What to make hunting skis from. We move along the white path. Areas of application of different types of plywood

When deep snow falls, hiking without skis in the steppe and forest becomes impossible.
Different types of skis are used in different areas. In Siberia, Evenki and Yakut hunters use short skis, shoulder-length, but quite wide - up to 25 cm. To an unaccustomed person, such skis seem extremely uncomfortable. in the Altai, Sayan, and European north of Russia they use skis of a different type: they do not exceed the height of a hunter and are not wider than 15-18 cm.
For forest hunting, skis are usually made of “kamas” - lined with fur on the underside. The best camas are considered to be deer and elk. Hunting on unlined skis, especially on rough terrain and in the mountains, is impossible; when climbing without poles, the skis slip and the hunter gets tired quickly.
The choice of skis is determined by three main conditions. Depending on the terrain, you need either boot skis or camas skis. The width of the skis depends on the nature of the snow cover. for soft, loose snow they require wider ones, and for dense snow cover - narrower ones.
For hunting in the forest you need short skis, and in open areas - longer ones.

CAMAS SKIS
hemmed skis are made from fine-grained seasoned spruce; of course, the spruce spool must be thick enough to cover the width of the skis; the spool must be split and blanks cut out of the blocks. The layers of wood should be arranged in the same way as on skis, with year-long arcs to the sliding surface of the blank, which must be dried for 20-30 days, after which you can begin processing them; the toe bend on hemmed skis is very small. sock straps - yuks - are attached through holes turned in place on the feet. the rear end of the skis is also bent slightly; the middle of the skis should have a slight spring - the bend after the skis are completely finished, they begin to cover them with camas. Camas are sewn with reindeer veins along the width of the skis so that they can be pulled over the upper edges of the ski. from the inside side of the kamas, like the lower surface of the ski, they are smeared with hot fish glue and then stretched. the edges of the kamas on the upper side of the ski are pulled together with threads, and in this state they are allowed to dry when the glue dries, the excess edges of the kamas on the upper side of the ski are evenly trimmed, and the skis are ready. for skis raised on a toe strap, the rear end should outweigh the camas, well glued with fish glue, for years. on hunting skis, it’s a good idea to make holes in the socks so that you can tie them to a cord and drag them along with you. When hunting on skis, it is convenient to use one ski pole. the stick should be the height of the hunter. a ring is attached to the lower end, just like on sports sticks. a ski pole makes walking easier, and when shooting from a rifle it can also replace a bipod. for the summer, camas skis need to be tied with the sliding side together, just like the skis, with a spreader in the middle. To prevent moths from killing the camas, you need to wrap the skis in newspaper soaked in kerosene.

Holidays today coincided with frosts. Forced downtime, and especially during the season - oh, how unnerving. I decided to start making hunting (winter) skis. And time seems to be ticking for the future perspective.

I’ll start right away by telling you how I make “winter” kitty skis for walking in snow above the knee! Autumn skis are shorter and therefore stronger. Ski height at eyebrow (approx. 180 cm). Width is 21 cm. Everything is simple here: 60-70 kg (hunter) _ 16-18 cm, 70-80 kg _ 18-20 cm, for 80 kg preferably more than 20 cm. If you make wider skis - for example 24 cm (walking through the forest on them is very inconvenient - you won’t be able to squeeze between the trees, on someone else’s ski track - you’ll quarrel, and your legs are always “splayed”).

We chop out the blanks (wood) in the spring or autumn. I store it at a height in a ventilated room (in a woodshed under a roof) with the wane facing up (since the process of rotting may begin at the point where the bark comes into contact with another tree). After the summer, I cut down the bark (so that the resin comes out) and again in the same place. Trees are stored for at least two “years”. Of course, you can speed up the drying process, but firstly, you prepare several pairs at once, and most importantly, with accelerated drying, cracks form at the ends. The tree is usually 200 cm long (if you make it 230-250 cm for the first time). Photo of aspen cuttings.

good wood - the skis are very light, the main thing is not to over plan. Need impregnation or painting. And of course in the “correct” glue. If you glue it with “carpenter’s” glue, then it’s better not to walk in the steam (thaw) (the kitties will start to fall off).

There were spruce trees - I made them from them.

