Boxy Rail

I’ve always been shaping tucked under edges or little softer rails, but I never tried a boxy-railed board. Can someone tell me how they work, the pros and cons of them and how to effective shape them (from where to start the boxy profile and how to blend it in the nose & in the tail, etc.). Is it true they add volume compared to the t.u.e.? and they really bite more? how they work on large but non steep waves? I know, I know…everything depends on how you progile them but any suggestion is really well accepted. Thanx

I’ve always been shaping tucked under edges or little softer rails, but I > never tried a boxy-railed board. Can someone tell me how they work, the > pros and cons of them and how to effective shape them (from where to start > the boxy profile and how to blend it in the nose & in the tail, etc.). > Is it true they add volume compared to the t.u.e.? and they really bite > more? how they work on large but non steep waves?>>> I know, I know…everything depends on how you progile them but any > suggestion is really well accepted. Thanx I am a big fan of boxy rails. I live in FL and have to deal with a lot of windswell mush. I don’t really like to ride longboards that much, unless the waves are just too weak and small. Boxy rails are a good way to increase floatation without having to go longer or wider with your planeshape. They add floatation due to the fact that you are carrying more foam out to the edge of the planeshape. This can also be a negative if you can’t deal with the added float on the rail & cannot get the board to set in the wave face. If you are light weight and/or don’t have alot of leg strength, the bottom of the board may feel like it wants to sit on top of the water and won’t allow the rail to set in the wave face. To combat this some will take the thickness of the board down further and leave the rail boxy (in order to take advantage of another trait of boxy rail, they are more forgiving during a cutback, etc.) Take a look at some of Doc Lausch’s (surf perscriptions) boards were he is shaping board 6’2" to 6’4" that are only 1 7/8" to 2" thick for guys up to 150-170 lbs. By thinning the boards out like this with boxy rails he gets the comparable floatation to the same shape which is thicker but with a thinner more refined rail, and getting more flex out of the board in the process. In my opinion this is just asking for a weak board, but I am going off topic. Pros: More float, more forgiving when transferring weight from backside to frontside rail and vice versa (the boxy rails don’t dig as much as thinned out tucked rail) Cons: Can make the board difficult to set on rail edge, and does not have the same feel when carving the face (image cutting a block of cheese with a dull butter knife vs. a scalple) These are a few things I can think of, I am sure you will get other view points. In my opinion for mushy waves they work well. On steep powerful waves, they may or not be an asset (it all depends at what degree of boxy rails your dealing with). Occy seems to do OK with boxy rails and punchy waves though. As far as shaping them, just don’t take as much foam off your rail bands. I take the boxy shape out of the blank in the last 18 to 24" of the blank (depending on board length) and round the rail in the nose from the tip to about 12". I leave the mid section with the boxy shape blended into the tail and nose. They are actually easier to shape, than a tucked rail (in my opinion).

i use them in my fish, grovellors and shortboards and love the drive and forgivness that they can provide. the float also is amazing. but for my mini guns and up, i go for a standard rail profile.

I tried an experiment last Saturday. Surf was 3 to 5’ semi-hollow reef waves. I forced myself to look hard at my inside rail during all phases of several rides: bottom turn, trim, and cutback (not for the faint of heart). Man, I never saw more than the lower half of the rail below the water while at speed (that is to say, planing). I really don’t think the water wraps over the rail and onto the deck at any point during a ride. Which makes sense if you think of a board displacing water during a turn and planing while flat. That might mean, from a hydrodynamic standpoint, that the shape of the top of a rail is meaningless. It will definitely affect flotation, which in turn, affects the feel of the board/turn. The whole boxy vs tapered isn’t about hold, its about float and feel. Any thoughts out there? Newbalonie

i’ve done a couple shortboards with boxier rails but didn’t go thin enough with the foil so they were really corky and rode too high on the water. they were like 2 1/2"- 2 5/8" thick. my current board is 2 1/4" with semi boxy rails and bites much better, although this one’s got too much rocker. one of these days maybe it’ll all come together on one board!!

I tried an experiment last Saturday. Surf was 3 to 5’ semi-hollow reef > waves. I forced myself to look hard at my inside rail during all phases of > several rides: bottom turn, trim, and cutback (not for the faint of > heart). Man, I never saw more than the lower half of the rail below the > water while at speed (that is to say, planing). I really don’t think the > water wraps over the rail and onto the deck at any point during a ride. > Which makes sense if you think of a board displacing water during a turn > and planing while flat.>>> That might mean, from a hydrodynamic standpoint, that the shape of the top > of a rail is meaningless. It will definitely affect flotation, which in > turn, affects the feel of the board/turn. The whole boxy vs tapered isn’t > about hold, its about float and feel.>>> Any thoughts out there? At speed, I think you’re right Newbs. On a trim nothing touches water below the rail line. Outside that, fat rails do things. Most shorter boards catch waves late, after turning critical. Fat rails cushion your drop through the lip. They keep your board in front of the lip, on the wave face when you drop/turn. When you hang on a rail too long and stall, fat rails don’t sink in. Consider when you get behind the pit and whitewater slaps your rail. Water will wash over a thin rail, but push a thick rail beachward. Fat rails have a purpose.