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Post by jensen1031 on Oct 31, 2014 14:16:37 GMT -5
Well the clamps are off and I made a rough cut of the top deck (I couldn’t resist)……and its starting to really look like a SUP at this point. Pretty dang proud. So after what my guess is 9 months of sanding ahead of me, we could get to the glassing Overall process was very smooth for me, until the very last set of strips. I was doing 1 on each side at a time working from the center. Between the bar clamps, and the downward pressure of the clamps on my rack I had great connection for the glue to set. However, on the last set, the top clamps were virtually useless. The wood on the clamp couldn’t curve enough to match the wood plank and the rail. I only had 8 clamps with glue already foaming so I opted to make sure that the boards were sufficiently glued to the rail. Good bond there, but the bond to the other pieces of the top deck seems like there may be a little bit of a gap. Only one area is a concern and I should be able to correct that with the dust/glue paste fix. I also posted a pic of the blocks that I placed under the board in a couple of areas before placing the last pieces. These will support the leash cups that I made that will serve for loops for tie downs for when I go fishing.
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Post by jensen1031 on Oct 31, 2014 14:17:30 GMT -5
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Post by juliangibraltar on Nov 4, 2014 1:02:25 GMT -5
Looking good Jensen! Its so cool when it really starts to look like what you had in your head!! Regards the end planks and the rails, this s the problem I had - I thought it might be because I'd "curved" the top of the rails when sanding. I guess one way to overcome this might be to cut thinner planks on that edge so its less bend. Anyway you seem to have got it sorted so now for some messy sanding - Gotta say this was very therapeutic for me and as well as planing made me feel like a pro (like I knew what I was doing, hahaha!).
Enjoy and look forwards to seeing her nose and tail on!
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Post by jensen1031 on Nov 4, 2014 11:05:09 GMT -5
Thanks Julian. Sanding and planing actually went very smooth this weekend (pun intended). Even with a rough pass of sandpaper she already looks a million times better.
Tail block is officially on and I will work on planing that down this weekend. Nose block is partially on. I had to walk a couple of laps around the garage before cutting into the nose area to fit the blocks. Man was that intimidating. Once both are on Im going to focus on the rails since I move that rack out of the garage and turn her on her side
I think that the sanding will correct a lot of the problenm areas. I removed some of the real bad areas in cutting for the nose and tail as most of the issues were at the ends. I guess we can call that a fortunate accident.
I officially had my first "D'oh!" moment this weekend. I carefully marked all of the areas where i placed blocks for the tie downs, handle and fin box........and then proceeded to sand them away without even thinking.
So here is my question -- Since you shouldn't cut out the holes until you have the fiberglass down (so that it lays even), can I drill a couple of pilot holes in the areas where I have blocks to keep an idea where to cut bigger/deeper later? This will also allow me to fix a minor hole in case I am off the mark now. Will a 1/4-1/2" hole mess with the fiberglass laying later on?
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Post by juliangibraltar on Nov 5, 2014 3:23:12 GMT -5
Hi Jensen, I think it was Blair who advised me on making a pilot hole before glassing so I could find the location of the hand hold.....in the end my black pencil mark survived the glassing (and sanding) so I didnt do it but he knows his stuff so definitely make the pilot hole. As far as size of pilot hole....not sure but you dont need anything too big. Either way, even if some glass goes into it, which it will you need to drill it out, just make sure its big enough to see through the weave and glass.
By the way I totally agree with the intimidation of cutting the nose piece....cutting a straight line on a curving end, by hand, and a vertical cut at that...is no fun!
Take time on the sanding, follow advice from the forum and enjoy the "shaping"!