Top view. In order to plan less, I measure out 3-4 cm, draw a line, make cuts to the line and cut it down (I don’t chop off the wood when cutting it out). Experts do not recommend it (I haven’t gone into the science on this matter - it may be related to the drying process - I do as they recommended). The electric planer is a miracle of technology!! First, I cut off the bottom (preferably it should be even) and a little bit of the edges, 2-3 cm, so that they don’t wear out too much (the pussy). Next is the top with a smooth descent to the edges. I correct it manually.

I try to make the middle (the place where the fasteners are attached to the board) level. I select the middle from the bottom of the ski.

The boards are ready. Next, we lower them into a bucket, pour water, turn on the boiler and close the lid (so that it heats up quickly and does not steam). We insert a cap between the boards. I boil for 1.5-2 hours.

We clamp it into the “machine” and make any angle you need. I don’t “like” sharp “corners” that get cut into the snow. You can only walk on the crust, otherwise if there is no rise, it’s pure torture.
We use a stick to adjust the “angle” (knock it out little by little) so that the tree gets used to it.
We harden the skis on both sides. I don’t bend the backs (personally I “don’t like it” - but that’s my opinion).

Toes and heels (beginning of sawing) towards the nose or heel (since when sawing to the ski, a flake of wood may occur). I cut it out piece by piece - just don’t rush (otherwise you can split it in an instant).

After sawing and cutting (planing on both sides) - the thickness at the ends is 2-3 mm - the path is 2 cm. I mark marks with a pencil symmetrically under the holes (about 2 cm). I drill d=2 mm. I burn holes for the thread with a hot awl. When burned, the edges become hard and the thread does not cut through the wood under load.

We are looking for the center of the ski; I shift it towards the heel by 3 cm and secure it after marking with glue and screws. If the ski is thin - screws - from the bottom, if thicker - from the top (in this report - 2 options). After marking, I use a thin drill to make several holes to temporarily secure it (if on top of the screws, I insert a few nails, if from below, a few screws from above). When applied to glue, the sliding process begins and catching the middle is oh so difficult.

Ah, incorrectly installed mount - 100% moving to the side when moving!!

This photo shows the mount from below. If when tightening the self-tapping screws there are some slippage, it’s not a problem (it’s better if the fastening is reliable). We burn the edges of the cracks with an awl (then glue will get there and everything will stick together).

Pull the thick thread (you have to tinker with this). Preferably under load (you can rest the ski against the ceiling so that it bends a little). I pull it with my hands - pass it through the adjacent hole and clamp it with an awl - then tie the knots. It turns out like a stretched string!? Using 3-4 wire staples for each thread, we nail it “to the bend” of the ski. You can screw long brackets and nail them.

I strip kitties from the very hoof along the inside of the leg. I cut it after the carcass has been completely cut up. And there is less wool and it is more useful for business. Depending on the size of the animal (you look where the hair went long - it retreated a little - even if it was a wide place). I rolled it up in a bag and cut off the excess at home - the dogs would chew it off or burn it in the oven.
I strip it and pull it onto the boards. I make sure to stretch it out wide and don’t spare the nails.
The bottom, where the skin is thick, is cut off on the sides so that a strip of 13-15 cm remains and I also stretch it with force (the more you stretch it, the thinner the pussy will be).
This is followed by drying away from the stove (a week or even 2) and storage. I tie each animal to a wire and hang it on a perch until use. The gallery has photos from comm. (“So that the moth doesn’t eat”).

Now we choose (it’s good when there is one) for each ski separately! We weigh the skis and decide on which ones. For thin ones - thicker ones (if the skis turn out to be level, there is a choice). I don't make pussy anymore. I make thin skis - thick kitties. If the kitties are thin, they will wear out faster!
I cut it so as not to cut through the hair!

No further photos are coming through!? I will try to finish this work in the second part.

Making hunting skis with your own hands is better and more profitable than buying them in a store. Products made at home differ slightly from sports models in width (shape), although producing equipment yourself will save money. The main thing is that the hunting model is wide enough, provides ease of movement and does not fall under the snow.

Skis for hunting differ from sports options:

Type of fastening. For ease of walking for a long time and instant removal from your feet, it is better if the fastenings consist of 1-2 straps.
Width. Models with a width of 15-16 cm are suitable so as not to fall under the snow.

