I have to admit that CF does look pretty good, so you could just use it for the exterior look?
But anyways, most composite materials are pretty easy to work with once you've done a couple of peaces...

Oh, and if you plan to have the wood as the structural element, and CF as the appearance you don't really need to use vacuum... just be thorough with the brush But if you want the CF to load the entire case (meaning lightness, rigidity... ) use more layers, and definatley go with vacuum.

But don't think its gonna be a quick build if you plan on doing it a bit every day it will take some time... but in any case, good luck with it, and if you don't have a lot of experience with CF, practice with fiberglass, its a bunch cheaper.