Stringer Material

Aloha, Can anyone give me any Ideas on where to get stringer material . I am open for any ideas or types of material. Am gonna start Board # 2 and am gonna make a x-truded styro blank . Neet something - anything to use for a stringer … Thanks

Where is yee, I can get bass, redwood, western cedar, poplar, all here in San Diego and cut it to cutom rockers and thickness

One of my neighbors in the Funkzone is Hydrofoam. Willis has been making blanks for a host of shapers, and the ones I saw for Tim Curran and McCrystal had a 1/8” or 3/16” thin plywood center strip (shortboards). I questioned the use of plywood, and it seemed know one had the definitive answer. What do you think Mr. Phillips? These were EPS, or XPS blanks. I still get them mixed up.

Hydrofoam, in Santa Barbara, is in the works w/ Tom Curren as well. There has been a big spike in epoxy use as of the last year.

Hotcoat - check out www.tombstonesurf.com - they use a carbon fibre stringer + vinylester resin and spectra ( akind of c fibre i think) - not sure how they get a smooth stringer line tho.

On a slightly different track - aren’t there major health implications regarding carbon fibre - someone told me it was the 21st century’s asbestos - true or a load of bollocks?

I had occasion to speak with an airport fire crew chief. He told me that the fume from a burning composite structure (aircraft) was extremely toxic. I’m not sure if this was due to carbor fibers, or the fume from burning plastic in which the fibers were encased.

Have repeatedlly heard that most fire deaths are due to smoke inhalation, not heat.

I DO NOT work on carborn fiber boards; fortunately there are very few around.

The toxic fumes are from the burning resin, not the carbon fiber. Carbon fiber is actually carbon, which is already burnt as much as it ever will.

Carbon Fiber is just a heat treated Rayon. Actually fiberglass has been noted as being the next asbestos not carbon fiber. The size particulate that we generally encounter is considered a nuisence dust but NOT a health hazard. Burning most composite polymers does release toxic gases, probably the least toxic element involved would be the carbon or fiberglass. Just for reference one of the most toxic things you can burn is urethane foam.

I agree about urethane Greg, but aquick google search found me this:

“Carbon based composite materials are highly toxic when burned: They chemically alter and are dispersed over a wide area at crash sites. The release of the material is biologically malignant and should be treated like asbestos.”

I’m not sure they are talking about carbon fibers there. All organic chemical (all polymers) are considered carbon based. The study of organic chemistry is the study of carbon based chemicals. Carbon fibers are a derivative of rayon which is, of course, a carbon based organic chemical compound. So are the resins and foams we use. Fiberglass is not an organic and neither is asbestos which makes them much more similar.

Thanks ,I will look in the Arcive for stringer material … I’m in S. Fla. and just looking for somethimg that will be easy . how about leaving the center stringer out and doing the " Rods" in the rail areas ?? Thanks ,Mahalo

Hotcoat,

The traditional wood for stringers and my favorite is redwood. Don’t buy “regular” redwood from the nearby handyman lumberyard however. Go to a Hardwood lumber supply and make sure you get kiln dried “Clear All Heart” redwood. You can alos use cedar of the same quality.

Enjoy the ride!