Contact Paul Jenson/ Fish templates, plans etc

General Discussion
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Hi Paul,

Where to start, love the website. Wish I’d found it before I built my first board. My learning curve might have been a little gentler. I built a 10’ 6” Hollow Longboard last year, bought some plans from a guy in Australia. Totally enjoyed the process, ups and downs and all (epoxy not going off or going to soon). And riding it, definitely gives me a great deal of pleasure.

You are right, hollow wooden boards feel very different in the water to foam or epoxy boards. And the weight difference in the water is a mainly positive one, and carrying it down to the water isn’t that bad but after a good surf session, carrying it back up the beach is a different matter all together. My board weights in at 44lb, as I made no attempt at keeping the weight down. My goal was to produce the strongest / water tightest board I could. The fear around the board leaking and taking on water, was the biggest motivating factor in this.

For my next board, as with everything it’s a learning curve. I would like to produce a strong/ light board, this time with the emphasis on lightness, as I possibly can for hollow board.

(I have a Hydro Epic 9’ 1” hollow carbon/Kevlar board, again a very different board to ride at 11 ½ lbs)

Looking at your 5’ 10” Fish, it has really taken my fancy; I weight 195lbs so I would like to stretch the board to 6’ 10” for stand up surfing (What do you think?). The Longboard I built, I did from a good set of plans. I did carpentry at school but that was over 20 years ago. So I have only basis carpentry skills, so when it comes round to working out templates, stringers and ribs etc… it’s a bit of a struggle, unlike your good self but I can follow a set of plans/instructions. What I’m working round too, is it possible for you to s sell/send me copies of templates/plans/photocopy’s of the board, ribs, stringers, and measurements I need to know etc,

Then would it be ok to add a foot into the middle of the design??? To stretch the board out to 6’ 10”? What do you think?

I am more than happy to pay (cheque/Pay pal) for your expertises, as I am aware of the limit of my own skills. And in the town I surf in, there are maybe 30 or so surfers. Half a dozen of those are longboarder’s, the rest are Kelly Slater wannbee,s and no one rides

Hollow or/and Wooden boards. So I don’t have any other resources to draw on for help/expertise’s, really other than the Internet.

Looking at Swaylock’s archives website, I read that you had photocopy’s of “Jim Knistle’s book Surfboard Design And Construction” for sale, I’ve done a number of searches on the Web for the book. But it seems that it is out of print; do you still have any photocopies for sale???

I have email a copy of this to your website email address a couple of weeks ago, but haven’t had a reply. I will email this to your website as well as posting this on the Swaylock’s forum.

Hoping you can help,

Saul

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Paul’s not here. Check back in a couple of weeks.

3

Hey Saul,

Here’s a start for you, go to

http://jfmillbiz.home.comcast.net/swaylocks/Surfboard_Design_and_Construction_1977.pdf

for the book.

Have a look at this thread for ideas, lots of backyard HWS makers with varying degrees of expertise and experiences.

http://www.swaylocks.com/forum/gforum.cgi?do=post_view_flat;post=156494;page=1;sb=post_latest_reply;so=ASC;mh=25;

Ask questions, someone will know the answers.

4

Hey Saul.

Good to see another UK based hollow builder here. You are now, no doubt addicted to Swaylocks.

How about posting some pics of your giant. Mate, you’re a fitter bloke than me my 20 lb HWS is a struggle for me after a session.

Jase (MMM)

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Hi Fatbaslardass,

Nice to hear from another Brit, with an unhealthy leaning towards Hollow Wooden Things. I’ll post some photos soon. It is a beast but that was the idea, if it had turned quicker than an Oil Tanker I would have been disappointed. (I haven’t been so far). Very keen on nose riding.

Thanks to very one who posted links or helpful comments/ideas all have been gratefully received and digested. Keep them coming.

Could I pick your brains, Fatbaslardass. Any useful phone numbers, addresses, websites of companies you have used for any board relate goodies etc…

I have surfed Saunton and Croyde a lot, over the years. Although not recently as child number 2 arrived 6 months ago and sleep, money and time to drive to the West Country is in short supply. But things will get easier.

I live in the “Surf Mecca” of Hastings on the South Coast. (Please don’t hold that against me) So I am special and different, not only by being a surfer but one that rides Hollow boards!!!

Saul

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Quote:
I have surfed Saunton and Croyde a lot, over the years. Although not recently as child number 2 arrived 6 months ago and sleep, money and time to drive to the West Country is in short supply. But things will get easier.

