CF paddles for CS ?

Pictures from a Valence customer's car (thanks Rich)
These are the Valence Corsa paddles. http://www.valenceusa.com/360/corsa.htm
The upshift side is nearly identical in size to the CS's upshift paddle, while the downshift side is longer than the CS's downshift paddle. Standard CS size downshift is no problem. Please contact us for further questions regarding paddle size, or to place an order. F-chat discount applies!
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I was also thinking about getting a set. My friend has these on his CS. They're $625 from another Fchat sponsor. http://www.macarbon.com

I had also purchased a lot of c/f for my 360 from Valence. Their stuff looks great too.
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Profit margin? Seriously I don't know. My friend had an extra set of the MacCarbon CS paddles, so I just bought those. Should have them in a day or so. I still have the pair that was on my 360. I'll see if I can tell any difference in quality, but my guess is they will be very similar. I can post pictures side by side if you want.

 

I'll get pics up as soon as they arrive. I believe my 360 paddles were from TubiStyle.

 

We'll happily accept returns on these if anyone wants to buy a set of ours, and a set from another brand, and compare the two. The quality difference is what you're paying more for.

 

Without getting too technical or giving away our trade secrets, I can answer yes to your questions. These products often look similar in internet pictures, but materials and processes do vary considerably, and while shift paddles are not structural pieces, we treat them as if they were, using proper first quality materials and prudent manufacturing techniques. We do not simply use a carbon fiber "skin" with fiberglass making up the bulk of the mass, and we use epoxy matrices which are selected to balance structural, thermal, and aesthetic properties. All of our caarbon fiber products, notably the F1 paddles, are thermally conditioned to retain their structural (stiffness) and aesthetic properties in the hottest desert summers. We apply multiple layers of the best UV filtering clear coats, hand sanding in between layers, for excellent product longevity and initial smoothness and gloss. Every part is meticulously scrutinized to ensure excellent fiber alignment, pinhole free finish, and perfect fit. All parts are given individual serial numbers which are linked to data on time of manufacture, tooling used, and material batches. Edges are perfectly finished, as are the backsides of the parts that are exposed. All of this work is done here in Charlottesville, Virginia, USA under our complete control, and we are available to deal with any technical issues at or after the time of purchase.

Chris Coffing
Valence USA

 

Tony, here are pictures of both my set of paddles. The small set was for my 360 and is made by Valence. The CS paddles are from Macarbon.

The Macarbon paddles are thicker and rounder and more finished on the backside. The Valence paddles are definitely thinner and are not finished on the backside. The Valence are also a little more concave on the backside with a small depression, maybe for your fingers?

The weave, at least to my eye, looks identical. I think it's just a matter of taste and feel. Both products look good. Maybe the cost difference is one is from the U.S. and the other says made in Canada. For the money, the Macarbon looks real good. Having said that the dome light in my car is made by Valence.

Good Luck.
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Thanks for the comparison pics, John - you raise some interesting points.

Those paddles of ours are identical in thickness and size to the stock 360 F1 paddles. We used to offer them with a "textured" backside, which you have. They are now all gloss, front and back. Stock 360 and 360 challenge paddles have a thinner or flatter cross section with the raised lip all around the backside edge, while CS paddles are more like F430 paddles in that there is no edge lip and the section thickness is much greater at the outboard "vertical" ends. They are all similar, with the CS paddles feeling rounder, because in profile, at the tips, they are.

I might point out that the F430 paddles are not interchangeable with the 360 ones.

 

Thanks for posting the comparison pics. I think our 360CS paddles hold up very well. Ours are made of CF without fiberglass. We use quality urethane clear coat and make sure it is sanded and polished to a high gloss and smooth finish. We make sure there are no pinholes or other blemishes like there appear to be on others. Our lettering is a nice quality white under the clear coat and each pair is serialized on the back. As for cost difference, I can’t speak to Valence’s margins but we do save time in not having to airbrush our paddles - covering up that expensive CF.

Last, Chris is correct in that the Hill Engineering paddles are mostly fiberglass. Make sure they include space for the small washers used with the attachment screws. Otherwise you need to use Loctite on them.

Last, if you think our paddles are expensive... I was quoted $3K for the factory F430 paddles!

Let me know if you have any questions.

Regards,

John

 

This is where we source our CF parts from

http://ferraricarbon.com/

Paul

 

I've been wondering how the CF paddles feel vs the metal paddles. I have driven an F430 with the metal paddles and I liked how they feel in operation- very much like you are mechanically part of the car. I like the look of the CF paddles better, but I am concerned that the sensation would be diluted because the CF might feel a little (pardon me here) plastic by comparison. Please tell me my concerns are just silly.

best regards,
Jerry

 

^^^^^
I just installed a pair Saturday and really like the way they feel. They don't really add or take away from the feel, I just like the smoothness.

 

Jerry, I can't speak for the other brands, but our paddles are stiff and if you dropped them onto a hard surface, they would make more of a "ping" noise than a "thunk" noise. Ask me how I know...

Anyway, the combination of heat and pressure used when molding them, along with the carbon fiber/epoxy material makes them feel a lot like the metal paddles - you won't dampen the feel of the F1 mechanism if thats what you're concerned about.

 

Sweet addon ! How much did it cost ?

Who will fit them ? Dealer ? Or is a DIY job ?

 

Looks great tony, be sure to post pics of them installed.

 

I'm sorry you went in the direction you did with your decision, but I'll point out that you don't need to go to the dealer to install these. You can do it yourself in a couple minutes. Just turn the wheel 1/3 turn or so in either direction to access the mounting screws for each paddle. There are two small screws and conical washers for each paddle. It's a simple swap - no need to remove the wheel or any trim.