First wood build.....HELP!!!

[longwood94]

Ok so im new to building and basically longboarding in general
i now how to make the press thanks to DIMM
but lets say if i want to make a carver / cruiser how many ply and what type of wood for the flex?
how would maple be? oak? redwood? ....etc.

i am making a downhill board out of carbon fiber and i know how to do it but was wondering if DIMM's press would work for it?

i have searched around and havn't really found exactly what i was looking for so maybe you guys can help.

thanks in advance

[cojeep636]

Originally Posted by longwood94

Ok so im new to building and basically longboarding in general
i now how to make the press thanks to DIMM
but lets say if i want to make a carver / cruiser how many ply and what type of wood for the flex?
how would maple be? oak? redwood? ....etc.

i am making a downhill board out of carbon fiber and i know how to do it but was wondering if DIMM's press would work for it?

i have searched around and havn't really found exactly what i was looking for so maybe you guys can help.

thanks in advance

Well, as far as building a carver out of just wood, i would definitely consider going baltic birch for your first build. This is pretty much the standard around here. Using 4 plys of 1/8" baltic birch (in my experiences) makes for a relatively stiff board, depending on the shape of course.

I recently did a 3-ply board, shaped similarly to the loaded vanguard, and it took me 3 layers of 6 oz fiberglass to make it flexy, but not sketchy. I would say this is a pretty good feel for a carver.

As far as other woods, 1/8" tends to work best in the "DIMM press" and so baltic birch is easiest to use. Maple veneers (1/16") can be found through roarockit though the shipping seems to be pretty steep, no offense to the guys at roarockit, but it ups the price by about 75%.

Other types of plywood might be traceable, and interesting for a build, but birch seems to work as far as being close in characteristics of flex and workability to hard maple.

Just be sure to find BALTIC birch, in 1/8" sheets, it will be available in 60x60 pieces, which makes 1-3 boards depending on your board shape and ability to plan in advance.

I have now completed 6 builds with baltic birch, and find it one of the easier woods to work with, i really enjoy working with other woods like cherry, marblewood, and paduak, but their machining properties are significantly different when compared to a wood like birch.

If you want to get into other hardwoods like oak, redwood, wenge, cherry, etc... you should look into something more like a v-lam. Or skinning your boards in the veneer of choice.

Hope this gives you a decent idea of where to start, i know its a lot to take in, but everyone here seems to have a pretty good base of information, so feel free to keep asking questions!

[longwood94]

whats is v-lam

[GiantThe]

Originally Posted by longwood94

whats is v-lam

http://www.silverfishlongboarding.co....html#poststop

I really want to try a Vlam but I gotta ease my way in to making boards and start easy haha

[longwood94]

what about carbon fiber on DIMM's press??
how would that turn out

[KCcarvin]

you can't really "press" carbon fiber, it uses not only epoxy but a hardening compound to make it rigid and it can only be trimed to size and shape during certain portions of this hardening process. I suggest that if you are new to building, you stay away from building this type of board just yet.
Things you will need to be able to complete it will be:
-knowledge of carbon fiber properties to select the one the best suits your needs
-kevlar sheers
-expoxy resin and its harderner
-lastly you'll have to know how to make a core or a wood board first to mount the board to

making a 100% carbon fiber board is extremely difficult, time consuming and costly. You have to make a mold to shape it in out of some kind of ceramic or plastic shell then lay each layer into it.

Your best bet if making a carbon fiber board is to get a piece of foam similar to the one you used to make a Dimm-style press and cut it out to make the core of the board, then laying the carbon-fiber layers up around it. this will also take a bit of practice and planing. but before you lay the layers, you'll have to remove end pieces from the foam and replace them with plywood or balsa to create 'hard-spots' to where you'll mount the trucks.
Some kind of hardwood stringer or strength layer is also advised if you're making just a foam core and don't want it to cost you 9 layers of cloth and resin.

So lets build those wood boards first and then we'll get to the carbon fiber in time =]

[longwood94]

alright i dont know much about it but my brother does
he build race cars and the shop has to make like hoods and bumpers

[GiantThe]

how hard is it to make a foam core board? the whole idea just seems so strange to me. I really want to try that some time down the road once i really know what i'm doing. As far as the carbon fiber, its applied similar to the the way fiberglass is isn't it?