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Post by jensen1031 on Nov 13, 2014 12:38:53 GMT -5
Hey guys, long time no talk. Here are the updates. She’s beautiful. I got the nose and tail blocks complete and glued up - then was able to plane the top deck smooth and even. I gave it one rough round of sanding that removed all of the excess glue - really made the grain pop out nice. I also poked pilot holes for the handle, tail fin, tie downs in front and back, and also the center plugs that I will use as a rod holder/gopro camera mount. I took her outside for a little bit as I was finally able to take down the big rocker rack. This will allow much easier sanding as I found myself reaching over a lot. Also gives me room to bring our outdoor stuff in for the upcoming winter. The wife appreciates that I stood her up for the first time and that’s where the size really struck me. This think is almost as tall as my garage. The pics show that she looks a little lopsided but that it just due to the rough cut I had on the edges. Not pictured yet, but I was able to plane the ribs and deck overhang. I stood her up again and it is pretty even. It is something that I am going to have to keep an eye on as I start to work the rails. I am way too anal retentive to not have this thing come out symmetrical. Julian - Im definitely seeing what you mean from a weight perspective. Pretty hard to handle right now due to the size. Once I get the handle cut it should be more manageable. Im guessing 60lbs. at this point, but that is just a guess. So, back to the garage I go. Going to work on shaping out the rails this weekend.
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Post by jensen1031 on Nov 13, 2014 12:39:56 GMT -5
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Post by jensen1031 on Nov 13, 2014 12:41:13 GMT -5
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Post by jensen1031 on Nov 13, 2014 12:42:12 GMT -5
almost hits the roof Attachments:
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Post by juliangibraltar on Nov 14, 2014 11:06:29 GMT -5
Jensen hi, she's looking excellent, I love the tail block!! Have fun with the planing and sanding, take it slow but enjoy, it's a great moment. If I could do mine again I would have spent a little more time to get the curves nice and smooth before glassing.....way too impatient (its not bad but up close I know it could have been better!!)
Looking forward to the next pics.
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Post by jensen1031 on Nov 14, 2014 14:44:39 GMT -5
Thanks Julian. i totally know what you mean. Im antsy as hell.
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timbo
Junior Member
Posts: 74
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Post by timbo on Nov 23, 2014 4:58:20 GMT -5
Looking good - any progress or are you buried in leaves or maybe even snow!!
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Post by jensen1031 on Nov 24, 2014 10:25:54 GMT -5
Hey Timbo, This has been the craziest fall I have ever seen. Earlier in the week I burst a garden hose as the weather dropped to 18 degrees (0 with windchill)…..today is 70 degrees and I didn’t even wear a jacket to work. Not sure how much US weather news you guys get over there, but Buffalo (about 3 hours west of me) got over 10 feet of snow in 1 day. That’s crazy for this time of year. Regardless I am chipping away, literally. Attached some pics for you guys. Bottom has a rough sand on it and I think I am just about done forming the curve on the bottom part of the rails. It’s more a matter of smoothing everything out now. I am leaving the nose and tail blocks for the time being. They have the basic curve right now, but I want to do that once the deck and hull are done. Overall I am really, really happy with how it is coming out. One thing that I am noticing is that I will need to do a lot of touch up work from what looks like small gaps where I probably didn’t have direct matching of the rails. These are small and may even sand out, otherwise I will need to do the sawdust/glue job. You can see a few in the pictures. Trust me….I have plenty of sawdust. I also made some good progress on the oar on nights that I didn’t want to clean up a big mess. I followed Timbo’s pattern for the blade and it came out perfect. The cedar strips with the birds mouth cut…..not so much. I used a router and that got me close, but the pieces were just too thin. Looked terrible once I got it together. I decided just to get a strong pine closet rod and cut the 10 degree angle. Got everything epoxied together last night and gave a rough sand this AM. I’m going to spend some more time getting that joint to blend in nicely. This has been a really fun side project. My father in law is a master wood carver and I may ask him to do some carving on the pole to give it a truly personal touch before I fiber glass it. Keep you posted once I flip her over.
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Post by jensen1031 on Nov 24, 2014 10:29:09 GMT -5
More of the Paddle and hull shaping. Im really happy with how I was able to get the balance on the paddle to taper at the ends.
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Post by jensen1031 on Nov 24, 2014 10:30:21 GMT -5
shaped rails (hull) Attachments:
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