From the steep slopes of Ohio....

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martdj
Posts: 8
Joined: Thu Feb 01, 2018 10:36 am

From the steep slopes of Ohio....

Post by martdj »

A big "Thank You" to all the members of this forum that share their knowledge and experience so freely. I found this forum a little more than a year ago, caught the bug, and finally have something to share.

These are my very first pair, a Christmas gift for my wife:


Press complete with pneumatic fire hose bladder and electrical heat control box:
Image


I found the process of shaping the core and sidewalls to be the most difficult aspect of the process. After some misses with adhering the sidewalls I adopted a technique found deep in the annals of skibuilders: first press the sidewalls to a strip of wood using the same epoxy as the layup. Then adhere to the base with wood glue. Worked like a charm.

Core profiling with CNC router. I was able to use the cutoff sections from the original core boards to hold the shaped cores in place. It also helped to secure the sidewalls from ripping off:
Image


For the layup I used a layer of triax above and below the poplar core, viton rubber above the edges and tips, a layer of 14 carbon fiber stringers below the core as well as a layer of boot mat. Entropy resin.

Fresh from the oven. Topsheet printing via Miller Studio. They were able to get the bright colors I was looking for in the pink and blue.
Image

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Overall, I am extremely happy with this first effort, though I shouldn't say that everything wen't perfectly. About 10 minutes into the 40 minute press I noticed that I had left something in the cassette. After all the prep work and numerous practice runs I had left a pair of scissors between the top sheet and cassette. How does that happen? The top sheet still had some curl in it from being rolled for shipment. I used a pair of scissors to hold one end down while I aligned the other. In my excitement to get the skis in the press I simply didn't notice the scissors.......

I was able to release the pressure and pull out the scissors before everything had set. There is a slight imprint on the skis but nothing you would notice unless it was pointed out. Never the less, I have already started on a replacement pair.

Thank you again to all those who share their knowledge on this site. This has been a tremendously fun adventure, and I hope to add more of my experiences in the future.
mammuth
Posts: 449
Joined: Tue Oct 28, 2014 3:48 am
Location: somewhere in the alps

Post by mammuth »

Love the pacman design
Tom
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SHIF
Posts: 280
Joined: Sat Jul 14, 2007 7:43 pm
Location: Wasatch Mountains
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Post by SHIF »

Brilliant graphic concept!
Terrific job for your first pair.
Nice ski press and a sweet CNC router too, you're "all in" for this hobby.
Keep posting your future ski builds.

SHIF
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Head Monkey
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Joined: Sun Jul 17, 2005 4:53 pm
Location: Carnation, WA
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Post by Head Monkey »

Nicely done!!
Everything I know about snowboard building, almost: MonkeyWiki, a guide to snowboard construction
Free open source ski and snowboard CADCAM: MonkeyCAM, snoCAD-X
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Akiwi
Posts: 370
Joined: Thu Jan 15, 2015 7:48 am
Location: Olching (Near Munich) Germany

Post by Akiwi »

I'm very impressed. For First pair they came out extremely well. Hope they ski well, and your wife is happy with them. And I agree, the Pacman graphics look great!
I am nobody. Nobody's perfect, so I must be perfect.
martdj
Posts: 8
Joined: Thu Feb 01, 2018 10:36 am

Post by martdj »

And to complete the 80's nostalgia......

Image

This is actually my third pair because I remade the Ms. Pac-Man skis due to the scissor incident. They quality of the layup has improved with each pair as I have figured out how everything likes to lay together, how much resin to use, how to secure the core, etc.

The biggest headache I continue to have is the contact paper used for the bases and bottom edges. I used packing tape on the first pair based on a very outdated post. After more than an 1.5 hours of picking off tiny pieces.... never again. My second pair used more traditional "high-tack" contact paper with marginally better results. Some epoxy got between the paper and base which will have to be ground off. The contact paper did not hold up on the edges, however. When I made the cut between the base and edge the tiny 2mm strip of contact paper became all but worthless. The high-tack paper didn't stick very well.

On the Vader skis I used the blue 3M painters tape. This tape had similar issues to the packing tape, in that it was difficult to get off and tended to come off in very small pieces. I also had an issue with the cut between the base and edge, wherein the blue tape would press into the seam a bit when it was being sliced with my razor. I didn't realize this was happening until after it was being removed.

Any recommendations on a better masking material?
primal
Posts: 1
Joined: Tue Mar 12, 2019 8:49 am

Re: From the steep slopes of Ohio....

Post by primal »

I have found different brands are better than others as far as packing tape goes. The last pair I made all the tape came off almost in one piece! Unfortunately I am not sure what brand I used. I'll post again once I figure out which brand works best for me.

Also heating the tape with a hair dryer helps..
mammuth
Posts: 449
Joined: Tue Oct 28, 2014 3:48 am
Location: somewhere in the alps

Re: From the steep slopes of Ohio....

Post by mammuth »

I dont use any masking for the base. With pneumatic press its only a little epoxy close to the edges, grinds easily off.

For Topsheet you can use a masking foil, like products from Orafoil
Tom
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