Ummm…the making of 2 perfectly aligned holes in the foam issue!!!
If that would be possible without a hi-tech method I would be very pleased to make a trial into a “kind-of-PopeBisect” travelboard. I’ve dreamt so many times about it, but can’t imagine how to do it.
Clamping method would be the next headache…,but the first thing is how to drill these damm holes aligned.
This way I’ll finally be able to choose a good car for buying, instead those big wagons I’m always looking for!!!
Yes, exactly!
And if it would be difficult to get it right after sawing a board in half intentionally, with a nice, straight 90° cut, then making perfectly aligned holes in an irregular surface as you would get on a broken board, that’s practically impossible.
Let alone the issue of strength; when something is set into soft foam, not tied into the rigid skin, it’s going to move very easily when the structure is stressed.
The more I think about it, the more I think that a home-built folding board would require a great deal of reinforcement, possibly foam-filled, glassed ‘box girders’ ( three or more) to maintain a rigid structure in use. And it would be tricky even then… another possibility might be something like a curve-with-shoulders ‘table leaf’ joint, but the difficulty of fitting, glassing and so on would be considerable. Plus the question of how to anchor any mechanism for tightening the two halves - you would wind up with a board so full of inlaid bits of plywood or something similar that agian it would be practically impossible to get it right.
Oddly enough, as I think about it, something like Paul Jensen’s hollow construction boards could be modified more easily to make a good folding board. The internal framing could lend itself to this far better than foam/fiberglass/resin construction.
meanwhile - I’m of the opinion that anyone who isn’t using your methods to fix ( more or less standard, foam blank and stringer ) broken boards , well, they are making their lives more difficult and turning out a second-rate repair at best.
Very nicely thought out, that
doc…
And if it would be difficult to get it right after sawing a board in half intentionally, with a nice, straight 90° cut, *snip*doc…
I’ve often wondered if the Bisects would get a better joint if the cut was at a 30* or so angle. Or a v-cut.
Today I had very little spare time for the board.
I’ve just put some cheap tape strips on the deck marking the lines where the cloth inlay will stop, trying to mach the nose and tail edges of the bottom cloth band. I also put 2 lenghtwise strips around the chopped mat glass, since it will be covered the same way.
Since chopped mat was glassed dry, it has everything but a flat surface, so I decided to use a paintbrush instead of a squeegee. Good decission, it worked OK. First, I painted the mat with resin, the layed the cloth, then poured the rest of the resin and spreaded it over the cloth with the paintbrush.
The result. Nose lengthwise cloth band glassed dry for good mechanical bonding with later glass layers.
Not lapped around the nose. It will be cut and sanded at the edge.
Ummm… I hope not to get a headache while paddling out and watching that psichedelic cloth!!!
Tonight (maybe): Cutting and peeling off lenghtwise tape strips. Glassing deck cloth band.
Hola,
Not very dense post. Last night I justed cut the cloth over the cheap tape inner edge, using razorblade and a policarbotate rule.
Peeling off tape+cloth:
Sometimes, tape keeps temporary glued to the old glass with only its own glue.
OK, nose lengthwise cloth band done.
Bottom cloth band freelaps need to be sanded before glasing the deck cloth band. It’s 23:30 here, so I can’t use the sand disk and the drill. Maybe tomorrow evening…
Very nice! Creative use of fabric to cover the break.
Think i can post this here…hope Neira doesn’t comply (i’ll remove it no prob) it’s just a “Don’t do it like i did”
I finally decided to fix up my #2, even if it’s not worth the job, think i’ll put it in the water till it sinks, so took some glass in the trash can and a bit of resin and lammed it as Neira did, and it came out a pretty fare job.
Took a piece of fabric to cover it, but as soon as i poured some PE resin (fortunately i haven’t wasted epoxy) over it i suddenly heard Bert Burger’s voice in my mind “i used cotton and it was a mess” (not the exact words but something like this) ooooh S#*t it soaked so much resin and started to float over it after a while, so i had to squeege really hard, now that is cathalized is really thick, too late, no limit to my stupidity! hotcoated right now, tomorrow i’ll put it in the water.
Here’re the pics of my trashyboard.
Regards Flavio
No problem Flavio. Niente.
