Hydrofoil Shimmed Up

With the surf really pumping, I haven't had the inclination to take this out again - but I did get it shimmed up so it should work better than the last time I had it out.

I had to use 60mm M8 bolts... And this is the real reason I'm trying to get the new dedicated foil boards finished.

Coarse Sanding Done - 5'2"

And here is the 5'2" getting sanded.  Surform was first, followed by Dragon skin, 60 grit screen, and lastly 80 grit screen wrapped around a foam block.  Block plane to shave down the stringer a few times during the process.

I will probably try and get the fine sanding done later this afternoon - that way I can just get to glassing the boards.

This one looks like it is going to be exceptionally fun!

Coarse Sanding Done - 5'6"

I was able to get the coarse sanding done on both foil boards this morning.  Here are pictures of the 5'6" all sanding down.

Still have to get the fine sanding done.  I am also debating whether to drop in the reinforcement blocks first, or laminate the decks then go back and drop them into place.  I'm leaning towards the latter - easier lamination and I can slap on a carbon patch without the urgency required if it were all placed at once.

I had the GoPro setup to take some time lapse shots (the kids weren't with me today - La took them to their activities and she let me have the time to knock this project out * Thanks La!!!).

More Closer Pics

Being this close to the finish line, I feel compelled to get these two projects completed.  After work yesterday, I got the boxes covered up, protective cover laminated and the box slots cleaned up.

I also got the fill coat applied on to the foil.  I still have to sand off the excess fill and paint the foil, but that should not take too long. 

We should be able to try this thing out by the weekend for sure.

Gluing Up More Divynicell Strips

Building out these hydrofoils seems like work that will never end...  Here we are epoxying the latest batch of divynicell strips into more mast track reinforcement blocks for the foil boards.

And here they are after the first cuts with the dual slider miter saw.

Next step for these is a pass through the scroll saw.

Also ended up getting more work on the shaping racks done.  Just need to staple on some reused slippers (for padding) and strips of carpeting or duct tape so I can get to work on shaping the two foil boards, and can have place to do board repairs/modifications.  Busy, productive weekends are awesome!

Moving Forward Again on the Surf Hydrofoil

I've been walking past this project for a bit now - coming up with every excuse why not to work on it.  "It's too hot", "I'm really tired", "there is surf to be ridden" are the most popular ones.  But yesterday, after knocking out a bunch of errands from the to do list, I finally got back to work.  I cleaned up the mast-mounting plate joint, exposed the bad glassing areas and filled the voids with epoxy and milled fibers.  I was able to sand that down also (since the weather really was hot) and got the mast-fuselage joining operation bouncing around in my head.

Next I also templated out the blanks.  Here is the 5'2" (combo kitefoil and prone surf foilboard)

The old fashioned way of doing this - nowadays it is a computer that scans the blank and controls a router to carve out the board.

And here is the 5'6" prone foilboard

And as the sun started setting on a really fun and relaxing weekend, I went ahead and routed out the divynicell blocks so the mast track boxes can be prepped and epoxied in place.

So three simultaneous projects going on to get a foil and foilboard in place.  It may seem like a lot of work and effort to avoid a $2500 pay to play fee, but really it is more about having the satisfaction of being able to make something with your own two hands and make it all rip in the surf!!!  There are very few feelings of accomplishment that can top that!

Getting Back on the Horse...

I had to tear down the glassing work station before Hurricane Lane made its approach to the islands.  And I just got it back up last night.

And since I was out in the garage, I also got a few other related projects started - 

These are the shaping racks

And these are the mast track reinforcement blocks.  Lots more work still required to get a foil board up and running... but hey - this is a long weekend!!!

Jumping Around

Traffic on the way home has been really bad this week.  That is limiting what effort I can put into the foil.  But I did manage to do some work on it yesterday, as well as some other related projects.  First up was trimming some lumber to become fuselages for the kitefoil.

Since I had the miter saw out, I went ahead and cut a 1/4" dowel in 1.5" pieces for joining the fuselage-mast-base plates together.  And I also cut the d-cell planks to the size required for use as reinforcement blocks for the mast track boxes.

