An Italian shaper (La Ola Customs http://www.laolakiteboards.it ) tell me
he no longer laminate his boards's topsheets with vacuum (expecially
texalium layups)

he laminate his boards in the old style "surf-way", with overlapped
rails an 2-shots laminates session;
He gives the rocker with a vaacum lamination, then laminate top with
an atmosferic layup
He tell me that vaccum, only for topsheets (because reinforcments on
op don't need overlapping), it's a waist of time,with atmoferic layup
he have less wrinkels ,he can fix mistakes and the weight is almost
the same.......
wath do you tink About?
Cheers

if you bag the bottom but not the top you will have a difference in density of the top and bottom layers, this will lead to a difference in strength between the layers.

its not really that mega important with boards as they are typically loaded on the bottom skin in compression, ie your weight flexing the tips up, by loading the centre.


so you can vary the cloth to get whatever results you need.

but bottom line, a board with the top and bottom bagged and vacced will be stronger than one with the bottom bagged and the top not, if made of otherwise identical material.


as a total side issue its much easier to retain the pattern in a material like texallium or aluminised carbon if you dont bag it, but there is no structural advantage to this method.

to be honest texallium is a totally shit material for boards and best just used for its surface finish, weight for weight glass is stronger.

"S" glass is stronger, texalium is E glass coated of metal, mechanical propieties are the same..

La Ola (the shaper) tell me with atmosferic layup you have a laminate with more resin,-----> more flexible----->better for impact strenght..

maybe i will try in my next board...

By

theres a perfect ratio for resin to cloth for everything, varying it chnages all sorts of properties, without knowing the specific weights of cloth and thickness used and resin ratio its pretty worthless discussing it.

who the hell gets impacts on the top of their board, if he needs to beef that he needs more glass over the heel, or a better core material.


to be honest this sounds like a total crock, and an excuse for lazy layup.