I've cut a foam core about 3/4" undersized all round (15mm) and want to stick high density foam bands to the rails, deck and bottom and then cut the final board.
I want to cut the rail bands from 5mm (1/4") HD sheet. About 4 layers will do it. I believe I can flatten the rocker somewhat and bend the foam to match rocker or even use a hairdrier to help achieve the composite curves.
One idea is to stand the board on edge and trace the rail foil onto paper and then use the tracing as a template for cutting the foam. I had a few problems doing this last time rolling the board on edge to get it flat on the paper (i.e. losing the rocker when trying to follow the nose and tail foil).
I could also stick a strip of paper to the rails and trace the rails.
Is there a better way for capturing the rail foil?
If you have the design in boardcad, you can print a rail template.
Or cut one simple 4-5" strip of the material you are going to use for the rail from the foam sheet. Tape strip to the board, mark using the board, cut it out and use it as a template for the rest of the layers. A little more waste, but far easier imo.
Thanks for the ideas. Boardcad can show perimeter stringers? I'll take another look at it. Easy as to knowck out 8 duplicates from a dxf.
For now I will attach paper or foam to the board rail using pins (tape gets in the way), follow the rails for a template and then cut a few copies to glue on the rails.
By the way, the rail perimeter is a bit longer than the rocker so I struggle in estimating perimeter rails from rocker. The pic below shows the paper for the rail, the wood rocker template and the board core.
You can lay a 1/8" sheet of ply or masonite along the board's edge and tape the nose and tail to the board. Then just trace the bottom and deck contour onto the 1/8" ply. You have to decide how you want to do the deck since it may have a lot of crowning. I just try to get it close then trim it when I do the final shaping.
The biggest problem will probably be when you get to shaping the rail if you use epoxy to glue it to the blank. The epoxy will be hard to cut. I use gorilla glue then clamp it down. Saving the edge cuttings when you cut out the outline helps a lot.
Papers a bit dodgy…try using cardboard sheets from the newsagent or stationary supplier and tape joining it to the required length before pinning it to the rail…when you run the pencil around it , keep it at least 1/8" oversize ( the thickness of the pencil layed flat on the deck or bottom of the board) , that way you can plane the rail materail down after it's laminated to the board.They also need to be cut an inch or so longer , so you can neatly join it at the nose and tail
I found masonite a little hard to bend to shape, but the cardboard did the trick. I cut a couple of rails before I was felled with a wicked dose of flu. Now it's nights looking after tiny kids with high fevers. I'll get back to it soon.
Glue lines have been a concern of mine. Past experience with epoxy tells me I need to practice on scraps if I want to sand a flat joint.
