No degree in engineering on my part but I’m sure this wheel has been invented and very well. I checked the archives and not much. Any tips from you masters of glass?
I want to set up an area that I can have 3-4 rolls of glass to pull down onto a board. Plywood sides with glavy pipe or closet dowels is what I’m thinking. I have a solid wall to mount them to and won’t need anything wider than 30".
Thank you
Some designs from the aircraft builders put a light bulb in the botton of the wall box that holds the fabric rolls, F/G soaks moisture.
Howzit DMP, Why so many rolls of glass, most shops use a roll of 6oz and a roll of 4oz. I think the only problem you might have is the highth of the box itself. You want the rolls of glass to be higher that the board when it sits on the rack. In my old shop I hung 1 roll at each end of the racks hanging on 1" metal electric conduit pipe like they use with those party tents, should be cheaper than galvie and strong enough to hold any size roll of glass.Aloha,Kokua
Mahalo Kokua,
To try and cut costs I’ve been trying to buy full rolls instead of 15-20 yds. at a time. So 4, 6 warp, 4, 6 E, 4, 6 S, etc. For my every day use it would be nice to hang 4 rolls. I’ve been unrolling glass straight from the box for over a year now and it sucks! Been wasting glass and occasionally I’ll completely blow the length and end up with a full piece thats an inch too short. Plus the S cloth is so expensive I really want to keep it off the floor.
I need to check Fiberglass Kauai’s set-up next time I stop by. They have a nice rack with 4 or 5 rolls.
Thanks for the tip on the pipe. Homedepot has galvy fence post that is pretty cheap.
Howzit DMP, I stopped using E-glass years ago and just used warp glass due to the longitudal (spell) strength factor. By all means only buy by the roll due to the cost. S-glass is nice to use but not that many people want it, why I can’t say (probably the price)but I did all my own boards with at least a S-glass deck. I’m sure a roll of S-glass is going to cost you a bunch since it’s over twice the cost of warp or E which are the same price per yard. Aloha,Kokua
To save space you might consider hanging them from the ceiling. You have sturdy brackets with a 3" ring to hold your sturdy dowels or pipe that holds your roll. You put one set at the nose and one at the tail of the glassing rack. You can quickly change out the rolls when using different material.
When not in use drap a dust protection cloth over the tops of the hanging rolls. If you have multiple glassing stations, use one station to pull the cloth and then move the board to the glassing area. The ceiling has issues if the lighting is in the way or the ceiling is too high, but if you can keep the walls free for prep racks or shelving it can be worth the extra effort to make the ceiling work. You might as well make them 40" apart so you can glass SUPs with the 38" cloth. Home Despot should have every thing you need on the screw and bracket isle.
Aloha DMP
I this what you are needing?
2 pieces of plywood cut to the shape above. Screw or bolt them to a piece of angle iron, aluminum or Kito Shelving material. Or you can use a 2 x 4. Then bolt that to the studs in your wall wide enough to hold the width of cloth you need. If your studs aren’t spaced for that, build a backing wide enough and screw it wherever you need it to be.
Hang a sheet of plastic down from the top over the whole thing to keep the rolls clean.
This one is designed to scale with approx 10" dia rolls. Blow up and adjust the drawing to your need. Put the least used glass in the back center as it will be harder to replace cause you will have to insert the rod from the side rather then the front like the other rods. The glass ends on the back upper rolls will feed below each front roll.
thats what the pros use right there…
Mahalo Bill,
Yes that is exactly what I had in mind. If you don’t mind I’ll probably copy just that. Thinking 3/4" ply or the thinner luan hard ply for the side pieces.
I’ll make one up of my own from your design and post a picture.
I hope all is well with your health. I’m glad it sounds that you’re getting better. Are you going with clinical meds for reducing your cholesterol or with the more natural products like Omega 3’s, flax oils, evening primrose, etc. I guess no more locomocos with extra gravy for a while.
Regardless I hope you can conquer your personal chemistry. I used to get Margo Obergs hand me downs and I had a magical 6 4 round pin single fin Bill Barnfield. Board was glassed super light and rode really well in good surf backside. I rode that board until it broke.
Thanks again Aukai
Aloha Aukai
Yes feel free to use or modify the drawing as needed. I don’t mind at all, that is why I posted it. I would use the 3/4 ply as the weight of rolls can be substantial and you don’t want the thing wagging side to side when you are pulling cloth. Also make sure you get all rods level so the rolls don’t pull off to one side or the other. If you are on the North Shore sometime stop in and I will show you my facilities.
Thanks for asking. My health is good for now. No heart damage. I still have one good blockage that could use a stent but I am holding off for awhile to see if it will be ok and if I can reduce it through more natural means. I may be dreaming here but I don’t want to put any more metal things in my body. I already have an 11mm dia titanium rod in my femur.
