sammer's skis

Document your personal work here. Show photos, movies, and share your secrets.

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Richuk
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Post by Richuk »

Sammer, great postings. Looking forward to seeing your results with other veneers!
sammer
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Post by sammer »

Without further ado, here's what everybody wants to see.
Skis for the wifey.

Photobucket resize has blurred this image a bit.

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Don't know why photobucket didn't rotate these next 2?

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Edge drop. All 4 show a bit of this.
Also these edges were annealed (to full wrap the tails but 2 broke while bending) and when I used the belt sander to clean up the last of the flash it ground away a good portion of the edge.
This won't happen again. No more full wrap on the tails!

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The bases were taped with blue painters tape you can see where it slightly overlapped! good vacuum!

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Full wrap on the tips may be the last time I do this, we'll see.
Still a bit of double sided tape left.

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Now the details.
Core is pine and fir with maple sidewalls.
19oz triax above and below the core
and a section for binding mount reinforcement
black tip and tail spacer (you can see this in the 2nd and 3rd pics)
blue 2001 base (skibuilders)
clear 2001 topsheet (skibuilders)
VDS over all the edges
graphics= cotton fabric with inkjet printed logos.
Used QCM epoxy EMV0043 and ECA032
Used a lot more that I thought I would as it was so thick compared to west system. Next time I will have to heat it up a bit to make it a little thinner!
Once in the bag I put on the old electric blanket and cranked it up to 8
The temp after about an hour was 140F
Left the vacuum and heat on for around 6hrs. then turned the heat off and left it suck 'til it was cold.
If I don't let it cool under vacuum the puckboard on my mold warps and is unusable. (learned this the hard way a few pairs ago)

Still need the sidewalls beveled, oiled, and bases ground.

Turned out pretty good 8)


Spent most of my morning at the router table.

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Started a new tip mold.

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Still have to glue it up and give it a bit of a sand, but...

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...that will have to wait 'til next set off. :D

sam
You don't even have a legit signature, nothing to reveal who you are and what you do...

Best of luck to you. (uneva)
ben_mtl
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Post by ben_mtl »

Nice skis Sam ! as usual !
I had the same problem with the resin being too thick, I made an "hot box" out of plywood and MDF leftovers, put some insulation and sticked an infrared lamp inside with a thermostat (used for snakes and reptiles at the pet store).
I store my resin at 27 degrees C until the last minute, it's ways easier to layup !
A bad day skiing is always better than a good one at work...
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chrismp
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Location: Vienna, Austria

Post by chrismp »

nice skis! ...as usual.

btw, have you ever tried using white epoxy on the core or staining the core white before layup? we did that on a test piece and it really made the graphic pop. that graphic was on paper though, so i don't know if the white resin would seep through the fiberglass layers into the fabric.
we're going to try it with fabric soon.
sammer
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Post by sammer »

Thanks guys for your comments.

chrismp... I've actually been trying to go the other way and find more translucent fabrics.
I want to see the core construction thru the fabric,
but also want the fabric to be bright and eyecatching.
If that makes sense?
The hard part for me is finding good leaf patterns that are bright with high contrast so they show nice thru the ptex topsheet.
I would love to find something with maple leaves on a white background.
That cream color is as close as Ive gotten so far.
Been sticking with leaf patterns (the tree part of treefrog skis)
Figured I could also get away with nice veneers as well!

Started cutting and sanding a new ski pattern last night.
Should be able to turn that into a template today.

Need to get to the lumber store when the rain stops to get some more MDF for my mold.

Also working on a new vacuum press frame.
Just a matter of finding a space for it in my already overcrowded basement. :?

sam
You don't even have a legit signature, nothing to reveal who you are and what you do...

Best of luck to you. (uneva)
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chrismp
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Post by chrismp »

since you're doing full wood cores you could try a white stain. that should leave the wood grain visible, but will make the whole core white.
OAC
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Post by OAC »

sammer wrote: Also working on a new vacuum press frame.
Just a matter of finding a space for it in my already overcrowded basement. :?

sam
How far has you come? Are you aiming for pressing one ski or a pair? I started with mine yesterday. And I will try to fit in a "double mold" (for a pair of skis).
Space becoming an issue now...
sammer
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Post by sammer »

How far has you come? Are you aiming for pressing one ski or a pair? I started with mine yesterday. And I will try to fit in a "double mold" (for a pair of skis).
Space becoming an issue now...
Not too far as of yet. Picked up most of the materials today.
Got 2 sheets of 3/4 mdf and 1 sheet 1/2", just got it into my shed before the skis opened up.
Also bought a sheet of 3/4" particle board with white melamine on both sides.
Should make a pretty nice pressing table.

Also picked up 36' of 1x4 alder and about 60' of 1/4 maple.
It wasn't a cheap trip to the lumber store!

