I was finishing shaping a 9’6" square-nose log for the summer this evening when I remembered that my old (home made) tool that I used to mark the board for cut laps/taping had passed on…I saw my trusty SureForm sitting there and figured I could make THAT into one with minimal effort…LOL…So I did. I know, I know…“You get what you pay for”, but hey, I’m only making one or two boards a year! Ya’ still gotta have a steady hand, but it works. Here’s a couple shots, along with some pics of the board.
By the way…After 15 boards or so, I STILL feel more comfortable using the electric planer to just skin the blank and do the rail bands ONLY…The SureForm seems SO much more comfortable to me. I probably just haven’t used it enough to feel comfortable taking THAT much foam off with every pass
And yes, that tail is VERY thin! I seem to really like them that way. The nose is very thin too, from about 2’ back…
It’s wierd…wth EVERY board I shape and glass, I doubt myself throuh the ENTIRE process and almost end up just throwing the project away in frustration…Then I remember the feeling of throwing it in the water for the first time and gliding down a wave…I know it’s never gonna be “perfect” like a Takayama, but you can’t beat that feeling, especially if you end up loving how the board rides. I decided on pencil artwork up the stringer with a melow light blue tint on the whole thing.
Very cool. I like the simplicity of it. Plus you cut down on your tool count. Less clutter…Great Idea…Might not be very accurate but it was still innovative
Very cool. I like the simplicity of it. Plus you cut down on your tool count. Less clutter…Great Idea…Might not be very accurate but it was still innovative
And I meant to ask…how do you do it? My last tool was a wood tool that I made, and the only difference was, was that you could adjust the “depth” of the cutlap from nothing to 3"…But it still took a steady had. Curious to see what tools you use??
Try this to mark your tape line (unless you are going to pinline); bust off the lead in the pencil so only the wood part touches the foam, scribe a line instead of drawing it. Lay your tape down with side lights. Voila, no pencil line to show through.
I did that on my last board, came out great. I just put the picture up that had a pencil with lead in it for the “effect” BUT…If you do that, and it leaves a “groove”, and you are doing a tint, you have to remember that that line/groove WILL show up darker (if it matters to anyone)…
Even if you only make a couple of boards a year you should try doing it free hand. The last few I’ve done have come out pretty good. After you’ve taped it, just be sure to lean the board up against a wall and step back to look at it from a distance.
Howzit Lee, I agree, I have always used my eyes and just taped off the board.We used to call those markers a cheater tool for beginners. The reason I got my first job as a student glasser was because I could tape off instead of using a tool. I think a lot of new glassers need to learn how to do them since it's also the way to do pinlines. Aloha,Kokua
Good point. I havent done any cut laps but I had to redo the pinlines on the back half of my board after it broke and I fixed it. The hardest part was getting a smooth curve. The slightest waves really show up. It took practice and multiple tries but came out pretty good. I’m glad I got to work on that. It helped me with some basic skills.
Another reason that freehanding is good is that it’s not always desireable to have the lines a uniform distance from the rail. Sometimes it looks good to have the rail band thicken towards the nose. Personal preference though.
All that freehanding is more error prone and frustrating though. I suppose it depends on what you’re trying to accomplish. I’m sure the tool is a lot more efficient at times.
Very cool. I like the simplicity of it. Plus you cut down on your tool count. Less clutter…Great Idea…Might not be very accurate but it was still innovative
And I meant to ask…how do you do it? My last tool was a wood tool that I made, and the only difference was, was that you could adjust the “depth” of the cutlap from nothing to 3"…But it still took a steady had. Curious to see what tools you use??
I use a 2x4 that has a channel in it to fit the rail. Then in the top of the 2x4 I have a hole drilled to fit a wooden dowel and a hole drilled in the dowel for a pencil. The dowel is held steady by a pin that has adjustable holes for different deapths. I took my some time to make but its works well. I’m going to try your method too. I really like that idea.
