8'0" Funboard Done but ........

Great board. 8’0", 23" wide, 3.12" thick, nice nose rocker. Hawaiian flag on the deck. Extreme easy wave-catcher and turns on a dime, for my 12-year old son (130lbs) but…it doesn’t float me as I thought it would. Someone in here told me I’d be “belly-button dry” but it ain’t so. I’m 230 lbs. So much for a board that’ll double for the two of us. I should say again that it’s a GREAT board for my son.

Going to Waikiki in June. Taking the fun board, maybe our just completed 6’0" fish or…what board size wil float me? I’ve seen 11’ super floaters that are over 4" thick but for traveling I’d like to keep it around 9’ or so. Anything in that category that will float me, easy to paddle, and be an easy wave-catcher? I don’t want to travel with an 11’ tanker!

Thanks,

BB

Your finished board is a lot smaller than you originally intended.

I thought you were headed for 24" wide and 3.75 thick.

Are you using all your blank’s tail width and thickness, without cutting away any foam?

You are 10lbs. lighter without a wetsuit.

Paddle outs at Waikiki are basically hair dry and super easy.

Actually the exact measurements are 8’1" 23-1/2" wide, 3.12" thick. It’s OK for me. Used a Clark 8’3"R, 3.25 thick but had to skin it. Didn’t have to take too much off the board overall, just followed the shape of the blank, really. Not the best for me, but my son and his friends have a really great board! But in Waikiki, let’s say, my son uses it and that leaves me with his 6’0" fish, which I can’t even use as a bellyboard. So, it’s basically “rent” for me. They have tons of long boards anyway. Or…maybe that gives me an excuse to finally make a board for myself. But one for local breaks (Santa Barbara area) PLUS traveling to Hawaii. I saw some good 9’'ish at Bruce Jones site that were pretty thick. Maybe get a longer thicker blank and cut it down?? I don’t want to re-cut a new tail rocker, so I can’t go too long?

Thanks

BB

Hi BDB

I thought you were gonna make a much more voluminous board, of the same 8’ length for ease of travelling.

You can use any blank, up to 10’ easily, and place YOUR template whereever you want to get the thickness, the nose kick, and the wide and thick tail.

I shaped over 70, 6’8" boards with the 7’11" Clark blank…the rocker just worked out right on that one.

GO WIDER, and thicker.

If I wanted something up to 4" thick and around 9’0", could I get a, let’s say, 10’2" or 10’4" and cut down accordingly? Could keep it wide - 24" or 25"? I wonder if 9’0" is still considered a mini-longboard?

BB

Get whatever piece of foam is big enough to do the job!

As you hit over 24", you need to be wideshouldered, tall, or have long arms to paddle the boat. I’m none and neither, and could barely handle 22" wide, with 19" wide about the easiest for sprint paddling…5’11, 155lbs.

But I’ve used guns that were over 4.5" thick, with the tail block well over 2.5", and they worked just fine. Don’t need thin if you have to power or weight to lean it over, to carve a turn. “bobbing” don’t matter if you are in the tube and coming out

The worst thing is paddling out on too small a board, giving you no confidence, paddle ability, or wave catching ability.

Go wide and thick in the back, even if the tail, one foot up, is 3" thick, no biggie…just apply more brute power to your turns.

airlines max is 9’0" (board and bag) so it’ll have to be around 8’10" I imagine

BB

a 9 foot limit? what airline do you fly on? I’ve taken an 11 foot bag to Hawaii w/ two boards in it … not that they were happy about it…

looking at page 67 of a recent clark foam catalog. the 9’3" by sid madden. blank measures 9’.50" by nearly 25.5" at the widest point. 4" thick.

not usually in stock, but the distributer in brevard county indicated no problem in getting one shipped in the next order.

its one of 3 blanks i’m ruminating over for my summer cruising.

United Airlines. 9’0" and under, $80 each way. Anything over is $160 each way. Ouch. Makes renting on Waikiki seem like a nice alternative. Yeah, I’m taking the 8’ funboard and the 6’ fish in a double bag, right now. When my son uses the 8’ I’ll just rent a tanker.

BB

Yeah, that Sid Madden sounds like the one. Take it to Hawaii, I’ll make it an 8’10" or 8’11". If not, I’ll make it a 9’1".

Thanks!

BB

Hmm. Hawaiian Air also went up to $80, but no 9’ size limit yet, I don’t think. Renting, hell – at $160 each way, you might as well BUY a board when you get there!

I wrote a nasty letter to Hawaiian Air when their price to take a board went up. Sounds like United deserves no less…

Maybe I can talk one of those beach boys down to $10/day. But this gives me an excuse to build another board…

BB

Just ordered the Sid Madden 9’3" super floater. Will trim down to 8’11"

Thanks!

BB

I’d go shorter, for the airline super stickler baggage handlers.

An 8’11" board packs out to be easy 9’6" bag, and that’s too big.

You can go 8’8" max, so the packaging ready for travel is just at 9’.

Remember, you gonna widen it 1.5 inches, lengthen it 8", and make it thicker too.

Hard to find a 9’0" double bag.

BB