I have wanted to make a longboard deck for some time, however I was having trouble finding cheap veneers. I started thinking about using popsicle sticks to construct my own veneers instead. Popsicle sticks are made from baltic birch, which is used to make wooden aircraft so I thought It might work for a longboard as well. Here's what I did.
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Signing UpStep 1: Shaping the template
I figured out the shape I wanted and scaled it so i could use 5 sheets of 8 1/2 x 11" paper as a template. I just taped the sheets together cut it out and stood beside it to make sure it felt right.
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Could you please provide more info on the flex of the board? Could you also state the thickness of the board after completion?
Sweet instructable, though
Panel construction with a core is very complex. The aerospace industry has utilized this concept for years. Without getting too technical I will try to describe the problem so that the readers here may be able to avoid the pitfalls.
The main purpose of utilizing a core for the center of a panel is to reduce the panel weight. That being said, panel construction with a core presents problems that may or may not be present in a panel without a "core".
As I stated a core's main purpose is to reduce the weight of a panel. But, it does have a structural purpose. That is, it's purpose is to prevent the surface components from coming together as the panel is bent. Consequently, it need only be strong in the direction perpendicular to surface panels. It can even have hollows in it. One very good core is a honeycomb core. It has strength in only one axis. It makes an extremely light panel.
The only problem then is that the surface must be as close to being homogeneous as possible. The surface is what carries the stresses due to panel loading. Thus the name for these panels is "stressed skin panel".
As I said, the surface must be as near to homogeneous as possible.
The panel created here is far from being homogeneous. The core, as I have described, would not be able to "absorb" these stresses. The panel would fail.
Instead of utilizing the weight saving advantage of a core the author has utilized the "concept" of plywood construction, where alternating layers are at 90 degrees to the mating layer. As the author stated, the purpose is to utilize the grain direction strength of wood. The “cross grain” strength of wood is very low in comparison to the strength in the grain direction. The panel, as constructed here, is a lot heavier than it needs to be and is wasteful of material.
That being said, This panel could have had voids designed into it. The sticks could have been cut in half and then been separated during layup, by say 1 inch in the lengthwise direction. Care would be taken to not allow to much adhesive to enter these cavities for it would be wasteful and non-productive and make for a heavier panel "board".
I am sorry for the brevity of this description of panel construction, but it has taken us years to reach the state of the art as it applies to "stressed shin panels". I could not possibly afford a proper description here in just a few words.
I do hope I have shed some light on panel construction. I hope that the author, as well as others, could take advantage of what was presented here.
Cheers!
Had you considered the 5 minute epoxies? Possibly could allow the process to continue on the fly without the need for complete vacuum bagging?
Cheers to you!