ISSA - International Slalom Skateboarding Association

after experimenting with precious wood veneers like rosewood (palisander) and zebrawood (zebrano) i really dig those at the moment.
inspired by the powerful and elegant aesthetics of 50´s wooden speedboats i´ll call them after european lakes and yachting resorts.



i just clearpainted the first two new shapes:

- the "Lac Léman", a 88 cm tailkicker now with less camber but with a really mellow concave in the front and in the tail.
4 ply ash veneer, different glasses, final thin rosewood veneer

- the "Lago Maggiore", a 78 cm hybrid slalom shape also with slight concave in the front.
4 ply ash veneer, different glasses, glass and rosewood stringer beneath a final thin glass layer.
(this one will be very difficult to reproduce since i found ash and rosewood with matching nearly straight grain.)

Pretty!!!

Like I can't imagine Sandra Bullock's naked a$$ looking any better than that

You made me drool all over my keyboard.

Thanks for the props guys!

beautiful boards.cf

Decks look great Alex! Think you ought to put one together with triple chrome outlet vents and ultra polished footstops a la Riva:



http://www.riva-world.com

By the way, did you photograph those decks with wet varnish by chance?


Sam

Sam Gordon wrote:Decks look great Alex! Think you ought to put one together with triple chrome outlet vents and ultra polished footstops a la Riva:

http://www.riva-world.com

By the way, did you photograph those decks with wet varnish by chance?


Sam

yes, i did. but believe me they are as shiny dry.



i took the pic at an angle cause the reflection of the flash was too bright.

they are not even polished yet.
the grain of the rosewood comes out nicer and shinier with the kicktail deck cause there it is the final layer whereas it is behind a glass layer with the hybridslalom deck.

i´ll make some daylight shots tomorrow after polishing.

of course they are far from such perfection:



yeah, i know i wouldn´t be bored with 60 and some millions in my account.



btw: i found some reddish dark walnut veneer.

how about me showing you the way to get these suckers superglossy without using any laquers at all,not even polishing the decks afterwards?
you are kindly invited for a laminating session,if you want.

Poser!


rmn

Those are really beautiful decks, man! Your should be very pleased. I dig that old hardwood powerboat aesthetic, those things are awesome. Keep after it, brah! I love when something functional becomse so beautiful it becomse a work of art. I'm a fan of your stuff, and in fact I own one of your decks and absolutely love it, rides like magic.

Ted Hall wrote:Those are really beautiful decks, man! Your should be very pleased. I dig that old hardwood powerboat aesthetic, those things are awesome. Keep after it, brah! I love when something functional becomse so beautiful it becomse a work of art. I'm a fan of your stuff, and in fact I own one of your decks and absolutely love it, rides like magic.

Thanks Ted!
Which deck do you have? A Foamy? Bought at this Colorado All Sports shop or at Dan Gessmer directly? Glad that you like it!

cheers
alex

Alex Luxat wrote:

Ted Hall wrote:Those are really beautiful decks, man! Your should be very pleased. I dig that old hardwood powerboat aesthetic, those things are awesome. Keep after it, brah! I love when something functional becomse so beautiful it becomse a work of art. I'm a fan of your stuff, and in fact I own one of your decks and absolutely love it, rides like magic.

Thanks Ted!
Which deck do you have? A Foamy? Bought at this Colorado All Sports shop or at Dan Gessmer directly? Glad that you like it!

cheers
alex

Hey Alex -- I have your 33" foamy -- super light weight with medium flex, just the right snap for me. Sweetest deck I've ever ridden, floats like a dream. I got it from Bola at All Boards Sports, although I know Dan Gessmer has a few of your decks, too.

Hey, let me ask you a question: My 16-year-old son smacked the nose up, ran it into a curb. The front is a tiny bit frayed, slightly delaminated. It's not a big ding, but I want to seal it up. How do you suggest I repair it? Some kind of resin or glue? And is there some edge protection I could get for the front & rear to protect it from future dings?

Many thanks --- Ted

Ted Hall wrote: Hey Alex -- I have your 33" foamy -- super light weight with medium flex, just the right snap for me. Sweetest deck I've ever ridden, floats like a dream. I got it from Bola at All Boards Sports, although I know Dan Gessmer has a few of your decks, too.

Hey, let me ask you a question: My 16-year-old son smacked the nose up, ran it into a curb. The front is a tiny bit frayed, slightly delaminated. It's not a big ding, but I want to seal it up. How do you suggest I repair it? Some kind of resin or glue? And is there some edge protection I could get for the front & rear to protect it from future dings?

Many thanks --- Ted

Hey Ted,

sure you can re-laminate the nosetip:
Use 2 component "5 minute epoxy" or any epoxy based fast curing 2 component glue you can get at a home depot or any hardware store.
Usually they are easy to mix 1:1 binder:hardener.
Glue the nose (eventually using a syringe).
Put cling film / plastic wrap on it as an anti adhesive and clamp beween wood blocks/boards.
That should do it.
You can then sand it after 12h or so.

