Here is my third pair. One ski has a denim top from an old pair of blue jeans and the other has a top made from a button up cotton shirt. Both pieces of clothing were purchased at Goodwill for $5 each. I sewed together pieces of fabric and then saturated it with epoxy. I let the fabric dry on painter's plastic to the point of getting rather sticky and then I hung them from a bike rack. There is NO PLASTIC TOPSHEET. The jean ski came out very nice. I left a little of the back pocket on the tail and the fabric is smooth throughout. It seemed very tough and thick. Although I was not able to cut the treated denim with scissors, the shirt cut easily. I would not try treating this thin of fabric in this way again. It wrinkled easily. There are a few wrinkles that were pressed into the ski around mid front of the striped ski. The shirt pocket was left on and is seen close tot he tip... it is barely noticeable in real life. The cores are maple.... I will leave then thicker next time. Two layers of 220z triaxial. The template is that of the Seth Pistols. I think they will be a little too flexible despite my glass choice and their width. They are just shy of 170cm. I think I will scrap my mold before building another pair and build an adjustable one.
These skis were built in Sarasota FL where my parents just moved. I will be graduating this May and will not have the time to build in FL or the space (most likely) to build in Chicago or wherever I end up. ... Im applying for jobs right now if anyone has an suggestions.... economics and biology degree with work experience in both fields. Anyways, it may be a long time before I get to build again so I hope these hold up. They would get their first shot at snow until Spring Break where I will head to Whitefish Resort in MT for a glorious week.
My next pair, whenever it may be, will either be ptex, glass, then just one piece of solid shaped wood or another denim treated pair with two different shades of jean... Hopefully incorporating those brass jean rivets and a worn fabric look.
I should probably add that the top sheets may absorb an amount of moisture but there is so much epoxy and material that the care will be unaffected. This has yet to really be tested. Also, I need to sand off some excess epoxy that show up as shiny spots in the pics.
Cool idea with the graphics/topsheets. I am curious as to how they will hold up, as I have been pondering doing something similar to reduce the material costs and weight.
yeah I think I mounted more forward that most of you would prefer for your ride. To be honest, I didn't give it much thought. I just plopped the bindings down and made sure they were even from one ski to the next. Come to think of it. The only time I used a ruler during the whole production was when centering the binding from the sides. I like to eyeball things. I put a slalom ski next to my alignment to see how close I was to an alpine racing ski setup. I remember seeing a very long post about mounting position but I decided to just go it by feel. I did this with the first pair and it worked well. I spend 85% of my time on center mounted skis so a "traditional" mounting would be weird for me. I have really adapted to a forward mount.
I am 5'11" and these aren't quite 170's... so yeah they are shorter than I want but I'm used to 160 slalom racers on flat midwestern hills and 170 park skis. I would have made 177s if i could have picked. Im ready to try out my dad's new 180 seth pistols... I think i have only as long as a 180 once before... Glen Plake would have a heart attack if he read that statement.
