***See below for first impressions on completed build***
I need to do some required work on my Roundnose in the offseason, and I figured I'd do some other stuff, too.
Quite a bit comes from necessity and figuring out what I need/want from my ski after riding it hard for a year the way it now is.
I am still trying to determine exactly what I'll do, to what extent, and what to buy.
Input very welcome here.
NEED
Gotta defoam the thing. It is waterlogged and heavy.
Just this past season I sealed & refoamed my Squarenose, and that thing is a feather-weight compared to my Roundnose. I can stand in the tray of the Square without it sinking much.
Do the same on my Roundie, and it's instant tailstand.
Plus, the inserts are leaking water out.
It's gotta be done.
I don't think I'll be refoaming it.
Instead, it will get reinforced in the tray area. I will put a drainplug in on each side. That will keep the back end light and water-free.
After seeing Cracker do that and calling him nuts, I've followed his experiences with it and came to the conclusion that it's not a bad idea.
Any amount of water that comes in during normal riding is miniscule and will be drained after each riding day.
The only way to get BIG amounts of water in that would cause a serious problem would be a catastrophic hull leak - i.e., you run into something and split the hull open.
I am tired of waterlogged foam.
I need to seal my engine compartment better. That ski sinks very quickly when it's upside down. A lot of this has to do with the one-way valve letting air out in a hurry, but the hood/seal and the pole bracket let water in badly.
I need to extend the breather tube for the pole.
WANT
Eliminate the current one way valve. It sinks my ski when it's upside down. Additionally, sealing PVC pipe to the SMC hull is tough. The oneway exit out the hull is one of my water ingress points, in fact.
I don't like the idea of eliminating the one-way altogether and having only electric bilge pumps to get water out.
I am considering getting the Blowsion oneway kit. That valve is different from regular oneway valves. The spring tension is higher and it's not a flap but rather the entire disc moves forward/backward (if I understand it right).
I think they supply Glass tube, so it would seal better.
I need to research this a bit more, of course.
It's just that my current valve actuates to easily and that the PVC pipe is crap.
I'd like to eliminate the rear exhaust altogether, but I won't do it because of the noise level. Sorry Holmes, can't do it.
I would like to get a shorter pole. Right now, I run the complete X-Metal gambit. -2 Pole, bracket, Straight steering.
It's too long still.
I think I'll sell that pole and go for a -4 pole.
I will sell my current hood. It's been a good strong hood, but it's heavy and doesn't seal right. I am not sure whether to buy another hood or just to cut my stocker I still got kicking around.
I think I'll have money for either a new pole or a new hood, sooooo......I guess I'll butcher my stock hood first and go from there.
Now for the most controversial item on my list.....Shortening my hull
I am considering doing this...but I don't know if I should.
Everyone that's done it loves it. But it seems drastic.
This being a Roundnose, it would necessitate removing the rear two rideplate inserts and moving them further forward.
I am 5'5", 190lbs.
To cut or not to cut....INPUT PLEASE
Some pics of the ski as it currently is configured.
As of yesterday, April 26th 2008, it's officially done.
I did defoam completely, removed all tubes, cleaned them, reinstalled them, and sealed them.
I put extruded polystyrene back in as foam (water-proof) with a little bit of 2-part foam to fill the cracks.
I also installed drainplugs.
The hull lost about 30lbs of weight.
The bilge appears to be sealed well now. I have a better fitting WDK hood and an OEM hood seal. I also went to a shorter, dual-breather XMW pole (vs the single breather last year)
I run a Blowsion one way valve now and am very pleased with it's performance. No leakage.
I got rid of the front exhaust. Still loud with the XMW box, but not like last year.
After last year's -2 inch pole setup, I now have a -4 pole with the -2.5 XMW steering. Supposedly, the pole bracket brings it forward another inch, so I am sitting at -7.5 over stock. I am a short guy....5'6" at best.
Still, I am loving it. Short poles rule!
And, the most controversial item was the hull shortening....well, it's also the best! Handling is a dream! Very squirrely, very quick, very fast steering. I love it.
It still carves super-nice thanks to Tubbies II.
All in all, a good build.
