I'm prepping the molds for my next mast. This one will be about 84cm. My previous one was about 54cm, and I've pretty much outgrown it.
From what I have gleaned on this forum, the best way to get this stiff is to lay the carbon cloth so the fibers lie at a 45 degree angle.
The core is going to be a piece of bass wood without much shape to it, so there's going to be a lot of epoxy. Hopefully its not going to be too heavy to float.
I am also working on a new wing that will be about 55 X 20 cm, and a foam core. I still need to fill in a few spots and paint
it with epoxy paint.
All of my molds were cut on my X-Carve CNC machine. I have had some pretty good success riding my foil so far.
Smaller, actually. I built that one out of an old windsurfer that I broke on a hard landing. And I overbuilt it. Its HEAVY. I am going to build something smaller and MUCH lighter.
The molds aren't wood. They are PVC, and covered in finishing putty. I'm going to paint them with appliance epoxy before I lay up carbon in them.
You need your carbon running at 45 degrees to prevent twisting, but at 90 degrees (along the mast ) to prevent flexing. It is hard to get a mast stiff enough when going longer in a homebuild, that's where the production masts have the edge.
You need your carbon running at 45 degrees to prevent twisting, but at 90 degrees (along the mast ) to prevent flexing. It is hard to get a mast stiff enough when going longer in a homebuild, that's where the production masts have the edge.
Thanks. I am going to alternate between a high K tow cloth at 45, unidirectional lengthwise, and a nice twill weave on the outside layer.
The much longer mast came out good, and makes a big difference. Because I have a much larger margin for error, I got my longest rides so far today.
Its still a little twisty, but much stiffer than my previous masts.
The larger front wing I made worked OK, but seemed a bit unstable, and I couldn't ride downwind with it. It may need a bigger stabilizer behind it. I switched to my older wing, and that rode great.
I may also add a vertical fin to the back of my fuselage.