It's a bit hard to tell exactly from the pics but it does seem that you have still got plenty of thickness in the blank so your alright to go ahead & take the foam down with whatever smoothing tools you are intending to use. I personally take the crust off a blank with an electric planer. I recently bought a Wolf (brand) 3 blade planer ( 3 blades instead of 2 so cuts much smoother & faster) Not an expensive tool either. I got mine brand new on eBay for £36.99 including delivery. I use the planer to get my thickness, rocker & deck how I want them. I then use various sanding blocks with various grade sandpapers. I have a couple of blocks which I made myself which are from 4" x 1.5" oak. One is 24" long & the other 12" so the 24" covers all the width of the blank & the 12" half the width. I glued some mouse mat rubber to the bottom of them & I use a cheap version of croc/aligator skin which comes in 60 grade & 100 grade (on a 6" wide roll so you can cut it to whatever length you want) which I gaffer tape to my sanding blocks so its easily removed & replaced. I use a surform plane ( B&Q stock them) for the rail bands & the cheapo crock/aligator skin just held in my hand to pull the rails down, then a final very light rub all over with 600 grade wet & dry & its ready to laminate.
Thanks once again for the help. I think I’ve been slightly over panicky so far, kind of have to accept there’s going to be imperfections but I’m learning tons for the next one I’ve been switching between using 40 grit sandpaper and a surform but I like the sandpaper better to be honest. Anyway, since my last frantic post I’ve taken the thickness down slightly and started to turn in the rails at the top. Was originally going to make a plan for the rails but got over excited and just made a couple rough pencil marks and went for it. Have been trying to keep it as even as possible. They’re turned in a fair bit at the top and I’ve not started the bottom yet but I feel may need to take more thickness out of the blank. Looking for some advice on this -
Less thickness?
Only other thing is I’m not sure how on earth I’m going to get the swallowtail cut and sanded properly. Been cutting it down with a jigsaw so far, but don’t want to do this too much as I’ll risk cutting the foam.
One more picture because I’m stoked it’s actually beginning to look like a board
OK, got done shaping. Ended up taking a bit more thickness out but not a huge amount. Swallowtail was a problem area (but I expected this) and also the nose. I think I had trouble with the nose because I’ve left too much thickness in the whole board! The rails are very very full so hoping the board will turn ok.
Made quite a lot of mistakes but have learnt a huge amount so shaping the next one should go slightly better. There are plenty of uneven spots, one in particular spot on a rail was a problem because when cutting the outline out on one side I accidentally cut at a slight angle. I think for the rails next time I will definitely plan them out a bit more. For my next shape I will just make a quad fish again and do it better with the things I’ve learnt from this one. Still I am pleased with the way the shape turned out for my first board. Here’s some pics - (excuse the crappy handwriting for the signing, writing on foam is surprisingly difficult!)
(I put the 2 3/4 thickness as a rough guess but wouldn’t be surprised if in places it’s quite a bit thicker than that.)
So yeah, very happy with the experience, enjoyed it and learnt a lot. Will be glassing it over the next couple weeks, only get home at weekends so will be slow going, especially when waiting for cure times etc. I’ll post up some pictures when it’s done and a ride report. (and of course I’ll be back with more frantic questions if something goes wrong with the glassing!) Cheers
The outline on the board looks good, but the rails still look a little boxy. I think you need to crown the deck a bit, and round out the rails. From the picture the rails almost look square, its all personal preference, but I would shape up the rails a little bit…
Thanks, yeah I was definitely worried about the rails being a bit too full like. When you say crown the deck do you mean take more foam off the top side of the rails yes?
Yep from what I can tell from the pics you've posted I agree that the nose & tail are still too thick & also agree with swanny that your rails are still too full & boxy. I've just had a read thru the the thread that swanny recommends & if you follow the advice & check & follow the various diagrams posted in that thread you'll get your rails perfect.
I should have mentioned the advice that my shaper/mentor told me about 50 years ago & will always hold true. " Take it slow & easy. Check your work constantly. Don't rush it. You can always take a bit more foam off but you can't stick it back on!"
Ok, glassing is an absolute nightmare. I finished the shaping, took more thickness out and thinned out the rails, tail and nose a bit more. Extremely happy with the shape.
Just finished glassing the bottom of the board, I’m afraid I’ve mucked it up extremely. Thought I’d mixed too little resin at one point so frantically mixed a little more, but judging from the remains thats curing in the bucket, i didnt mix it well enough so I’m afraid that certain parts of the board are not going to cure as well. Is there anything I can do about this?
Also I had major problems with the swallowtail and nose, and there are several (I mean several) places where the laps haven’t been fully saturated and are coming off the board a little. I figure this is fixable though? Either when I glass the top or if I just mix a little bit of resin up when it’s cured and sort out the problem areas?
Man this first board has been an extreme learning experience :L At least I’ll know what to expect from the second!
Just poly resin. Did you not see the pictures of my bottom lam? That’s why glassing is a nightmare should all be fixable though. It’s all a learning experience I guess!
Just cut off the parts that are not saturated, sand down the laps and do the top glassing better If the bottom looks good and the dry spots are only the overlap, it isn’t a problem.
Re: your glassing. Nothing there that can't be fixed.
Do as parick says & carefully cut away the dry bits & all the strings hanging down & gently sand everything (just the glass not the foam if you can help it) & then glass the deck. Don't skimp on resin (better to waste some & make sure all the cloth is wetted & stuck down properly) & use your squeegee to really pull the resin into & round the rails & laps.
