Well, one week ago was my first shaping experience, today, my first glassing attemp. It went okay but, I now realize how experience helps. My first problem was air bubbles. Then cloth shifting, and finally smoothing out rough spots. after laminating. Is there a way to fix or correct air bubbles? How big should a bubble be before I worry about it? This being my first glass job, should I even worry about it. Is performance going to be affected? Of course I want it to look good, but hey skill comes with experience. Hopefully, I’ll get better as I glass more boards. I just can’t stop feeling discouraged about it. Any encouragement is appreciated. Thanks guys
I feel for ya man, your not alone. I shaped a decent looking 6’10"x19"x2.5" about a week ago and glassed it this weekend. It’s a lumpy mess, it has air bubbles, grit from sand paper trapped in the overlap area, I tried using the futures fin system and I think I messed that all up too. Oh well ya learn as you go I guess. Anyway, no matter what it looks like you’ll be stoked riding a board that you made, at least I am.
I feel for ya man, your not alone. I shaped a decent looking > 6’10"x19"x2.5" about a week ago and glassed it this > weekend. It’s a lumpy mess, it has air bubbles, grit from sand paper > trapped in the overlap area, I tried using the futures fin system and I > think I messed that all up too. Oh well ya learn as you go I guess. > Anyway, no matter what it looks like you’ll be stoked riding a board that > you made, at least I am. heh, I was in the same boat. My first board actually came out better than my second somehow. I have glassed 5 more boards since and each one gets better. My first two boards I didnt have adequate lighting. When I would take the boards out into direct light I could see bubbles I could not see before. Once I fixed my lighting problem it became much easier. Getting over the discouragement is the toughest part! Don’t get down on yourself and just keep at it! The best part is that with each glass job you will improve! The last board I did is close to flawless! p.s. I would love to hear if there is a way in which to fix airbubbles once your glass has dried. I have not yet hot coated my second board in hopes of finding a way to fix it!
p.s. I would love to hear if there is a way in which to fix airbubbles > once your glass has dried. I have not yet hot coated my second board in > hopes of finding a way to fix it! You can cut them out with a razor blade. Use the corner of the blade to cut around the bubble. After you cut them out use chopped glass with some lam resin to cover in what you have cut out. Try it on a couple of spots to see if you like the way it looks. When you hot coat over it you should not be able to see where you repaired the spot. Or you could just hot coat the board, sand it, then use paint pens to draw a design over the bubbles, then spray the board.
For “pin air” if you haven’t hot coated yet, mask off an apron and try another lam coat using lots of pressure from different directions to squeegee resin into the holes. For bigger bubbles, try using a needle and syringe to inject resin.
Hey, I am going to shape my first board soon and I was wondering if you could fill me in on how it went, and any problems you may have had that I could avoid. It would be awsome if you could help me out, but if not, no worries. Thanks~~ Alex
My advice would be to get a close tolerance blank. My first shape was a short board that I shaped out of longboard that I stripped the glass off. That lead to a lot of headache when it came to rocker, foil and thicknes. With a close tolerance board you will avoid alot of that. Make a template from a board you like find a blank that will net what you want, and learn some basics on rocker and foil, and go for it. Go slow and think symmetry, what you do on one side do on the other. Most importantly take your time. I have let quite a few people come over to my place to try their hand at shaping and I tried to steer them in the right direction, but I have noticed that those who were sucessful (which was not that many) were those who did not try to rush and force their will on the blank. It seems that after a while most would get tired or impatient and try to bear down with too much pressure or force to get the blank shaped. You have to get use to the tools, how they work, and how much foam they take off with different amounts of pressure. Once the foam comes off, you can’t put it back on. Take your time and have fun with it. JCs video shaping 101 will help you alot or search the archives for books and such that are out there. The first time you catch a wave on a board you made, or someone says “that’s a cool looking board, who made it for you?” …All I can say is that it is a good feeling.