I just started shaping a 5’8 lis style fish that I would like to make wood keel fins for. I was wondering how imperative it is to use marine ply ($50 a sheet), when you are going to glass them anyway. What potential problems would there be with using regular plywood.
Graham
It’s all good, I have used surf board foam, 9 ply maple, alder ply and some other real cheap and flaky stuff.
Cheers, Scott
Graham,
You can use just about any wood,as you said once glassed there is nothing to worry about. I just made some keels with a foam core and a balsa sandwich,my first vacuum experiment. Very light and strong…a little too thick though…have to plan ahead when doing any composites…my next ones should be perfect…lol. Have fun…
Or, if you have a friend with a cabinet shop, a carpenter, wood working hobbiest, etc. you might be able to grab their scraps for free. Mike
Go with a solid wood before using regular ply. That ply has NO wet resistence and the layers will inevitibly get wet, swell and split apart. Cabinet ply is abundant in the dumpsters behind custom furniture shops. That means FREE… All kinds of solid wood are good, go with a lower oil content and use UV resin with milled fiber in a slurry to seal and coat them from off-gassing; just smear them over using latex gloves.
Graham, what +1shaper says is true, but if you’ve never foiled fins before, I think you’ll find it a lot easier using marine ply, because the layers allow you to see when your foil is correct.
Where are you located? I have some marine ply & could mail you a couple 5x9 chunks if you really can’t find any.
Thanks for the suggestions. Finished shaping yesterday. Kieth I see your in SD, I live in Boca Raton. No worries, I think I’m gonna just suck it up and buy a sheet, I’d like to shape a few more like it and I’ll have enough wood to make enough keels to last me a long time.
Peace,
Graham