Author Topic: how to properly convert your SUP for W/S(windsurfing....no, not watersports)  (Read 26262 times)

OldSkoot

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  How would i properly install (placement of mast track) and utilize some old wind surf equipment on my current board?
  I'm only looking to use the sail on flatwater (unless i grow the nads to ever try some open ocean). The only turn off i am shying away from is installing a dagger , not only do i have zero wind surf exp. but i'm not ready to hack up my one and only board that much i don't think.
  The board is a 10'8 X 30 X 4 1/2 tri FCS surf style board. I'm just really interested in being able to sail some on the inter coastal instead of paddling if wind direction changes or i'm in a hurry to get to one of the islands quicker than i can paddle.
  And it seems the wind gear has had some changes over the years...... would it be wiser to obtain older gear at a cheaper price or go with newer style gear at a higher price but more readily replaceable?
  I tried the search but had minimal results. Basically i'm unsure of where to place the track, and REALLY unsure of the differences in gear as far as "industry standards" .
  This will NEVER be in the surf, the closest to the surf i would ever get would be possibly going from an inlet (but i do not see that happening ever) to some open ocean.
  I guess my other question is , is there a "track" system that i could install for adjustable footholds until i got a good feel for where i like to be that i could install?
    
« Last Edit: March 06, 2012, 05:54:42 PM by OldSkoot »

DavidJohn

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I think you will find that 72" from the tail is about the right spot for the mast base to go.

Are you going to use a fin box in the deck as a mast track?

If your SUP has a styrofoam core you will need to cut out a piece of your SUP board about the size of a house brick and glue in an block the same size in normal surfboard foam.. Glass over it.. Then rought out for the fin box and glue that in.

That's how I would do it.

DJ
« Last Edit: March 06, 2012, 06:15:20 PM by DavidJohn »

OldSkoot

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   My board is a one off from a semi local shaper. It's just glass over EPS IIRC, I thought I was gonna just glass in a mast track... Call me an idiot, but why would I need to use surfboard foam?
   And how would I determine what type of foam is in fact in my board? How would I ensure the board can withstand these loads on the deck around the base?
  Is there any specific wind gear or styles to stay away from?

PonoBill

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There's an ancient article on how SIC did this for me but you have to go all the way back to Ponohouse, which was back around the time rocks were invented.  The dates say 2007, but that's when I rebuilt it. Who knows when this really was.

anyway, DJ is absolutely right, you want a block of divynicell to plant the box in, and it's not a bad idea to glass under the fin box. My JL 11'7" conversion has held up perfectly. The stuff inside your board is probably EPS, with all the integrity of a styrofoam cup. But it might be an actual blank, which would be good, but still, you're going to be applying strains the deck was never meant to handle. Here's the links:

http://www.ponohouse.com/ponoblog/2007/02/a-little-more-ding-king/

http://www.ponohouse.com/ponoblog/2007/03/board-modifications-and-the-funmobile-rolls-on-its-back/

It's kind of fun prowling through the old Ponohouse posts. Makes me realize how far this sport has come, but also how consistent my interests have been. If it will scare you a little and take all you've got, then I'm interested. That's probably a little less expansive a horizon as I age, but it's nice to see that the border isn't moving too quickly. Lots of space between where I was six or so years ago and a golf course.
« Last Edit: March 06, 2012, 07:55:29 PM by PonoBill »
Foote 10'4X34", SIC 17.5 V1 hollow and an EPS one in Hood River. Foote 9'0" x 31", L41 8'8", 18' Speedboard, etc. etc.

spookini

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I'll keep this thread going by asking a few newb questions:

* How is divinylcell sold?  Do I have to buy a sheet of it (and build my own brick), or can I just buy a brick of it? :)
* Should I buy a proper "mast-track", or can a finbox really be used?

Thanks, guys...

<no such thing as a stupid question -- unless it's asked on a public forum  ;D >

-- My doctor says I suffer from low kook --
Do sharks attack?  Hope not
Do flying fish hate us?  Hells yes

Strand Leper

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Great line Bill... distance from a golf course.  When a friend of mine asked me why I bought a place on a golf course recently (because he knows that I don't golf), without hesitation I said, "It's close to the office, my wife liked the floor plan, and I think Korean chicks are hot."

I get the aversion... when clients come into town that I have to entertain, we generally paddle around the harbor...

I have to golf once in awhile, I must confess...

Tim
American Saltwater Angler Magazine's Seven Time Angler of the Year.* Founder and former CEO of "Fishstrong" an organization devoted to the fight against fishbait-hands-smell discrimination.