Here they are - enough for five boxes (I'll need to make another set shortly - I've got three boards planned out - but this is easy compared to sanding out the foil parts).

And lastly, I downloaded Aku Shaper to pump out some new templates.  I've got a 5'2" and a 5'6" already templated!

There are times when I think it would be easier and faster if I just went to the surf shop and bought a foil board and a foil.  But then I remember I get to teach two kids how to make boards, about composites, and then we all get to ride boards that we made with our own two hands.  That is why I'm doing this.

Monday's Progress on the Foil

I was able to sand down the base plate and the mast.  I did it around 5:30 in the afternoon... should have waited as it was freak'n HOT.

Afterwards I took a close look at the d-cell glue-ups.  Everything looked good.  Eat dinner, clean up and then around 9 pm I had the urge to epoxy the two planks together so I could get to cutting and sanding these blocks down.  Marlon helped and we did the calculations to determine how much epoxy to mix (6.7 mixed, with 18 spoons of milled fibers).

I'll break out the sliding chop saw and the bench sander this afternoon to get these boxes all faired in and ready for inserting the mast track boxes.  This project is turning into a lot of work... I just realized I'm going to have to make a couple of shaping racks - yeah, a LOT more work (but Marlon is learning so technically this is a course, and it is fun work - it's all good!)

Slow Progress on the Surfing Hydrofoil this Weekend

I didn't have much time this weekend to devote to progress on the hydrofoil, but Marlon and I did move the needle forward a little.  Got the base plate and mast cleaned up.

Here the bead has been poured along the leading and trailing edges.

Then got the divynicell strips epoxied together (base structure for the mast track box reinforcements).  Marlon is learning the sequence to mixing epoxy (he even corrected me about re-taring the scale before adding hardener - I'm going to have to give him credit for a composite material course - HEY I'M A HOMESCHOOL TEACHER!!!

Next step here will be to cut the two groupings into the near final top to bottom dimension.  Then trim the unused sides off.  Finally epoxying the top and bottom pieces together.  Then I can drop in the mast track boxes.  I've got enough d-cell here to make 2 sets of 2 boxes (enough for 2 foil boards).

Linking the last post with this one, I have a big, wide SUP blank coming in.  Originally I was planning on making two prone foil boards with the blank - one at 5'2" and the other at 5'5".  After looking around the Kailua shops and a little on the internet, I'm rethinking the plan -

I may now go ahead and make a 5'2" (or even a 5'0" - after the learning curve, most people are converging on shorter prone boards - I still want a board that has float to make catching waves easy, but now I'm thinking the shorter the better since I'm going through all the effort to make a foil board from scratch).  But the second board can likely be a 6'0", as wide as possible foiling SUP/Windsurf Foiling board.  I'm comfortable now with placing a mast track in the top deck, and am not apprehensive about the boxes that would need to get dropped into the bottom deck for to support the foil - so why not???  Inexpensive option to get to try out the "holy grail" I was referring to earlier...  It's is at least worth the thought...

Now It's All Pau

I cleaned up the deck pad, cut the new hole for the mast track, and fixed the gap between the front and back pads. I can't wait to get this board back out on the water!!!

Hooked SUP Rehab All Pau

I got home with a couple of hours of sunlight left so I decided to get as far on the Hooked SUP rehabilitation project as I could. I got the mast track box opened up and beveled the edge. I even applied some touch up paint to some 'loved hard' spots (check the prior blog entries on the wind storm at Maryland on our Trail Manor trip - Summer of 2014). The paint didn't match exactly, but it adds tremendously to the character of this board. And with only a few minutes to spare, I was able to get the entire deck pad back on. The only shortfall was the pad had shrunk in it's several years of use. Lining up the important parts (Scotty Mount holes, logo pieces, leash plugs, etc) left a 1/2" gap in the front and back sections. I've got maybe an hour of additional work on the deckpad - mainly trimming and preening - but this board is ready to go!!! I can't wait to land some bigger fish from this thing!!!