Howzit tblank, If you think camera was a challenge then you are really in for a surprise if you get a Digital since they have so many more things you can do with them that they can burn some brain cells just trying to figure them out. First just get a simple one and don't let them tel you that you need lots of pixels since 5 or under will work just fine for you. They do have their pluses because you can check them out and pick which ones you want to keep and which ones to delete and you will never have to buy film unless your media goes bad which happened to me, but you just buy another one( not a camera but the media ). I keep thining about buying a new one ut I hardly use the one I have ha for 6 years already. There are times when I think i'll just buy one of those disposible ones at the store. What ever though enjoy it if you get one and get a nice program to edit your pictures. Aloha,Kokua
Hi Kokua, Thanks for the tips, I just might do that.
Ps. Media????? Is that a "sim card"?
" meanwhile , back at the ranch ..."
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cheers !
ben
I humble recognise i´m total agave hooked. For two, tree years, my mind goes around agave surfboard construction.Have a Portugal agave`s spots mental map,with green/dry plant steam condition. And some time ago, while driving, I couldn`t keep my eyes on the road so crazy was on finding new steams. Hillness !
...want to share my stoke! ...yours stokes!
After all work with it, came to a very single conclusion. A LOT OF LOVE IS NEEDED FOR MAKING A NICE AND BEAUTIFULL AGAVE´S SURFBOARD. I`m pretty sure this is more important than having these plants around yours neighborhoods.
I would like to show my photos but I`m having downlowd troubles(to read I don`t understand sheet about cameras and pixels)
On harvest, few characteristics are important: how much dried, diameter steam and the NATURAL CURVE. You can have a big diameter steam ,but if the curve is not the right one, your stringer foil plate won`t fit. (allways possible to splice, but its not what we want). The natural curve is also important because we want to make the deck line to fit to the hardest part of the wood,meaning the material right after the the skin.
On fiting the foil plate on the slice of agave, i choose the top out part of the steam piece for back foot deck spot where the maximun mecanic strenght is asked.
Wood strenght area variation spreads along two distinct steam directions: outside to inside, bottom to top. Outside is harder, center inside softer, bottom is softer and top is fuc"#*@` hard.
Going back to the start,the green/dry condition, if steams are green when colected they probably will crack later. If they are too dried, material on the inside will be rot soft and no use. (usually on this situation you`ll find dry cracks on the outside, on doubt you can allways slice a piece of skin and chek it putting your finger thrwo. The perfect is to find steams with very litle( hand size) green color on bottom.
About the diameter,there is no use on a piece you can not fit a surfboard thick and you must not count with more or less two feet of the "tree" from land.(too soft with fibers)
On the number of pieces needed for a board depends on the diameter of the "treee",more or less twelve pieces.Doesn`mean you need twelve "trees",sometimes is possible to get two pieces from a good long thick tree.
...be back ...is my pleasure ...apologise my portinglish ...you can allways ask me to "shut the fu"#%&
Right now Im going to see the girls here on the surfing world tour.Contest is hapening at my beach GUINCHO,and maybe i`m going for some waves with kite cause i think is windy.
Keep the love p.s.I have some not so good photos on miguelaragao image
I´ll get some about blank constrution
You can check my beach at "beachcam,guincho.pt" amazing sunny day
Lots of great advise Migual, keep it coming and would love to see you pictures. I too am distracted driving as I search for the beasts. Funnily enough I have hardly found any more than the ones around my house, it must be destiny for me to get them. Enjoy looking at the ladies.
Need big advice! One of my agave surfboard clients would like to have his board without papers but one of this iron hotred stamps(this ones used to score cows and animals) instead of papers. My experience is that agave on fire doesn`t behave as a regular wood. I would like to know if anyone ever tried this method on agave?
On agave surfboards I have been glassing my boards, this time with poly. I know on wood is not the best choice,but because is a more soft and dry(no oil) pouros wood, I believe it will last in good condition. Before everything, I sprayied paint the shape with a very thin and very quick dry resin. With this I sealled the wood for sucking less(to avoid extra weight), and I`m trying to avoid future delam. I read somewhere there is some problem on no complete dry of the resin on the contact to the wood, and a way for solving it is to aply a skin of very hot(quick dry) resin
Thank you all!
I think you might be able to brand agave as long as you don't let it continue to burn down into the core. You could test on a scrap piece first, maybe hit it with the brand and then a wet cloth. This is provided it is isn't on the real soft inside.
Muito obrigado,I`ll hit some piece of iron and make some test before spending money.The wet cloth will be the "key", well reminded. And I won`t forget to be smoth, Thank you once more. I want forget the word "brand",also.
Hola Miguel, Los Vaqueros aqui se llamen "brand" en Estados Unidos cuando trabajando con los ganados.
ayayay señor tblank, nosotros swayloqueros no hablamos español!
traducir, por favor jeje " )
Hah! "Swayloqueros". Orale!
este…
hasta puede ‘swaylocos’ ? jejeje!
my spanglish is rusty, would this work for a T-shirt?
SOMOS NOSOTROS, LOS SWAYLOQUEROS!
THank your kindness .What really would like to see is the post written in portugese,but congratulations on your spanish any way!...
...and it makes me think,that probably my Inglish is so disgusting,you people would prefer me to write in any other language,eheheh!
About the "brand" iron(now not sure if its the right word at USA!) on agave... First have to tell you people I`m glassing and finishing these 10 agave boards at a factory and surfshop called " X cult "(xcultsurfboards.com) where I got a good deal with the owner. Give him a surfboard(agave) on trade for all materials, machines,etc. And good vibe cause they are my friends.Also is a good place for selling the boards because agave boards are a new thing here, I am getting good feedback and most important I`m selling. Not less important is Guincho beach at ONE(1) minute by car.
... the "X cult" owner is paying it( it`s is blend I`m using on the boards,is my habit to use the blend of the place where I make the boards) and on the end they sold im the idea to make it with laser. I`m not happy because not sure about the result, and is not so pratic(easy) to take a board this place each time we want to "brand" it.
I`m using one 6 cloth each side. Is very important a good strength skin(glass),because the big handicap on agave, is the sucking water capability, with millions years evolution for living on dry places. Don`t ever think about going in the water with a ding, not even a point needle ding with tape. This kind of wood(!!???) comes realy soft and fragil with water for not speaking on weight.
As I am using the right after plant skin wood(harder) on the deck curve line one cloth comes enought. I kite surf with my agave board, other people tried it also, and didn`get a small feet bump. Didn`t use any astrodeck,the deck is fu#$@& straight and I came very happy.
The very hard thing is done, I am dealing with the impossible...!
Your English is fine Miguel, you get your point across very well.
Surfiber, "Swaylocos" son mas mejor.
Mr. Melville, "Swaylocos son nosotros".
Obrigado! Muito obrigado!
carramba, señor tblank! con ‘swayloquistas’, suena mas triunfal todo mundo jeje " )
Sorry for the straight english but do you have any pics of your boards Miguel? Love to see them.