Garage Works - 8/20(21)/2026

I've been putting clear coat on No.44 so the wear layer is built up.

This was post session yesterday.

I did notice a couple of spots on the bottom deck that showed deformation from sitting on the rack.  I sanded those down and got more clear coat on today (Friday).

I also got the deck pad on.  I may need to put augment pieces up front - but I'll wait until after I get this out for it's first session to determine if that is necessary.

So while I'm away for this next week - No.44 will get all settled and will have time in the garage to harden up.  I still need to open up the tracks - but that can wait until I get back (from the Gorge!!!)

Garage Works - 8/11/2026

La and Marlon were not home when I arrived.

So I got to work in the garage and got the fill coat on the top deck of No.44

First coat was 9 ounces resin and 3.6 ounces of hardener (fast).

Second coat was 10 ounces resin and 4 ounces of hardener (again fast).

Next up is sanding... I may just sand where the logo decals are gonna go, get those on and coat with clear epoxy.  Then save the bulk sanding for this weekend (when Hurricane "Lala" comes to town).

Garage Works - 8/5/2026

I skipped out on surfing again today.  I wanted to get further along on No.44.

I sanded the laps from the top deck lamination

And prepped the board for a fill coat.  But when I went looking for it, I didn't have any international orange pigment.  I stopped at this prep point.

I'll grab some pigment tomorrow and I'll try to get a fill coat on when I get home (then go foiling), and maybe a second coat before I go to sleep.

I'm not going to get this board to a point where I can get it wet this weekend - and the next wind window will likely be the following weekend - so I can slow down and focus on getting things perfect.

Garage Works - 8/4/2026

I got off work later than usual - so by the time I got to the beach the waves were pretty drowned out by the high tide.

I decided to cut my losses and head back home to work on No.44

I sanded the lap -

Then got the top deck reinforcement layers set up - two layers of innegra, and one layer of carbo

Then I got the top sheet of carbon placed and trimmed.

Break time - and cooked dinner.

Then 18.9 ounces of epoxy (split fast and slow hardener) to get the top deck wetted out, and another 2.8 + 4.2 ounces to get the laps and the rail wetted out.

There is a spot where the bottom deck rail wrap did not seem to adhere.  That is under the weight you see in the picture.  If it doesn't stay down, I'll cut that spot out and epoxy down a patch.

The rest of the laminate looks to have behaved nicely!

It is only Tuesday and I've gotten through the lamination.  I could do a fill coat tomorrow, the opposite deck fill coat Thursday, get a bunch of sanding done Friday while getting the labels situated and the final fill coat on one side.  Saturday would see the other final fill coat and the plugs.

So despite what I feel is faster accomplishment of activity to get No.44 in the water, I still won't have enough time to let the epoxy harden the way I prefer and 24 hours for the deck pads to set.

I think it'll be a week from now before the anointment -

Garage Works - 8/3/2026

I took a rest day from the beach - and spent it in the garage.

I got the gorilla glue trimmed away from the track block.

And I got the top deck connection block trimmed away and the top deck faired in.  I made a slight depression in the top deck to mimic the ARC - but only subtly.

I started chasing ghosts again until I said enough.

Normally I would have stopped here and waited a day to get started on the next step, but I had sufficient daylight...

Laminating is definitely tricky to get right.  Weird air bubbles that want to pop up, having to mix multiple batches of epoxy, getting loose strands to sit down - in a nut shell no time for anything but babysitting the lamination while the epoxy is hardening.

Here's the bottom deck all trimmed up.

This is 4 ounce carbon nose to tail with three strips of carbon rail tape lining the tracks and spanning where my feet would be on the top deck.

Here's the rail tape underneath.  This is what ties in the boxes to the deck of the board.

And after 21 ounces of mixed epoxy (and losing maybe 3 ounces to fast summer time hardening), here is the bottom deck laminated.

I had to flatten a few bubbles that spontaneously formed well after the epoxy application.

Tomorrow evening I'll sand the burrs on the lap and setup the top deck laminate.

I'll use carbon and innegra weave patches where I expect to be on my knees, and a nose to tail cover.

That'll have me sanding and placing the first fill coat on Wednesday.

At this rate, I may be getting No.44 anointed this weekend!!!!

Garage Works - 8/2/2026

I had some time yesterday morning and I got No.44 through the fine sanding.  I got rid of two patches where there was subtle asymmetry.

One was on the starboard side back of the top deck.  The other was on the port side of the nose on the bottom deck.

And this morning I had Marlon help me route out the slot for the track block.

Here it is dry fitted.

Nice and tight!!!

And I got the top slot cut out for the polyurethane block (used to get the track block a direct connection to the top deck).