I guess I’m right: tell me you glassed or (at least) filled the EPS foam with epoxy resin BEFORE covering the snap with cloth and poly resin. I’m right?
Today I had a very short time (again) for working on the board. Just sanded the edges of the glassed cloth (free laps of the bottom cloth band and next-to-tail edge of the lenghtwise deck cloth) for smoothing transition.
Then I put some cheap tape strips marking the zone for the deck cloth band, matching exactly the nose and tail edge of the free laps of the bottom cloth. This time I used also 2 lengthwise strips on the bottom for doing 2 “cut laps”.
Then I cut the cloth as I did for the bottom cloth band, mixed some resin (hot), spreaded half the resin over the area to cover using a paintbrush, layed the cloth and wetted the surface with the rest of the resin using the same paintbrush.
Laps folded. Bottom cloth band free laps can be seen trough deck cloth band. Shit!!!
I guess I could cut and peel off cloth+tape tonight.
I guess I’m right: tell me you glassed or (at least) filled the EPS foam with epoxy resin BEFORE covering the snap with cloth and poly resin. I’m right?
Yep that’s right, i used some glass cloth and epoxy over cleaned EPS in the delaminated area, as you did, than when epoxy cured i put a layer of cotton with PE resin.
What kind of cloth are you using? polyester? silk? looks really thin.
Unfortunately it’s not 100% opaque, next time i guess you’ll do the deck side first
regards Flavio
Flavio,
I don’t know really what I’m using. I just grab some scrap cloth from my girlfriend’s house (I guess her mother made some clothes back in the 80’s).
I can’t understand what really happened to your poly/cloth glassing. Is it more like bubbles under the cloth or more like wrinckles on the cloth itself??
Last night, after a quite horrible walk with some friends (horrible since a very nice swell was breaking on the city and we were watching the guys surfing it) I could cut and peel off the tape and the cloth.
See yesterday evening here:
Since I could not see the inner edge of the tape trough the cloth for applying the razor blade I used a simple trick: took another strip of the SAME tape and stick it over the glassed tape, matching outer edges. Then just run the blade along the inner edge of the upper tape and it’s done.
Final result (of the cloth stage). Damm, those free laps are really visible trhough the cloth (learning, always).
I wish I have a big rice paper lam to cover the joint between horizontal and vertical cloth bands, kind of Bear logo or so. But…
Let’s go for the glassing!!!
Wow, thats is such a great way, always bawlked at snapped boards, my friend has a board he has junked, will see If he will part with it for beer, and put this on my to do list.
Also love the choice of cloth, I’d love to do a full inlay with that stuff, and matching fins like chips, can you remember where it came from.
You said “full cloth inlay”. Then check this:
I really recommend it if weight is not a problem. Very easy to glass and, from my experience, since glassed cloth remains flexy, foam remains protected when you hit your board and outer glass cracks (cloth doesn’t crack with common hits).
If you try to “make-up” any snap fix, remember that cloth inlay offers nothing about reinforcement. You should glass fiberglass as usual.
CONGATULATIONS DUDE, YOU DO IT AGAIN!
Last weekend i was at Neira´s home and could see the work he was made. It seems like it works, not so much weigth,perfect aligned and covered the snap, so you don´t have to see the repair while you are waiting for the waves. I had saw another repair he did and i know it will work.
No coments about the cloth desing…
See you man.
Long-board, short-english.
Hola,
This weekend I’ve just glassed the bottom.
First of all is sanding the area where glass and hotcoat will be aplied, both on bottom and deck. It’s 2 inches more long than the length of the “wood sandwich” at each side (2,5cm(hotcoat)+2,5cm(glass)+30cm(wood)+2,5cm(glass)+2,5cm(hotcoat)=40cm of sanding area).
Glass band should be just 1 inch more long than the length of the “wood sandwich” at each side (2,5cm+30cm+2,5cm=35cm), with a width enough for a gentle freelap over the deck.
Then mix some resin (not very hot), turn board deck up, paint the lap areas over the deck with resin using a paintbrush.
Turn board bottom up, lay glass cloth on place, pour the almost the rest of the resin over and spread it from stringer to rails using the paintbrush.
Since lap areas over the deck are already painted with resin, fold the laps even if they are dry, they will stick to the deck anyway.
