Ultralight Board Designs

[finbox]

I have used a hand vacuum test pump that is used on cars for bleeding brakes etc.. search "mityvac" harbor freight has them.  It comes with hoses & fittings that allow you the connect to the air vent - you can draw a vacuum and look at the gauge. It won't help you find the leak - but it will show that the board is not leaking.

[Beasho]

Tracks going in:

1) Carved out the TRACK area in the XPS (removed 2.5 ounces)

2) Made a template for the TRACKS and where I wanted VERTICAL reinforcement to go.  4 Carbon Arrows DIRECTLY butted into PLASTIC Chinook Tracks

3) Cored CARBON arrows into Divinycell.  NO need to drill the hollow rod would press through the Divinycell

4) Gorilla Glued in the 4 carbon Rods into the Divinycell cassette only at this point. 

5) Cored out HOLES for 6 more carbon rods.  These would be in-line with the first 4 rods, but just inside the Chinook Tracks.  The last 2 were at the tail end of the Box

5) Lubed up the entire BOX and Rods and Vacuumed the whole Enchilada.  I put light foam plugs in the holes to prevent Gorilla Glue migrating into cored holes.  This step INCLUDED gluing in the first 4 Rods that were butting up against the Chinook Tracks. 

6) Tested the Core Holes and re-cored.  This was NOT easy.  The plugs were more substantial than I thought and the BOXES under pressure migrated slightly.  I couldn't just re-core easily with the rods.  Took some coaxing and drill work, but the holes were at least in place and relatively VERTICAL because of the pre work I had done. 

7) Glued in the remaining 6 carbon Rods.  Total weight of rods @ 2.5 grams PER.  Less than 25 grams, meaning UNDER 1 ounce.  Weight of 6 rods shown @ 15.4 grams. 

The board weighs << 8 lbs at this point AND is technically rideable although you would beat the heck out of the foam.  I now just have to make it more durable. 

[Dwight (DW)]

Deck pad adds a full pound. The lightest pads available add 3/4 lb to any board. Sucks, but that's the way it goes. My guess is the 3M PSA contributes a lot to the weight.

Softer and thinner deck pads are lighter than firmer pads. Pad weights vary by color with all the US manufacturers. You need experience in picking pads to find the lightest.

[PonoBill]

RSPRO Heexatraction pads, either the regular one (which fundamentally weighs nothing) or the cork ones which weigh a few ounces. I've tried roll cork glued down with high-strength 3M spray adhesive, but they don't last. I have the hexatraction cork on my Flying Dutchman board and they look the same as when I put them on after two years of flogging.

[sflinux]

Beasho, the board is looking killer.
The carbon rods looks bomber.
Do you think high density pour foam would be lighter than carbon rods?

[JohnnyTsunami]

Use 2mm Eva foam for the deck pad. 1/2 the weight of any "traction pad" material available anywhere. You will have to scuff the surface or put holes in it somewhere to get 100% traction. I ride mine untouched though because I'm lazy/haven't figure out a slick way to add texture.

[sflinux]

I wonder how Mark Raaphorst's catamaran design (standamaran) would work as a foil sup. 
With a catamaran you have stability and speed. 
The platform gives you a direct connection to the foil. 
Design:

Test:

UFO foil catamaran:

cat dimensions:
https://www.multihull.de/technik/catdimension.pdf
Peter Lynn designed one for a kite alternative to a buggy:

[PonoBill]

At the risk Mark being pissed at me, the Standamaran sucked. I know he had fun making it, and other people (the well-heeled Wailea Mafia) paid to have it made, but I paddled it (I forgot I weighed 260 back then), and watched the way the bow waves bounced off the hulls, made lovely interference patterns, and decided it was crap. Nothing in its short history changed my mind. I raced against a guy (Dr. Danger) who entered one in the BOP sprint and distance races and beat him in both races. And I'm fucking slow.

Catamarans tend to be very wide. Some folks think it's because that's stiffer in side-on wind, and it is (which makes the UFO design so user-friendly), but a bigger reason is that if the bow wave from one hull hits the other, you get a second swell forming just as you do from the stern of a regular hull, and that means wave drag. If they cross in the middle and hit both hulls you get a ton of drag and no benefit from the hulls being more than 10 to 1 ratio of length to width, you wind up having to power out of two (and sometimes three) bow to stern wave troughs. The standamaran was narrow--about the same width as an F16 (28"). It dragged a lot. No benefit for all that lovely and difficult work. You can see the interference pattern a bit in the video of Livio paddling the board, and to a lesser degree in the video of Mark paddling it.

It was wise of Mark to build it narrow, if he'd made a serious cat out of it no one could paddle it, and it would definitely trip going downwind in swells. Anyone who has raced catamaran sailboats (hobie, pringle, etc.) knows exactly what I mean by that.

Catamaran format doesn't automatically mean stability and speed. But I know Mark has one upside down hanging on the ceiling of his garage, and I bet he'd sell it...

[Beasho]

Deck pad adds a full pound. The lightest pads available add 3/4 lb to any board. Sucks, but that's the way it goes. My guess is the 3M PSA contributes a lot to the weight.

1 lbs TOO MUCH at this point.  My plan is for NO deck pad.

I will use wax, or the granules that you paint on for non-skid.

[Beasho]

Unbagging the "Sailfish"

Only for those who like SUP Foiling Christmas Unwrapping events:

[Beasho]

The board is ON Schedule

8 lbs 13.8 Ounces

It is FULLY Waterproof.  Has 3X 6 ounces of Carbon under the feet and robust TRACK structure.  I could surf this now but would beat up the foam.

[Beasho]

I am going to add ~ 12 ounces of ding protection and it is scheduled to be 9 pounds 11 ounces.

[jondrums]

another plus one for rspro cork deck.  I now use it on 4 different boards.  Its about $120/board, but so so light, very comfortable and great traction.  Here's my recipe:




I use less than half of the hex pads, and you might be able to skip them if you don't have a wide stance.  Here's what it looks like

[Beasho]

The board is coming together on schedule. 

Less than a pound left to go.

1) Bottom of the board.  Tail section was 1.4 oz Gorilla Glued to XPS and Vacuumed

2) 4 oz S-Glass Epoxied on to Rails in Center section

3) Build schedule

Remaining laminations will largely be 1.4 oz Fiberglass on the Nose, top and bottom, and the Rails on the nose and Tail. 

I may keep the laminations LIGHT and then see what dings, then reinforce.  Although I will likely put a bit more build around the pointed nose and tail. 

[sflinux]

Have you come up with a name for this board?  Board looks great.  Looking forward to a ride report.
"Nicht Zehn Pfund"