22x05 - Carbon Fibre; Antique Frame Restoration; Railcar Movers

[bunniefuu]

Narrator: Carbon fiber
is an engineer's dream

lightweight yet
incredibly strong.

It's a string with thousands
of parallel filaments.

Multiple strings can
be twisted into yarns,

woven into fabrics,
or molded with resin

to produce materials called
carbon-fiber composites.

Carbon fiber is five times
stronger than steel

yet less than half the weight.

To make it, they
take a plastic fiber

composed of thousands
of filaments

far thinner than human hair.

They then chemically alter it

to form a perfect
chain of carbon atoms

for the final product.

This mammoth machine lines
up dozens of those fibers

which then travel through
an oxidation oven

for a couple of minutes.

The oven temperature, about


prompts the fibers to pick up
oxygen molecules from the air.

This rearranges the
fibers' atomic structure,

rendering them resistant
to high heat.

As the fibers oxidize,

they change color to
eventually turn black.

They're now primed for the
next process, carbonization.

Furnaces heat the fibers in
an oxygen-free gas mixture.

This expels the
non-carbon atoms

and transforms the
remaining carbon atoms

into tightly bonded crystals

running parallel to the
length of the fiber.

This gives the fiber
its strength.

The exiting fibers travel

through a bath of
electrically charged water

that etches the fibers' surface
so they'll better absorb resin.

The next station applies a light
preliminary coat of resin.

This will strengthen the
fibers' chemical bond

to the molding resin.

A spooling machine
winds each fiber,

now referred to as a
carbon-fiber tow,

onto a bobbin

which buyers either weave
into a carbon-fiber fabric

or mix with resin
to mold a product.

Another form of carbon
fiber is prepreg

sheets of resin-impregnated
carbon fiber ready for molding.

It's like ready-to-bake
cake mix.

The resin is a
formula of epoxy

and various powdered
hardeners and accelerators.

Workers pour the resin
into a filming machine

which spreads it in a thin,
wet layer onto paper.

The paper is pre-treated
with a release agent

to prevent the final
product from sticking,

like spraying a baking pan
with non-stick coating.

Another machine, meanwhile,

groups 200 to 300
carbon-fiber tows

into a giant band of
fibers called a web.

The width and
thickness of the web

determines the width and
thickness of the prepreg sheet.

Workers mount two rolls
of resin-coated paper

onto the resin-impregnation
machine.

A heating element warms
up the web as it enters

to facilitate
resin absorption.

Then the heated
carbon-fiber web

is sandwiched between two
sheets of resin-coated paper.

High-pressure heated
rollers thin out the resin

so it penetrates the millions
of carbon-fiber filaments.

Cooling plates then turn
the liquid resin to gel

so that the next station
can remove the paper,

which pulls off easily
thanks to the release agent.

The next station covers the
top of the prepreg sheet

with polyester film.

This prevents the
prepreg sheet

from sticking to itself
at the end of the line

when it's wound into a
roll like a fruit roll-up.

In the factory's lab,

technicians run quality control
tests on prepreg samples.

First they weigh the sample.

Then they wash off the
resin with chemicals

and weigh the sample again.

This verifies whether the ratio
of carbon fiber to resin

is correct.

The lab also analyzes
samples of composite

carbon-fiber reinforced resin

in this tensile strength test.

The computer measures how much
strain the sample withstands

before breaking.

Such testing ensures
the carbon fiber

delivers optimum strength,
durability, and heat resistance,

whether it's used to
make an auto part,

a wind-turbine blade,
or a golf club.

Narrator: Antique gilded
frames have spent many years

protecting paintings
and enhancing them.

But over time, grime can
obscure the gold-leaf shine

and the frame can suffer
damage and deterioration.

But these frames are
highly collectible,

and restoring them
preserves their value.

With elaborate
cast ornamentation

and gold-leaf work,

this 19th-century gilded frame
is itself a work of art.

But it's in need of renewal.

Restoration work done many
years ago has cracked,

and gold leaf is deteriorating
elsewhere on the frame.

The technician carefully

pries the cracked
acorn casting loose

and removes it from the frame.

He'll make a new
one from scratch.

It will need to completely
fill the empty space

and look exactly like the
others on the frame.

He starts by making a mold
with dental impression rubber.

He kneads the two putty-like
components together

to activate the ingredients.

When the color's uniform
and there are no streaks,

the rubber is ready
for molding.