I’m not sure but I think I learnt to body board at Croyde. If it was not where I first learnt it was shortly after that. Had a Grand Mother and great Aunts and Uncles in Braunton. Congrats on #2. The last time I was at Croyse was when my 5 year old was 2 and my 3 year old was in the womb. Special place in my heart.

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Hey Saul, maybe I’ll see you at Croyde or Saunton some time, they are my “local” breaks, when I say local I mean that really really loosely. I live in the midlands and only get to surf every other month or so, hence I’m crap. I’m hoping to get down there around the end of October again and maybe spend a couple of days in Cornawall aswell to meet up with other UK based Sway-persons.

Congrats with No 2 (and number 1). Riding hollows really does make you special, building them makes you hyper-special, carrying them makes you a god (well, almost).

n a few weeks ago and had some unfortunate coming together with some stoney stuff and my nice beech and cherry fins, hopefully get round to sorting that (and other problems) before Oct.

As for useful numbers or web-sites, I’m sure you’ve noticed how few there are in the UK, I only know of the obvious Seabase and Homeblown sites. I’ve tried all sorts of searches and drawn blanks al the way apart from those two. Lots of retail outlets for lairy shirts and hoola skirts but begger-all for anything useful.

Keep in touch, might be good to meet up.

Jase (MMM)

8

Hi,

Want to pick peoples brains,

Looking to ply the deck and bottom of this Hollow Wooden Super Fish, See website for dimensions of foam board, (http://www.brucejones.com/images/20122.htm) I going to style my board on. Have just spent, sometime costing it all up this afternoon……slow day at work. It’s just, too expensive to plank it with 3/16 Cedar (i.e. Paul Jenson Style) … The Cedar will cost 4 times as much as the Plywood. So, the question is how thin as anyone gone successfully, (Hicksy , Fatbaslardass , 4est ,others?) with plywood on decks etc (1.5mm?/ 3mm?, 3 ply) and say carbon fibre the inside? (i.e. Paul Jenson Style). Or can you get away with no bothering and rely of the glass coat on the outside of the board to do the job?

I am assuming right or wrongly, please correct me. That for the same strength, thinner plywood can be use. Than the thickness of wood you would need to use for the same strength???

My last hollow wooden Longboard was decked and bottomed in 3/16 (5mm) 5 ply but with no reinforcement. No problems, (I’m 200lbs) Want to go thinner/ lighter with the construction of this Fish.

All comments, thoughts gratefully received.

Saul

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I’m building a wooden fish, it has taken too much time (1 year) to complete because lack of time. I took measurements from the lis fish plans in “Surfboard design and construction” no need to scale, because the board is for my wife (5’5’‘, 125 lbs). All info you need to make your template is in that book. About thickness of decks, I used 1/8’’ plywood in my 2 boards, first one glassed poly inside and outside, and the fish is glassed inside using cotton cloth and epoxy I got for free. last week I attached the bottom skin, and it’s ready for building up the rails. I’ll use poly again to glass the outside, it gave me good results with my first board, which is 1 year old now. no delamination problems yet. Paul told me that now he thinks glassing inside a HWS is overkill, maybe he can explain us why, but I’m afraid of skins collapsing under my weight. he also says building stringer and cross ribs from a thicker material is overkill, because the extra weight and little strenght gain. In 15 days I’ll post some pics of the board in it’s actual building stage, cause now I’m far away from home.

Hope that helps

Jack

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I agree with Paul when he says that building with a thicker stringer and cross ribs is overkill. However, by doing so it gave me a more rigid structure and allowed me to build the board without having to first build a jig for it.

11

Hey Saul

I used 3mm 3 ply for skins and internal frame, no glass on the inside, liquid nails to hold everything together, 2x5oz on top 1x5oz on the bottom, using epoxy.

Brain picked…

12

Howdy again there Saul

Like Hicksy I went with 3mm 3ply but jointed differnt faced ply for aesthetics so needed to strengthen the inside of the jointed parts, I chose carbon fibre as I managed to scrounge some dead cheap from a mate in the glass fibre automotive parts trade. I wouldn’t go any thinner with the deck/bottom skins if I were you.

Post some plans of how you intend to build the board, whether you are going to just use one piece for the deck/bottom or wheher you want to use multilpe jointed pieces, the methods would be different depending. Someone might have some specific advice for you.

Jase (MMM)

P.S. post soome photos!

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hey, while we’re all on the cornwall, uk theme thing, check out the hookup section. i got a post goin for cornwall. keep it real!!