I´m planing to rethink my boardshapeing activities. Clark Foam was the way to go or me but after all these things happend. I´m now looking for something new. Mainly a material which is strong with good flex. First i´d like to surf a few boards another shaper build. What would you recommend me? which will be the best material for custom shaped boards in the range from 5´6" Twin Fins to high preformance thrusters to 7´Semiguns?
Cheers Clemens
Dear Surfingdude,
I would also be interested in hearing comments on the various types of foam being used currently. We use to shape Clark and Walker exculsively. We have shaped other materials but not in mass quantities. Lately we have been shaping a lot of Excell Blanks so these are the only blanks we feel we can comment on. We would like to hear about others. “Our opinion” on Excell blanks.
Pros:
-availability
-cost- double the cost of pre-Black Monday blanks but cheaper then most blanks currently being produced.
-finish seems good (not counting the holes)
-foam seems to be more dense the deeper you cut (See Cons)
-longboard rockers look good for East Coast Conditions
-foam color is nice and white
Cons:
-many air pockets in the blank. Some as big as a quarter.
-many noticeable pour lines.
-foam seems less dense on the surface then in the middle (See Pros)
-stringer material is really hard material so difficult to work with
-grain pattern on stringer switches back and forth
-shortboard rockers need work- too much tail kick/strange twist in some blanks
Other Observations:
-finish seems like a mix between clark and walker foam
-not a close tolerance blank (pro or con depending if you like that)
-weight is a little heavier then clark
-not sure on longevity (sp?)
-haven’t glassed enough to really comment on adhesion or resin consumption (first thoughts it seems comparable to old blanks)
Sincerely,
Troy
I’ve been using Surfcore foam (www.surfcore-usa.com) out of Florida, USA. Compared to Clark foam, this stuff has uniform density, very few voids (and those that do exist are very small and can be filled with “spackle”), comes in nearly identical specs as Clark blanks and can be ordered using the same Clark numbers. They build ultra light/boyant boards, even with 6oz glass bill, with excellent bonding qualities to epoxy resin (I use Resin Research) especially if little or no sealer is used. This foam is super tight beaded, so not much resin migrates through the surface of the foam. The manufacturer recommends you do not seal. However, I’ve found that a thin coat of microbubbles/epoxy does not inhibit a good mechanical bond and leaves a relatively smooth surface for color work. A peel test found this mix gives a better bond than watered down drywall spackle, and is just as white if a tiny amount of white pigment is added to the mix. This foam has minimal tear-out if tools are sharp and you slow your stroke down. Shaping is done with planer, surform (with a microplane blade, if you can get one) and 50, 60 and 80 grit sandpaper, finished with 80 grit screen. You can also custom order rockers and stringers, but I’ve found the stock rockers to be good and the normal stringer material is laminated wood, either 1mm or 3mm (?) and is easier to finish plane with the little block than 1/4 or 3/8 inch solid basswood.
Shipping will cost you dearly - over $100 US for up to four blanks via UPS. Blank prices are reasonable and competitive. Glue-ups are sometimes a little sloppy, but I’ve learned to deal with that.
My overall impression is that this is a good choice for foam, with good specks, workability, flex, durability, and bonding.
I come from a windsurfing boardbuilding background from which I’ve evolved into a kiteboard builder. I personally think a form of windsurf style of construction would be the most up-to-date form of surfboard construction method. By this I mean a 1# density core , hard-skinned with core-cell or a combination of airex and core-cell. This type of construction may be more labor intensive, a little less flexible, and because it’s normally painted, might not suit the see-through, surfboard finish, type of look…?
I’m not a “surfer” surfer, but a kitesurfer so I’m not fully aware of what characteristics you guys are looking for…
I have just finished laminating a 5’-4" x 18" high performance outline, fish tailed, kite-surfboard. It’s only 1" thick , is all 6# density Core-cell, is laminated with 2 x 6oz.S plus 1 x 4oz. S both sides… The un-painted weight is 5 lbs. 9oz.
I really like the look of these kite-surfboards better than standard twin-tip kiteboards!! Many thanks to all here for the newfound inspirations!!
A,P.
