Looks amazing, but 2 pounds is the weight of my last board frame. Maybe not as strong, not labor intensive too. Nice work, keep us informed
Jack
Damn hot lp; I feel priveledged that I get to watch something like this being constructed. Labor intensive? sure. attention to detail? definately. something I’d do? prolly not; but I still look forward to seeing the progress every day.
Quote:
So all your little carbon rods are…what? Solid? Hollow? Carbon string with epoxy resin already hardened? Soft strings?
How do you attach them? 5 Minute epoxy would be my guess…but I can’t tell from the pics.
This thing is a trip.
The carbon pieces that are suspended are .070" solid rods. They are very stiff. The carbon in the stringer is 1/4" tubes. The carbon laminated directly to the inside of the ribs are epoxy coated carbon tow (string). The entire frame is constructed with super glue (Us Modelers call it CA glue). Carbon Balsa and super glue were made for each other. Super glue has tremendous whicking properties. It will soak right into the grain of balsa and in between the fibers of carbon. It is far superior to epoxy when making a structure like this. Epoxy tends to be too viscous and hard to work with. Also you tend to use more epoxy than super glue for a given joint just by the nature of the different adhesive properties. This structure went together very fast because super glue dries in seconds.
This is where the glue comes from. At the hobby shop that I work at, I have an endless supply of the stuff.
These are the two specific types of glue which I use
INSTA-CURE™ has a water-thin viscosity that wicks deep into joints by capillary action and cures in a matter of a few seconds. Surfaces to be bonded must be tight fitting and should be held together while you apply the CA around the edges of the seam. At the moment CAs cure, they give off a vapor that can irritate the nose and eyes, so be prepared. Thin CAs work very well on balsa since they penetrate into the wood and form more than just a surface bond.
INSTA-CURE+™ is a higher viscosity CA for loose fitting joints in which the adhesive must bridge gaps. Normally, the thicker CA is applied to one surface and then the parts are held tightly together for about 5 to 15 seconds. For large surface areas, including those with close fitting joints such as laminations, INSTA-CURE+ ™ should also be used. To prevent premature curing, don’t spread the glue into a thin film. Lay down a serpentine bead with about 1" separations on one surface, then assemble the parts, letting the pressure spread the CA out.
So you can attach carbon and kevlar to the balsa with superglue?
-chris
Quote:
So you can attach carbon and kevlar to the balsa with superglue?
-chris
of course!!!
but I prefer to use slightly thinned epoxy to attach pieces with a large area of surface contact because superglue will dry before the parts can be arranged. I also use epoxy when using working with cloth of any kind because you can work epoxy into the weave because of the slower drying time. The only epoxy on the frame so far is used to laminate the carbon piece on the stringer and the kevlar tape imbedded in the rails (not visible) by the way, I bet you can hit the rails with a hammer without them breaking.
BEWARE: SUPER GLUE DISSOLVES MOST FOAMS!!!
but they make special foam safe superglue which has a slower drying time. It might revolutionize quick ding repair at the beach!!
How much has this project cost so far(or total) and where do you get all your materials?
-chris
Quote:
How much has this project cost so far(or total) and where do you get all your materials?
-chris
Im estimating that Ive put out $550. I started this project with the attitude that money is no object. It sure helps.
Materials:
Balsa and adhesive, some carbon parts: Charlie’s discount hobbies (where I work)(813) 882-4007
7530 W Waters Ave, Tampa FL
Carbon tubes and laminates, Kevlar tape, 2 oz glass: Aerospace Composite products acpsales.com
fins, boxes, epoxy resin: Fiberglass supply fiberglasssupply.com
Various carbon tapes and unidirectional materials: Ebay (check it out I got the carbon for next to nothing)
Veneer: Hardware Imagination Incorporated
(813) 882-0322
5329 W Crenshaw St
Tampa, FL 33634
I attatched new pics. I laminated the two pieces of veneer for the sub deck (foot support) I laced some carbon tow inbetween the two layers. The tow will fall between the stringers and ribs to give extra support in the voids of the board. The next pic proves how much of a hassle it can be if you dont have vacuum bagging equipment. It took 50 lbs of sandbags (you can see the sandbags in the first pic) plus everything heavy in the shop to give me adiquite pressure to laminate the deck. Its kind of funny looking!!