Then turn board deck up again and wet the glass free laps using the rest of the resin. Note glass cloth dry but stuck to the deck:
Bottom glassed, laps folded:
Let’s go for the deck glassing!!
Neira,
I’ve read this thread through several times and I’ve just noticed this bit about the PU foam in a can. Is that the foam that you fill holes in walls with, spray the foam into the gap and it expands to fill the gap? I’m assuming it is and if that’s correct, it must then bond to the existing foam and be easy to sand (otherwise you wouldn’t use it)? If all my reasoning is correct, then you would be able to use it to fill large dings as well before glassing. Now, is my logic correct or have I completely missed it?
Chris
Hola Bish and folks,
Yes, that’s correct about the PU foam can. You can buy a very big can for around 4euro or 5$. It’s cheap, fast, easy to apply and very easy to sand. In fact, it’s the same material than the core (polyurethane foam). The only “small” problem is the density: when you fill a gap, foam tends to expand the easiest way, I mean, out of the hole/gap. It’s sure foam will fill the whole gap, but you won’t achieve such a high density as the base core (they pour PU mix into steel moulds and then clamp to hold pressure).
Ah!, no matter what your hardware store seller will tell you: the life of the can once used is very short even if you clena it with acetone), so buy the smallest can you find, trust me.
Well, board has already been fully glassed: 1x4oz. bottom and 1x4oz. deck.
Bottom glass band was 2" longer than wood (1" to nose an 1" to tail) and free lapped to the deck rails.
Deck glass band was around 100cm(3’) since I wanted to glass the whole snap+delammed area at the same time, being the closer-to-tail edge 1" away from the wood, again free lapping to the bottom rails on the snap area.
Both glassings using a paintbrush.
Some days after, I turned board bottom up and hotcoated (poly resin+gentle MEKP+liquid parafin (or waxed estirene)) with a paintbrush. The hotcoat area is the same as the sanded area (do you remember: 2"+wood legnth+2") and was marked using 2 strips of cheap tape, then hotcoated and inmmediately tape peeled off.
Bottom result:
Note the legths of the areas: wood(30cm=1’), glass(35cm=1’+2"), hotcoat(40cm=1’+4")
I waited still resin set (1 hour), then turned board deck up and hotcoated deck, again with a paintbrush, remove tape stripe and it’s done.
Oh, I’m getting dursty just looking to this pic of such a psichedelyc cloth.
I guess my surfing sessions will be more psycho with that board…
Well, next step… sanding. pfffffff…
I waited still resin set (1 hour), then turned board deck up and hotcoated deck, again with a paintbrush, remove tape stripe and it’s done.
Oh, I’m getting dursty just looking to this pic of such a psichedelyc cloth.
I guess my surfing sessions will be more psycho with that board…
Well, next step… sanding. pfffffff…
Neira,
What a great series of photos and directions! I have often wondered how a snapped board could be repaired. Very informative! I know that you are not finished yet, but I have a question: What is being applied to the lengthwise piece of fabric on the deck going towards the nose? As I recall the glass is gone from that area. Is this whole section being glassed as well? Attached is a photo of a local surfer’s board that could use some of your magic! This was a brand new, custom made board. It blew off of his car when the roof rack broke. He never even got to ride it!
Hola Mudcat,
Glass was gone from part of the deck of the nose piece. While sprayed leghtwise bands remain glassed, the clear center band was cleanly ripped off.
First, I filled the foam exposed area on the deck with mat glass+resin. Then I sanded edges flush to old glass bands on the sides.
Second, I covered the mat glass+10mm at each side with fabric+resin. Then I cut and peeled off tape and cloth.
Third, I covered the snap with fabric+resin, exactly as I did for the snap on the bottom side.
Fourth, I glassed (1x4oz.) the bottom, with a 40cm long glass band, free laps. Length measured on tail-nose direction.
Fifth, I glassed (1x4oz.) the deck, with a 100cm long glass band, free laps. Length measured on tail-nose direction. The glass goes from KID MODEL logo to the nose.
I hope it hepls. I guess I should have made some shots of the deck glass patch before glassing it to the board, sorry.
Find that guy with the snapped board and buy it!!!
