Ski Builders Forum

So I had a little mishap routing the core. The dimensions are 3.5 mm at the tip/tail and 13.5 at the midpoint. But about 10 cm from the end, the core rose up off the router table and I routed a little to deep. It came be about 2.75 mm at this point.


My question is whether to put this mishap at the tip or the tail of the ski?

How will this affect the way it rides?

Thanks guys

Are you planning on using a see-through top sheet? Maybe change your plan if so.

Smooth out the gouge with a sander, glue and clamp some veneers in the divot, then re-profile your core. 1 to 12 is the magic number for a scarf joint. In other words, if the divot you're filling is 1mm deep, taper out at least 12mm on each side when sanding out the gouge, 24mm for 2mm and so on.

Good luck,
-Mark

Just a couple of thoughts...

3.5mm and 13.5 mm are going to result in a VERY stiff ski, so you might consider re-profiling the whole core to get rid of the divot, and end up with a slightly thinner core overall. Also, 3.5 mm tip and tail thickness is pretty tough to get to bend into the mold curves without fracturing the wood fibers. 3mm is about as thick as I have successfully gone. Even then, I got some fracturing, but it all pressed out fine. You just don't want the whole tip to break off when the pressure is applied.

In general, you shouldn't be able to flip the core end for end because, by design, the fore-body of the ski should be a bit longer than the tail-body. This has to do with the fact that the ski binding should be mounted relative to the waist of the ski, and unless your ski's tip and tail are the same width, the waist of your ski should be rearward from ski center.

Your divot issue wouldn't be noticeable in the ride. I even doubt that it would be cosmetically noticeable if you decided to press as is. The divot will just be filled with resin and your pressing layer will/should keep the top-sheet flat. I've had an occasional divot myself, and I never could see any of them after pressing.

G-man

My .02
Re profile the core to 2 at the tip and 3 at the tail if you want a quick exit out of turns. Otherwise use it as is with the divit to the front. May help with easier turn initiation especially with the thick core!
rockaukum