Hey Alan,
…but a kitesurfer, so I’m not fully aware of what characteristics you guys are looking for…
Proper ‘feel’ is a nice goal.
I bet with that construction schedule that KB you made is bullet proof! Been thinking about making a KB…whereabouts are you making them? Maybe you should update your user profile…
Are you familiar with Surftech surfboards? Made pretty much the way you described (except different mat’ls). Many dont like they way they feel…too stiff and sensitive. Airex seems hard to get a hold of…
Anyone have any experience with:
Bennett
Buford
The latest Walker
Safari
Others?
Troy
Burfords are very good blanks. I shaped quite a few of them. Very consistent quality. Can’t say about the others. (I shaped a Bennett once and it was good, but it’s hard to judge from just one blank…)
Also, many of my current boards have been shaped out of french SURFOAM blanks that are quite good, too. I think some of them have been sent to the states but I reckon it must have been to the West Coast…
Hey Craftee.
So I guess a fairly flexible, low density, stringered core, lightly glassed, gives you the ride you’re looking for, I had a hunch that was the ticket…
Yeah, three layers of 6oz. on the deck with additional heel patches is pretty much standard for a twin-tip kiteboard… Because core thicknesses are usually between 1/4" and 3/4", heel dents and the resulting board failure under or between the footstraps is a common problem unless you design them for this kind of abuse… A lot of guys run the boards aground in shallow water and some even ride their boards up wooden wakeboard style sliders, so the bottoms have to be tough too!
Surftech,I remember a guy named Randy French who was a windsurf board builder/designer, Is it the same guy?
I agree sandwich composite construction is generally pretty stiff, which wasn’t a real issue with windsurfer construction, where stiffer meant faster. I can see how this matters little when trying to “be as one” with a hollow wave and such… The only reasonable way to soften up the ride with this type of construction is to thin out the foil thickness of the foam core while maintaining skin strength. Unfortunately, I guess this doesn’t help when paddling a board that’s too thin?
We discuss various “hard foams” on the yahoo boardbuilding group, and I find it surprising how hard it is for some there to find products such as core-cell, airex, honeycomb,etc,
I live near Toronto Canada, and I have access to a wide assortment of exotic hi-tech board building supplies.
Airex is great for the deck because it conforms to the complex curves such as dome + tip flip + 50/50 rails as well as having high impact resistance qualities.
Vacuum bagging is required for most “hard foam” over low den. eps for best results, and that’s where it becomes more costly and labor intensive.
I’ve been just a totally addicted boardbuilder since 1984,who builds for fun and sells most of my boards after I’ve tried them out for a while… I build out of my house and buy new kites and strings etc, with the extra cash I get from the sale of a board… I build because I NEED to build, that’s why I love groups like Sway’s and Yahoo Boardbuilder’s!!! They stoke the fire!!
A.P.
P.S. Here are a few pics. of my current rides and build projects…
hey njsurfer where are you located…i live in ocean grove and there are not a lot of swaylockers there…i have been a poly person for the last couple of years and i am still debating the epoxy vs. poly issue with the blank shortage. I have too much poly resin sitting around to move to epoxy, plus i love the poly UV resin. Let me know if you move to straight epoxy so i could watch your operation, i am interested but i need some direction. hope you got some of our easter dribble today, nothing better than a 30 lb. board for the little waves. let me know
We recently got a small container load of Midget Farrelly’s SURFBLANKS here on Kauai and I must say they are so much better than Clark blanks in terms of the quality of the foam. Primarily they are a lot harder with a much denser and uniform cell structure and yet miraculously they are also lighter. They all have plywood or T-band stringers which is really nice.
So far I have not seen any pour marks and only some very small blow holes in the longboard blanks, none of the shortboard blanks have had any blow holes yet.
They don’t have the variety of molds that Clark did, but the ones they have are perfectly usable. Don’t look for anything over 10’ 4" though!
There are a number of different densities, but so far I have only shaped the BLUE and the GREEN these colors are not in any way related to the equivalent Clark colors from what I can tell.
So personally I have been very pleased with these blanks. Although for the faint of heart they are a little harder to shape because the foam is so hard, so you have to put a little more into it when sanding. Shape like butter if you use a carbide barrel in your planer!