Plastic skis glide well. the models cannot accelerate much, but they move quite well on an unstable road with descent and ascent.

Material

It is important to know some basics of craftsmanship and choose a good one with a camus.

The best choice is Far Eastern wood species: Manchurian walnut, cork, codwood, aspen, spruce, birch. The main thing is that the material for manufacturing is:

light;
break-resistant;
elastic;
dry, without knots (rot).

Wet snow should not stick to the bottom surface when skiing, so it is worth providing with a reliable (stable) coating.

The best material is stretchable animal skin: horses, reindeer, moose. Such a coating will give the skis flexibility, thinness and strength.

Size and manufacturing methods

In size, skis must correspond to the weight and height of the person. The calculations are easy to do. It is enough to place your heel on the ski track. Ideally, the width is 18-20 cm, the average thickness is 12-13 mm. At the ends of the skis the thickness is 0.8 cm, at the back and front folds 0.5 cm.

When choosing a platform to provide reliable support, it is worth considering the hunter’s weight. If the weight is 60-70 kg, then the width of the ski track should be 16-18 cm, for 80 kg then over 20 cm.

How to do

Not everyone knows how to make it with their own hands. It's easy if you follow the steps. It is necessary to prepare the wood so that it is dry and without knots (chips, cracks, rot).

The optimal thickness of the boards is 1 cm. Step by step steps:

Prepare the wood.
Make cross cuts.
Chop off the excess, trim the workpieces with a plane (electric planer).
Place the boards in a container, fill with water, laying the boards between them.
Place the boiler and boil for 1.5-2 hours.
Transfer the boiled boards to make the nose of the ski track, giving it a shape so that it does not break.
Heat the folds.
Round the heels and toes of the ski tracks, cutting off excess material with a hacksaw, from the center to the ends, to avoid splitting the wood.
Drill holes (2 mm in diameter) on the heels and toes, having previously marked them with a pencil.
Burn each hole with a hot awl to harden it to prevent tearing under load.
Pass the rope through the holes, pulling it tight.

Basic tips to consider when making homemade hunting skis:

Dry well on the board for at least 1 month to give the skis an effective (suitable) shape.
Steam the noses of the skis in boiling water for at least 0.5 hours. You can’t do it longer, because excessive steaming can lead to cracks (creases) in the inner parts of the socks.
Bend the socks at the ski tracks on a wooden template (you can make it yourself), making the curvature with a margin, since the dried boards will bend by 10-12 mm.
You should not make skis longer than the height of the hunter.
It is advisable to impregnate finished products with resin, diluting them with turpentine (tar) in a 1x1 ratio.

Wood preparation

Suitable wood species for production: birch, spruce, aspen.

It is best to harvest in the spring (autumn), storing the boards in a well-ventilated area. If you harvest it in the summer, then after cutting the bark, you need to store it for at least 1 year.

It is advisable to prepare material for several pairs of skis at once, since without much experience in the work, you can ruin the material. So, there will be several additional sets in stock.

Bending

The camber (middle, front, back) is given to the skis after they are lined up. To work you will need a special one. Necessary:

warm over the fire;
insert the products into the machine to give the required shape, making sure that there are no distortions;
steam with boiling water;
insert into the machine;
calcinate to give the wood softness and obedience;
place in the cold, cool;
remove the products from the machine, see if there are any distortions;
burn special holes for fastenings.

Preparing holes for fastenings

The bases or holes for fastening must be correctly marked, otherwise the products will move to the side when moving.

2 holes are drilled in the form of transverse recesses. To work you need:

make markings by placing a small board in the center of the ski track and slightly moving it 3 cm towards the heel;
lubricate the base with glue;
fix with self-tapping screws from below (thin skis), from above (thick).

Making kamus

For kamus, the skin is cut off from the animal. Next, the camus is stretched onto boards, fixed with nails, and dried for 10-12 days.

Good pieces of skin of smaller thickness are selected. If the pieces are not large enough, then you can:

sew them in pairs with coarse thick threads;
soak in water for 5-6 hours;
dry slightly so as not to tear when pulled;
drill holes;
glue the prepared kamus;
apply the composition to the surface of the skins from the inside and treat the edges of the ski track so that snow does not stick;
additionally paint or varnish.

