taking down the stringer and foam damage

seems every time i take down the stringer i ding the foam next to it. whether i use a block plane, mini-block plane, or a spoke shave i always hit foam to. it’s a real pain during fine sanding. any suggestion on what i am or am not doing right? do i just nead steady hands? thanks, john

seems every time i take down the stringer i ding the foam next to it. > whether i use a block plane, mini-block plane, or a spoke shave i always > hit foam to. it’s a real pain during fine sanding. any suggestion on what > i am or am not doing right? do i just nead steady hands?>>> thanks,>>> john Hi john, When i first get the blank, i use an electric plane to skin it. i usually give it a couple goes over till i’ve taken off enough. When i come to shape it, i find that i dont usually have to take the stringer down much. in your case, try sanding it, it may take longer but it wont bugger up the foam. you could try wrapping the sanding paper onto a spunge, so it ‘rides’ over the board and doensnt dig in. good luck shaping! huw

seems every time i take down the stringer i ding the foam next to it. > whether i use a block plane, mini-block plane, or a spoke shave i always > hit foam to. it’s a real pain during fine sanding. any suggestion on what > i am or am not doing right? do i just nead steady hands?>>> thanks,>>> john I had the same problem, very frustrating when the rest of your board is looking good. Adjust the blade in your block plane and spoke shave so that just a papers thickness of blade shows. It won’t take off much wood at each pass but the foam will stay clean. Also try different angles and directions. I have noticed that the spoke shave works better when pulled toward you rather than pushed like the block plane. Good luck!