Swaylock’s™ Surfboard Design Forum

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BEST OF SWAYLOCK’S SHAPING & GLASSING HINTS VOLUME 5

Contents: Taping for pinlines; how to prevent fuzzy pinlines (paint pen type); shaping vee; making rail channels and power rods; how to true up outlines; how to level blades in the planer; how to sharpen planer blades; modifying your power planer; ergonomics of shaping; modifying blades

HOW SHOULD I LAY TAPE FOR PINLINES?

[Cleanlines] First get the board up to chest level. You have to have a guideline (either a pencil line drawn with a rail tool or template or use an existing cut lap.) Use good tape like 3M 233, it bends better. I use 3/4" or 1/2" and sometimes 1/4" for a tight turn. I use the wider tape for long runs because it is less prone to wobble. The main thing is to try to do it in a rapid flowing motion. Keep your hands spread wide. Use the line like you are driving a car. I am actually looking ahead as I lay the tape. It just takes practice -- go ahead and burn a roll of tape or two... its cheap. The main thing for me is the level of the board on a steady stand, good light and having a wide spread of tape... its almost a full body motion versus something with the wrist. This is very hard to explain. One main thing I can say is don't be to hard on yourself. A line on a sanded board jumps out at in the shop but little flat spots will get lost in the wash when the board is finished. Go to a surf shop and look down a pinline at eye level and you will probably see some flats and wobbles. If you have trouble with the width you can lay some 1/16 blue car tape as a guide for the other side. Lay the first side, then lay down the "cheater or spacer" tape. Next lay down other side butting it against the spacer. Pull the spacer tape and go for it. Hope this helps somewhat. PS. One last thing, on a long board I use 3/4 for the long runs and blend 1/2" in to make the bend around the nose (this is on the outboard side).Some people use 1/2 for the whole deal and it might work for you.

I DID PINLINES WITH A POSCA PEN -- WHY IS MY PINLINE FUZZY?

[Kokua] Ink pens have a tendency to bleed under the tape. Before you put down the pin line use your finger nail or an ice cream stick to press down the tape. Next as you apply the posca follow ( about 6" behind ) with a hair drier or heat gun to dry the pin line before it can bleed, This should fix the problem.

[Tom Sterne] I've had similar pinline problems. Once with paint pen lines I tracked it down to acetone in my glossing brush (didn't let the brush dry long enough between gloss coats). As I applied the gloss there was enough acetone in the brush to soften the paint pinline and it bleed while the gloss cured in areas that I first applied gloss to. Recently I had a resin pinline do the same as you are describing. What I decided was that I had wiped the rails down with an acetone soaked rag before glossing, trying to be careful not to touch the pinlines. The fumes must have softened the resin because on the outboard side of the pinline in some areas the line bled slightly. Both were "best ever" pinlines BEFORE I screwed them up.

[Kokua] Always blow off your glossing brush with air and set aside for 5 min. I actually smell the brush for any acetone odor before using it. One drawback to using Posca pens is the styrene in the gloss resin has a tendency to lift the color of the pinline, that's why I prefer Zig pens since they're pigment ink instead of the acrylic paint that's in Posca pens. Pigment ink doesn't lift off. I also wash the board with soap and water before I gloss, if I notice any areas that shed the water to fast I hit the spot with acetone then re wash the board.

HOW DO I SHAPE VEE INTO A BOARD?

[Cleanlines] Its just a shallow railband on the bottom, the planer pass starts 1/3 from the tail. Start cut at zero and open to desired depth. Vee increases the rail rocker line. I have seen too many guys try to sand or surform vees in, just causing a big bump in the stringer.

HOW DO I MAKE RAIL CHANNELS AND POWER RODS (FOR STRENGTH)?