Assembly

Assembly consists of the following steps:

sewing a kamus bag;
tucking socks and heels into ski tracks;
wood gluing;
heated ski tracks with leather;
applying the camus on top, smoothing it with your hands;
rolling with cobblestones (pebbles) running along the skin pile for better adhesion of the glue.

Preparing glue for gluing

The glue must be waterproof (thick), so you can use wood glue (epoxy) with the addition of vinegar to make it waterproof.

If it is not possible to purchase high-quality wood glue, then you can make it yourself from fish skin (catfish, chum salmon). For what:

remove the skin from the fish;
clear;
soak;
wrap it around a stick;
wrap with wet cloth on top;
steam over a fire (stove) to obtain glue with a viscous consistency.

Bonding

Gluing is done in a thick layer between the skin and the ski track. It is important that the camus adheres well to the edges and does not warp after drying.

Products should be dried at room temperature. After they have dried, you can thread the straps through the previously drilled holes for fastenings. Thus, skis with a camus will be much stronger at bend.

It is advisable to apply glue to the camus in 2 layers. After drying, apply 1 more layer, rolling it over the moistened skin with a roller, squeezing out excess glue to completely straighten the skin. The camus should fit snugly against the sides of the skis.

Making sticks

Sticks are an indispensable attribute. They will allow you to clear snow and slow down in case of an unsuccessful descent from the mountain. They are made of birch and walnut with blades on the lower ends (upper) claws and rings.

It is good to equip the poles with divisions (marks) every 5-6 cm, which will help in measuring the thickness of the snow cover when skiing. Sticks should be stored in a suspended state and in a ventilated area, tied together in pairs. Today, many people prefer plastic options for ski accessories. Plastic freezes quickly in the cold and it is better to make wooden sticks. The main thing is to prevent moisture from getting into the fastenings. Before storage, the poles must be thoroughly cleared of snow, kept in the sun to dry, and checked for the strength of the fastenings and that the screws are not loose.

Knowing the structure of skis and the stages of production, you can make a lightweight, gliding model without any special disadvantages for moving on flat and steep (mountain) snow-covered surfaces with descents, ascents, and slopes.

Winter is a great time of year for those who like to hunt. However, hunting in winter requires special equipment, since moving through snow-covered forests is often not so easy. An experienced hunter who has walked many miles knows firsthand that sports skis are not intended for walking through large snowdrifts. To do this, his equipment must include special skis for hunting.

Selection criteria

When choosing hunting skis you need to pay attention to the following criteria:

strength and flexibility;
quality of material;
length and width;
fastenings that fix the leg.

Skis for hunting must be distinguished not only by durability, but also by good flexibility, so that even when passing through the most snowy places the hunter does not lose maneuverability. They must be selected in size, taking into account that the support area for 1 kg of human body weight should be at least 50 square centimeters. At the same time, their length should not be greater than the height of the hunter. Bindings for hunting skis must be selected in such a way that rigidity is ensured and the leg does not slip out or bend while riding.

Materials

When choosing equipment, the hunter should first of all be interested in what skis are made of and which ones should be purchased. Hunting skis are made of plastic or wood.

Plastic

Plastic skis have become very popular recently, because in terms of their strength characteristics, many models are not inferior to wooden ones. One of the advantages of using them is that there is no need to treat them with special lubricant before each trip.

But plastic also has a significant disadvantage - it slips very much. Due to this, climbing a high hill on plastic snowshoes is quite problematic, and when descending from a large slope, the hunter may completely lose control of speed and fall. Therefore, plastic hunting skis are best used on gentler slopes and flat terrain.

Wooden

Wooden skis are for deep snow. They are made from the strongest wood species - birch, pine or maple, making them lightweight and reliable.

Being small in size, such snowshoes can easily move both on newly fallen snow and on loose crust. The tapered front helps reduce snow drag. There are small slots in the nose to be used as drag nets.

If you treat them with resin before each use, they will last a long time, and regular lubrication with a special compound will improve glide.

