Plank Design and Construction
by: Paul Goodwin
I hope to (soon) find the time to write an article descibing how
to design and build an iceboat plank.
In the meantime I felt
it was a good idea to pass along a plank design spreadsheet
that was put together by John Bushey. This spreadsheet
calculates the stresses on a plank and estimates the bend
properties based on a three-piece plank design (core with
top and bottom
skins). You enter all the design parameters such
as core and skin thickness, wood modulus (stiffness), plank
width and length, etc.
The only parameter that can be hard to find is the wood
modulus, so a few have been added to the spreadsheet to
get you started. This is the only real gray area, and actual
wood modulus can vary widely from the published numbers.
To use the spreadsheet, you enter the parameters in blue, and it
calculates the numbers in red (deflection and stress). To use the
spreadsheet
you will need to have Microsoft Excel (or another spreadhseet
that can import Excel files).
plank design spreadsheet (plank.xls)
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