WMD blanks (Warvel Foam) Used for the basis of compsand production. WMD blanks are 1.5# or 2.0# EPS in between the stringers with a 5# urethane foam wrapped around the perimeter.
Picture 1 is a shaped WMD. Picture 2 is the veneers already laminated on the backside with 2 oz glass and then cut out to fit an inlay that goes across the EPS, deck and bottom, and over the stringers.
Picture 3 is taken after the veneers are wet, set into place, taped on, and bagged. Because we had 2# foam for our EPS interior we were able to use a full pull inside the bag. That’s Greg Tate on the left who helped out with many logistics (thanks Greg) and Sam Barker on the right who shaped this one.
Picture 4 is out of the bag about two hours later. Sam is doing a little post bag prep before laminating.
Picture 5 is Sam laminating the exterior. 1 layer of 4 oz per side.
Picture 6 is a close up of the laminated bamboo. Nice looking stuff.
You got my attention. Is the bamboo 1/40" veneer or thicker stuff? When you say an inlay, is that routed out? Just along the perimeter?
No inserts?
Picture 7 is the board finished
Picture 8 is Sam leaving for a surf with the new shooter.
Finished board stats
Deck was built with 2 oz. under the veneer, 4 oz. over
Bottom was veneer with a 4 oz over.
WMD blank was a 2.0 EPS core with a 5# density wrap. Stringers were 1/8th basswood.
Boxes are O Fish L
Length 6"1" W 18.5
Finished weight 5.25 lbs.
Obsrevations:
We could have saved a bit of weight on the core. The 2# could have been 1.5 and saved us about .5 lb. We could have gone with 1/16th stringers instead of the 1/8th and we would have saved another .25. That would have brought this one in at 4.5 finished. Deck did dent some on this and if we had gone to 4 oz under the deck we wouldn’t have had any denting at all. This would have cost us .25 lb.
All in all for standard boards I’d use 2.0 EPS center with a 4 oz under the deck and nothing under the bottom with a 4 oz lam over both sides. This would put us into the 5.5 range for weight … very competitive especially with the durability this has. For comp weight I’d drop the interior to 1.5 and use the same schedules for the rest and come in around 4.75 to 5 … once again a very durable finished product at a very low weight.
As you can see this is a simple build. Straight one step shape in a standard shaping room. The veneer prelam is done on a table and takes all of a couple minutes. Prelamed veneers are templated and cut out with sizzors. Bagging is also simple, no vac beds or other tricks because of the stringers. There is also no sealing before the laminate and little absorbancy of resin into the blank. This board was built with 24 oz. of resin. Compare that to 128 for your standard PU/PE or even 42 for our standard EPS/epoxy. Talk about green!! Interior foam is recyclable, bamboo is renewable and there’s 1/5th the resin and the epoxy itself has 1/50th the vapor of PE. Multiply that up you have 1/250th the vapor. We also expect this board will last 5 times what a PU/PE will so add that multiplication factor in and … well, you get the picture.
Yes 1/42nd. Bamboo is just layed on to. Before bagging it on we sanded the edges just a bit to thin them out. You sand the inside edges so you keep what’s going to show pretty.
BTW, thanks to Greg Tate, Paul Jensen and the folks at Warvel for making this this easy.
No, no inserts are needed with 1.5 or 2# foam. When we’ve used 1.0 in the past by the time we finished with the inserts they weighed almost as much as the 1.5 did without. Then we had issues with leaky blanks, bagging collapes and board breakage. 1.5 takes all of that away and makes the build easier. 2# weighs a bit more but is even more reliable. Heavier but for the standard customer another .5 in weight isn’t going to be noticed.
Aloha Greg:
Great thread!
Would you mind sharing the supplier you got the bamboo veneer from as I would really like to get some for a project, mahalo!
-Robin
Great post Greg! I remember you posting something about this idea quite awhile ago but this is the first time I’ve actually seen it put to use.
Your timing with this post could not have been better… a lucky person in Big Sur next month will have the opportunity to actually try this with the WMD (Warvel multi-density) blank Warvel has provided for the raffle. I hope I’m not pimping this too hard if I mention that Ken at Segway Composites has Warvel Blanks in stock on the west coast. His banner ads appear once in awile. Check 'em out.
Thanks for this thread. Wow. Nice board and simple build with all the benefits of compsand- green(er), light and durable. Did you use 2000 or 2020? S or E glass?
Because of the PU rails we used Research CE resin with the UV absorber package. All E glass.
Hey Greg . Exciting looking project. Very streamlined process and well explained.
You say no need for vac beds in the build but in one of the photos they appear to be using one and there is one leaning on the wall. If you are not using vac bed / rocker table how is the rocker being maintained under vac ? stringers only for support. Thanks for posting this nice to put another face to a name re Greg Tate.
There is a similar process blank wise coming in Oz very soon can’t wait to give it a go.
Cheers
Mooneemick
That’s actually not a rocker bed against the wall, it’s just a block of EPS we hot wired blanks out of. The stringers are adaquate for holding the rocker under vacuum. We used to use a similar method in windsurf boards using just stringers.
Yes 1/42nd. Bamboo is just layed on to. Before bagging it on we sanded the edges just a bit to thin them out. You sand the inside edges so you keep what’s going to show pretty.
Thanks John, I think I said at the time that compsand was going to turn a corner. With this method anyone can build one … in fact any glass shop can. In the attachment pictured below is the vac pump I bought from fiberglass suppy (fiberglasssupply.com). Cost me about $400 for the entire set up. Totally pro rig. With this process IMHO compsand is the future … this is just so much better than anything else … all builders can now build Ferraris. Better performance, durability and it’s totally custom with no tricks or back flips to deal with.
Thanks John, I think I said at the time that compsand was going to turn a corner. With this method anyone can build one .... in fact any glass shop can. In the attachment pictured below is the vac pump I bought from fiberglass suppy (fiberglasssupply.com). Cost me about $400 for the entire set up. Totally pro rig. With this process IMHO compsand is the future ........ this is just so much better than anything else .... all builders can now build Ferraris. Better performance, durability and it's totally custom with no tricks or back flips to deal with.
That’s the exciting part of this , the streamlining of the build process.
Cheers
Mooneemick
