carbon fibre matt finish

02gf74

Old School Grand Master
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I have carbon fibre mountain bike frame that had a couple of scrapes. I used fine wet n dry followed by polishing compound to remove them.

Unfortunately the rest of the frame is a matt finish so the part I polished (top tube) does not match, hence the question of how to make the surface matt?

Two options that spring to mind; one option is to use a matt clear lacquer and second is to blast it with very fine media such a bicarbonate of solder. The blasting appeals more as it obviously is quicker and means there will be no overspray but the frame has thin walls so I do not want to risk damaging it by the blasting. Also don't want the surface to end up porous so that it holds in dirt.
 
Whatever you do be careful about breaking through the lacquer. It is important to maintain it: firstly it acts to protect the epoxy matrix of the CF from UV degradation, secondly it prevents moisture travelling up the fibres which can lead long term to delamination.
 
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