You will want to wet out the carbon between the plastic to minimize / prevent ply distortion. The carbon will look better aligned.
Once wet, remove the backside plastic film, drape it carefully and place, rub it down to prevent movement as you remove the upper plastic film, get it layed how you like then peel ply, you might need to tile or shingle the peel ply in small strips and work it smooth. The peel ply finish should offer a slight texture but allow entrapped air to be worked through it. As the resins gas off, the peel ply will allow some flow, where the plastic will not.
Consider also, epoxy does not polish well, so plan on adding some clear to get a deep finish.
As for credit cards, to work resins. Yes they can be used, however the suggestion comes in an effort to save money. A quality non ribbed Bondo Spreader, with no nicks in the contact edge is a lot more controled, offering wider range of pressure and has far less chance of ply distortion.
Snagged fibers shout out Schoolboy Mistake and hard plastic spreaders are a source.
Spend the couple dollars for a few quality spreaders. Wipe them off after use and they last a long time. Prior to use, ensure there are no nicks in the working edge to snag items with use.
By using peel ply there is no contact of the spreader on the actual fibers, much of the air is bled through and done right there is a uniform epoxy layer after curing.
When under plastic, whether in a vacuum bag, a wet lay up or even careless wet out between plastic films, can see the fibers float with moving resin. It can also happen with peel ply, but requires a greater effort to cause damage to the ply orientation.
PK
Wanted to add, I don't recall your resin system, but thought it was Hysol. If you use a low viscosity system and more important I have experienced this when using West System 105, you often get resins shrinkage or similar that tends to cause ripples in both peel ply and plastic. The best 105 products tend to be done with vacuum or in thin layups. Even thin is not assurance.
Last edited by PMK; 05-03-14 at 04:54 AM.