Recycled HDPE Sidewalls

[EC Trees]

i never new this site existed. there is so much great information here.

[EC Trees]

i was doing some surfing looking for a recyled material to use as a sidewall

[EC Trees]

sorry had to have 2 posts to post the links
shit still wont work
anyway
came across Recycled High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) on mcmaster its under the plastics section and recycled boards

its really cheap and i can just drive over and pick it up but my experience HDPE when used as a base material was less than stellar as far as trying to get base repairs to bond. which leads me to believe i might have significant bonding issues when used as a sidewall.

i searched the site and all i got was a post
that referenced using the sidewalls from SM dot com. which is strange as i thought they sold UHMW.

what has been peoples experience with using HDPE as far as bonding goes after normal prep.

[EC Trees]

here is the link to the material on mcmaster
http://www.mcmaster.com/param/asp/PSear ... 1005#[url]

[SHIF]

Welcome to the asylum.
I think you should consider UHMW-PE rather than HDPE.

Plenty of useful information on all types of plastics found here:
http://www.professionalplastics.com/

This is the stuff I used:
http://www.interstateplastics.com/Black ... lastic.org

Any such plastic requires proper prep for bonding. Abrasion, solvent clean, flame treat, etc. I've had mixed results using recycled UHMW-PE for sidewalls. My skis eventually develope delamination cracks between the edges and sidewalls. I've switched over to using rainforest hardwoods such as Ipa or Massaranduba for sidewalls and achieved superior results. These hardwoods are commonly used as decking materials and are naturally hydrophobic. They are just as durable as UHMW and also add to the flexural stiffness of the ski core structure.

Good luck, please post your results.

Cheers,
-S

[EC Trees]

Welcome to the asylum.
This is the stuff I used:
http://www.interstateplastics.com/Black ... lastic.org

-S

that's a site i didn't find. most of the places i found you had to order a whole 4x8 sheet.

I have used UHMW and have had mixed results as well on the first 2 boards i made with sidewalls and since i am moving to having multiple contact points on all my shapes this year


and i want to find something that will bond well.

I've switched over to using rainforest hardwoods such as Ipa or Massaranduba for sidewalls and achieved superior results. These hardwoods are commonly used as decking materials and are naturally hydrophobic.
-S

I had not really given any thought to using hardwood but that would defiantly help with the bonding and would help with the extra force that is applied when using multiple contact points along the running length. however i would be a little worried that would provide little or no dampening as i am working with carbon but i think i will give it a try on one of the powder boards as it would be less of an issue in soft snow.

it looks like you can get the Massaranduba for like $1.25ft for a 3/4" x 3 1/2" so price wise its pretty attractive. now i just have to source a local supplier.

once again such a great place for generating ideas

[SHIF]

For Massa and Ipe, be sure to search your local decking supply companies as well as lumbar yards.

As for vibration damping, I suppose plastic sidewall blocks may do something but I bet it’s trivial in the grand scheme. I never worried about such damping, but all of my home-builts are used exclusively in the powder. For a day on the hard-pack, I ski on Volkl.

Cheers,
-S