Types of fastenings

Mounts for hunting skis are usually used in three types:

Simple fasteners are leather or canvas straps that are inserted into holes on both sides of the support platform. The foot in the shoe is inserted into the strap and secured.
Soft fastenings provide another belt that helps to better secure the leg. You need to grab your leg just above the heel and tighten it well so that the snowshoes don’t fall off while riding.
Another option for mounting hunting skis is a semi-rigid mount. A metal plate is installed, into which the leg is rested and secured using a sling placed on top. The heel in this fastening option is fixed not with a belt, but with a spring, which is adjusted to the foot and secured to the shoe toe.

The best option would be to place the fastener in the middle. But here you need to listen to the wishes of the hunter; many prefer to place the mount closer to the bow.

You can also use rigid fastenings, but then the hunter runs the risk of being limited in movements, which is completely inappropriate in something like hunting, where dexterity and agility are needed. It is best to use one of the three options above, and ideally it would be good to try each fastening option to determine the most convenient one for yourself.

How to make camo skis with your own hands

Materials for manufacturing

Almost every avid hunter has at least once been interested in how to make skis with his own hands. After all, just in order to achieve maximum convenience, most winter hunting enthusiasts make homemade hunting skis for themselves. The wood for their manufacture must combine qualities such as fracture strength, flexibility, elasticity and lightness.

Birch has all these properties, which is the most popular when making hunting skis with your own hands. Also often used are cork, Amur lilac or Maca akotnik, less often - willow and aspen. The craftsman determines what kind of wood to make the skis from, choosing from the above-mentioned wood species and based on their availability.

Ski skins are needed so that they do not roll back on the slopes and loose snow does not stick to them. It is made from leather taken from the shin of a horse, wapiti, deer or elk. These ungulates have skin on their legs that is covered with elastic hair, which will give the snowshoes flexibility, good stretch and compression, like a spring. Hunting skis with a camus made of elk skin have the highest strength, and in terms of softness and noiselessness, capes made from wapiti and reindeer simply have no equal.

Wood harvesting

So, how to make hunting skis yourself? Typically, wood is harvested in winter, while the moisture in the wood is frozen. The main thing is that it is straight-layered and without rot. Some craftsmen prefer to take material at the end of summer, explaining this by the fact that it is no longer so hot and it is more convenient to hew at this time than in hot or frosty weather.

The tree is cleared of bark and the log is sawn into 5-centimeter thick bars corresponding to the length of the skis. After this, they are firmly tied and a spacer is inserted into the middle part. At this stage, the master sends the workpieces to a cool place for drying, which lasts about 20 days. An outline is applied to the dried beams, and then the excess is sawed off and planed off.

Sizing

Determining the size of homemade skis is quite simple. If you place the ski vertically with the toe up, its length should correspond to the height from the floor level to an outstretched arm. Usually the length range is 180-250 cm, no more. The width is selected according to the distance between the spaced thumb and index fingers, on average it is 18-20 cm. The thickness should correspond to the distance between the middle and ring finger of a person with the fingers spread wide apart. Usually the master tries to bring the thickness to 0.8 cm, and in the bend areas to 0.5 cm.

Bending

The front, middle and rear arching of hunting skis at the first stage is carried out by burning their ends and steaming them in boiling water. Afterwards, the ski is placed in a special bending machine. It is necessary to carefully ensure that there is no distortion when bending, otherwise there will be no top stroke and all the work done will be useless.

You can pour boiling water over the product directly in the machine - this will give greater flexibility and ductility when bending. After making sure that the procedure was successful, the product can be taken out into the cold or placed in a cool place to cool.

Marking holes for fastenings

To make holes for fastening, the ski is placed on its edge and in the area where the leg will be located, it is lifted with the thumb and forefinger. The ski should be at an angle of 45 degrees to the floor, with the nose pointing upward. When it takes this position, a mark is placed on it and a line is drawn across it along the width.

Then, retreating 4 cm to the bow, draw another line parallel to the previous one. The middle is marked on the lines and a fist is applied to it, so that its middle is located at the level with the centers of the lines. In the places where the edges of the fist touch the lines, mark the points of the four holes for future bindings for hunting skis.

After this, the holes are burned and connected from below with grooves of good depth so that the belts fit neatly at the bottom.

Making kamus

After making the skis themselves, you can begin dressing and patterning the camus. The animal's stretched paws must be dried and freed from fat and remaining flesh. The camus must match the size of the ski and provide a small margin for turning. After this, the paws are cut lengthwise into two parts and soaked in cold water.