I have not had any of them glassed yet but guys around here that have say they turn out lighter and harder which is awesome. I’ll be running a few through the glass shop this week so we will see.
I just shaped a 9’ 1" today that had been profiled on a machine with the bottom and deck rockers, what a breeze that was!
I’ll be sticking with these for awhile now that I have a nice stash of them 
-Robin
Hey Troy - I recently shaped a board from a new Walker blank, it was a 7’6" blank (big guy tri type) and I enjoyed the heck out of it. Nice foam. Definitely pleased with it… density stayed constant thru the blank, the foam holds nice lines, and no air bubbles or anything nasty like that. Don’t know if you can get hold of them in your neck of the woods or not.
aloha,
Keith
I´m planing to rethink my boardshapeing activities. Clark Foam was the way to go or me but after all these things happend. I´m now looking for something new. Mainly a material which is strong with good flex. First i´d like to surf a few boards another shaper build. What would you recommend me? which will be the best material for custom shaped boards in the range from 5´6" Twin Fins to high preformance thrusters to 7´Semiguns?
Cheers Clemens
Dear Surfingdude,
I would also be interested in hearing comments on the various types of foam being used currently. We use to shape Clark and Walker exculsively. We have shaped other materials but not in mass quantities. Lately we have been shaping a lot of Excell Blanks so these are the only blanks we feel we can comment on. We would like to hear about others. “Our opinion” on Excell blanks.
Pros:
-availability
-cost- double the cost of pre-Black Monday blanks but cheaper then most blanks currently being produced.
-finish seems good (not counting the holes)
-foam seems to be more dense the deeper you cut (See Cons)
-longboard rockers look good for East Coast Conditions
-foam color is nice and white
Cons:
-many air pockets in the blank. Some as big as a quarter.
-many noticeable pour lines.
-foam seems less dense on the surface then in the middle (See Pros)
-stringer material is really hard material so difficult to work with
-grain pattern on stringer switches back and forth
-shortboard rockers need work- too much tail kick/strange twist in some blanks
Other Observations:
-finish seems like a mix between clark and walker foam
-not a close tolerance blank (pro or con depending if you like that)
-weight is a little heavier then clark
-not sure on longevity (sp?)
-haven’t glassed enough to really comment on adhesion or resin consumption (first thoughts it seems comparable to old blanks)
Sincerely,
Troy
I’ve been using Surfcore foam (www.surfcore-usa.com) out of Florida, USA. Compared to Clark foam, this stuff has uniform density, very few voids (and those that do exist are very small and can be filled with “spackle”), comes in nearly identical specs as Clark blanks and can be ordered using the same Clark numbers. They build ultra light/boyant boards, even with 6oz glass bill, with excellent bonding qualities to epoxy resin (I use Resin Research) especially if little or no sealer is used. This foam is super tight beaded, so not much resin migrates through the surface of the foam. The manufacturer recommends you do not seal. However, I’ve found that a thin coat of microbubbles/epoxy does not inhibit a good mechanical bond and leaves a relatively smooth surface for color work. A peel test found this mix gives a better bond than watered down drywall spackle, and is just as white if a tiny amount of white pigment is added to the mix. This foam has minimal tear-out if tools are sharp and you slow your stroke down. Shaping is done with planer, surform (with a microplane blade, if you can get one) and 50, 60 and 80 grit sandpaper, finished with 80 grit screen. You can also custom order rockers and stringers, but I’ve found the stock rockers to be good and the normal stringer material is laminated wood, either 1mm or 3mm (?) and is easier to finish plane with the little block than 1/4 or 3/8 inch solid basswood.
Shipping will cost you dearly - over $100 US for up to four blanks via UPS. Blank prices are reasonable and competitive. Glue-ups are sometimes a little sloppy, but I’ve learned to deal with that.
My overall impression is that this is a good choice for foam, with good specks, workability, flex, durability, and bonding.