* subject to revocation due to a pending investigation by the FDA (fisherman drug association)

PonoBill

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You can buy a mast track with a vent, or use a fin box--your choice.

Divinycell is just a PVC closed cell foam. You can buy the generic versions or the real stuff:
http://www.fiberglasssupply.com/Product_Catalog/Core_Materials/core_materials.html

If all you need is one chunk you can go by any shaper and he'll have some.

And yeah, I'm saving golf for when I'm old, and then I'll know it's time to shuffle off.
Foote 10'4X34", SIC 17.5 V1 hollow and an EPS one in Hood River. Foote 9'0" x 31", L41 8'8", 18' Speedboard, etc. etc.

starman

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Here is a good link on the subject.

http://www.boardlady.com/inserts.htm

I had Eva install a mast track on my Laird 4 years ago and its still going strong.

OldSkoot

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 thanks for the replies, i think my plan was to buy a complete setup off of CL . I talked with a guy that's only 2 miles from my house that does repair work and he said he'd install the mast track for $60 which i thought was fair.
  I guess my main concern is making sure i can get replacement parts for the stuff i end up buying.
  I found a complete setup for $150 today, and it included a harness/board/mast/sail(size unknown)/dagger/2 fins/base/u joint
  I think that is a good price but not sure of the actual condition until i see it.
I really would like to install the track and straps myself, but having never done glass work yet, i think i'd want to practice on something scrap....

spookini

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More questions:

What's the point of the vented mast-track?  HOW is it vented...?  And why's it necessary?   ???

Thanks -
-- My doctor says I suffer from low kook --
Do sharks attack?  Hope not
Do flying fish hate us?  Hells yes

OldSkoot

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^^^ +1 I missed that earlier, I was reading via stupid phone .

DavidJohn

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Sounds like you have it sorted and no need to post these pics.. but I will anyway.

btw you don't need a vented mast track.. Just a normal fin box.

When I drilled into my Naish board the other day this is what's inside.





The foam core is polystyrene.. A very soft and fluffy foam that is like pushing on a marshmallow if you push your thumb into it.

Most custom made surfboards have a polyurethane foam core and with polyurethane you need to push really hard to make a dent with your thumb.

Most surfboard makers should have off-cuts that they can give/sell you.. Like this piece in my pic.



Standard center fin boxes are perfect for a mast track and they're just what I've used for more than fifty odd custom made windsurfing boards and never had one problem.. ever.

You just need to cut out a piece of that stiff surfboard foam to surround the fin box and fit that into the board first.. Glue it in and glass over it.



Then router it out so you can glue the fin box in.. sand it flush.. and job's done.

A 10" fin box is all that's need and will give you plenty of adjustment with different conditions and different sail sizes.

DJ

« Last Edit: March 07, 2012, 07:38:17 PM by DavidJohn »

Dwight (DW)

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You can use plywood as your strength insert if you can't find high density foam. Bark sets his finboxes in plywood, on custom race boards. I saw the wood when a blogger posted photos from inside his factory.

spookini

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"Glue it in and glass over it."

DJ, thanks for the pics.  Helps a lot to visualize it.

So, when glue-ing in the insert, what do you use for glue?  Standard epoxy thickened up w/ a bunch of fill/micro-balloons?  Or just unthickened epoxy?

Thanks again.  This is a great thread --
-- My doctor says I suffer from low kook --
Do sharks attack?  Hope not
Do flying fish hate us?  Hells yes

DavidJohn

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"Glue it in and glass over it."

DJ, thanks for the pics.  Helps a lot to visualize it.

So, when glue-ing in the insert, what do you use for glue?  Standard epoxy thickened up w/ a bunch of fill/micro-balloons?  Or just unthickened epoxy?

Thanks again.  This is a great thread --

Good question.. I think you need to be careful when gluing polystyrene and my local board repairer (who has done this a few times now) said that he mixes up 5 min epoxy (Aroldite) and smears it on all five surfaces to seal the foam before glueing in the foam block.. I'm guessing standard epoxy thickened up with micro-balloons should be fine to glue in the block.. He said that he uses car dent filler (bog).. and that works great.. I asked about putting in the fin box first and then glassing over the lot.. and then routing out a slot in the box and he said.. No, that's not the best way to do it.. or not how he does it.. Btw this guy's been doing it for 30 odd years and knows what he's doing.. I don't have much experience with polystyrene myself.

DJ

 


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