When they soften, they are folded with their shaggier edges towards each other and attached to the ski so that the thickest pile is in the middle of the sliding side. The camus is then sewn together using strong nylon thread and its transverse edges are beveled to increase bending strength.

Bonding

Pockets are made along the edges of the camus in order to tuck the toe and heel into them. After sewing, the camus is sent to dry, since during gluing it can be damp, but not wet. The next stage is coating the camus with glue and gluing it directly to the ski.

Epoxy glue will also work for gluing casing skis, but it is preferable to use good carpentry glue. Before gluing the camus, the product is coated with glue in one layer, allowed to dry and coated again. Then apply the kamus and, rolling it with a roller, squeeze out the remaining glue until the kamus is completely leveled on the surface.

If you don’t have a special roller at hand, you can use well-rolled pebbles or cobblestones.

Then you should rewind the product with the camus with a bandage or belt so that the camus sticks well to the sides. It would be a good idea to attach a piece of rubber under the foot to prevent snow from sticking to it. The product is sent to dry in a well-ventilated dry room, after which belts are threaded through the holes for fastenings.

This step-by-step instruction on how to make skis is complete. And homemade camo skis are ready for use. Just don’t forget to lubricate them before going out.

Making a ski pole

The stick or tunepun is usually made from the same type of wood as the snowshoe. At its lower end there is a scapula, and at the upper end there is a ring and a claw. To use a stick to determine the snow level, marks are made along its entire length every 5 cm. Tunepuns are good for walking on ice; they can clear a road or a place to rest.

Storage

For storage, plastic and wooden skis are tied together and hung in a dry, well-ventilated place. Water should not get into the fastenings and after each use they must be carefully cleared of snow residues. If the fastening screws are loose, you need to unscrew them and pour epoxy glue into the holes - after this the functionality will be restored.

Video

Watch our video on how to prepare your skis for the hunting season.

It is not at all necessary to buy ready-made sports equipment; you can make skis at home. Making any skis is not a complicated process; you will need a minimum amount of materials and a little free time.

Homemade skis can be used by children, adults, hunters, in alpine skiing, and in team sprinting. As for hunting ones, they are wider and do not fall through. With their help they move across any landscape and overcome difficult obstacles.

When choosing wood, you need to decide for what purpose the wooden sports equipment will be used. Durable boards are made from birch and maple, but spruce and aspen help create the lightest possible sports equipment.

It is better to harvest material in spring or autumn. Moreover, the boards should be in a well-ventilated area. In the summer, the bark is removed from the wood and stored for about another year. Drying should not be accelerated artificially, otherwise cracks may appear on the equipment in the future.

Selecting ski size

Choosing your ski size is easy. The greater the person’s weight, the larger the area of the products should be. When manufacturing, you need to focus on the following indicators:

for a person weighing 60-70 kilograms, the width of the skis should be 16-18 centimeters;
with a weight of 70-80 kilograms, sports equipment should have a width of 18-20 centimeters;
with a weight of more than 80 kilograms, the width of the sports equipment is more than 20 centimeters.

What tools and materials will you need?

First of all, high-quality wood is prepared: light, strong, elastic. Homemade products are made from material without rot, cracks, or through knots. Do-it-yourself plywood skis are made mainly for children and infrequent walks in the park.

To prevent the skis from being handed over when climbing a mountain, and the snow not sticking to them, the equipment must be covered with camus, which is made from genuine leather. Horse, deer or elk leather is best suited for this.

You will also need to prepare:

reinforcement materials;
edgings;
wood glue;
epoxy resin;
masking tape.

What kind of ski presses are used?

Any amateur craftsman knows that the main element in manufacturing is the press. It is thanks to it that all layers of wood, pre-impregnated with resin, stick to each other.

The material is glued using the following types of press:

vacuum - vacuum bag technology is used;
classic - gluing using milled forms;
pneumatic - a special metal frame applies uniform pressure and bends sports equipment.

How to choose reinforcing materials?

Regardless of the purpose for which the homemade product is used, for sports or hunting, you need to use special reinforcing devices that help increase the strength and rigidity of sports equipment.

Use one of the following materials:

aluminum alloys;
aramid;
carbon;
fiberglass.

