>Also, think of the bill of a toucan or fiberglass surf board. A lot of rigidity comes from the tensile strength of the skin wrapped around an enclosed volume o

>Also, think of the bill of a toucan or fiberglass surf board. A lot of rigidity comes from the tensile strength of the skin wrapped around an enclosed volume of relatively weak stuff that mostly keeps the skin in the right configuration. So in other words carbon fibers are a bit elongated (or straindd) in CFRP? What increases shear strength of the composite but could weaken its compressive strength?