At Lowes here they have the white 1lb stuff in .5, 1. 1.5 and 2 inch thicknesses only but they also have the blue foam only in 2 inch.
The white foam is less than $20 for the thickest (2 inch) while the blue is like $40.
I thinking about epoxy gluing 1 inch white to the bottom of a 2 inch blue and then taping the 2’x8’ combo to the bottom of the board I’m trying to duplicate to build in the rocker. This way I get two 3" thick blanks instead of of one 4" thick blue.
I’ll either rip and glue in a stringer afterwards or just leave it stringerless.
I’m thinking that having the softer foam on the bottom will make it easier to shape if I shape it from the top to profile it and that the softer foam on the bottom will provide more flex and shock absorbtion in an area less prone to pressure dents.
My understanding is that it is easier to shape the blue than the white especially with no stringer.
I have two board projects in mind:
The first is a replication if this in floatable/flexible EPS with a home made full keel:
The second is a more floatable 6’2" replica of the fish on the right.
Aloha and Mahalo for any guidance…
May this new year bring a little more happiness and peace to world than what been going on around the globe lately…
I think most of us should give thanks for being so blessed, and a prayer for those who haven’t…
The blue is the XPS stuff - definitely stronger & denser. I have read extensively through the archives on both the XPS and the white EPS and there is quite a bit of talk about the XPS outgassing & leading to delams.
The white EPS is not strong. But if you put in a stringer (mainly to hold it rigid enough to shape) and then glass it heavy it still comes out lighter than a poly/poly board.
You can use the blue as a stringer or 3. You’d get tons of stringers out of one 8’x2’ piece.
After Bert’s thread, I’d been scouring the web for divinycell to use as the outside sandwich layers over EPS, for rails, etc. Not much info and even after emailing those advertised as my regional distributors - no luck. So I did it the old fashioned way - went to a boat repair yard. The first one I walked into told me which one would have it. That one, the second, sold me a sheet at wholesale (40% off retail) when I told them I make surfboards. I don’t even sell 'em, no resale #, I paid sales tax. They were just cool about it and recognized that the stuff is pricey.
I was going to try a XPS board, but now that I’ve found a local d-cell supplier, I’m not going to do the XPS.
White EPS by itself is not hard to shape if you use the stringer to stiffen up your homeglued blank. And quite a few boards have been made without a stringer, mostly in the sub-6’6" size.
Where in the bay area did you get the d-cell? How much was it? Let me know how your board comes out with that stuff. I am still in the process of makeing my first blank. But cant wait for the next project
Svendsen’s Boat Works in Alameda. I bought a sheet of 1/2" to use for stringers & rails. List was $161 but they sold it to me for $109 when I told them I make surfboards. I also get glass cloth there. Its about 5% less than at Tap.
They have a deal with Fiberglass Hawaii in Santa Cruz. Each supplies the other. So if FH has something you want - even a blank - Svendsen’s can bring it up for you & save the drive. They go once or twice a week. Pretty handy.