All materials are of high quality, the only difference is that special fabrics work directly along the fibers, while alloys strengthen the skis in all directions. Special rubber bands are often used as fastening. They hold the boot perfectly. This device is inexpensive, easy to use, but it won’t last long. Also, roller skis, which are used to ride around the city in the summer, have gained considerable popularity. In this case, roller fittings are used.

How to assemble a wood core?

How to make skis at home correctly? First, a wooden core is prepared. The part is the last component and is made of wood. Making a part is simple; it is placed in the core of the structure, hence the name of the part.

For the production of cross-country, alpine, and hunting skis, aspen, ash, and maple cores are used. Sports equipment made from these tree species is considered durable and of high quality. They are the ones that can withstand heavy loads. Poplar is suitable for the production of children's equipment, and bamboo will be an excellent additional support.

How to make a bend

When making sports equipment themselves, many people ask the main question, how to bend skis at home? The first priority will be to prepare a simple drawing according to the appropriate parameters. To properly bend sports equipment, adhere to the following instructions:

Wooden blanks are cut into bars, tied at the edges, and a spacer is installed between them.
The resulting blanks are placed in a warm place for several weeks before being bent.
When the wood has dried, the outline of the future skis is applied to it. Excess material is removed, and the workpieces are treated with Sherhebel.
The ends that will be bent are placed in hot water for several hours, boiling water is periodically added to prevent the liquid from cooling.
To get a deep but smooth bend, they are placed in special blocks, where the skis take on the desired shape. They are fixed with clamps or sticks.
Next, skis for racing or hunting are dried for about 6 days and subjected to finishing.

Marking holes for fastenings

To properly install the mount at home, determine the center of gravity of the sports equipment. When purchasing ready-made sports equipment, the manufacturer indicates the location, but with a homemade module everything is a little more complicated.

Finding the center of gravity is easy. Place the sports equipment on a special edge, such as a ruler, and move it until the scales are parallel to the floor. At this moment, the ruler will point to the desired place, marked with a pencil.

An equally important step when creating sports equipment is marking. To do this, use either a special outline or a cardboard template, sold along with the fasteners. The markings are carried out so that the back of the sports equipment settles a little more than the front. Remember that products may have special notches, but these slide worse.

Making kamus

The reinforced skin is stretched over sports equipment and secured with nails. The camus is dried in a warm, ventilated area for about 2 weeks. The thicker the skin, the better. Thin camus wears out quickly.

If there is no large piece of skin, use several pieces of fabric sewn together with coarse, thick threads. When stitching, the material is soaked for some time, then slightly dried. The point is that wet or dry skin can tear and fall off the ski. It is easiest to work with slightly damp material.

Bonding

The finished casing is fixed to the sports equipment using waterproof glue, applied to the edges of the ski, directly to the casing. To make sports equipment more practical to use, it is recommended to coat it with a protective varnish. A special polyethylene slip is also used.

As soon as the glue is taken, the skis are wrapped with cord. This is necessary so that the camus fits tightly to the wood and does not warp. When the sports equipment is completely dry, the fastening straps are inserted into the holes made in advance.

Making a ski pole

Without a ski pole, it is impossible to fully use sports equipment. The main thing is that the stick is comfortable to hold in your hand and that it matches the height of the person who will use it.

It is made from wood; the stick has a special blade at the bottom, and a claw and a ring at the top. Some craftsmen mark sports equipment with divisions every 5 centimeters. Thus, hunters and athletes can measure the thickness of the snow cover.

Store sports equipment in a warm, well-ventilated area. It is recommended to tie them in pairs. It is better for skis to be stored in a suspended state. Some craftsmen are able to make special cases that highly reliably protect products from possible damage. Periodically repair the sports product; it is covered with a polyethylene protective layer and special ointments are used.

“Skis” made from plastic bottles for children

It’s very easy to make skis from plastic bottles with your own hands, for which you need to use 1.5 or 2 liter containers. They make an oval hole in each one, where the child’s leg can fit through. Cover their edges with electrical tape so that the child does not accidentally get hurt. Plastic products will not replace full-fledged equipment, but will be excellent entertainment for children. In addition, snowmobiles are made from plastic pipes that glide perfectly on snow.