Belegarth

I've heard tons of people recommending puzzle mat foam as a good 4lb box material. I've got something that seems to be basically the same thing (feels like 4lb to me, looks like little puzzle pieces, but it came out of a DDR mat, not purchased to be a colorful floor thing). But the pieces aren't long enough to do a box all at once. They'd have to be pieced together to be long enough, and that doesn't seem like it'd be quite as sound as having each side of the box all one piece. Am I mistaken here (maybe because 4lb foam is magical and doesn't have the same problems as ~2lb foam?), or is there something I'm missing?

It's perfectly acceptable to have a couple of pieces butted up against each other for your box layer. For longer red weapons, it's almost mandatory to do so due to the length. Both of the reds I've built with puzzle mat are constructed this way, and are holding up well.

I thought that that was probably the case, I was just wondering about it developing a soft spot there, but I suppose the combination of it being 4lb foam and the fact that it's the box layer make it a non-issue. Thanks!

You will want to keep any junctions of box foam as far from the tip as possible, and make sure that there are no adjacent seams in separate pieces. Doing those things will ensure that whatever splits you have do not break down too rapidly.

And, of course, be sure to glue well. EVA tends to absorb DAP pretty quick, so it may take a little extra. Inadequate glueing is a common cause for core detachment. A bit of strapping tape over the seam may help as well (just be sure to sand the tape a bit).

Thurat wrote:A bit of strapping tape over the seam may help as well (just be sure to sand the tape a bit).

Amen to that. My reds are several years old now and still hit like a champ with no detachment.

Expanding on this topic a bit, using the puzzle floor mat is awesome for a red, especially on band shoppe. My striking layers afterwards go blue, yoga mat, blue, with two additional yoga pieces as stab tips, supported by blue tear drops. Follow Arrakis's jav tut for a biscuit that will never core through and you're gold.