just picked up a really cool and cheap tool to check rail contours at home depot – was just a few buck – gives a totally accurate dispaly and is easy to use – basically just a load of wires going through a center “holder” – everyone has prob seen em, or has em, i was just intrigues and checking all of the rails on my boards – learned a bit – had no idea my tyler zeke had such subtle turned down rails in the tail – explains a bunch – but is nearly impossible to just see or feel – cool tool
What’s the name of the tool and what section did you get it. Thanks in advance!
What’s the name of the tool and what section did you get it. Thanks in > advance! I believe it is a wire gage,in the tool dept.(I believe)Herb.
I believe it is a wire gage,in the tool dept.(I believe)Herb. once again herb is right on the money!
Peter Rijk posted a cool diagram for making a similar tool out of popsicle sticks. See link below. http://216.15.61.234/swaylocks/boards/db.cgi?db=default&uid=default&Validated=Yes&Category=diagram&view_records=1&nh=2&mh=1
Cassiel!..what tim bought is called a contour guage. they also have a version w/plastic rather than wire!
Cassiel!..what tim bought is called a contour guage. they also have a > version w/plastic rather than wire! I made mine with dozens of 1/8" x 8" bamboo rods, set in place, side by side, sandwiched between two pieces of felt and two 30" rigid hardwood slats with wingnuts through each end for tension adjustment… this tool allows entire crossectional bottom/deck contours to be recorded, transferred and analyzed, as well as rail contours, etc. To casual observers, it vaguely appears to be an instrument of torture, especially when hung on the wall next to 24" calipers…
Do you use rocker templates? Homemade or??? I’ve seen the Plaskunas(?) version but can’t seem to justify the expense.
Do you use rocker templates? Homemade or??? I’ve seen the Plaskunas(?) > version but can’t seem to justify the expense. John, Yes, rocker, deck, bottom and cross-sectional templates… made of 1/8" hardwood doorskins, tempered masonite or various thin plastics (such as polycarbonates). Accurate notes, i.e., multi-directional photographic, written, weight, and template records have proven invaluable to me, as I
ve always had to understand my ideas from the inside out. In fact, I think anyone who shapes and glasses their own boards should at some point, take one of their best, proven efforts, thoroughly analyzing and documenting that boards specific design and construction details by… cutting it into pieces. Im not a believer in confining surfboard design to shaving and abrading the outer surface of a close-tolerance, polyurethane blank... an excellent example of a contrasting, and completely valid direction are the Surflight boards: <a href="http://www.surflight.com/hist.html">http://www.surflight.com/hist.html</a> Anyway, I reckon a great tool to have at ones disposal would be something like an MRI, to study “magic” shapes.
John: I’ve not gotten down to making this tool but it does seem that the benefits of owning one are becoming high on the priority list for me. Not having seen the Pleskunas version I can only guess that this Australian version is similar perhaps. http://www.shapers.com.au/s800.htm TS>>> Do you use rocker templates? Homemade or??? I’ve seen the Plaskunas(?) > version but can’t seem to justify the expense.
Do you use rocker templates? Homemade or??? I’ve seen the Plaskunas(?) > version but can’t seem to justify the expense. A rocker stick is the most important tool that you can have. The price for one is very high and led to the construction of a home made version that works great. If you are really interested and would want to make one I could explain what I came up with. Many thanks to Swaylocks and all you contributors. O.J.
One of the guys at work has a profile tool that is long enough to take the rocker off a 9’ foot board. Just lay it on the bottom, tighten all these little knobs and you have a perfect rocker template in 30 seconds. He got it out of a catalog for around $80 bucks. I’ll try to find a source if anyone is interested. Scott
I’m really interested in what you came up with - lay it on me! I’ve toyed with the idea of a 1" X 4" aluminum box beam, holes for rods, holes and epoxied nuts on the side for thumb screws and a batten with little pivot brackets to hold the end of the rods. Not sure how the batten/rod connection will work out especially around steep nose rocker. Maybe just leave the battens off and go with little torture rods like Dale mentioned?
One of the guys at work has a profile tool that is long enough to take the > rocker off a 9’ foot board. Just lay it on the bottom, tighten all these > little knobs and you have a perfect rocker template in 30 seconds. He got > it out of a catalog for around $80 bucks. I’ll try to find a source if > anyone is interested. Scott Please post when you find it. Thanks http://users.leading.net/~shine
A rocker stick is the most important tool that you can have. The price for > one is very high and led to the construction of a home made version that > works great. If you are really interested and would want to make one I > could explain what I came up with. Many thanks to Swaylocks and all you > contributors. O.J. O.J. To coin Ricky Ricardos’ phrase: " 'Splain it to us!" Mil Gracias, Magoo
Sorry for taking so long. Here goes: I improvised as I went along and also stepped back a few days when I hit a snag, but this is what I came up with and hopefully you can improve it although I am very happy with my product. First thing I needed to conquer was the bendable contact w/ the board. I took two wind surfing battens and lap joined them together at there thickest ends with epoxy. Together they totaled about 9+ feet. They are tapered towards the ends which helps when you get to matching nose and tail flips.Perhaps there are longer battens for say a cateraman that you could use thus skipping the joinery.(?) Next I took a piece of aluminum angle iron about a half inch by a half inch and cut it up into half inch pieces. I riveted them to the battens every 6 inches making sure to counter sink them so that the batten surface that would be touching the board would remain smooth. I purchased an 8 foot length of aluminum angle iron that was 1 and a half inches by same. I screwed it to a piece of hardwood (1x2) 9’ long. These pieces have to be strong and unbendable. Using the batten as a guide, screw holes thru the angle and hardwood to correspond w/ the holes in the batten. At a right angle to these holes go the screw inserts with thumb screws. These will be your adjusters. At this point I was stumped for the connection between the batten and the stick. I thought that I needed something like bicycle spokes that would be bent at a rt. angle so that they could pivot and also bend the batten to the desired shape. THATS IT! I’ll use spokes! They worked like a charm. Just be sure to drill their holes in the angle iron just big enough to get them through so there won’t be any play. Thread the spokes thru the stick and adjustment holes and your on your way to bottom accuracy. Another tip is to save the cut off 1/8 plywood from the outsides of templates. you can lay your rocker stick on them and trace and cut out your favorite bottoms. I have a record of all my best ones. Hope you understand what I did, let me know if you need further explanations. Aloha, OJ
Brilliant! I like the idea of using bicycle spokes. Bikes and boards are what take up a lot of my free time - I don’t know why I hadn’t thought of that. I guess I was locked in to the delrin rod idea after checking the Pleskunas rig. Thanks for the tip!