I live in St. Pete… and I’ve GOT to see this!
Along with the airplanes… Also, I’ve got questions, but nothing worth posting… they’ll probably be thought of on the spot.
Email me,
That will be seeing the first hurricane coming through I presume?
Quote:
I live in St. Pete… and I’ve GOT to see this!
Along with the airplanes… Also, I’ve got questions, but nothing worth posting… they’ll probably be thought of on the spot.
Email me,
That will be seeing the first hurricane coming through I presume?
I sent you an E-mail with contact info
Thanks for the complements guys!!!
here is how the sub-deck will fit on the board. It is not glued down yet. I still have to build the fin boxes. notice all the lightening holes. Total weight of sub-deck skin is 1 pound. I plan on lightening it more after I plan the fin boxes
How’s the board? Any new pics? Keep us posted…
Hope nobody minds me bumping this post.
hang tight guys, Im waiting on some more materials in the mail before I can do more work.
they are:
fins and boxes (Im making molds out of Futures fins and making my own custom carbon/wood fins to work in futures fin boxes), 2 oz cloth, resin, and the botom unidirectional carbon laminate for the stringer has been on back order for a month. I hope to get all the stuff this week.
Where’d you order the uni carbon? Because I shall be needing some soon and hope they have it in stock and I hope I don’t hav eto wait…
Quote:
Where’d you order the uni carbon? Because I shall be needing some soon and hope they have it in stock and I hope I don’t hav eto wait…
aerospace composite products acpsales.com
see my post above. its a complete list of materials and suppliers. ACP makes the laminates in bulk. I used the .06" thick piece. They cut their whole stock of each different width of the same thickness from the same plate. They dont cut a new stock until they sell all of the strips of that thickness. I got stuck waiting for them to sell out and cut new stock. Thats why its late. They have fresh stock now so if you order soon they will ship it the next day.
you been adding up the $'s and hours or is this one of the defense department cost is no concern type of board…
Aviso’s runs $1200-$1400 for a 6’2"-6’4" and Ken’s run around a $1000 -$1200 for a 6’1" so it’ll be interesting to see how it compares.
I bring it up cause ACP is expensive to source from but they do carry it all…
either way one hell of a great project…
Oh ya, do you get alot of CA on your fingers and how do you deal with it in all those tight spaces…
CA is as bad on your hands as Gorilla Glue and the fumes are something some else…
You’ve got me thinking about trying a skin on frame board like the old kayacks, with a small area of veneer right where the knees go… if I can just find a big animal to get the skin from.
Jeff
Quote:
you been adding up the $'s and hours or is this one of the defense department cost is no concern type of board..Aviso’s runs $1200-$1400 for a 6’2"-6’4" and Ken’s run around a $1000 -$1200 for a 6’1" so it’ll be interesting to see how it compares.
I bring it up cause ACP is expensive to source from but they do carry it all…
either way one hell of a great project…
Oh ya, do you get alot of CA on your fingers and how do you deal with it in all those tight spaces…
CA is as bad on your hands as Gorilla Glue and the fumes are something some else…
Well… $550 aint too bad. I’m sure i could find plenty of foam and fiberglass boards that sell for over $550
As for time, building things is what I do for fun, so time is not an issue. If it went together quickly, then I would just get bored quicker because Id have nothing to work on, even though I would get a board quicker. no pun intended…
Dude, this board is so rad! It is so interesting to see kevlar/cord and truss/frame construction used for a surfboard. I’m used to dealing with graphite layups over honeycomb at certain angles for biasing CTE mismatches so my parts don’t pop off in space. Symmetry in the glass layers is something that is used in PWB construction due to CTE mismatches (to prevent warping and stress), but I don’t see it mentioned in board building with respect to the top and bottom glass schedules. Alas, I’m not a mechanical engineer, so I profess ignorance.
I want to see you land a floater and have this board come out clean. I buckled my last plastic stringer eps/epoxy during Katrina in Bradenton…how humbling.