[Greg Loehr] I have used rail channels more than power rods. Rail channels are very easy to do. Just glue a piece of sandpaper to a dowel and you have the tool. Tape off the line you’re going to follow and run the dowel along it until the channel is about 3/8th of and inch deep. Laminating is normal, then at the end you push the excess resin out while pushing the glass into the channel. Simple really. Power rods were generally cut with a router and then a hollow rod was laid in. Also not hard to do.

WHAT’S THE BEST WAY TO TRUE UP MY OUTLINE AFTER DRAWING AND SAWING?

[Jim Phillips] Listen to the shapers who are in the know. I watch guys who think of them selves as real heros, truing up outlines with a surform and neatly leaving the pencil line showing all around. This means nothing, I draw out boards that look great, but when I clean them up with the planer, there are at times places where the pencil line is cut clean away and other spots that skip it for feet at a time. This is because the planer never lies, it will NOT go and errantly dive into the outline or swing wide, it finds the cleanline. The planer should ride neither on the front nor back, but the area of the cutter itself. It is the space between your hands, a nice neutral feeling, running on a very small cut and as you pick up speed, then open up the cut to hear and feel the blades getting a bite on the foam. You can run back and forth cutting nearly nothing and gradually get the feel for how deep and how fast you can go.

[Herb] Just keep the setting at zero or a very, very, very slight cut, the planer will seek a level playing field. If you’re new to this practice on something first!

[Rob Brown] I clean my outline with a planer on rail and as long as you always start at a square point to set your angle.. When you put the board in the racks on rail you can square the bottom to the rail seeing and high and low spots. As Jim and Herb said keep it closed or ever so lightly open to just hit the highs. Remember the back shoe part of the planer is always following you lead…what your blades cut the planer follows. The first thing I do is square up the nose and tail with a surform to give me a square starting point then I finish with the planer to the nose and tail points. Then I hit the outline with a hard sanding block to blend the nose and tail to the rail. 1) cut close and square. 2) square the rail at nose and tail. 3) rack on rail and wedge foam rubber between deck and rack. Then with little wedge foam blocks Square the bottom to the racks. Hence Square it all.. 4) Plane then blend the nose and tail to the rail with a few passes of the sanding blocks... 5) if your rail is not square then your rail will have bumps. Final word.. The more you use your planer the more true your shape will be.

[Travis] I use the same technique of turning the board on its edge in the rack and use foam to hold it square. It works really well, and you can certainly hear the planer hit the highs and lows. After a few light passes you should hear the planer hit foam from the start of your cut to the end.

WHAT’S A GOOD WAY TO ADJUST/LEVEL MY PLANER BLADES?

[Herb] I make two line marks with a felt pen, one on the shoe, and one on the body. These lines are drawn sideways to the length of the body, and of course on the bottom side of the planer. Then I zero out my shoe to the body, and use the edge of a level straight edge with corresponding marks on it to match the marks on the planer. Install or loosen the blades enough to allow the straight edge to level the blades as you sweep the straight edge from side to side, keeping in mind that you want to stay on your marks, then when the blades are level, tighten screws, it's that easy! A note: loosen the screws only enough to move the blades freely, not where they fall or flop around.....get it?

[Cleanlines] The blades need to be set flush and even with the rear part of the base. Forget the front shoe. Lay a straight edge on the rear base and set the blades parallel and even. This is a common problem with planers but easy to fix. I reset the blades every time after sharpening.

HOW DO I SHARPEN MY PLANER BLADES?

[Cleanlines] I have a bench grinder with an 80 grit stone on one side and a hard felt honing wheel on the other side. Its not that easy to explain and there is a lot of stuff in the archives on this subject. I use a Skil 100 so I don't have the option of just buying new blades. You can buy replacement blades for the import planers for next to nothing. I recently found out that I can get a set of blades professionally sharpened for $8.00 and they are perfect. A lot of guys sharpen using wet stones but it is time consuming. Try calling the local Saw Sharpening place...they are set up for it. You can also refresh the edge of the blades by using a diamond honing tool, its kinda like a little file and are cheap at knife shops...you can do this step right on the planer without going through the removal hassle. Planers run at high R.P.M.s and don’t have to be "razor sharp" like block planes. How sharp is sharp?? For hand planes you should be able to shave hairs off your arm. For high speed planers you just need a good clean "wire" edge.

