ok, i’m attempting my first glass on single fin after about 30 + boards. here’s what i’m going with as of now…set the fin straight with a little 5 min. epoxy. how many pieces of cloth should i use per side of the fin? do all the pieces lap onto the bottom? won’t it cause a bulge around the fin if so? any other tips appreciated…
This is how I do it. cut 6 pcs of 6 oz the shape of the fin but each one progressively smaller. Cut about 20 pcs of fin rope the size of the fin base. Now tack the fin in place with lamination resin, or glue gun. Use the smallest fin size 6oz first, Glass each side of the fin with 6oz and lay some resin coated fin rope in the crotch. (I use UV so I walk it outside once bubble free) let it kick 30 sec,wait 5 min then lay another 6 oz, rope, and finish with 6oz. Hotcoat, grind and gloss. -Jay
That sounds strong to me. I have done it another way. After aligning and tacking the fin, wet and place the twenty or so rovings. I used three layers per side but all of them covering the whole fin and then onto the deck 50-75mm or 2"-3", this includes an inch or more in front of and behind the fin. It may seem thick on the bottom at this stage, but when sanding the board use the layers as a guage, as you can see each of them, the bottom one staying large, the top one sanding closer to the fin. Remember to lay up enough at the leading and trailing edge to allow you to fair it in nicely. The fin and radius can be sanded by hand removing minimal cloth and not stuffing up the foil. Before you start, if you do it this way, make the trailing edge pretty sharp. This makes it easier to stick the layups together and doesn’t leave the trailing edge too thick after sanding. Trim when green (gelled), saves heaps of work. Have fun. As a by-note … I’ve scraped a good 1/4" off a fin (thruster) on the reef and it didn’t even disturb the base of the fin or the board. It truly astounded me.
Glass patches cut on the bias work great if you have no fin rope… maybe better.
GW, I know what your talking about. i only use glass on fins on my personal boards. it takes a direct hit from a shallow reef or the 405 curb job to rip a fin off. i have lots of chunks out of my glass ons, but they rarely bust off. It’s just a lot more work than the FCS or Speed fin set ups. I personally think it worth the extra time. Here in San Diego with Sunset Cliffs, Bird Rock etc. Fins are busting all the time. As Joe Roper say’s thank God for FCS fins, or I’d be out of business. -Jay
Good one Jay. And the radius and fairing around a glass-on fin is proven to be more efficient hydrodynamically.