This year the base material is transparent so I added a simple graphic to the bottom of the ski with acrylic paint. To prevent the paint from bleeding underneath the stencil, I applied spray glue to the stencil first. I bought this glue not realizing it was only "general performance"; this just means it's not actually sticky - which was perfect for this application, but not for actually gluing things.
The next step was to layup the ski and press it. Since it had been a year since I last used the press, I tightened the bolts, perform a pressure test, and verified that there were no cracks in the wood members. This year I went back to a
MAS FLAG epoxy (medium viscosity resin and hardener). I used this epoxy for my prototype and year 2 skis and it has performed well over the years. I have used the prototype skis (Goliath) on a nearby fly ash dump several times. This is kind of an accelerated damage test for the skis.
The image below shows the skis after removal from the press before the flashing was cut off.
I used my jig saw to cut the flashing off; however, someday I plan to have a more powerful band saw to do the work. I purchased a new belt sander over the winter with a 6" x 48" belt; this made quick work of cleaning up the edges. I still used my hand belt sander to smooth the edge bevel.
The skis are now ready for graphics and top sheet which will be applied during the final press stage.
