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Old    ridewater            09-27-2006, 6:09 PM Reply   
so theres all the hardcore wakeskate with the compression mold, and ithink the boards are made out of glass or fiberglass, i was wondering which one it was, and is it possible to make a home made compression mold, how?
Old     (treycleaton)      Join Date: Mar 2005       09-27-2006, 7:43 PM Reply   
Man, your sentences are like incongruent clauses thrown together
Old     (ozwest)      Join Date: May 2006       09-28-2006, 9:52 AM Reply   
James,

My Integrity NT 39.75 is has a hybrid closed cell CNC machined foam core with center weight stringer system and reinforced fin blocks with a polyethylene slider base. You are correct about glass. Mine has 22 oz. triaxial weave glass (the reinforced stringer patch) that is applied during lay-up. The bottom has a total of 44 oz. of glass (the industry standard is 16 oz. bottom and top according to Integrity’s website). My NT has 22 oz. on the top and 44 oz. on the bottom. By the way…this does not make this a heavy board by any means. Way lighter than my wood deck. Keep in mind that other manufacturers might use different materials for theirs.

Compression molding is a process of applying heat and pressure to a plastic resin. The resin melts due to the heat, and then the pressure causes it to form into a desired shape. This is done in a compression molding press. Usually one would use a compression molding machine and set it to the appropriate pressure and temperature.

You could try to make a wakeskate surfboard style buy purchasing a foam blank (molded poyuveance foam (softer in the middle w/harder crust on the outside). These blanks come with a piece of wood (called the stringer) down the middle that gives the board strength and locks in the rocker shape. Then just draw your pattern onto the blank to form the curves on the board, giving the overall shape to the board. You can use a hand saw to cut the outline of the board from the foam blank. It’s easy to cut and then you can use an electric planer to smooth the surface of the blank. Next you’d smooth out the bottom and shape the rocker. This is where you can check and make corrections to your outline shape. If you get one side right, you can then take a piece of paper and trace the shape to do the other side. Next comes the top of the board where you shape the thickness into the blank. Time for the rails…Keep in mind that a good surfboard shaper (yes, I know a wakeskate’s smaller so it most likely would take less time) takes about 3 hours to work the rails. Shape the rails a bit, take a break, come back to check it out, shape it a bit more, take a break…make sure it’s right before you glass it. Use some sandpaper to smooth out the rough edges (planers leave cuts that need smoothing out). Paint your blank first and glass clear or add color to the resin. Take sheets of fiberglass and lay them over the blank. Mix the resin w/the catalyst or hardener and pour it over the glass. The resin hardens in about an hour. Turn the board over and glass the other side (be sure to overlap the edges). On a surfboard, this is when you’d add the fins. As for your wakeskate…time to get creative.

Keep in mind that making a wakeskate “surfboard” style might be a HUGE expense and waste of time as I’ve never tried to make a wakeskate. That being said, making a wood wakeskate might be a lot easier (even if it doesn’t last as long).

Good luck to you in whatever you choose to try.

~M~
Old     (electricsnow)      Join Date: May 2002       09-28-2006, 1:52 PM Reply   
jason messer used to shape his own wakeskates out of clark foam. But I think it did end up being expensive...I think the expensive part was the fiberglassing, if I'm remembering correctly.

Anyway, good luck. I've always wanted to shape my own boards but I never really had the time for it. Maybe some day...
Old     (ozwest)      Join Date: May 2006       09-28-2006, 4:26 PM Reply   
Yeah...back in the day when Clark Foam was around. Sucks that Grubby had to shut their doors December 5, 2005. From what I understand, you can no longer buy foam blanks that were manufactured in the USA. I guess SouthCoast Foam & Fiberglass in Australia among many other out of country distributors will be getting more business. Almost makes me want to put my surfboard that was shaped from Clark Foam away but it was meant to be ridden.

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