Marlon's Next Board

Marlon and I decided to go in a different direction for his next board.  This is going to be an alaia.

We picked up the planks last night and this afternoon we glued them together.  There is a gap that we couldn't close, but that is what epoxy is for.

This will barely be 6', but it'll have some width to it to get some paddling ability in.

Getting Ready for Number 2

Thinking about making a second foil -

Larger front wing (since I can only get the first one to rise above 50% of the time), and shorter mast (total of 24" inclusive of mounting plate and fuselage) so I don't hit the bottom.  For comparison I've got this wing on top of a Slingshot Infinity 76cm front wing (got this through a deal with an old friend).

The feedback on this foil setup has been positive.  The dimensions of the modified kit components are very similar to this one - but while I'm building up the kit, I'll be using this one in the surf.  Looking forward to comparing them all!

Next Up

I'm preparing to make the next hydrofoil.  This one will have bolt on wings so I can experiment.  Here I just finished measuring out the locations of where the holes will be drilled out for the plugs and reinforcements.

I'll also use the alignment dowels to make the upright strut assembly easier.  These are definitely better for surfing - the reef rubs are hardly noticeable compared to the Go Foils.

More Hydrofoil Parts

And since I was at it - I made the last couple of parts needed to get the next couple of foils done - a fuselage for the second surf foil and a rear wing for the kiting foil. 

Not bad if I do say so myself -

Getting a Slow Start

My predictions of having the foil boards glassed by this weekend were flat out wrong.  I didn't even touch this project over the past week.  Instead I did carve out two wider front wings and three masts for a foil kit I'm mailing out (this one is yours Charlie), and a second surfing foil that will have bolt on wings.

I finished sanding these parts this afternoon.

In my defense, I did switch jobs recently and have been moving offices and getting acclimated to my new work environment.  That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.  I did manage to switch out the router bit on the big router - so tomorrow morning I can route out the reinforcement block voids.  I also cut out some carbon fiber to drop in the voids of one of the boards (need to dig out the other carbon sheets I have), and added the glassing rack uprights to my shaping racks - I'll post pictures of these tomorrow as I'm glassing (YES I AM GOING TO FINALLY START GLASSING THESE BOARDS).  Should be a full day tomorrow...

Bigger Wings

I decided that my next hydrofoil will have a bigger front wing - so here I am knocking a couple out.  The process starts with drawing out the template.

Then it is just patience - cut once, sand in so it is symmetric, grind down the excess - slowly.

This was yesterday evening.  I'll start work on this again later today, but looking at these pictures I am reminded I have two blanks to prepare for glassing... ah the project list -

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.

Front Wing is On

Got the front wing mounted before the sun set today.

0.7 ounces of epoxy and 5 spoons of milled fibers.  Wasn't quite enough mix to pack the back void, but we'll mix more tomorrow for the rear wing - which is smaller, so we'll have more to fill the void and fair it in.

So here is where I deviated from the Clearwater Hydrofoil instructions - Marlon and I choose to attach each wing separately instead of in a single step.  Less time pressure to get everything glassed up (we're using Fiberglass Hawaii Two Part Slow - but with the Ewa Beach heat in the garage, the slow starts to cure very quickly - even faster than fast in normal temperatures)

This was actually pretty easy.  Three layers of 4 ounce cloth on each side with a single 4 ounce piece bridging the span.

Looks pretty straight and square.

Tomorrow will be a light sanding on this joint, then shifting over to the rear wing.  The glass is already cut for tomorrow's work (on top of the wing to the left of the picture).  It's coming together and taking our time has produced great results so far.  Up next since this project is getting close - shaping the two foil boards...

Mast to Fuselage Join

We got the mast-mounting plate assembly attached to the fuselage on Saturday.  Constantly checking for vertical alignment, but the results look good.

In theory, this was supposed to be the hardest part of the assembly.  I'll clean up the joint this afternoon when I get home from work (it's Monday - the weekend got away from me since these pictures were from Saturday...).  Then we'll see if we can get the wings epoxied on to the fuselage.

Garage Works - September 13, 2018

Got the board shaping racks put together.  Still need to cut up some carpet and tack it on, get the sand/buckets and do a little sanding.  The two blanks are sitting and waiting for these to get finished.

I got the fiberglass squares cut out for the mast-fuselage joint.  The table is setup for the epoxy work - will try and get this part done soon.

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!

And the Other Foil

This is where the slow down really occurred.  Instead of grinding down all the excess and getting the fuselage attached, I only poured the bead to fill the gaps in the lamination.

Again - had to do other things and the high humidity are the reasons (excuses I know) that I'm citing for this delay.  That said, good things take time -

Labor Day Weekend Work on the Foils

I didn't get as far along as I had wanted to - lots of surfing and other events (time well spent), as well as some pretty humid days (I don't like placing epoxy in high humidity), but I did get some time in to the kite foil.

Two separate sessions sanding away with the random orbital sander - I was able to finish two fuselages and a main wing.

The kids couldn't tell the difference between the original parts and the ones I replicated.

Now to get these put together and out in the ocean -

Foils in Ewa Beach

I see more guys picking up the foil out here in Ewa Beach. 

I still want to wait out the development rush for a bit - let all the designs mature before shelling out some cash.  In the meantime, on the DIY surf foil front (just because I want to save up for the foil doesn't mean I don't want to foil), Marlon and I were able to get the mast and mounting plate joined up yesterday.

This is a major step - we are now over the hump on getting this foil finished.

The carbide cutting tools for the Dremel are totally worth the investment if you are going to be working with fiberglass - cuts like a hot knife through butter!!!

It's raining today, but if it dries out (humidity and epoxy are not good friends), I'll try to get the mast and fuselage joined.