would like to know why you don’t see more concave decks??
even with all the retro movement twin fins and etc…
is there any advantage, functional problem with concave deck?
cheers and good waves.
Depend shape of your feet, i hate them, flat feet like them. I don’t think concave is better than convex or vis versa, just a question of taste.
Shape one, ride it and tell us what you think.
i think the comment of lemat made on flat feet makes sense, i will try one day.
right now i am working on a 6’5" single fin that is 3" thick and 20 wide and still thinking about what concave would be best for it to work good.
cheers and good waves
For PU blanks the outer part of the foam typically is denser than the core, due to how the blank is poured. if you go too aggressive with your deck concaves you’ll end up shaping into softer foam which may give you durability issues long term, especially if the board has a stringer. In the near term foot wells may be a welcome thing, but you’ll need to consider that with respect to your glassing schedule when you get a board with that design.
Something to add here, Ryan Burch made a youtube video a little while ago explaining deck concaves on his fish models. Worth a listen, as for a number of his boards he retains a crown or nearly flat deck under his front foot to keep foam under his waist and chest while paddling, then combines it with a concave 8" to a foot from the tail in order to get that skateboard fit and leverage going into turns… another performance factor may be reduced tail volume in a stubby shape. One way to have a more responsive board that can manage the speed you get from a paralell fish outline. Complementary to his short stubby fish designs. Food for thought.
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I have found a concave deck a bit more comfortable while paddling.
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There are a few guys shaping concave decks, but its a personal preference so you won’t see it on production boards off the rack. Also, its not generally obvious, so how would you see them? Looks just like any other board unless you’re up close and holding a straight edge. Well used boards develop foot wells so that’s technically a defacto concave.
I tried it on one of my thick boards, no preference for or against, I just didn’t notice a significant difference.
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Huck you can see it on production boards from stretch, call it sk8 deck deep enough to see it without straight edge when you have board in hand.
https://share.google/hg6czJ8zGh4WRuSko
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I have ridden mountainboards with concave decks, set-up for street use.
Concave on skateboard and mountainboard decks makes them stiffer without making them thicker. Gives a more locked in feel when riding.
However, skateboard deck concave is narrower — deck width.
So, how wide are you making the concave on a surfboard deck?
I can see it serving as a torso well for paddling and riding.
I can also see it as way to thin what would otherwise be a thick board.
Just my $0.02
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the sk8 deck seams a good aproach, as seen on strech boards, that mr Huck published.
cheers and good waves.
Softer foam at center is an ancient hold over from the Clark Foam days. Those days are long gone. Polyurethane Foam by all three of the U. S. Manufacturers is formulated to have consistent density throughout. The idea that you can’t take foam off the deck is a superstitious myth that does not apply to Arctic, Millennium or U.S. Blanks.
i have shaved a 3 1/2 blank to 2 1/2 or less and it turned out amazing.
right flex,right weight, good white colour on the foam.
cheers and good waves.
So in your opinion when in the shaping process would you shape the concave deck?
cheers and good waves.
I’m no pro shaper.
But when I design my shapes, I look for the build/shaping sequence that requires the least amount of work to effectively arrive at the final desired outcome. I look at it from a hand-shaping perspective.
The build sequence I have visualized is the first thing I communicate to Jim after I give him my design data for his CAD work/cutting files.
If it’s a hot wire eps blank, mark the concave contour shape rails up to mark then shape concave.
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I assume you meant this.
(Logical advice.)
“mark the concave contour; shape rails up to mark; then shape concave.”
No I am a slightly crowned deck to flat at the most advocate. I want the deck to blend well with my rail. In the early 70’s there were a lot of 18” wide full down rail crowned deck boards around. I attempted to get comfortable riding these boards, but was convinced they were not for me. My best riders were 20–20 1/2” semi flat decked Eggs. I am flat footed to begin with and I could never see an advantage to paddling or standing and attempting to turn while down in a hole.
That’s a nice pick Huck. I was challenged at one time by a “shaper since 58” to post pics of myself here on Sways. There are at least a couple of good ones around, but most were shot by my ex-wife with a Pentax k1000. No auto wind and only a mid range telephoto. When you take pics like that it’s always the frame before or the frame after that was a better photo. The biggest reason I have very few photos of myself is that I mostly surfed places where cameras were not allowed. Show up at H——d Canyon or F-ll—$ with a camera in those days, you’d better keep in mind that the hospital is a far piece away. The only people I ever saw with a camera in the Ranch were always the owners and share owners. Boaters usually didn’t bring cameras. The few pics I have of myself were taken at more public places in semi crap waves, by amateur ex-wives.
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Greg Webber loved concave decks for a while, it was about the feel of being closer to the water. Might be nicer to paddle too as a bonus?
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Thanks. It was shot by this character here. We met at Topanga and formed a friendship that has lasted for years. I was there the day they removed him from Sunset - he was living the beachcomber life and keeping the are clean and landscaped and watching out for the thieves breaking into the surfers cars, but his old pickup was considered a homeless encampment eyesore, and they finally removed it. I haven’t caught up with him to know where he is staying now.
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