I am glassing some boards I shaped for fun. I want to know how to do cut laps correctly with and without tinting. I can’t find anyone who will give me a straight answer. Can anyone help? I’m doing this purely for the love and not for monetary gain, so nonel has toworry about me invadng the market. Do I need a special tool? do I need to make a special tool? Does it involve taping off the deck? Do I cut the lap wet? Please help and I’ll buy you a beer! -Max
Hi max Max, if you scroll down the page a little, or do a little swaylock search for cut laps, you’ll find what you’re looking for. Just the other day we discussed the cut lap thing as myself and one of the other guys were having a go for the first time. I can tell you from a first time point of view, that it’s tricky to say the least, but if you take your time, and keep your cool you should be o.k I tried doing the tint thing with a yellow slightly opaque colour and it makes the job more difficult. Next time I will leave it well alone and concentrate on the basics, and doing them well. But if you fancy having a go, then give it your best. Things to watch for, are that the tints show up any little surface marks on your finished shaped board, so spend time getting it as straight as you can. Make sure you use top quality masking tape - something like the 3m blue seems to be the order of the day. Mix the tint really well - add the tint to the resin rather than into the bucket, so that you don’t get a tint residue spoiling your finishing touches. Put, some of the un catalysed mix to one side just in case you need to touch up any mistakes, because trying to get the exact colour match again is impossible. What else, if you do a solid colour, you might not be able to see where you’ve taped so bare that in mind. Use a fresh blade in your Stanley knife/Exacto otherwise you’ll probably lose fingers!! Give yourself plenty of time with the resin, so don’t send it off racing fast. And, finally, write yourself a plan of what you’re going to do, and in which order. I know it might sound a bit silly but, if it’s there in front of your eyes, you can concentrate more on the job in hand. Good luck max!! Laters Peaman
I did my first cup lap this weekend. I was very happy with the results. It was only the lap from the deck onto the bottom. First I lightly scored the bottom glass using my rail tool and a razor blade where I wanted the lap to end. Then I placed the tape along that line, use the 3M blue tape it is worth it. Then I glassed the top wrapping the laps under and about a 1/3 of the way across the 2"tape and made sure they were wet out. Then I waited for the deck glass to cure. I flipped the board over and had to wait a little longer for the laps to cure up enough to cut them with a razor knife. When they were ready I just ran the razor knife along the edge of the tape cutting the glass. Then pull the tape off and the extra cloth will just peel off. As I said, this was my first try and I’ll be interested in other responses. Can I use the same porcedure to do a cut lap on the top of the board putting the tape on the foam?
…double or triple tape your line off,and check the archives.Herb