And I kept plowing forward - both blocks are gorilla glued in place.

I'll let the glue harden overnight.  Once that is done, I'll trim off the excess, get both sides faired in and start preparing the laminates.

My guess is that I'll be sanding fill coat by next weekend.

Garage Works - 7/29/2026

I took a rest day yesterday and got some stuff done around the house - like mowing the lawn and changing the filter on the AC.  But I also got some work done on No.44

I used the fine blade microblade surform to get the shape refined.  The I used the sanding block and sanding screens to dial it in.

It's probably at 95% -

This is the port side of the bottom deck

Starboard side of the bottom deck

Port side of the top deck

And starboard side of the top deck.

This one compared to No.34 has more tail rocker and the bottom deck leading up to the nose is flat.

I used the same template as No.34 - but I want to see if these changes help this template pop up onto foil easier (or bogs it down).

I'll get the mast track slot opened up, and the top deck opened for the top polyurethane foam block (to "connect" the track block to the top deck), the laminates for the bottom deck prepared and the final sanding done this weekend.

Garage Works - 1/21/2026

I didn't hit the beach today - now that I've gotten some work done on the new board, I'm inclined to get this one over the finish line.

Plus in my mind the waves were going to be small.

I got the cover sheet of basalt placed on No.43

All trimmed and ready for epoxy

The cuts in the cloth are not aligned to the cuts from the bottom deck lamination.

I made relief cuts on the longitudinal side of the foot strap inserts.

15.4 ounces of epoxy - this lamination is super tight!!!

Front foot area

Rear foot area

Really tight!!!

I'm thinking I've got 5 days of work left on this board.

Garage Works - 1/20/2026

Got the laps from the bottom laminate sanded flush

I'll be pigmenting the fill coats so lap lines don't really matter

And I got the foot strap inserts epoxied in.

I took the scrap carbon I had from the last builds and placed patches down to stiffen up the areas expected to take the brunt of jumping.  I also placed innegra where my feet and heels will be spending the most time.

I had to cook dinner so I'll defer adding the top basalt cover laminate, trimming and laminating until tomorrow.

The loose "rectangle" pattern in carbon is to try and get the stiffness more or less symmetrical over the board.  Again - with pigmented fill coats, none of this frankenstein assembly will show - and it is a good way to make use of prior laminate excess to maximize material usage.

Garage Works - 1/10/2026

I did some measuring for the footstrap placement today.

The inserts need to be 8" from respective hole to hole in order to have my foot fit through the strap.

Trying to decide where my feet will go and where I want to added flexibility - that is always the hard part.

I spent the second half of the day with La and the kids, and then with just La so I didn't get to the work I wanted to on the board.  I'll get to this over the next few days.

This and I did pick up some more epoxy and a vent yesterday - and I did check on the carbon I already have.  If I get motivation - I can get this finished quickly.

And then I can start working on converting the short board I have into a tow boogie -

Garage Works - 12/30/2025

This was from yesterday.

I had taken measurements from where the Enduro 900 was being mounted on several different boards - and did a ratio to get the most likely position identified.

This ended up being where I had first placed the track box (I had two positions identified).

Despite the math, this is always a crap shoot.

I'll get the slot routed out over the long weekend.  I'll also get the block glued in and maybe the bottom deck laminated.

Garage Works - 12/28/2025

I got No.43 through the rest of the shaping process today.  There was a little more work with the surform, then I used the sanding screens to dial it all in.

I took some measurements from the other boards to see where I should place the track box.  I'm going to sleep on this and remeasure tomorrow.  Needing to accommodate both prone and Foil Drive positions, and wanting to keep the mast base plates towards the middle of the track (as much as possible) - I'll want to measure this a few times before routing.

Garage Works - 12/27/2025

Everyone was away from the house for a bit today.  With an open garage, I figured I should get some work done on No.43

First up - I got the template cut out of the blank.  I went with the 5'0" with the pulled in tail.

After that I used the planer to get some of the bulk removed, then switched to the rough surform.

La got home - but I wasn't at a stopping point.  She parked on the apron and took this picture.

Here's where I did stop.  I carved out the top deck where I will be standing - to get closer to the mast and to be able to exert more control over the foil (leverage)

And I tried to take off more bulk from the nose and rails.  As a prone foiling board, less volume will make this work better.  But I'm leaving more foam in the area around to foil block for strength.

I'll route all the way through the blank where the block is going to be placed - and I'll add more divynicell on the top deck above the track block.  This is so I'll be sure the block won't ever shift or collapse.

I'll also place foot strap inserts on the top deck - just regular foot positioning.  Watching Roland jump his FD has got me thinking....

When I have the opportunity to shape again, I'll use the sanding screen to get the shape fine tuned.