Really nice build!! Well done.

Awesome mike really impressive followed the build with interest from go to whoa ... when's the next one coming ?

Nice speed I can only dream about . What's your PB 2 sec and could this board beat it ?

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Imax1 said..
Nice speed I can only dream about . What's your PB 2 sec and could this board beat it ?

Very good question Col. My PBs are here.
www.gpsteamchallenge.com.au/sailor/view/8

But the 2s and 5X10 were down on my 43cm board. However on an exceptional day, I guess it's vaguely possible for me to hit 40 on this board, as I had my 3rd best, a 38.94 on the old 48 in July last year. Another 0.3kts would have been a PB, it remains to be seen if I can go as fast on this board. Problem is, If the conditions are good enough to do it, I'll probably be on the 43.

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Adam555 said..
Awesome mike really impressive followed the build with interest from go to whoa ... when's the next one coming ?

Well the 53 is showing signs of going the same way as the 48, bottom was getting a bit rippled before I bogged it up. I'm not sure how long it will last. But I'm not in any hurry to build another board.
My hands were starting to show eczema type symptoms, I worried I may be getting allergic to epoxy. They have cleared up nicely since I've stopped using it.

I started to have allergic reactions to silicon.
I got this stuff from bunnings hand shield liquid glove it says .
Its great really helps might be good for you as well .
Bonus is when you wash your hand everthing comes off easy .

Nice photo Mike, the green pads are groovy!!
Board looks great and I have enjoyed reading your build, thanks for sharing

I spent a couple of hours on Ratz's board this arvo carefully sanding down the high spots in the foam holding the bottom above where it should be. Now I have a quandary about the low spots.

This pic is taken with only a side light on to highlight the low spots, it makes tem look deeper than they are.



At the back left is my handsaw fail and at the front the router slip.

It won't take a lot of bog to fill them, the problem is that the bog is much more abrasive resistant than the foam.
Sanding back any high spots in the bog will inevitable cause more low spots in the foam!
So can I use the bottom in some way as a mold?

Perhaps bog it as close as I can then place a layer of wetted cloth on top and then smooth it out and vacuum bag it.
Will the vacuum bag spread the bog out and create more highs and lows?

Any ideas guys????

Squeegee some expandable foam while its still wet ?

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Imax1 said..
Squeegee some expandable foam while its still wet ?

Good idea, but the stuff I've got doesn't work like that, as soon as you touch it it collapses. And it goes off too quick to squeegee any distance.

Next stage of Ratz's board, I went with the bog the blank, glass the underside of old bottom, stick it together, and vacuum it, with fingers crossed!

Doesn't look too bad in the bag, but it's hard to tell, won't really know how it's worked, until I pull it out late this arvo.

Yep I am doing the same, waiting waiting, never know whats happening inside the bag till she's done.....

I just had a feel along the join and I have a feeling that it's like a cake when you open the oven door too soon, it's sunk. May have to do more bogging.

Just pulled it out of the bag, and it looks good, a few points a tad high and a couple a tad low. But that will al get sorted when I grind back hollows for the glass tape around the joins.

A bit more progress. Ground/sanded the joins, filled the holes. 2 layers of carbon over the fin box, and a layer of coremat ove the join at the front.



So next is a couple of layers of glass tape around the rails and over the coremat.
Note, my latest senior moment, started following the concave mark instead of the sand-to mark, with the grinder.

And there is a lot of Carbon in the board, you can see the overlap on the rails, where it's come over from the deck.

You can fix beyond normal repair
Can u make me feel young again ? , I'll bring beer !
I have old wife but new puppy , will that work ?

Young again, hmm -------------------------- that'd be nice

Hey Decrep, board looks awesome man!! Well done.
It's so cool to see the projects everyone's got going. There's some good skills out there.
I've got a few boards I have to build over the next few weeks, I might put a few pics up.
Gotta clean my work shop up a bit first, been busy recently and it's a fookin disgrace!

Cheers, Hoops

fix beyond repair is pretty apt
the foam on that board was pretty stuffed
if mike can make a functional board from that mess its a big achievement
and a testament to his skills.

Thanks guys!

Ratz I think your board will be strong enough, and bottom shape fairly close to original but it's going to be heavier. Not sure by how much, and to what extent it will affect performance. I guess you'll find out when you eventually get it in the water.

Always going to be a high wind turn and burn board for me mike
so not that worried about the weight.
not going to try and slog on it.
being a bit heavier might help and keep it on the water when it's cranking.

Master skills and patience.

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decrepit said..
Sun's out, so talked Dot into taking a few pics.


got dentist and Dr's appointments today so may not do much, could be back in the shed tomorrow.

can't believe I check back in a few weeks and the board is finished and been sailed already !! great job mate, looks like a rocket.

I've nearly finished my board, started in early Feb !! is one on left - 202 cm x 65.5 cm, 98L and ~6.1-6.2kg minus straps and fin. I hope the seabreezes start early this year

All this inspiration , I've got to make another board . Don't need one , but when u can't sleep because your thinking shape and exotic materials ............, can't help it , I'm a box head engineer
I mean , how hard is it to make just one more board rack ?

Nice work Brett, looks like i will go well.

I should get more done to Ratz's board tomorrow.

Bogging is under way, sanded the first layer yesterday and added some more. Today I sanded the rails, but for some reason the stuff on the bottom was still clogging the paper. Probably do some more Wednesday.

getting there mike
have to go find a set of straps for it now...

Yep, it's getting there. The piece of plastic on the above pic, is what I use to even the wet bog over the rails. Apply bog on rail with squeegee, then starting at one end stretch the plastic over the rail and as smoothly as possible run it the length of the rail.

For some reason or another the rocker under the feet has increased, so that white area is where I've sanded through the paint and well into the old bog. Adding more bog either side, has got the rocker back very close to flat. Tomorrow when I sand it will tell.

Ratz wanted light grey paint. I thought I'd found some, but actually it's "liquid silver". A nice match on the rails, but a real pain on the bottom. Every time I spray it comes out different. I should have covered the whole bottom with undercoat and got that perfect, but it's harder to see faults with a flat finish.


Just needs ratz to find another bung and foot straps. Then give it a work out and see if the new bottom stays on.

Decrepit.... does the lowered/sunken mast track make a big difference in the handling?