3M now makes 233 and 233+
there is the new green 233 and the older brown 233…they seem to change stuff around frequently; I’ve noticed that the blue tape seems to be different than it used to be too (that may be why some people like it and some don’t). The newer blue tape has a crinkly, crepe-paper like texture and I don’t like it as much. The older blue tape I’ve used for cutlaps, taping off rails, etc etc and never had any problems with it…
I don’t know? It always seems that my cutlaps bleed around the tip and tail where the glass is thicker from the overlaps. I’ve tried all kind of tape and nothing really works great? On by the way, did you guys miss me? I’ve been out of town. I got to surf a miserable Sebastians Inlet @ 6 inches to maybe a foot. The guys actually stand next to their boards waiting for a wave. I know the place goes off during a storm, but not last week?
-Jay
Taking a 30" piece of tape, holding it perpendicular to the stringer and running it up hte length of hte board takes away a lot of the foam dust and makes the tape stick better. You might have to do this a few times. Also go over the tape with your razor blade, not the palm of your hand, more even pressure.
Ambrose knows all the tricks.
I buy generic tape at an auto paint supply that works just a well as the expensive 3M types. Buy some and test it first, 1/4 - 1/2 the price of 3M is worth a try. For laminating, I buy the 12" wide brown masking paper at Home Depot (about $2 for a 50’ roll). I apply 2" tape to the edge of this paper and then tape off the lap. Never had a bleed thru yet, and I use fairly dark opaque resins and mostly clear decks. Tape the free edge of the paper down flat to the deck so it doesn’t flap around when you flip the board. Always tape right before you’re going to do any glassing and burnish the tape down with a wood mixing stick. Check again to make sure it’s down good.
Jay,
I got to surf a miserable Sebastians Inlet @ 6 inches to maybe a foot. The guys actually stand next to their boards waiting for a wave. I know the place goes off during a storm, but not last week? .........At least you got to go home…some of us still live here…LOL…as for the standing next to the board thing…it gets worse, Fla ,home of the stoked/starved surfer…nor’easters and canes…our only salvation…peace and waves…
Sean W.
I use 1/4" masking tape from Fiberglasssupply.
What I do is this, take the 1/4" tape and tape out your outline. Because it is so narrow, the tape bends right through the nose and even a sharp pintail. One cut only. After that I then take some 2" or 3" cheap masking tape and follow over the outline over top of that. You don;'t really have to get the second tape layer exactly over the outside edge of the 1/4" layer…just enough so that you will be able to pull both off at once when trimmin the lap.
The nrrow tape also works great for pinlining
Drew
nor’easters and canes…our only salvation
so tru…so tru
My way (in a nutshell and maybe not the best way)1.)Blow off or vacuum blank 2)Lay down light pencil line3)Run a layer of 3/4 3M 233.It will make the bend because you are only sticking one edge.4)push it down real flat. 5) Run one more layer of 3/4" and stick it halfway on the first layer.6)Now got to 2" tape and finish the job.If you have generic 2" tape just double up the thickness so the resin won’t eat it.Lastly some old timy stuff…keep tape in a refrigerator when not in use.Try to tape and glass in the same day.Blue 3M painters tape sucks.Green 233 is the Best,its the same as the old tan but a bit more elastic.Lastly…some bleeding is inevitable when doing colors,thats what pinlines are for. RB
yeah use the lime green looking tape works and sticks alot better than the blue stuff. that stuff dont stick at all no matter how clean the boards is.
Mr. Clean,
Thats what I’m talking about! I see these Tudors & Kane Gardens that have 1/32 pinlines…or no bleeding. I can get 1/32th of an inch bleed 75% of the time in my lamination, and 1/16 inch bleed most of the time. But that means 1/16 -1/8th pinlines. If your telling me you get bleeding too, then I’m going to stop complaining. I thought i was pretty good, but those guys are freaks.
-Jay
You can try using Future acrylic to seal a 1" band where the tape line is on the blank. This will give a smoother surface for the tape and produce a cleaner line when cut. 1/32 pinlines are almost invisible unless you get your face right against the board. I only use 1/8 when I’m doing a second line to 3/16 or 1/4 or a series of 1/8’s. If you’re doing resin pins, you can lose the whole line when you pull the tape if less than 1/8.
I haven’t tried the Future thing yet for cut laps but it seems that it would work. Thanks. I just layed down some 1/8 inch pins last night. I wanted to do 1/16, but there was too much bleeding here and there.
-Jay
THere is actually a whole different approach to this deal.I tried it many years ago and it worked fine.Basically it goes like this.You lay down a couple of layers of 2inch tape nice and flat.Next you take a rail tool with a blade and cut the tape.By doing this you accomplish two things…1)You get a dead straight line with no pencil marks on the blank 2)The blade actually pushes the tape edge in to the foam giving you a nice seal with no bleeds.You have to be really good with the rail tool as it only works if you can do it in one pass.If you have to come back with another pass you end up with a big groove in the foam.We used to do this in the seventies with opaque boards and actually used the rail tool with the same setting to trim the lap when the resin jelled.I gave it up because I like double or triple pins.Thinking back I remember that the rail tool had an exacto knife with one of those round edge blades in it for the trimming.I used to do micro black pins with a rapidograph pen set in to the same rail tool.This same trick can be used for volan with clear resin.Lay down your tape by eye and keep the tape 1/2" inch or so inside the actual cut line.When the resin jells use the rail tool to trim the volan and you will get a perfect line…the resin that is on the blank will disappear when you glass the deck.If that is confusing maybe I can come back and clarify it. RB
No that makes complete sense! I have the rail tool and the exacto blade to do it. I’ve been lightly scribing my marks into the blank with a pencil size wooden dowel, held in the rail tool. I sharpen the dowel in a pencil sharpener, and it leaves a scribed line without tearing the foam, then I run the tape up to the mark. Your way makes a hell of a lot more sense, especially the part about where the tape seals into the foam when you cut it. I’ll try it on the next resin job.
Thanks,
-Jay
Seems like that would be a real good way to do it…Did you try it yet Jay? I just did a cutlap before I read this post, so I have a couple more weeks before another one comes up. Let me know how you liked it if you DID try it…
on the “Step Into Liquid” dvd, there is an extra piece about building a surfboard w/ Robert August. in one scene they show a guy who is laying out the tape for a tint, or spray. it looks like he is doing what Roger just discussed.