He must act quickly

because in just three minutes
the rubber will cure.

He presses it around the
acorn ornament on the frame

to capture the detail.

He now has a mold he can use

to cast a new ornament
for the frame.

He'll use this wood
epoxy for that.

Like the dental
impression rubber,

it must be mixed
thoroughly to activate it.

He presses the epoxy into
the contours of the mold,

pushing it from one
end to the other.

This will prevent air from
becoming trapped in the casting

and compromising
its integrity.

After a 10-minute cure, the
epoxy casting is ready,

and he extracts
it from the mold.

He examines the detail

and confirms that it is
an exact reproduction.

Then, using a scoop chisel,

he sculpts the edges and
the inside of the casting

to shape it to the
picture frame.

In this comparison shot,

the shaped part is
the one on the left.

He places the cast epoxy
ornament on the frame

and nails it down.

The epoxy is still soft enough

that he can drive the nail
into it without breaking it.

He fills the gap between
the casting and the frame

with more epoxy,

providing a seamless
transition from new to old.

After the epoxy solidifies,

he brushes something
called bole onto it.

Bole is a mix of Clay
and rabbit-skin glue.

It provides a surface that
the gold can adhere to,

and the rabbit-skin
glue will give it flex

as the wood expands
and contracts.

He then transfers the 23-karat
gold leaf to the casting.

Before he lays each
piece of gold leaf,

he wets the surface
of the ornament

with a gilder's liqueur

a mix of water, alcohol,
and rabbit-skin glue.

This causes the gold leaf

to conform to the contours
of the ornament and adhere.

After the golf leaf sets
for an hour or two,

he burnishes it to
a very high shine

using a tool made from agate, a
very hard, semiprecious stone.

Hundreds of years ago,

craftsman used dogs'
teeth for this job.

He rubs the shiny,
new gold surface

with very fine-grade
steel wool.

This removes some of the gold
to simulate natural wear

so that it matches the patina
of the rest of the frame.

And what a transformation

this plain epoxy
casting has undergone.

Newly gilded, and
it looks like

it's always been part
of the antique frame.

Other sections of the
frame require regilding.

He rubs alcohol
onto those areas

to get rid of
atmospheric residue

that would prevent the
adhesion of the new gold.

And after applying
gilder's liqueur,

he lays sheets of the new
gold leaf over the old,

working with a steady rhythm to
give the area complete coverage.

He's aiming for more of a
matte finish on this section,

so he doesn't Polish it.

He brushes a protective
coat of shellac onto it.

He's used a combination
of old materials and new

to restore this
antique gilt frame,

and it's picture-perfect.

Narrator: Pushing and pulling
railcars at the train yard

is the job of a large
motorized vehicle

appropriately called
a railcar mover.

It switches the cars from
one track to another,

shuttles them in and out
of the cargo loading area,

and positions them in line
behind the locomotive.

A railcar mover has to drive
both on and off the train track,

so it has two types of wheels

four steel rail wheels for
guiding it on the track

and four wheels
with rubber tires

for driving on the ground.

When building a railcar mover,
they start with the frame.

A computer-guided
plasma cutter

cuts out all the frame parts
from a 4-inch-thick steel plate.

Once all the frame
parts are ready,

workers begin welding
them together.

They position the deck plate,
the mover's floor, upside down

and weld on the frame rails.

These will hold the axles
for the rubber wheels.

Then, to those frame rails,
they weld the rail arm mounts.

These will hold the rail arms
which hold the rail wheels.

After welding several additional
components to the frame,

workers bolt the axles
for the rubber wheels

to the frame rails...

...then the rail arms
to the rail mounts.

Now the frame goes
to the paint shop

for a coat of primer followed
by a coat of automotive paint.

Workers also roll on a
textured floor coating

to create a non-slip surface

for the driver to safely
walk to and from the cab.

When the paint dries, the frame
returns to the assembly line

where workers begin mounting

the 4.5-foot-wide rail
wheels onto the rail arms.

After mounting each
wheel on the spindle,

they install a bearing,
then a large nut.

They must tighten the nut
to the correct torque

yet not over-tighten it, or
the wheel won't turn freely.

Once they've got just
the correct torque,

they secure the nut with
a retaining lock nut.

They finish off
this installation

with the rail-wheel
equivalent of a hubcap.

This steel cover
holds in the grease

that lubricates the
wheel and bearing

while keeping out
dust and dirt.