You can get edge protection from either a shop that deals in custom-car supply or one that is specialized in rubber (like hoses, foam, etc.).
In germany it is called "edge protection", it´s like rubber coated metal clips in a ribbon and you can shorten it with pliers. It´s normally used like if you cut a sunroof in your car and so.
It comes for different thicknesses. Get a thicker one for 2-4 mm edges.



You just push it on and maybe gently hammer it into place.
It really clings to the deck if there is griptape.
I would suggest using a few drops of superglue if you want to make sure that you don´t lose it.

Alex, this post follows the design theme rather than being skate-related.

Many years ago (1991) I was a van driver/ roving journalist for a magazine called the Thames Chronicle. It covered river life and lasted less than twelve issues. One of the events down at Henley that we covered was the Thames Traditional Boat rally. Being only aware of the rather smart slippper launches as elegant river transport, I was astonished to see a great diversity of beautifully finished craft, from well-appointed skiffs to steam-powered canoes. Some elegant, some bizarre! Check this:

http://www.tradboatrally.com/gallery5.html

Alex Luxat wrote:

Ted Hall wrote: Hey Alex -- I have your 33" foamy -- super light weight with medium flex, just the right snap for me. Sweetest deck I've ever ridden, floats like a dream. I got it from Bola at All Boards Sports, although I know Dan Gessmer has a few of your decks, too.

Hey, let me ask you a question: My 16-year-old son smacked the nose up, ran it into a curb. The front is a tiny bit frayed, slightly delaminated. It's not a big ding, but I want to seal it up. How do you suggest I repair it? Some kind of resin or glue? And is there some edge protection I could get for the front & rear to protect it from future dings?

Many thanks --- Ted

Hey Ted,

sure you can re-laminate the nosetip:
Use 2 component "5 minute epoxy" or any epoxy based fast curing 2 component glue you can get at a home depot or any hardware store.
Usually they are easy to mix 1:1 binder:hardener.
Glue the nose (eventually using a syringe).
Put cling film / plastic wrap on it as an anti adhesive and clamp beween wood blocks/boards.
That should do it.
You can then sand it after 12h or so.

You can get edge protection from either a shop that deals in custom-car supply or one that is specialized in rubber (like hoses, foam, etc.).
In germany it is called "edge protection", it´s like rubber coated metal clips in a ribbon and you can shorten it with pliers. It´s normally used like if you cut a sunroof in your car and so.
It comes for different thicknesses. Get a thicker one for 2-4 mm edges.



You just push it on and maybe gently hammer it into place.
It really clings to the deck if there is griptape.
I would suggest using a few drops of superglue if you want to make sure that you don´t lose it.

Thanks for the excellent advice, Alex, and very thorough repair instrucitons, I appreciate it! I'll do as you suggested, I'm sure that'll take care of it, and I'll look for the edge protection. Many thanks --- Ted

Ted Hall wrote: Thanks for the excellent advice, Alex, and very thorough repair instrucitons, I appreciate it! I'll do as you suggested, I'm sure that'll take care of it, and I'll look for the edge protection. Many thanks --- Ted

Glad I could help.

Sam Gordon wrote:Alex, this post follows the design theme rather than being skate-related.

Many years ago (1991) I was a van driver/ roving journalist for a magazine called the Thames Chronicle. It covered river life and lasted less than twelve issues. One of the events down at Henley that we covered was the Thames Traditional Boat rally. Being only aware of the rather smart slippper launches as elegant river transport, I was astonished to see a great diversity of beautifully finished craft, from well-appointed skiffs to steam-powered canoes. Some elegant, some bizarre! Check this:

http://www.tradboatrally.com/gallery5.html

Wow, there are really some amazing boats on this rally.
I dig this setup:

Hey Ted, since youre in the states, just go to the auto supply shop and buy some door edge guards. They come in black, white and chrome. Slotted rubber strips with silicone adhesive in the middle......cut it to the length you want, cut a "v" at the center point, so it folds back without bunching up and just press it on....sticks well and comes off if you ever have to remove it. And since there's no metal strip, it wont damage the paint.
Here's a pic of one of my old Turners with one.

Hey thanks for the suggestion, Christopher, that sounds like an excellent solution. And I really dig your Turner, very sweet board.

Alex, I did as you suggested with the epoxy, and it worked so well you can barely tell it ever got dinged -- perfect repair job, looks clean and feels incredibly strong. Thanks again for the excellent suggestions, I really appreciate your help. We had a warm day last weekend, and I took my Wefunk out for a cruise -- such a sweet ride, you are a master, amigo! Many thanks.