Chris,
Can you describe about using the hard roller on the laps instead of grinding? thanks
Sure… I was gonna take some pics of the roller I have and do a write up…
I don’t know what the roller was originally intended for but it’s a small hard plastic roller. It has a handle like a paint roller but, the roller part is about 1 1/2" in diameter and about 2" wide.
On this board i did freelaps but, when the laps were about at the “cutlap stage”, I just went all the way around and used the roller to press the laps flat right at the edge.
No sanding and no bubbles…
I will post some pics of it when I get a minute…
Chrisp,
Well done for #19 man. That board is coming out super sick. Love the dims and the swallow tail. I have been dancing right around those same numbers but wussed out when it came time to do the full twin fin placement and I ended putting my front fin in a more traditional location further up the board. I am all ears to hear how yours goes once you get it in the water. Keep the pics coming! Great stuff.
The roller is used in the boat industry to wet out and ad hear the glass to a solid object… (Mold/ existing fiberglass) sort of like how we use a squgee to move resin around.
Love the roller trick Crisp. I’ll being trying that next time.
All the best
Right on Clint!
In regards to trying a twinzer, I say DO IT! It has been a huge eye opener for me…
About a year and a half ago, I was shaping a new daily driver. I was planning on just doing a thruster. At the time, I was reading a lot about twinzers over at the ERBB. I took a leap and made the board a twinzer using placement numbers and fin sizes mostly from Ghostshaper…
Here is the thread on that board: http://www.swaylocks.com/forums/twinzer-love-6-feet-avocado-y-bacon-y-butter-y-goodness
Best board i have ever surfed. Fast, loose, and drivey.
Unfortunately, I built that board using USBlanks Red density foam with 4+4 and 4 E glass. It fell apart on me…
on the current build I am using USBlanks blue density foam with 4+4 and 4 S glass. Hopefully that makes it last longer.
Thanks Surfifty!
I found mine at a garage sale…
I actually have 2…
On one, the roller is flat. On the other, the roller is barrel shaped and has a bulge in the middle…
I used the flat one to do the laps
Definitely check it out Greg!
This will be my new goto method for sure…
I picked up the roller a few years ago when timber flex was all the rage here on Sways. I remember somebody (Greg Loehr?) Saying that you could use a hard roller to push the bamboo into the foam all the way around the edge.
More recently I think somebody (Keith Melville?) Mentioned that you could smash your laps flat with one.
BTW Greg, I used your trick and wrapped up my swallow tips and nose with blue tape and it worked GREAT!
I have used the roller to adhere glass to a plywood transom. I would imagine that they are not used in the surfboard industry because if too much pressure is applied it may crush the foam. It would probably work on a wood board. I think I got mine at West Marine. I’m sure a good boat supply place may also have them. The barrel shaped one could be used for concave surfaces.
I have one of these and I also have a plastic one similar, but not as solid. I just push it along the edge where the glass meets the foam.
Before I got the rollers, I used a small PVC pipe.
I was looking around in my parts room for a wood one just like this the other day. I could have sworn we had one I could swipe. I ended up with a hard rubber one and it worked great. I recommend this trick whole heartedly.
Secondly, I had to cut out my first fabric inlay, and used the flashlight under the blank in a dark room. It worked way better thean I ever imagined, and through blue tint and the fabric. Pleasantly surprised. So thatnk you whomever shared that tip a while back. I read that one in the archives and is worth mentioning its usefulness.
Disclaimer: This was also my first cutlap. Will need a large pin line… haha
I believe the roller as shown by sharkcountry is used when hanging wall paper to flatten the seams/ joins
Exactly, Roller for join of wall paper. I used this tech a lot but i found that it reduce foam strengh a bit.
I would never smash free laps with a roller. Some folks do that to cut laps, which makes a bit more sense, since they have a straight edge…
You don’t have to press down so hard that you crush or damage foam! Let’s use a little common sense. Yes a wallpaper seam roller is the most commonly used roller to flatten laps. I found one that is hard black rubber at a Habitat store. I think it was originally purposed to be used in the printing industry. For years I used a 4" cotton roller to wet out my laps. Especially when using UV Poly. The metal rollers with spikes, ridges etc are used in Marine layup or molds as bubble busters and to get down into corners etc.
I think this technique works best with Poly blanks. I haven’t done it as much lately. I sand the edge of the lap till I see the tape then cut it, and there’s very little left to clean up. Same way Jimmy Lewis shows in his poor man vac bag glassing videos.
Or, I do another color inlay and I leave the edge to work with. Makes a nice hard edge to cut along and the two sides match up pretty close in thickness.
I got that roller from Amazon.com. I use it now to press down the wax alternative grip.
The thing I like about the roller technique is no sanding and no dust.
I did it at the stage where the resin is no longer tacky but is still soft so I was able to actually smash/flatten the edge of the lap without denting the foam.
This is my favorite part of any build. When the hotcoats are dry and I get to put the board under my arm for the first time. This is when I first get a sense of what the board is gonna feel like. Shape, weight, balance,…
Yeah, I hear you on that. I finished a board last week, but I think I breathed in either sanding dust or fumes from the rattle can clear coat. I powered through a day of sanding then spraying Friday. Saturday I noticed my throat was feeling weird. Finally felt good enough to get the board into the water today.
I may cut way back on the board building, get a positive air flow respirator like Bernie, or figure out a no sanding process. I already have weak lungs from asthma. I don’t need more boards at this point, but I had an 8 footer that wasn’t going to get used again, so I went for it. I made a 7’ 2" egg that worked OK in solid, just overhead waves, I may have saved another one.
By the way, how much do those colored blanks cost?
