Surfing Waves

ok so im thinking of having a go ive been watching loads of glassing jobs on youtube but what they dont show is how they do the join in the glass. i.e they always glass the top only...i pressume thats left to go off then its turned over and done again..so how is the join done??? problly going to have loads more questions soon....sorry in advance

i was told to always glass the bottom first (haav no idea why but the guy who told me has glassed over 30,000 boards )

The trick is to make sure when you fold the laps over that they are nice and flat otherwise you end up with a bunch of extra work. i.e if you end up with too manny creases in the fold it just makes for more work.

You just repeat process for the top. Except this time you use two layers of glass if a shortboard prollyy 2x4'oz is acceptable. You double up to save resin and to make the process quicker it also takes off a bit of the overall weight.

Just make sure you know how much time you got (roughly) before the resin congeals and gets jellified so dont make the mix too hot (you judge this by the reomendations and the teperature that you are working in) So make sure you mix the right MEKP - Resin ratio and of course MIX more than you need as a begineer will use more than a pro respectably

Glassing is lots of fun NOT

thanks for that,so basically the join in the top and bottom will just get sanded out,so the less to sand the better?

No, when you glass the bottom, the fabric will wrap around the rails and go onto the deck. After it hardens, you grind the edge of it (which is on the deck) and then you glass the deck, which also wraps around to the bottom. Then you grind that, hot coat, fins, sand, gloss coat, sand, wetsand, and finish up!

I kinda like glassing.....it's stressful as hell the first couple times, but after that I like it because it's so smooth.

The sanding always sucks though, IMO, haha.

Not that it really matters but just FYI the overlap of the glass is called a cutlap.

Point of clarification: a cut lap is only when the "lap", the part hanging onto the opposite part of the board, is cut. This must be done on a tinted board, or a board with wrap around color. Otherwise with a solid color board, or a clear board, you can "free lap", where you do not need to cut the lap.

All good tips.
I'm sure there are better vids.....http://www.guybuys.com/mumed-721.html
It works.

Good luck gix

nice one guys,thats been a big help already....think i may order that blank today and clear my garage out ready

Whey hey, way to go Karl. You'll love it there's nothing quite like riding your own shapes.
PM your address and i'll dig out a certain shaping and glassing dvd i have and bung you a copy!
It has all you need to know in them.

KS

Oh and get yourself a fume mask! Polyester resin and the hardener are nasty chemicals, they burn skin and cause all kinds of respiratory problems! Very important.

KS

kitesurfer wrote:Oh and get yourself a fume mask! Polyester resin and the hardener are nasty chemicals, they burn skin and cause all kinds of respiratory problems! Very important.

KS

YES YES YES!!!

I didn't do it for a year. Bad idea. I swear my IQ dropped 10 points. I used to be able to do nothing in school and get A's, the following year I had to try to get C's (and the classes weren't harder)

thanks for your support,ill take you up on that offer chris i ordered my blank today and should be with me tommorow,ive ordered a book on shaping ang glassing,and ill clear a space tonight..........wish me luck

WOOOOOOO!!!!!

With no exception wear protective clothes, gloves and a respirator.

The hardener will burn you, the fiberglass will irritate you and the resin will stick you to a Teflon frying pan!

When making a surfboard you should be like a nuclear decontamination man/bird – no bit of you exposed to anything – you will be grateful in a few decades time I’m sure.

ok,got that on the chemicals,ive got most of that stuff. ok another question.....ive been looking online at using templates,this one sayes to put thin ply on the floor,place your desired board over it,trace around and sand to shape.ok got that. then it sayes to lay over the bottom of the board and transfer shape onto board......wont bending the template onto the board make a different shape to the original?
wouldnt that difference depend on how extreme the rocker is?
cheers in advance

tomcat360 wrote:Point of clarification: a cut lap is only when the "lap", the part hanging onto the opposite part of the board, is cut. This must be done on a tinted board, or a board with wrap around color. Otherwise with a solid color board, or a clear board, you can "free lap", where you do not need to cut the lap.

Good to know. Always enjoy learning something new.

gixer wrote:ok,got that on the chemicals,ive got most of that stuff. ok another question.....ive been looking online at using templates,this one sayes to put thin ply on the floor,place your desired board over it,trace around and sand to shape.ok got that. then it sayes to lay over the bottom of the board and transfer shape onto board......wont bending the template onto the board make a different shape to the original?
wouldnt that difference depend on how extreme the rocker is?
cheers in advance

A template should only be used for one side. So the template looks like half a surfboard from an aerial view. Then you flip it over, making sure that it's perfectly flipped (mark where the stringer intersects on the board and the template) and then trace the otherside. This gives you a perfect template. Then use a saw to cut around that, then sand. I like to move the template out 1/4 of an inch from what I want the final to be, therefore I can mess up 1/8 while cutting, then take a 1/8" planer cut around the whole thing. If you hear consistent cutting--it means its even.

When you are tracing the template off the original board just hold the masonite up to it. It's very flexible. Or flip it over and hold it up to it. You won't get it perfect from the board. Most shapers have a couple templates that they use to make all their boards with. They also have nose and tail templates that they use in conjunction with full sized templates.

so far,s good,got the blank today.made the stand,shaped the bottom and one rail...looks ok.im a bit concerned the rails are too thick? does the glass make up much thickness? overall im pretty happy,im supprised how easy it is to clean it all up by sanding.

how did you do the rails?

surform and sandpaper,ive got a planer,but id thought id take it easy?