here I am again, digging out the cheapest potential Alaia material at HD.
after 2 boards made out of Fence Planks, last week I was at HD to get some paint for my house. I saw a 6’x18"x5/8" shelf of laminated pine, and I thought “there you go!, just cut the corners round and you’re done.”
it was around $20, I couldn’t resist. Now I’m making a super wide (17.5) peanut shaped alaia. I know width can be an issue, but my home break has really soft waves, and the other ones I made are definnitely too narrow.
now the issue: since the shelf was already laminated, I doubt they used Waterproof glue to glue it up.
Do you guys think Varnish would be good enough to seal it? I know that your first response is going to be Epoxy, but I think this board will go through a lot of refinements, re-shaving, trimming and so on, I’d like something fairly straightforward. I also don’t expect it to last a long time, this is really just an experiment. can I get away with Varnish?
I found out that Minwax’s Tung Oil finish (which I used on my other Alaias) is actually a blend of Tung Oil and Varnish, maybe if I put on a few coats?
thanks everybody in advance for help. I’ll post pics soon
it looks all uneven in this shot, but it actually came out pretty sweet.
the bottom is a lot flatter than my previous, but I looked at the ones TW makes, and those are much flatter too (from what I could see), so I thought: why the extra work?
it’s FAT: 6’ long, 17.5" wide up front, 16 1/4 in the back, 15.5 at the waist. 5/8" thick, very mild concave only in the central portion
I also ran some tests on the cutoffs, I left one in water for hours, to see how the glue held. when I picked it ut and tried to break it along one of the glue lines, it snapped elsewhere instead, therefore I’d say the glue they used is probably OK for a while, since I had not even sealed the wood.
I tested a 6’4 in a similair shape today, and it totally rips!!! The thing held in beautifully, and turned easily, without having to drag a hand. I was really blown away!!! Best alaia shape I’ve ever ridden by far!
sorry Eef, I tried but nothing worth showing: it’s overall pretty boxy in the rails, total thickness is barely over 1/2", the rails are 1/4" cut square, which means I have about 1/8" (3mm) of belly top and bottom, which you can barely notice. it’s pretty flat.
the concave underneath is very subtle too, probably even less than 1/8", and with all the width this one has, it’s a lot less visible than on my previous ones
good find, i just bought some marine spar varnish at lowes$14.99 quart. but in my post"look up spar not getting hard",it looks like it might forever to dry?? but seems water tight. the can has a boat on it with a white and blue label
