A couple more things: instead of just skinning your blank, true it up a bit, make sure it doesn’t have a twist, or any major flats or general tweaks going on. That kind of stuff can really mess with your eye. The tip mentioned above about never trusting the stringer to be straight is a lifesaver, especially with shorter boards it seems. Make sure to always draw a center line, if you want to do a nice job. Make sure your templates are nice and true. Alot of guys think that they are going to come back later and fix the little tweaks here and there on the foam blank after they draw the board out… that is a big mistake, the best way to stay out of trouble is to not get into it in the first place. If you know that your template is true, then you’ll you’ll trust that line you draw on the blank and not go over it, thinking that you are cleaning up a bump or something that was “in the template.” After you draw the template, you have many options for cutting out the board. Going with a sharp handsaw is probably your best bet when you are just starting out, power tools get you into trouble fast. Keep the blade 90 degrees to the bottom of the blank as you cut the board out. Not 95 degrees or 86, 90! Go slow, and realize that every time the saw blade deviates from 90 degrees, that is a wobble that you are going to have clean up with your surform. Stay about an 1/8 of an inch outside your line. As you get better, you can move closer… when I use a handsaw, I cut right on the line, and rarely have to clean anything up, except for the tips. So keep that in mind… practice makes perfect of course. When you use your surform (screw the planer… don’t let the old “gurus” insult your ego by telling you that that particular tool is the only way to go… In my opinion, when you are beginning- once again- powertool=trouble quick) make sure to keep in mind- long strokes, 90 degrees to bottom, you can even use your square to check. Don’t ever go over your line. Ever. It’s always going to be your light down the tunnel that you can trust- you’re not a master, so don’t go “tweaking” the template by eye- that will just lead to frustration, because once you lose that line, you are wading out into pool of darkness. -Carl
When you use your surform (screw the planer… don’t let the old “gurus” insult your ego by telling you that that particular tool is the only way to go… In my opinion, when you are beginning- once again- powertool=trouble quick)
THAT’S RIGHT Karl !
Teach them to be cave dewellers…YEAH!!!
Quote:When you use your surform (screw the planer… don’t let the old “gurus” insult your ego by telling you that that particular tool is the only way to go… In my opinion, when you are beginning- once again- powertool=trouble quick)
THAT’S RIGHT Karl !
Teach them to be cave dewellers…YEAH!!!
First of all, it’s Carl with a C. Second of all, I personally believe using simple hand tools when you are beginning is the way to go. They take off less material, and are more easier to manage. This generally leads to less mistakes when you are just starting out. By beginning, I mean- less that a 10 boards or so… more or less depending on your level of craftsmanship. A shaper-style planer, the ones that adjust the cutting depth freely, can be a scary thing- why not keep that part of the learning process confined to the bottom and top of the board, where there is more working area and usually more material to chew away at? When you feel confident about your ability with the planer, then start truing your curves with it… To each his own, I’m just trying to be helpful. I personally use a Worm-drive skilsaw for cutting templates… right on the line. I definitely don’t recommend that for beginners. -Carl
Hey Carl - I don’t think you need to back track on your advice. Most of us understand your level of commitment. I had a nice chat w/ Pearson last weekend; he had nothing but good things to say about you.
Thanks for giving so freely!
Sorry about the “K” instead of the “C” thing…
Differences…steak knive works better than a saw …hands down…
…I think they should learn w/ what’s available…whether it be power tools or hand tools…they’re going to have to learn eventually,anyway. Skill saws aren’t so hard to use(try a roto disk in your skill for cutouts,I think you’ll find them favorable,like the diamond grit disks)…try drawing a even line w/a jigsaw??? or freehanding a rotozip…
like I said… lots of ways to skin…good one on you Carl.
Souljustice probably cut right to the heart of the matter. I will tell you that getting an accurate template down on a blank is the most critical thing that you can learn as a beginning shaper. When I started I had alot of problems with this important step in the shaping process. Here are a few things that I learned either thru trial and error or advice from other shapers; 1. make sure you have accurate templates. Whether spin-templates or full templates, make sure they are true and accurate to a referance point(ie: the center of the template). 2. Spend the money and buy yourself a protractor. A square will work if you check your referance points often and carefully during the process. The best investment I ever made was what I call my “forty-dollar piece of plastic”. It is basically a clear piece of plastic that can be used as a protractor or square and is marked so that it can be aligned with differant stringer widths. Pleskuna makes them, Fiberglass Hawaii sells 'em. 3. Do all the rough shaping you possibly can (top and bottom) before you template. In other words; skin both sides, plane to thickness, surform, and pre-lim sanding. Give yourself a relativly smooth flat surface to lay that template down on. 4. Draw your outline and double check it every 6 or 12 inches making sure you didn’t get that pencil mark “Off” somewhere thru the the outline. Use your “forty dollar piece of plastic”. 5. “The Saw” A lot of old school guys use your standard long hand saw. I use a “tool box” saw, like Stanley’s “shark-tooth”. I find that the short, stiff blade is less likly to bend and stays vertical easier. Giving me a straight up and down cut and template edge. A little of WD-40 sprayed on both sides of the blade will help it to cut smoothly and faster. I have used a jigsaw . There are blades available that are long enough to template longboard blanks. Just be sure to cut OUTSIDE your pencil line. It really isn’t necessary to clean-up a line done in this fasion with a planer. Sand paper and a block will do it easily. I template on the bottom and try to leave the pencil-line on the blank as long as I possibly can thru the shaping process. I usually don’t loss the pencil-line until I start to turn the bottom rail. Hope that helps. McDing
Nothing beats a clean template weighed down with a couple bricks and a router with a nice long bit and the kind of template-follower that screws into the base and doesn’t spin.
Even the steadiest hand takes a break every now & then. The phone rings, your foot hits something, the blank shifts on the stands, your wife walks in the door with your bill from FGH in her hand… Choose the tool that makes your job foolproof.
I like a fairing board for cleaning up curves. You can make one yourself from thin flexible ply or masonite, spray glue and sandpaper. Mine’s about 2 feet long x 3 inches wide but whatever suits you. Can use it to clean up your template, or your blank…
No phone in my shaping room. If there was one I wouldn’t answer it anyway. No wife to walk in either. When I did have a wife I made sure she knew that my shaping room was off limits. That being said, my hand is pretty steady. Ha! Ha!.
Keith,
What’s a fairing board? Photos? I build them when my wife is at work and the kid’s are at school. I still screw up the template. Proper lighting would help, but then I wouldn’t have an excuse then…Mike
just a fancy name for a long, usually flexible sanding block. I make my own but you can also buy them pre-made; 3M makes one with velcro-type sandpaper so you can change grits easily.
Here’s a link to one of those:
http://www.fiberglasssupply.com/Product_Catalog/ShapingTools/shapingtools.html
Keith, how flexible? Do you use 1/4, 1/8 ply or masonite?
I like mine quite flexible so use masonite, but you can also buy rigid fairing boards, so whatever floats your boat…