See third pic for completed build
I need to do some required work on my Roundnose in the offseason, and I figured I'd do some other stuff, too.
Quite a bit comes from necessity and figuring out what I need/want from my ski after riding it hard for a year the way it now is.
I am still trying to determine exactly what I'll do, to what extent, and what to buy.
Input very welcome here.
NEED
Gotta defoam the thing. It is waterlogged and heavy.
Just this past season I sealed & refoamed my Squarenose, and that thing is a feather-weight compared to my Roundnose. I can stand in the tray of the Square without it sinking much.
Do the same on my Roundie, and it's instant tailstand.
Plus, the inserts are leaking water out.
It's gotta be done.
I don't think I'll be refoaming it.
Instead, it will get reinforced in the tray area. I will put a drainplug in on each side. That will keep the back end light and water-free.
After seeing Cracker do that and calling him nuts, I've followed his experiences with it and came to the conclusion that it's not a bad idea.
Any amount of water that comes in during normal riding is miniscule and will be drained after each riding day.
The only way to get BIG amounts of water in that would cause a serious problem would be a catastrophic hull leak - i.e., you run into something and split the hull open.
I am tired of waterlogged foam.
I need to seal my engine compartment better. That ski sinks very quickly when it's upside down. A lot of this has to do with the one-way valve letting air out in a hurry, but the hood/seal and the pole bracket let water in badly.
I need to extend the breather tube for the pole.
WANT
Eliminate the current one way valve. It sinks my ski when it's upside down. Additionally, sealing PVC pipe to the SMC hull is tough. The oneway exit out the hull is one of my water ingress points, in fact.
I don't like the idea of eliminating the one-way altogether and having only electric bilge pumps to get water out.
I am considering getting the Blowsion oneway kit. That valve is different from regular oneway valves. The spring tension is higher and it's not a flap but rather the entire disc moves forward/backward (if I understand it right).
I think they supply Glass tube, so it would seal better.
I need to research this a bit more, of course.
It's just that my current valve actuates to easily and that the PVC pipe is crap.
I'd like to eliminate the rear exhaust altogether, but I won't do it because of the noise level. Sorry Holmes, can't do it.
I would like to get a shorter pole. Right now, I run the complete X-Metal gambit. -2 Pole, bracket, Straight steering.
It's too long still.
I think I'll sell that pole and go for a -4 pole.
I will sell my current hood. It's been a good strong hood, but it's heavy and doesn't seal right. I am not sure whether to buy another hood or just to cut my stocker I still got kicking around.
I think I'll have money for either a new pole or a new hood, sooooo......I guess I'll butcher my stock hood first and go from there.
Now for the most controversial item on my list.....Shortening my hull
I am considering doing this...but I don't know if I should.
Everyone that's done it loves it. But it seems drastic.
This being a Roundnose, it would necessitate removing the rear two rideplate inserts and moving them further forward.
I am 5'5", 190lbs.
To cut or not to cut....INPUT PLEASE
Some pics of the ski as it currently is configured.
As of yesterday, April 26th 2008, it's officially done.
I did defoam completely, removed all tubes, cleaned them, reinstalled them, and sealed them.
I put extruded polystyrene back in as foam (water-proof) with a little bit of 2-part foam to fill the cracks.
I also installed drainplugs.
The hull lost about 30lbs of weight.
The bilge appears to be sealed well now. I have a better fitting WDK hood and an OEM hood seal. I also went to a shorter, dual-breather XMW pole (vs the single breather last year)
I run a Blowsion one way valve now and am very pleased with it's performance. No leakage.
I got rid of the front exhaust. Still loud with the XMW box, but not like last year.
After last year's -2 inch pole setup, I now have a -4 pole with the -2.5 XMW steering. Supposedly, the pole bracket brings it forward another inch, so I am sitting at -7.5 over stock. I am a short guy....5'6" at best.
Still, I am loving it. Short poles rule!
And, the most controversial item was the hull shortening....well, it's also the best! Handling is a dream! Very squirrely, very quick, very fast steering. I love it.
It still carves super-nice thanks to Tubbies II.
All in all, a good build.
See third pic for completed build
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