I’ve finished my first board and couldn’t have done it without this site–which means without you guys reading this.
I’m pleased with it, though I haven’t surfed it yet. It’s 6’4", about 20" wide, and approx 2.75" thick. Two channels through the rear fins and otherwise flat. I meant for it to be–well, I don’t really know. I surf a buddy’s 80s thruster and liked it on smaller days and wanted something similar that would paddle really well, get through slow sections on its own, and still be able to bury a piece of the rail or get a little bit vertical. Looked at some Campbell bros bonzer outlines and ripped them off a little bit–except that I made mine assymetrical and wobbly!
If I were to do it over I would have …
spent more time and attention on the initial outline
thinned the nose and tail out a little more
been smarter about the epoxy and tints
thought about fins and placement more (in terms of overall board function)
deeper channels through the end
But overall it was a very frustrating and ultimately satisfying experience and I haven’t gotten to the best part yet which will be riding it. Going to Baja in three days to do that. Thanks all.
Thanks a lot. It was supposed to be a single fin at first but then I decided that I didn’t want that but the outline stood. As a kiddo I learned to surf a Shawn Tompson single that is about 5’10" or so and I take it out every once in a while for kicks but its definitely a board that I have to adjust to.
I was very close to going bonzer but everyone kept saying, “not on your first board!” So I bowed to peer pressure. We’ll see how this works. Like I said, I wish I’d thought about fins as I thought about the outline, rocker, rails, etc. But I’m not that good yet.
Totally agree with Zo…never get rid of the first one. No matter how far you go, the first one is always special. I wish I had’nt gotten rid of mine. The guy that I sold it to loved it, even though the rocker was as flat as a pancake, the glass job sucked and the black rails would heat up with the slightest bit of sunshine. Good job…
you CAN still turn it into a bonzer setup , by making a coupla canted side runners for it .
…if you have a look at the "moulding fin bases " and / or “fin base moulding” threads , [advanced search facility , type those words in , and under threads by type in “plusoneshaper” or some guy called “chipfish61” , and , …you’re off and racing !!
Thanks for the compliments and I definitely don’t intend to sell this one. One of the reasons I went with epoxy was that I wanted something that would last a long time.
I’m already pretty close to finishing my second board’s shaping: a 7’7" or so funboard for my wife. It’s narrow and thin so that she can hold it under-arm easily but there is plenty of volume throughout. Like I said in my first post, I’m trying to get better at foiling the nose and tail on this one. I’ll post pictures when I finish that one too.