Here's my tip for glassing first timers. Use only 1mil of catylist (MEKP) per 100mil of resin which will give a slow cure (around 20 to 25 minutes) & therefore more time to get things right. Your board should need about 500mils of resin per side. Maybe 600mils for the deck if you are doing 2 layers. Cut your cloth to size on the board. Roll it up from nose to tail. Use a 3" brush to paint your resin onto the board & the rails & underneath to a bit wider than the width of the laps. Roll your cloth out onto the board & then start your wetting out with your squeegee making sure theres no bubbles or dry spots & concentrate on getting your rails/laps stuck down.
Thanks again for all the replies, extremely helpful! Again I think I panicked unduly, I’m just waiting for the lam to fully cure before I start sanding and cutting bits off but I think it should be fine. After I’ve tidied up the bottom laps as much as I can I’m just going to make one of the top layers laps slightly bigger than normal to make up for the bits I’ve mucked up. I think I’m going to have to glass an extra bit in the crack of the swallow tail to get it completely done as well. which I guess I’ll have to do before my top lam so I figure I’ll get that done later tonight and then do the top tomorrow. On Monday I’ll do the leash loop.
After mucking about with my plywood fins I’ve decided to install fin boxes as I think the board has turned out quite well and I don’t want to ruin it with mediocre fins. Decided on fcs simply because I have them in my other boards so I have fins to use and I can make a jig using the box measurements from another board. I’ve got the finboxes ordered from seabase so they should arrive sometime midweek and then I’ll get them installed and the board hotcoated next weekend. And then hopefully some swell
Just got done doing the top, think it went much better than yesterday. It’s still messy in places but nothing that shouldn#t be fixable. Cleaned up the bottom lap mess as best I could but I think you’ll definitely be able to see the problems on the finished product.
Part of the reason why I think it may have went better is because I didn’t use as much cataylst. I put 7.5 ml catalyst in but thinking about it there was probable close to a kilo or even slightly more resin in the mix. If there is not enough catalyst, will the resin remain tacky? If this is the case, what would I be able to do about it?
why u don’t use the one who cure with the UV. Once i repaired a ding with solarez, i let the board in my room for like 3 days and the resin didn’t cure and with the UV in like 2 min was as strong as a rock.
i think, if u don’t put enough catalyst it’ll take a lot of time to cure.
I’d love to use UV resin to lam but I don’t think it’s available in suitable quantities in the UK? (someone correct me if I’m wrong) I’ve used the stuff on a couple repairs before and it’s been excellent.
Yeah just been outside and checked the board again, definitely taking longer but I’m not worried about it not curing as it’s almost turned hard in the bucket, so should be fine. Probably tomorrow morning I’ll tidy it up and glass the crack of the tail as well as any bits that need patched after the tidy, and then hotcoat the top in the evening and the bottom on Tuesday. Then I’m away for a few days so the board will get a chance to fully cure before the final sand and putting boxes in. I don’t think there’s a whole lot that I can muck up further at this point (but I’ve been wrong before!) so my next post should be with the finished board.
One question though for the next one: I made this board with hand tools and the next one will be the same deal, so just wondering what tools people use to remove the excess glue from the stringer area? I couldn’t really get it off with sandpaper so I just left some as it won’t affect the way the board goes, but after glassing it it has become much more obvious so will be a bit of an eyesore on the finished product. Not much I can do about it now but any tips for the next one?
As a child of the 1950's who started surfing in 1960 at age 10yrs its my belief that all surfboards should be made of wood or foam & polyester resin. In fact I don't understand all this new fangled epoxy & UV cure resin & don't want to. I also don't understand the American system of resin weight (as in how much catalyst to a kilo or pound of resin?)
I have always used the liquid volume method as it is the most accurate!
I think you are using Seabase products & I'm pretty sure that the mixing details are on the tin/plastic bottle. If not here again are the industry standards:
Slow cure; 1mil catalyst per 100mils of resin
Standard cure: 2mils catalyst per 100mils of resin
Fast cure: 4mils catalyst per 100mils of resin
Any less than 1mil catalyst per 100mils of resin & it won't cure
Any more than 4mils catalyst per 100mils of resin & it will go hard before you can use it.
So on a 6' board for a fillercoat/hotcoat for example you'll need 400mil of resin, 50mil of wax in styrene with 4mils of catalyst for a slow cure (about 25 mins to gel) & if there is any sun put it out in it after its gelled as the heat will keep the re-action going (have you noticed how resin heats up when its curing?) Or you will need 8mils of catalyst in that amount of resin for a standard cure (about 15mins to gel)
Get a plastic jug with mils measure on the side & a syringe with mils measurements & follow the amounts accurately & you won't go wrong!
apauly1954 ur kinda right but lets just think about the epoxy, it’s not that heavy as normal fiber glass and it’s way stronger. I am so damn sick of the dings that i do getting with the board into the elevator.
The resin that cures with UV it’s good for the new shapers, like me for exemple. I never used before resin, foam, the tools for shaping the board etc so what the new shapers need is materials that lets us make mistakes. Till now i spoiled two blanks made by me. The point is i’ll never pay for a shaping course and i bet **adamelgo **never payed also. When i’ll know how to do a board without mistakes i’ll definitely use the old school way.
**adamelgo **if ur from the UK u can order what u need here in Spain i know a shop in Valencia, they have everything u need( i didnt deal with them yet but what i saw on the web ). For the glassing part i think i’ll buy everyting there.
cheers guys
PS sorry about my poor english, last time i spoke it was 3 years ago.