[KCcarvin]

Originally Posted by GiantThe

how hard is it to make a foam core board? the whole idea just seems so strange to me. I really want to try that some time down the road once i really know what i'm doing. As far as the carbon fiber, its applied similar to the the way fiberglass is isn't it?

It's quite difficult to make a foamcore board.
It's applied the same way as fiberglass but you have to be more careful with it because cf doesn't have the spring and flex like fiberglass does. it's rather brittle. So as long as you have enough strength behind it it remains strong but if it bends or your core collapses your looking at a splintered board. it's best to use balsa untill you know you have a really solid layup

[longwood94]

Originally Posted by KCcarvin

It's quite difficult to make a foamcore board.
It's applied the same way as fiberglass but you have to be more careful with it because cf doesn't have the spring and flex like fiberglass does. it's rather brittle. So as long as you have enough strength behind it it remains strong but if it bends or your core collapses your looking at a splintered board. it's best to use balsa untill you know you have a really solid layup

the foam core seem pretty easy to make
but laying the cf over top of it seems to be the challenge

[KCcarvin]

Originally Posted by longwood94

the foam core seem pretty easy to make
but laying the cf over top of it seems to be the challenge

that may be true, but until you're used to it, you'll go through alot of blanks =]
it requires alot of planning so don't just sit down and do it if you plan to.
It's not laying the layers that's really the hardest either it's planning on which order, how many, and what type to use. once you get them laid that's it. you just have to stick with it

[longwood94]

i appreciate all the help guys...so yesterday i went to lowe's to look at some wood and garbage like that lol. the have 1/8 inch birch not baltic birch just birch are they the same thing? or do i really need BB. also i found they have some of the foam for Dimm's press its the exact stuff for that so im pretty stoked. i also found a way to put some concave and drop into the mold for the carbon fiber boards so the stoke keeps increasing
oh yah and how many layers of birch do i need to make it with ?? its a 48"x48" sheet. is that enough for a flexy board? what about if i want to make it a downhill board what do i want to put into it?

[flannelman]

Lowes, and home depot wont have what you are looking for. try a local lumberyard. look them up in the yellowpages, and give them a cal. explain that you want 1/8 inch Baltic birch.

i use Baltic birch Doorskins, as they are vertical, horizontal, vertical grained 1/8 wood, with very few knots on the back, and do have a mirrored center. they come in maple, mahogany, and baltic birch. the three woods IMO that make a good solid deck. and a 7x8 should be around 5-10 dollars, and you get about 8 48"x12" pieces of off it, so it is worth it.

[longwood94]

what kind of glue do i nees to cement the plys together

[KCcarvin]

any kind of strong, all weather wood glue, I use tightbond II because you don't need to waste money on a worse product w/ tightbond III. You can find this @ lowes for about $16 for a gallon (makes 15 four ply bb boards).

Also I personally use 1/16 bb but that's just because I can find it. I"m sure 1/8 works fine too.

[longwood94]

Originally Posted by KCcarvin

any kind of strong, all weather wood glue, I use tightbond II because you don't need to waste money on a worse product w/ tightbond III. You can find this @ lowes for about $16 for a gallon (makes 15 four ply bb boards).

Also I personally use 1/16 bb but that's just because I can find it. I"m sure 1/8 works fine too.

my bro just bought me some tightbond that all it says on it

[Mynusss]

When gluing the birch plies together. Do I need to pay attention to the grain of the wood? Do I lay it the same direction on all the plies or do I mix it up?

[KCcarvin]

mix it up! adds strength!

Is it just Titebond I (1)? That isn't going to work well since the glue will disolve if it gets wet, which it will if you every plan on riding in the rain. You need weather proof, outdoors glue.

[longwood94]

alright thanks
but what can i add 1 or 2 maple layers to give it added strength

[eye_candy]

Originally Posted by Mynusss

When gluing the birch plies together. Do I need to pay attention to the grain of the wood? Do I lay it the same direction on all the plies or do I mix it up?

the direction of the wood should be vertical grain, do not make a cross grain board, they will have too much flex and snap, my 30" fail mini was cross and i cant ride it it hits ther ground when i push off...i weight 120