[Paul Jensen] ...I've used a progressive series of 3 thin diamond "stones" to touch up the edges of my planer's blades, while the blades are still in the tool. It works great. A steady hand and even pressure are the key. I found the diamond stones at Harbor Freight.

[Easternpacific] I never sharpen my planer knives with a high speed grinder unless you have the capability of cooling off the steel as to not lose the temper. It only takes a second for the steel to burn w/o careful handling. Take the time to remove your knives and hone them on wet stones. When there are no chips in the knives you should not have to hone much or at all.

MODIFIED POWER PLANERS… ANY SPECIAL TRICKS?

[Cleanlines] Here’s what I would do to a stock Skil 100: You might try putting a long cord on it. File and wet sand the edges of the base and nose. Sharpen and reset the blades. Loosen up the depth lever if so desired. Cut the tail of the base off if you want but its not needed...you can just go sideways into the rocker. Check the brushes, if they are "sparking" you can try cleaning them or replacing, Try to keep an extra set around. Also get a spare belt. Blow it out with air after every board.

[Herb] On my Skill-100, the first thing I did was stuck a screwdriver in the bottom of the lever slot and pushed/bent down the clicker plate to allow the depth adjustment lever to slide freely.

[Jim Phillips] Herb has it pegged, you want the adjustment moving a freely as possible. The max cut is 1/8", half is 1/16", how hard is it to figure out the spaces in between? The tone my blades make tell me immediately how deep the cut is, a lot of shapers I know wear headsets, I'd rather listen to my tool than muted silence or a CD.

[Herb] If the depth adjustment is too loose on a Hitachi/Clark planer, lift up the knob on the Hitachi, and take a small rubber band ,and wrap it around, under the knob, this will allow you have a stiffer knob movement. As far as the depth indicator, you'll have to etch your own marks as you go along. {ed note: or, buy and install one of Herb’s most excellent pistol grips, custom made for the Clark planer!]

ANY SUGGESTIONS FOR BETTER ERGONOMICS WHILE SHAPING?

[Foamdust] I cut off the handle of my Hitachi-Clark planer, ground the base of the cut off handle so it would stand at a more upright position on the planer, then expoxied it back on the base of the planer. This left a gap on the front part of the handle where it was cut off. I filled in this gap with a piece of sheet metal screwed to the handle and to the base to give it more rigidity. It really helped with my wrist ergonomic, now I'm holding the planer in a more upright position making it easier to push the planer across the surface of the blank.

[Shine] One remedy is to use gloves while working with tools like the planer -- weight-lifter's gloves with a wrist wrap are best.

[Jim Phillips] I barely hold onto the handle, lock the trigger and use the front knob to apply pressure on the front shoe. The rear handle is to guide the angle of the planer rather than holding it up. I use just my finger tips on the rear anyway, with the trigger at ready for shut down. My key board gives me more tingles than a planer ever has. I hold the planer at arms length, rather than being right over it. As I turn at the ends of the blank, it is almost like a reverse drop knee with my left arm tucked against the belt housing and the palm of my hand pushing the rear of the planer in a nearly straight line. I see too many shapers with the planer cocked around too far, running nearly sideways, this is OK for up in the tip of the nose rocker, but for getting the truest line, the more base that is in contact with the work, the evener the line.

WHAT ABOUT MODIFIED BLADES?

[Jim Phillips] I grind my own blades, I first hit upon this idea in 1969. It isn't that scary of a project, my father and grandfather were both custom tool makers in the wood trade. The idea is to get the corners of the blades out of the work and cut down on scarring of the foam.

[Cleanlines] My planer blades have a slight radius to them. I do it on a bench grinder.