A Rear Wing is an aerodynamic accessory used in motorsports to disrupt a vehicles turbulent airflow and produce downforce.
Carbon Fiber is praised for its extremely high strength to weight ratio. It is also notoriously difficult to work with.
So I thought, why not put the two together?
Who doesn’t love a bit of CAD?
Computer Aided Design is a digital sandbox where design concepts intertwine with precise technical specifications. The final renderings (displayed above) are the result of countless iterations, refined to best achieve the project goals:
Fancy projects can quickly rack up high costs. To mitigate unnecessary spending, I’ve found that laser cutting models from cheap wood is an excellent substitute for other more expensive alternatives.
(There’s not an engineer out there who hasn’t accidentally cut a piece in x0.5 scale dimensions)
Once I’m 110% satisfied with my concept and have run through countless prototypes, it’s time to step it up.
This is the “swan-neck” frame mount that I designed for the wing; it was machined from 0.16″ 6061-T6 aluminum.
This is the full frame. The “tear drop” shaped parts are the side profile of the wing’s airfoil.
All it needs now is that carbon fiber wrap!
Carbon fiber is actually really easy to cut with a good dremel. Here, I traced the outline of a lasercut model onto the carbon fiber sheet.
Wear a mask!
This part was brutal—Carbon fiber is actually such a difficult material to work with. There are a hundred variables to keep track of and a million places for it all to go horribly wrong.
Thankfully, somehow, it all worked out.
