Pretty much a given if you aren’t carrying a standard chip thruster under your arm someone will laugh so just go and have some fun!
If anyone laughs just say "Dude! Haven't you ever seen a custom alaia? Don't you read Surfer Magazine? Whoa! What a KOOK!" Then offer to build them one for a thousand dollars. Cash up front. Suddenly you'll be the most fashionable guy on the beach.
If laughs bother you, you are sure to get fewer after foiling a leading edge to that fin with your file. Just go with a water sealer for this first one.
Foil the fin!
That things gonna fly… just make sure you cover your head wth your arms when you wipeout. As for people laughing at you, you might want to surf where there aren’t a lot of other surfers… for safety sake. Wooden boards are heavy and since you’re just learning, you don’t want to unjure anyone.
Good luck.
Hey, that board looks good, but foil that fin for God's sake!, you'll have a blast on it :-)
For a board like yours, any oil based varnish will seal the wood, I read even olive oil will do the job, the only thing is, you need to reaply it from time to time, to prevent the wood to suck water. Marine spar varnish is an option too.
I would apply a really thin coat first, allowing the wood to impregnate very well, and then 2 or 3 thicker coats.
Hope that helps,
Jack
The only laughing that will matter is the laughs of joy you will have after a good ride on that. I've taken more kooky creations to my break than I care to mention. I'd surf that. I agree to foil the fin but keep some thickness at the base so it doesn't break off. That's it...I'm putting a fin on my alaia!
A friend told me once how one of his teenage students would polish wood-turnings on the lathe using nothing but face oil. Are you a sweaty guy?
see? to foil or not to foil, your question. 
When you guys say foil the fin, does that mean to make my fin thinner?
this picture shows how a foiled fin looks like:
And, while you are at it, foil the board edges too, to make them thinner:
Also, I would use some wood dowels to firmly attach the fin/skeg. If you already glued the fin, drill the holes from the top of the board, pour some glue, insert the dowels and then cut them flush to the surface. You don't want the fin to dettach from the board while in the water.
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Hello everyone, I recently built a wood surfboard - nothing fancy whatsoever. I wanted to try surfboarding and did not want to spend hundreds on a new board. I constructed the board out of pine. My question is, what is the quickest and cheapest way to seal the wood surfboard, i.e., to prevent the wood from being damaged from the salt water. Thank you for your help, I appreciate it!
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Given that you built a board quickly and cheaply for the purpose of having fun in the water, then stop asking questions, and get it it in the water. Just buy two or three bars of surfboard wax and rub them over the whole thing. you mainly want something to keep it from getting water logged, and to limiit the splinters from sticking into you. After waxing, put it out in the sun for a while, and let it melt to an even shine. Rub it down with a cloth, and set it in the shade. Once it is cool, then put some more wax on the deck for tracktion and go surfing.
After you get some experience riding it, you will get some ideas on how to make it better. Give the fin a foil, and see the difference it makes. Shape the rails some, and see how that changes things. The beauty of making a solid board like this is that you can keep reshaping it, and refining it. Soon you will realize that there are many ways to construct a surfboard, and you will want to try building them all.
Keep reading Swaylock's, and keep posting pictures of your work. Good luck.
Good advice Swied.
vlawko, how about posting your build thread here and/or at treetosea.org?
there’s always stuff to learn from everyone who’s ever had wood shavings & sawdust stuck in their lungs…
cheers,
heya swied-- this is one of the few reasons why surfing is hazardous to one’s financial health ! hehe
Hi I’m new here and have just found this interesting (for my own interest) thread, because I just build a solid wood board from paulwonia too.
I wanted to ask how much weight your Pine Wood Solid Board has and whether if you have already tested it?
Thank´s
Nik
[quote="$1"]
Thanks for the advice. Does the board look SOMEWHAT acceptable? Will I be laughed at when I take this to the ocean? Hah! Thanks everyone. I'll post pics when it's complete.
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Vlawko - I think that is an admirable first effort! My suggestion is to varnish it up real pretty, try it a time or two, then hang it on the wall where everyone can see it. It marks the beginning of your new adventure as a surfboard rider/builder. But it would be a very difficult board to learn to surf on. A beginner needs more flotation and stability than that board will give you. Surfing is a difficult and challenging sport to learn, so you want to give yourself every advantage you can. Even many experienced surfers struggle to ride an alaia (I have never even tried!).
My advice is to look for a used surfboard that is pretty cheap, something like a mini-mal or longboard, or maybe a "hybrid" or "funshape". If you let us know where you are, someone here might even be able to help you find a deal on a good beginner's board. Boards that are dinged up can often be found for cheap, and if the dings aren't too bad, you could fix them yourself.
You will build more boards, and you will have more boards, but you will always remember your first surfboard! Welcome to Swaylocks.