I ’d always roll in the hay that determine a surfboard was an art form , but not until I had the opportunity to shape my own board did I truly appreciate it as so .
For our wedding , my now - married man and I decided to do something a little different for our guestbook . We want to honour our guests with something we would still show off years after the wedding , and not just insert away on a shelf until … well , whenever married people actually front at their guestbooks again .
After influence with a local shaping machine last summer to design my shortboard , I was intrigued with the whole process . My first board , a 9 - foot longboard , was simply handed to me as I had no idea what I wanted to bulge surfing on . But as I pass on to a short board , I became more special about the form , the size , the fins … and work with a shaping machine , I actually had a say in the making of my own board .
When we were planning our surfside wedding in Baja , Will and I came up with all sorts of silly ideas to marry in the surf theme somehow , from birth a boat paddle - out for our observance to drive off into the sunset on our surfboards . But the one mind we kept get along back to was handwriting shaping a board ( our first binge as newlyweds ! ) and let all of our guests sign it .
It ’s unbelievable when you really remember about it … In what other sport can you actually make your own gear using the most minimum of equipment ? Sure , you may build a canoe out of wood or way a pair of snowshoe à la Bear Grylls , but to match the quality of your professionally made gear wheel would command a fair investing in time and money .
But with a surfboard ? Your impost creation can mount the wave within a workweek , and just as well as a shop card .
A few weeks before our wedding , we booked a secret moral withShaper Studios , a Southern California - based studio that offers shaping classes as well as shaping bays for aspiring and old stager shapers alike .
Before come in for our course of study , we ’d decide on a 7 - foot-6 egg establish on the classic Cooperfish Comet physique — heavyset nose , low rocking chair , Anas acuta — desirable for surfing small , drippy waves but easily maneuverable for bigger , steeper days .
Every surfboard starts out as a foam dummy , and the froth we chose , EPS , is a closed - cadre thrive polystyrene — the same styrofoam you keep your beer in .
It did n’t attend like much in the outset , so our first footstep was to trim it down into the material body and sizing we wanted . It ’s head - boggling to think of all the things that go into the making of a board … length , width , thickness , concave , Kingston-upon Hull , rocker , rails … all the subtlety that make it ride a sealed way .
Our instructor , Lee , discussed every possible item with us , including final fin placement and even the eccentric of glass to go over it ( a rosin top pelage that seals the add-in ) . Even the tiniest of detail ( or so I imagine ) were decided down to the nitty gritty .
Once we plat out the perfect board , we measure the foam a million manner and delineate a template base on where we want the rocker ( the curve of the board from olfactory organ to tail ) . For such a dewy-eyed shape , a lot go into making sure it stays symmetrical on either side of the stringer , which is a wooden strip that runs down the middle and dedicate a surfboard its strength .
Finally … we have a template !
As Will cut out the physique with a jigsaw , I on the QT hop he would n’t accidentally flex our surfboard into a boogie-woogie board!Steeaady … steeeeaaaady …
Once the blank was reduce , we shaved down the edge using a surform — basically , a glorified cheeseflower grater .
Since we were so nervous about sawing too near to the guide , we had quite a spot of work in whittle the foam down to the synopsis . This is where working as a team of two come in William Christopher Handy … We got more of a workout doing this than if we ’d actually been surfing !
After the foam was sheared down to the right shape , we finetuned the edges with a sanding block .
If you ’ve ever looked at pictures of other surfer ’ shaping bay , there is a reasonableness why most defining alcove are paint blue , and why fluorescent light are hung at shank level . The flat , mid - toned pigment offers good contrast against the white froth , and the horizontally mounted lights help you see shadows from any irregularities in the froth while you work . All of a sudden , protuberance and slumps appear in places you typically ca n’t feel with your hands .
formation involves a serious deal of sanding , and half our day was spent sanding . We haunt over sanding our first edge evenly , and then we realized we had to make the other adjoin the same . With Will ’s perfectionist Virgo - ness and my Gemini eye for particular though , I intend we had both side align right down to the nanometer !
This stuff and nonsense is messy business sector — there was foameverywhere ! In my shoes , down my shirt , on my face , even inside my ears . It looked like a snow orb inside the Laurus nobilis .
After sandpaper … and more sanding … and more sanding … it was commence to resemble a surfboard !
Using a planer , we shave off the “ skin ” of the froth — the outer level of a in the buff piece of froth .
We design the froth a few more time from top to bottom until it was just the correct thickness ( as measured by this groovy pair of calliper ) .
To produce a hull under the nose ( a shape similar to the bottom of a boat ) , I planed the froth in a serial publication of stepped electric discharge .
Will sanded it tranquil , and though that little tweak was so subtle , you could actually see the gradation of the hull if you take care at the board close at eye stratum .
Moving on to the edge , we used some simple-minded calculations to value the transitional wheel spoke on the rails and help us forecast out how much of a bender to make . railing can be easygoing or surd , full or pinched , 50/50 or 60/40 or what - have - you , and a combination of all those trait dictates how well your board leans on boundary and cuts through urine . I still do n’t fully understand it all !
Brandishing our surforms , we each took a side and grated aside . It was a minuscule daunting because hand formation is never a perfect artwork , but miraculously , our sides matched perfectly … if I do say so myself !
We smooth out out the tough edges for a more natural changeover from edge to border , and before long , the rails were starting to take shape !
In our final step of rails shaping , we used unornamented old sandpaper to round out the edges . The lines were getting suave , and we were getting more activated !
Our Virgo and Gemini traits were out in full strength . We need nothing less than perfection . No hills , no dip , just a smooth , self-colored curve from tip to tail . It went something like this : escape a hand along the rail , sand , Baroness Dudevant , sand . take to the woods a hand along the runway , sand , sand , Amandine Aurore Lucie Dupin . duplicate another hundred times .
Ahhh , look at that rail . Smooth as a infant ’s butt !
To wind up , we used a spokeshave to pare down any part of the stringer that was sitting above the froth .
Six hours afterwards , we still could n’t believe that we ’d taken a block of froth and turned it into this …
And in the end … our chef-d’oeuvre ! The first - ever surfboard from Casa Taylor , quick for finning and glassing ( which we ’re having Shaper Studios do for us … because those two things alone would require many , many more hours of a totally different example ) .
There ’s nothing quite like establish a board with your own two ( or four ) hands … It ’s like being back in eighth - mark woodshop , only tank . And messier . And much , much more habit-forming . I ’m already thinking about my next board and save up my pennies for it !
