Patent ID: 6855283

Claim:
A method of forming a finished composite part comprising: providing a mold, the mold defining a cavity with a shape-defining surface; providing an in-mold paint sheet having a thickness of greater than about one millimeter, the in-mold paint sheet having a bonding side and a finish side; installing the in-mold paint sheet in the cavity of the mold such that the finish side of the in-mold paint sheet is positioned adjacent to the shape-defining surface of the mold; introducing a mixture of a resin and a plurality of reinforcing fibers into the cavity of the mold such that the resin and fiber mixture contacts the bonding side of the in-mold paint sheet; said resin and fiber mixture being formed by impelling uncoated reinforcing fiber towards the mold cavity and causing a resin to substantially completely wet substantially all of said uncoated reinforcing fibers prior to the introduction of the fiber and resin mixture into the mold cavity; enclosing the in-mold paint sheet and resin and fiber mixture in the mold; and cooling the in mold paint sheet while at least some of the resin is curing; wherein the resin and fiber mixture is cured and bonded to the in-mold paint sheet to form a part having the finish side of the in-mold paint sheet as a finished Class A surface of the part.