I plan to build something like this.

http://www.joewoodworker.com/veneering/ ... -press.htm

Got the idea from Lucacasty although I'm having a hard time finding the membrane.
Looking for silicone membrane like in the multimat video.
Not an easy thing to find here in the wilds of British Columbia!
I'm going to try the 30mil vinyl I got from veneer supplies.
Hopefully it works OK. I'll let everyone know!

I'm building a double mold this time 14" wide.
I figured that would give me lots of room!

I'm hoping to make my press table 30" x 8'. Don't really have room for bigger.

That's the plan at this stage, but who knows what will happen when I start building it next week :D

sam
You don't even have a legit signature, nothing to reveal who you are and what you do...

Best of luck to you. (uneva)
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falls
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Post by falls »

Hi Sam
With your fabric layer - is it cotton or polyester/cotton?
I am going to throw some carbon fibre tape in my next pair which will look pretty ugly with a clear topsheet alone I think. I bought some black cotton cloth today instead of a 30%cotton/70% polyester blend.
Any feedback on what you have used and how it bonds much appreciated.
Don't wait up, I'm off to kill Summer....
OAC
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Post by OAC »

sammer wrote:
How far has you come? Are you aiming for pressing one ski or a pair? I started with mine yesterday. And I will try to fit in a "double mold" (for a pair of skis).
Space becoming an issue now...
Not too far as of yet. Picked up most of the materials today.
Got 2 sheets of 3/4 mdf and 1 sheet 1/2", just got it into my shed before the skis opened up.
Also bought a sheet of 3/4" particle board with white melamine on both sides.
Should make a pretty nice pressing table.

Also picked up 36' of 1x4 alder and about 60' of 1/4 maple.
It wasn't a cheap trip to the lumber store!

I plan to build something like this.

http://www.joewoodworker.com/veneering/ ... -press.htm

Got the idea from Lucacasty although I'm having a hard time finding the membrane.
Looking for silicone membrane like in the multimat video.
Not an easy thing to find here in the wilds of British Columbia!
I'm going to try the 30mil vinyl I got from veneer supplies.
Hopefully it works OK. I'll let everyone know!

I'm building a double mold this time 14" wide.
I figured that would give me lots of room!

I'm hoping to make my press table 30" x 8'. Don't really have room for bigger.

That's the plan at this stage, but who knows what will happen when I start building it next week :D

sam
How funny! I'm on the exact same trail as you! JoeWoodworker + Lucacasty.
Even the size! :-)
I will use a regular MDF, as pressing table, and paint it with epoxi or polyrethane or something air tight. (Experimental)
I'm lucky thou, since there is a company not far from here, that sells all kind of rubber sheets! I bought something called "para rubber". Cheap and close to indestructable. Pictures coming. Check my journal.

Cheers!
sammer
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Post by sammer »

Falls... I've been using 100% cotton fabric. (White wets out almost clear)
The lighter weight the better as it absorbs epoxy like crazy!
I've been buying it at quilting shops as they seem to have the best selection.
Discount fabric stores seem to have mostly poly/cotton blends
I'm scared to use any blended fabrics as stuff like polyester is plastic and we all know plastic doesn't bond well.
Poly/cotton may work just fine but I'm unwilling to take the risk.

sam
You don't even have a legit signature, nothing to reveal who you are and what you do...

Best of luck to you. (uneva)
sammer
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Location: Fernie B.C.
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Post by sammer »

Just got an email back from acme rubber.
2mm thick silicone vacuum blanket 72" wide is $140/ft
I guess thats out the window.
Still looking!

sam
You don't even have a legit signature, nothing to reveal who you are and what you do...

Best of luck to you. (uneva)
rockaukum
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Joined: Fri Nov 03, 2006 9:23 am
Location: Placerville area

Post by rockaukum »

I have seen the use of lycra (?) in glass layups. Not on skis but on prostethics. The colors are vibrant and seem to hold up well with light ect. (Think swin suits in the sun and clorine all day)
ra
twizzstyle
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Location: Kenmore, Wa USA

Post by twizzstyle »

sammer wrote: Full wrap on the tips may be the last time I do this, we'll see.
It's definitely a pain in the ass bending edges for full wrap, but I think it results in a ski that is much more clean and "professional" looking. It's all aesthetics, but it's worth it to me, and it looks like you did a great job on it.

Beautiful skis! :)
OAC
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Post by OAC »

sammer wrote:Just got an email back from acme rubber.
2mm thick silicone vacuum blanket 72" wide is $140/ft
I guess thats out the window.
Still looking!

sam
News from the OAC workshop:
I've put the frame together and mounted the rubber. One important issue! Make the frame as heavy you can. So it can rest as flat as possibly on the table. I made mine a little to light. Means that I have to put more pressure to the frame to keep it sealed.
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