Next they mount the
four rubber wheels,

securing each one
with a dozen bolts.

These steel wheels
with rubber tires

are about 6 1/2
feet in diameter.

Workers mount several
other components,

including a pair of
air tanks with gauges

for the railcar's
pneumatic brake system.

These are the brakes
the driver uses

when the mover is
coupled to railcars.

When it's not,

the mover has its own separate
hydraulic brake system,

the components of which workers
also install at this stage.

They attach a hydraulic
cylinder to the steer axle.

This controls the steering
of the rubber wheels

when the mover is off
the train track.

The rail wheels, of course,
don't require any steering,

as they simply
follow the track.

Now workers install the


It's already bolted
to the transmission.

Then they hook up the
electrical wiring,

which connects the
engine and transmission

to the computer
controlling them.

They lower the hood over the
engine and transmission.

The hood has three components
already installed

the engine air intake, air
cleaner, and muffler.

Finally, they install the cab.

It has a steering wheel
for driving off-rail

and a control console
that rotates 180 degrees

to let the driver operate at
whichever side of the cab

provides the best view

of all the railcars the mover
is pulling or pushing.

The finished railcar mover
doesn't leave the factory

before a burn-in period
in the test pit.

The test is so intense,

the rubber tires have to
be cooled with water.

Pulling as many as 40
railcars at a time

is no job for a lightweight.

That's why a railcar mover
weighs in at up to 45 tons.

Narrator: At first, hood
ornaments were used

to beautify external temperature
gauges and radiator caps.

They then evolved
into signature pieces

that embodied the car brand.

And when the radiator caps
were moved under the hood,

the ornaments stayed on top.

A hood ornament is a little
piece of automotive art.

Popular mainly on
luxury cars now,

these ornaments symbolize
the spirit of the car

and can make quite a
statement on the street.

Each ornament starts

with an aluminum mold that
consists of many parts

in order to achieve
a complex shape.

An injector pumps
specially formulated wax

into the mold cavity.

The wax solidifies quickly.

The operator dismantles the mold
and removes the cast wax model.

The detail is impressive.

He examines it for flaws.

He cools the model in water
until the wax firms.

This wax model will be
used to make a mold

to cast the metal ornament

using a technique that dates
back thousands of years.

He attaches numerous cast
models to a wax riser

by melting the wax a
little so they adhere.

The next worker then dips
the models and riser

into specially formulated
ceramic slurry.

He makes sure that the
liquid covers every detail.

Still wet, the models then
go into the rain sander,

so named because it
actually rains grit.

The grit sticks to the
models for a stucco effect.

He repeats the ceramic dip
and grit process three times

to build up substantial
shells around the wax models.

These shells will serve as molds
to cast the hood ornament.

In this case, the casting
material is steel.

They melt rejected hood
ornaments with steel chunks

to transform them into
a white-hot liquid.

The ceramic models
have by now been cured

and the wax melted out.

Workers ladle the molten steel
into the riser feeder cup.

The steel flows into all
of the ceramic molds.

They top it off with
a manganese mixture

that catches fire

and keeps the steel hot and
liquid a little longer,

ensuring that it feeds
into all of the molds.

The steel cools for several
hours and solidifies.

An employee then breaks
open the network of molds

to reveal the cast
hood ornaments.

He inserts a pneumatic
hammer into the feeder cup,

and it shakes off most of the
remaining ceramic shards.

This machine blasts
off the rest

using very fine
stainless-steel particles.

They're ready to cut
the cast ornaments

free from the main base.

With the riser on its side,

the worker slices off one
hood ornament at a time

using an aluminum-oxide
cutting wheel.

At this angle, he can't
make a clean cut.

He leaves a fairly thick
chunk on the base.

He grinds off that chunk
using an abrasive belt.

The base of the hood ornament
is now smooth and level.

Next he refines the shape
of the hood ornament.

He grinds away excess material

to improve the
profile of the piece

and generally clean it up.

This process also adds shine
to the stainless steel.

To give the hood
ornaments a real Polish,

they plunge them into a
sulfuric-acid solution.

The solution eats away
impurities to expose the nickel.

A worker buffs
each hood ornament

against a cloth wheel
until it gleams.

He examines his work under
a magnifying glass.

Defects won't be tolerated,

and even at this stage, the
statuette could be rejected

and melted into a new one.

It passes inspection.

Made of steel, silver, or gold,
a hood ornament on a luxury car

is a great way to
say you've arrived.

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