I am a young wannabe ski builder (16) on a pretty tight budget for this and i have very limited supplies avaliable to me for variose reasons. It would seem that my only option is to use a clamp press. Can anyone with experience let me know if you can pull it off. also how would one go about obtaining equal pressure?
On a side note I'd just like to let you all know how stoked I am to be here. I've always wanted to build my own skis and hell, maybe even start my own small company but never knew how I would go about it until I found this wonderful site. It's great to be here
I was gonna say search, and then I tried and the search function on this sight seriously blows. I know this has been discussed quite a few times. I think the most important thing is to be able to provide even pressure by still using some sort of bladder on the top of the ski.
Really though, you should just go vacuum. It won't be much more expensive. Go get a job busing tables for a couple weeks and you'll have enough.
Vacuum is definitely the easiest way to go.
Fridge compressor mod or old a/c vacuum pump will get you going.
Vapor barrier or heavy plastic as bagging film,
you still need mastic tape for a good seal,
talk to your local (auto) glass store.
Good luck and keep us posted
sam
You don't even have a legit signature, nothing to reveal who you are and what you do...
My first venture into ski building was 6 years ago or so, and I tried making a clamp press. It was a big time failure. I wouldn't waste your time with a clamp press, you just cannot get the same pressure as you can with a pneumatic (firehose) press. Not even close.
Even if its more work and more money, trust me that it is worth it to do it right if you want to have usable skis.
