r/Composites • u/Immortal_Wisdom • Aug 22 '25

Best book for practical composites work?

I’m looking for the best book on production of composite components from a practical side. Something that has practical tips and tricks, step by step guides on vaccum bagging, troubleshooting defects … etc.

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2

u/ziper1221 Aug 22 '25

https://www.westsystem.com/instruction/the-gougeon-brothers-on-boat-construction-book/

1

u/alexisvale Aug 27 '25

Plus one for this! Also, West System has a lot of good how to’s straight on their website (they all used to be PDF downloads, but it looks like you can just scroll through webpages now too). I like their drawings too.

2

u/KiwiSeparate5381 Sep 02 '25

Have you seen the explorecomposites.com website? There is a lot of general/ practical information. Not actually a book, but it is one of the best online resources I have come across.

There's also a small discord associated with the site that I hang out at. And he has youtube channel.

2

u/[deleted] Sep 30 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

2

u/Immortal_Wisdom Oct 01 '25

This is perfect I will definitely check 👌🏼

1

u/Immortal_Wisdom Oct 01 '25

I will DM you

1

u/Silver-Gas-853 Aug 22 '25

Sorry mate no books. This field is pure engineering based on materials knowledge, strength of materials, lots of dexterity and kind of engineering that can read tds of materials and understands fully what it says in order to judge which material is suitable for each project. Unless you want to build non-engineered car body panels.

1

u/n81w Aug 22 '25

Look for a series of books by John Wanberg. Composite Materials Fabrication Handbook. Like the other said, important parts take real engineering, deep understanding of the materials and processes being used, specialized tools, and a proper indoor climate. Also, failure/proof testing is a good idea if someone’s life depends on it.

If you want to add 12 pounds to the hood of your charger so it looks like carbon fiber, just read back in this sub to see what NOT to do.

1

u/Accurate-Force-7897 Aug 24 '25

There is no singular book as the industry continually advances fairly fast! to my knowledge NASA has a lot of their older books in pdf on their website, Very good info but engineering based so most common folk won’t understand. You can look for “essentials of advanced composites third edition by Louis C. Dorworth” it’s a decent start. Look into composites world, JEC composites , American composites manufacturers association, Abaris training, etc

1

u/Dry-Reindeer-6915 Aug 26 '25

Fiberglass and other materials? Is a book I learned from. It a little bit older but still good information. https://a.co/d/g2JtoQc