I have finished shaping my latest blank, a 7’3" pintail. I have some nice cloth with a Hawaiian print on it and would like to place this print on the deck. Should I place the print between the two layers of fiberglass, or should I place the cloth directly on the foam? This is my first time doing a cloth inlay and I certainly don’t want to screw it up! Thanks for any help.
first timer… well the best thing to do is lay it up on the foam…1st. tape it off as if you are going to do pinlines or an inlay…tape paper around it and go for it…precut the cloth and wet out the foam,then roll out the cloth and pour a litter resin on cloth, work from the center out to the rails…let it kick then trim it…don’t trim to soon let it set up good…may the force be with you… e-mail me and let me know how it came out. soulmanet@yahoo.com Ed Townes (ET)
Howzit Fischer, soulmanet has it right but I would add a few suggestions. First wash the cloth with a little viegar to set the dye and after drying iron the wrinkles out. Also I add a lttle styrene to the resin I lay the cloth down with to get the resin to soak through the cloth real good and like said before let the resin kick of totally before trimming.Aloha,Kokua
FischerC,
The advice in the prior two posts is as good as it gets. It’s bankable, especially Kokuas’ method of setting the dye in the cloth. Silk, silk/cotton, or 100% cotton, ONLY. Otherwise meltdown! Good luck.
Fischer,
If you can, get a copy of “The Master Glasser Series” by Sway’s own Roger “Cleanlines” Brucker.
Check the archives - stuff there from him or,
He does a nice fabric inlay on the vid - and the tricks seem to be in the trimming after applying the resin.
Worth checking out. And, if you’re serious about glassing it is a worthwhile investment.
Pete
kokua, thrailkill,
I’m also planning to do a cloth inlay on my foam (2 lb. eps) paddle blade. The back side of the blade will just be fiberglass and clear epoxy. EPS doesn’t sand very smoothly so there are many voids in the surface of the foam. What would you guys suggest I use to smooth out the surface. ( I guess I could also tint the resin or do another inlay to hide all the imperfections)
mahalo,
mokulele
Sounds like a job for a microballoon/epoxy paste, or lightweight spackle. However, this is opinion, not experience speaking. I would defer to Kokua, who is more experienced in this area.
Quote:
I have finished shaping my latest blank, a 7’3" pintail. I have some nice cloth with a Hawaiian print on it and would like to place this print on the deck. Should I place the print between the two layers of fiberglass, or should I place the cloth directly on the foam? This is my first time doing a cloth inlay and I certainly don’t want to screw it up! Thanks for any help.
Is the printed cloth thicker than the glass? Is higher laminate strength/stiffness a desired quality?
If so, then put the cloth between the two layers of glass.
If not, the previously posted advice is fine.
no the cloth inlay always goes on the foam !!!if you put it between the glass you will have air trap under the cloth and that’s my final answer…good luck…ET
lightweight spackle is the way to go,…apply, let it dry., sand and if you think it is not smooth enougth,repeat and sand again…later , ET ( good luck )
well i guess i really screwed up this one…
this bottom laminate is 3x stiffer in comparison with only a 20% weight penalty…in other words, you can add more layers of glass with the added weight and still have a weaker laminate…nice considering Im only using two layers of ultra-thin 3oz over 1.5 eps…yet it feels like two or three layers of regular 4oz…cotton sandwich is quite tasty indeed…just dont use mayo.
didn’t know you were doing the whole board that way…looks good…nice job… ET
OK, I’ve seen “spackle” in numerous posts. This is really my first time working with any type of foam (eps or pu). Is this “lightweight spackle” the type that is is used for home repair or is it a specific product for surfboard foam?
thanks for everyone’s help.
Use Dap Fast and Final lightweight spackle, mix it with some water so that it looks like mayo and then squeege it onto the board.
Soulmanet:
I am also doing a cloth inlay on an epoxy blank and would love to talk with you and get some advise.
I am going to send you an email.
Thanks
thanks soulmanet
I’ll try the lightweight spackle first. Looks like it would be readily available at most hardware stores. I know that Fiberglass Hawaii also has micro balloons, may be i’ll try that on another project.
Be sure to use bottled distilled water to thin the spackle. If you use tap water, it will yellow the spackle.
here are some pictures that might help:
http://www.swaylocks.com/forum/gforum.cgi?post=289981;search_string=cloth%20inlay;#289981