- Location
- Buffalo, NY
Big thanks to @DrewOregonian for the idea on this method for lining up the pump. Next move will be gluing in the tunnel.
FX1 Build; Wide Tray, Shortened Pole, Kawasaki 140mm Pump Swap
- Thread starter jpswift1
- Start date
- Location
- Buffalo, NY
After getting the tunnel lined up with the pump bolted to it, it looks like there's still just a hair of trimming that needs to be done on the rear of the 144mm pump tunnel piece since it's sitting a little bit too high. Other than that, I'm thrilled with how well everything fits so far.
- Location
- Buffalo, NY
I'm getting ready to get some thickened epoxy and chopped strand fiberglass ready to glue the Tom21 tunnel in after getting the pump and driveshaft perfectly aligned. The only issue is that the 144mm pump tunnel sticks down quite a bit (it sticks down a little farther down in the area of the front of the intake grate compared to the rear section under the ride plate), as seen in the pictures below. Should I cut some of the excess material off the 144mm pump tunnel after I get it glued in with the thickened epoxy?
- Location
- Asheville, NC
Yeah, When I epoxied the tunnel in place I put paper underneath the hull to catch the extra epoxy that leaked through the openings. You could also use a piece of cardboard. I would recommend leaving the alignment jig in place, with the key installed on the shaft and into the jig, while you epoxy the tunnel in place. In the very bottom crevice, where you will be cutting back or grinding away, use some slightly thickened epoxy to fill that void without air pockets. Then put the thicker epoxy over that and holding the tunnel in place.
The reason I am suggesting this is because when you grind away the part of the tunnel sticking down from the hull, you want what’s behind it to be solid. Because yes, you will grind away the part sticking down from the hull and shape it into the existing hull and there will be plenty of support behind it to be solid when you remove what you need to.
Ideally you want to lay your glass at the same time you epoxy but in this situation I think it is best to epoxy the tunnel in place and maybe use a few small pieces of glass where you can. THEN when it is cured, verify alignment and that the tunnel is secure and will not move. Once you have done this, you can lay your final glass around/over the tunnel to finalize the graft. Once that is cured, you are ready to flip the hull and grind away any excess epoxy or hanging protrusions.
You are doing great though, keep up the good work and hang in there!
The reason I am suggesting this is because when you grind away the part of the tunnel sticking down from the hull, you want what’s behind it to be solid. Because yes, you will grind away the part sticking down from the hull and shape it into the existing hull and there will be plenty of support behind it to be solid when you remove what you need to.
Ideally you want to lay your glass at the same time you epoxy but in this situation I think it is best to epoxy the tunnel in place and maybe use a few small pieces of glass where you can. THEN when it is cured, verify alignment and that the tunnel is secure and will not move. Once you have done this, you can lay your final glass around/over the tunnel to finalize the graft. Once that is cured, you are ready to flip the hull and grind away any excess epoxy or hanging protrusions.
You are doing great though, keep up the good work and hang in there!
- Location
- Buffalo, NY
I didn't buy any 1708 Biax glass yet, but could I use some small pieces of 3M Bondo fiberglass cloth (seen here in this link https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/p/d/b40068244/ ) in addition to the thickened epoxy with chopped strand for setting my tunnel in?
Thank you for the kind words. It's a big project for me since I've never done this degree of fiberglass work on a ski before, but you guys have been extremely helpful.
- Location
- Asheville, NC
You could use some pieces of that thin cloth. It’s not going to hurt anything and you don’t need much, I just did that to give a little support before doing my final glassing.
- Location
- Buffalo, NY
Sounds good. It never hurts to overbuild things like this. I figured it was just to further strengthen those larger gaps between the bottom hull and the tunnel. I'm going to give this a shot tomorrow. I got everything sanded and washed and cleaned and prepped today.