I am taking Lipitor plus using every natural remedy I can figure out. My cholesterol was 190, last check it was 108. My diet was always pretty lean anyway, but not it is even leaner. Sugar, Salt and Fats are off the menu… The only thing I really miss is chips and salsa! The only treats I have had is a piece of cake at an ex-employees wedding. Figuring out ones personal chemistry is exactly right. The chemical furnace that drives each of us is different and knowing exactly how yours works is the key. There are plenty of rumors, cures, magic potions and meds. Finding ones which will clean my arteries as fast as possible is my goal.
I rode my bike to work for the first time since the big event and all went just fine. Even rode home in the dark without incident, other they the lady who almost hit me cause she was driving in the shoulder cutting the corner at the Church at Waimea Bay! And yes I ride with lights on… 2 in the rear, one on the seatpost and one on my Camelback, both bright red and flashing wildly. I also have dual headlights in the front, very bright. Some drivers have no clue!
That is a great story about Margo’s boards. Glad you got some of those. Do you have any pictures of the board or you riding it? If you find any of my old boards floating around over there let me know. I really enjoyed making many of the pro women’s boards. They were always fun and appreciative.
Mahalo Bill,
Thanks again for the picture. I was going to use ply, but got my hands on some recycled corian counter top. The most expensive part were the dowls.
Being to pull glass off a roll instead of unrolling it by hand is great.
Hope you’re all well and getting some of the surf lately.
Nice job Aukai.
You might want to make slots in the front to install the rods and rolls. It won’t matter if you have enough space to pull out the rods to either side but as your shop fills with stuff the space, now available, to pull the rods out the sides may begin to shrink later.
I am doing well, still losing weight and working out to get in better shape and test the limits (if any) of my condition. So far no problems other then old age! Ha! Surf is finally happening now, it sure has been a slow start this season. Drop by if you make it to the North Shore one day.
Wooden Broom handles £1 each.
Thanks again for the tip, now I can see why it’s easier to front load the rolls.
We will be over for Christmas and I’ll send you a pm before we come. Is your Raging Isle shop still in Haleiwa?
Glad you’re feeling better. Surf is raging today, close interval and bombing. It wouldn’t be too bad except it’s raining so hard its hard to see.
Yep! My shop is still in the same location downtown Haleiwa, beach side of Cholos Mexican Food. I am usually around. See you soon.
Hi Bill,
First off, glad you’re feeling better. Been going through something similar myself, and the nightly round of pills and what have you. Hope all continues to improve.
Now, I don’t especially have a need for a roll setup like this for fiberglass just now… but I do a little boat canvas work, and I had been thinking about something like this for the various types ( and widths) of cloth I’m using regularly. And doing this in a kinda dusty basement workshop, so this that you’ve shown is ideal. Say, something like this:
Which could all feed to a layout table aligned with the one side of the rack.
I was also impressed by your solution to that bottom roll: how to get a horizontal…or nearly so… slot which the rods wouldn’t roll out of:
Slick, that.
So, I guess one of my winter projects is gonna involve some 3/4 ply, a Forstner bit and a saber saw. Thanks, that solves a problem that’s been bugging me for a while. Though I may have to show this to a seamstress I know: she’s been after me to make her something like this for a while now.
Best regards
doc…
Aloha Doc
Thanks for the compliments, glad I could help! Hope your health issues resolve well.
Looks like your additions would work just fine for canvas or fiberglass. I don’t remember if I mentioned it but I have a sheet of plastic attached to the wall above my rack that drapes over the rack outside all the rolls to keep the dust off. Doesn’t seem to stop the Gecko’s from pooping on the cloth from time to time but does a pretty good job keeping off the factory dirt and the all to common red dirt dust so prevalent in Hawaii.
Hi Bill,
Thanks for your good wishes…all continues to continue, as it were. It’s funny; fast cars, fast women, big waves and rum didn’t do us in, and now it’s butter and bacon and all those other nice things that might just take care of it. It’s a funny old world…but it’s a lot of fun to live in.
And I noted that sheet of plastic you mentioned with interest, as all the places I work are dusty at best. Though fortunately precious few geckos. Do you use anything along the bottom of it, say a split pipe or a coupla strips of wood, sandwiched around the plastic, that kinda holds that edge straight and tight to the edges of the rack? Sorta like that stiff part at the bottom of a window shade, as it were…
Best, as ever
doc…
Aloha Doc
I affix the plastic to the wall with a strip of wood and the plastic extends wider then the rolls. It just drapes over them all from there but easily lifts and lays over the fabric if I pull cloth off a roll.
You are so right. It is all an amazing journey… even the bad stuff. Fun stuff every day!
If you have multiple glassing stand positions that are side-by-side, you can use the roll holder that Bill defined on a trolley system against the wall. Put the holder on a piece of plywood and use the tracks and rollers that are for sliding doors (Home Depot) and you can just slide it into position at each stand. Mark the correct position on the track for the holder at each glassing stand so that you don’t have to mess with it each time you move it.