A bit of a lazy mans option but does produce a good result 👍

[@kierdemata9312]

Thai Torque is that the pylac? Does it have a uv protection???

[@davidjohn4835]

Just sand it to shiny next time, much easier then top coat.

[@thaitorque8847]

Yeah, I did consider that. Maybe next time though if I do any other carbon pieces. Thanks for checking my video out. 👍

[@bballkid7409]

David John only if the part is not going to be exposed to sunlight. If the part will see sunlight, a UV clear coat is a must or the part will turn yellow.

[@nurtengedik826]

What is mono??

[@thaitorque8847]

That's a good question. To be honest, I'm not 100% sure. The instructions were in Thai language. Someone mentioned to me it might be Acetone. All the products (except for the resin) were labelled in Thai language too. All I know is that it was needed.

[@nurtengedik826]

Thai Torque thanks for your answer, it may be acetone.

[@user-wo2xj3lf4m]

ช่องคนไทย รึป่าว

[@thaitorque8847]

No sir, I'm not thai. Around one year ago I moved from UK to Thailand.