I come from a windsurfing boardbuilding background from which I’ve evolved into a kiteboard builder. I personally think a form of windsurf style of construction would be the most up-to-date form of surfboard construction method. By this I mean a 1# density core , hard-skinned with core-cell or a combination of airex and core-cell. This type of construction may be more labor intensive, a little less flexible, and because it’s normally painted, might not suit the see-through, surfboard finish, type of look…?
I’m not a “surfer” surfer, but a kitesurfer so I’m not fully aware of what characteristics you guys are looking for…
I have just finished laminating a 5’-4" x 18" high performance outline, fish tailed, kite-surfboard. It’s only 1" thick , is all 6# density Core-cell, is laminated with 2 x 6oz.S plus 1 x 4oz. S both sides… The un-painted weight is 5 lbs. 9oz.
I really like the look of these kite-surfboards better than standard twin-tip kiteboards!! Many thanks to all here for the newfound inspirations!!
A,P.
Hey Alan,
…but a kitesurfer, so I’m not fully aware of what characteristics you guys are looking for…
Proper ‘feel’ is a nice goal.
I bet with that construction schedule that KB you made is bullet proof! Been thinking about making a KB…whereabouts are you making them? Maybe you should update your user profile…
Are you familiar with Surftech surfboards? Made pretty much the way you described (except different mat’ls). Many dont like they way they feel…too stiff and sensitive. Airex seems hard to get a hold of…
Anyone have any experience with:
Bennett
Buford
The latest Walker
Safari
Others?
Troy
Burfords are very good blanks. I shaped quite a few of them. Very consistent quality. Can’t say about the others. (I shaped a Bennett once and it was good, but it’s hard to judge from just one blank…)
Also, many of my current boards have been shaped out of french SURFOAM blanks that are quite good, too. I think some of them have been sent to the states but I reckon it must have been to the West Coast…
Hey Craftee.
So I guess a fairly flexible, low density, stringered core, lightly glassed, gives you the ride you’re looking for, I had a hunch that was the ticket…
Yeah, three layers of 6oz. on the deck with additional heel patches is pretty much standard for a twin-tip kiteboard… Because core thicknesses are usually between 1/4" and 3/4", heel dents and the resulting board failure under or between the footstraps is a common problem unless you design them for this kind of abuse… A lot of guys run the boards aground in shallow water and some even ride their boards up wooden wakeboard style sliders, so the bottoms have to be tough too!
Surftech,I remember a guy named Randy French who was a windsurf board builder/designer, Is it the same guy?
I agree sandwich composite construction is generally pretty stiff, which wasn’t a real issue with windsurfer construction, where stiffer meant faster. I can see how this matters little when trying to “be as one” with a hollow wave and such… The only reasonable way to soften up the ride with this type of construction is to thin out the foil thickness of the foam core while maintaining skin strength. Unfortunately, I guess this doesn’t help when paddling a board that’s too thin?
We discuss various “hard foams” on the yahoo boardbuilding group, and I find it surprising how hard it is for some there to find products such as core-cell, airex, honeycomb,etc,
I live near Toronto Canada, and I have access to a wide assortment of exotic hi-tech board building supplies.
Airex is great for the deck because it conforms to the complex curves such as dome + tip flip + 50/50 rails as well as having high impact resistance qualities.
Vacuum bagging is required for most “hard foam” over low den. eps for best results, and that’s where it becomes more costly and labor intensive.
I’ve been just a totally addicted boardbuilder since 1984,who builds for fun and sells most of my boards after I’ve tried them out for a while… I build out of my house and buy new kites and strings etc, with the extra cash I get from the sale of a board… I build because I NEED to build, that’s why I love groups like Sway’s and Yahoo Boardbuilder’s!!! They stoke the fire!!
A.P.
P.S. Here are a few pics. of my current rides and build projects…
hey njsurfer where are you located…i live in ocean grove and there are not a lot of swaylockers there…i have been a poly person for the last couple of years and i am still debating the epoxy vs. poly issue with the blank shortage. I have too much poly resin sitting around to move to epoxy, plus i love the poly UV resin. Let me know if you move to straight epoxy so i could watch your operation, i am interested but i need some direction. hope you got some of our easter dribble today, nothing better than a 30 lb. board for the little waves. let me know