Planking - Different direction?

[malcom]

I just got the book for the 10'6" SUP. I am a little disappointed on the quality of the plans and explanation. In fact, I found various other online forums which provided a much better detail on the build-up and preparation.

There seems to be two methods for building the deck and bottom...1) glue up the deck and attach to the spar and ribs or 2) individually add each plank to the rib and spar and build out! Not sure which is best, but both seems to have their advantages/disadvantages.

However, I have a 2 part question regarding the planking...

1) can you use shorter planks to build up the top and bottom of the board (kind of like a wood floor)? If the boards were shorter but staggered, how could the boards be solid on the seams and would this hold up in the long run?

2) Has anyone thought about running the planking across the board vs the length? This would make an interesting design, but would also make it so much easier to find 30" boards vs 12' boards for the SUP I'm building.

Thanks

[TimelessSurf]

Well I am here to clear up any problems you might have, but I imagine that you will find it quite easy once the project is underway.
There are a couple posts on the forum already discussing the use of shorter stock to deck these boards, the boards could optimally be joined with miter joints, butt joints will not hold unless they are braced with a small inner patch, but these patches must not interfere with the ribs and spine.
I dont think that running the boards side to side will work well at all since ther will be long seams on the decks that need to be braced and this method simply isnt desind to brace it.
Another option is to use 10' boards to deck it and then add a 3' noseblock and 3' tailblock to make up the difference.
As far as the decking buildup, adding the strips one at a time is quite difficult. The method descibed in the book enables the board to be braced in order to square it all up and keep tension on the rocker to compensate for the stresses being force on the frame as the decking bends. Without, it the rocker will be stressed and flattened out.
I hope that clears everything up but if not, contact me at [e-mail] or through the forum.

[Grant Hartman]

I couldn't disagree with you more.. I spent months investigating the making of wooden boards and everyone selling plans, kits and books. I own all the books and CDs and even spent $100 on a CD form a famous board maker that does everything to make the board harder to make..

I came across Timeless(Chad) and saw beauty in the simplicity... I have never worked a piece of wood before, and Chads book and techniques helped me make my first wood board... Also, Chad helped me out via emails every time I needed help, no matter how many times I emailed him.. The guy rocks. His rail system is absolutely the best out there. I have built 3 boards now and going on a 4th as I write.. His boards surf absolutely beautiful ( I have been surfing for over 35 years, and surfing big waves for over 30 years), actually I wont even touch my $1000 glass boards anymore, and sold most of my glass boards, I keep a few for sentimental reasons. If you want to build your own board, follow Chads simple plans and have fun... I have, its a LOT of work, but a blast to build and surf...

[timmyp]

I'm building the SUP and pretty close to glassing , just wanted to share a few things I would do different.
(Same)The bottom I would glue up panel and attach to spine and ribs on the jig, not much stress on bottom, followed by build up of rails.
(Do different)The top I would start in the middle and build out to the rail , doing a panel on the top has a lot of opposing stress with rocker and camber, my board looked, great for a couple weeks and then I started getting multiple stress cracks. ( I will post pics of my cracks and my repair progress soon)
I would research glues a little more , I used Gorilla Glue but will make my repairs using Titebond III or epoxy with fillers.
For Planking if you have Lowes or Home Depot and you have a little time you can sort thru and stockpile enough good grain wood that has few or no knots for your project, I used 10' x 3/4" cedar with poplar for accent stripes (not sure I would use poplar again very hard), I made the other 6" up with nose and tail blocks.

I wanted to say a few words about Chad and his products.
I have found my experience with Chad to be Great!! He provides good products at a fair price and he has answered any questions I have had in timely matter. I am sure he will assist you in your adventure and help you get thru some bumps in the road.
I researched long and hard before purchasing and just believe that Chads methods are pretty simple.

Just remember that a project like this is not going to jump on the table and create itself. If you read other forums you will see that your 1st build will be a learning experience and if you have the time and patience to see it thru and build another it will be much better.

Good Luck!! timmyp

[TimelessSurf]

Timmy,
Thanks for the feedback! I really do appreciate it. Please tell me more about your stress cracks in the deck.
1. Did they crack before or after glass? I like to glass my boards within a few days of finishing the shaping because the wood dries.
2. If it was AFTER glass, did you use fiberglass cloth or just resin? 4oz or 6oz cloth? 1 or 2 layers?
This is the kind of information that really helps us help others since I am not much of a glasser. I personally haven't had cracks after the boards were glassed, but if I would like opt know if others had this problem or this is something more to add to the book? Thanks again!
Chad

[TimelessSurf]

Oh, I see from the pics that you posted, it isn't glassed yet. I should have looked first
I imagine that the cracks formed just after (or while) you were trimming for the nose blocks? That would be when the board was most vulnerable to cracks since it must be removed from the jig and the rails and spine are not locked together by an interior nose block.
I will try your suggestion and build my next board so that the deck is laid plank by plank and see how that works or if there are any unforeseen disadvantages. or perhaps I can recommend adding the inner nose blocks in order to brace the assembly while the outer blocks are being fit.
Thanks for the suggestions!
Chad

[ericden]

Couple quick comments. I would think, the best way to get a longer board, IMHO, would be to stagger the boards like bricks. I built a test panel this way and it seemd to work fine. I also recently purchsed bead and cove router bits to put matching round edges of each board to provide a better butt joint. Havn't tried them yet but Im betting it'll make joining the boards even better.

I've seen many boards on the other forums made with a slanted or even perpendiculat pattern so I know it can be done.

I've only built two of these boards but I am a pretty experienced wood worker. Doing board by board will require alot more finish work. I'd think even the curve of the deck will now need to be sanded since each joint could potentially lead to a irregular curve.