SpudFiles

Hey guys I stumbled upon a large carbon fiber pipe today at my university. I can't give too many specifics yet, I just got it five minutes ago. It was used as a torque tube on a helicopter at the Sikorsky helicopter plant in Stratford, CT, USA. A torque tube covers the drive shaft to the tail rotor. It has been retired and appears to have been much longer. It was cut down to be thrown away but it landed in the university as a composite demo. It would be perfect as a pressure vessel or a hybrid chamber.

Specifics

I.D.: 5+15/16", 151mm
O.D.: 6+7/16", 164mm
Length: 30+13/16",783mm
Thickness: 0.25", 6mm
Weight: about 15lbs, 33kg
Finish: Epoxy Resin interior, Carbon Fiber wrap exterior with a resin finish shoulder that is 4" (102mm) long on one side.

The price starts at $500 or best offer.

Any questions please feel free to ask.

OK, I unlocked this just to see what else you think you can do to make this happen, don't be surprised if I or another mod relocks this. Nows your chance.

The price tag would separate out serious buyers from the tire kickers. That tube is about the same size as the chamber on my Dragon cannon. The photo makes it look bigger than it really is. At 30 inches long, it's too short for a barrel.. maybe. Carbon fiber composites are not cheap, so it is priced OK and not in the scrap price range. I'm just not sure you will be able to find someone with a use compelling enough to spend that much.

If you check out my work I tend to be a cheapskate and build from trash when possible. empty freon tanks, obsolete propane tanks.. second hand torch, Goodwill lamination heating unit, etc. Many in this hobby build with budget in mind. Only a few lucky guys get to play with real money.. I green with envy over some budgets.

jrrdw wrote:OK, I unlocked this just to see what else you think you can do to make this happen, don't be surprised if I or another mod relocks this. Nows your chance.

Why do mods lock "for sale" threads? I've seen/participated in ones that were not locked in the past. If they are locked they just fall down the "recent post list and off the "new post" list and are forgotten in the back pages of the forum. I can't sell this if that happens. I need the money too. I don't have a penny in my bank account. I'm a college student. So please if any other mods are around and want to lock this, please don't.

rcman50166 wrote:

jrrdw wrote:OK, I unlocked this just to see what else you think you can do to make this happen, don't be surprised if I or another mod relocks this. Nows your chance.

Why do mods lock "for sale" threads? I've seen/participated in ones that were not locked in the past. If they are locked they just fall down the "recent post list and off the "new post" list and are forgotten in the back pages of the forum. I can't sell this if that happens. I need the money too. I don't have a penny in my bank account. I'm a college student. So please if any other mods are around and want to lock this, please don't.

I don't lock these topics as long as the item isn't conflicting with an item that one of the sponsors sells...which with this item it's obviously not.

Technician1002 wrote:The price tag would separate out serious buyers from the tire kickers. That tube is about the same size as the chamber on my Dragon cannon. The photo makes it look bigger than it really is. At 30 inches long, it's too short for a barrel.. maybe. Carbon fiber composites are not cheap, so it is priced OK and not in the scrap price range. I'm just not sure you will be able to find someone with a use compelling enough to spend that much.

If you check out my work I tend to be a cheapskate and build from trash when possible. empty freon tanks, obsolete propane tanks.. second hand torch, Goodwill lamination heating unit, etc. Many in this hobby build with budget in mind. Only a few lucky guys get to play with real money.. I green with envy over some budgets.

Can you link me to your Dragon cannon? Sounds like a very large one.

rcman50166 wrote:
Can you link me to your Dragon cannon? Sounds like a very large one.

I haven't posted it because it is big heavy difficult to hold. It has a 2.5 inch barrel so the muzzle end of the chamber used a 6 to 4 inch reducer and a 4 to 2.5 reducer. The breech end uses a 6 inch to 4 inch sched 80 reducer, a 3 inch threaded female adaptor with a short length of 3 inch pipe for a piston cylinder, and a 2.5 inch pipe cap as a piston. There is an o ring on the valve seat like the Mouse Musket and a ring in the wall of the cylinder.

It eats PVC pistons for lunch and promptly asks for more. It is difficult to get the piston to seat and seal to pressurized. It's most notable innovation is the home made bells on the chamber so I didn't have to buy 6 inch couplings. Told you I was cheap. This is my most expensive cannon as 6 inch parts are spendy.

Well with this material you can make quite the hybrid with 850 cu in chamber volume. Imagine that

rcman50166 wrote:Well with this material you can make quite the hybrid with 850 cu in chamber volume. Imagine that

It's PVC. This comes to mind. No hybrid for this. I have considered making a combustion out of it, but it's still very awkward to hold. It is no stronger than it's weakest part.

*drool*

rcman50166 wrote:Well with this material you can make quite the hybrid with 850 cu in chamber volume. Imagine that

Are you sure? Resin + Heat not usually a good idea...

jackssmirkingrevenge wrote:*drool*

rcman50166 wrote:Well with this material you can make quite the hybrid with 850 cu in chamber volume. Imagine that

Are you sure? Resin + Heat not usually a good idea...

Well its epoxy resin made for carbon fiber. It's more than capable of handling a hybrid job.

But how would one attach this pipe to stuff?

There is a 4 inch shoulder on one end that used to be connected to something. You can attach it with epoxy resin. The other end doesn't have a shoulder but with epoxy it can be connected anyway.

psycix wrote:But how would one attach this pipe to stuff?

I wouldn't recommend buying this unless you work with composites and can lay carbon fiber and fiberglass resin. If you do work with the stuff, you wouldn't be asking how.

Technician1002 wrote:

psycix wrote:But how would one attach this pipe to stuff?

I wouldn't recommend buying this unless you work with composites and can lay carbon fiber and fiberglass resin. If you do work with the stuff, you wouldn't be asking how.

Rather true, but its not very hard, its similar to laying fiberglass sheets, if you ever have. All you do is saturate the fibers with resin and try to remove any extra.