I need some help from you more experienced shapers. I am hobbyist shaper/glasser. I’ve done about 15 boards, each successive board is a little better than the last.
When I started out shaping I would only use the planer to skin the board then do most of the shaping with a sanding block. I want to get better at shaping more with the planer.
One thing I haven’t figured out yet is when planing the nose of a shortboard where the rocker disengages the blade of the planer I’ve seen shapers go at an angle to engage the foam. when I pass over the stringer I will get chunks of stringer busted out from planing from rail to rail. I have no problem on the rest of the deck or the bottom of the board.
Has this happened to any of you before? How do you avoid this?
I have a planer that my wife got me for chirstmas years ago from home depot, Dewalt hand planer. I can’t imagine that’s why. I know there are planers more suited for surfboards but my understanding is that those have rounded edges to allow more free flowing movements over the foam. The actual blade isn’t any different is it?
A big thanks for all you guys who answer questions. I can spend hours exploring this site. And I can credit a lot of my successes in shaping and glassing to this site as well.
Once I get to the place where the electric planer disengaged, i switch to a hand block plane to work the stringer, and a disk sander to rough the foam down. Hand sand with 80 grit to shape it close, then finer grits to done.
As mentioned above, I’ve found using a block plane on the stringer where the rocker really kicks in is easier and doesn’t take that much longer, especially if you’re not super experienced with the power tool. It’s a great tool for fine tuning the rocker line and it allows you to sneak up on your final curve, rather than trying to smash it out quickly with the Dewalt.
That’s for the bottom of the board, I should add. The block plane can’t get into the tighter curves on the deck nose rocker, so for that I turn to an old-fashioned spokeshave and that does the trick nicely.
Now I use a series of shorter blockplanes as you get to the nose flip. Each one is set to a different depth. As one loses contact with the blade, grab the next one that is set a little deeper. You will get a much more consistent curve letting the tool guide you, than you will free-handing with a spoke shave.
Pick up a right angle die grinder. 22 bucks at Harbor Freight. Use a medium pad. Practice on a tail offcut first. Don’t use it on the foam, just the stringer. Knock it down to where you want it and finish off with your sanding block to bring the foam down to the stringer. A pass or two with a small spokeshave and done. That’s how most of the shortboard guys around the OC do it. I always leave the nose (deck side) for last, but that’s just me. The first 3" is mainly cosmetic anyway. I also like to do an occasional beak style @ A Merrick on shorties to mix it up. Once you get it down, you will be surprised how fast it goes. Just my 2c… and ginormus photos…
