Help/Advice on my second shape please

General Discussion
1

Hi all,

Almost finished the shaping part of my second self shape - I’m just wondering if it will actually work, or if there are some major design flaws. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. My first shape was a pretty standard mini simmons (5’3"x23x3") and I’m super stoked with how it works despite its funky dimensions.

My inspiration for this latest one is a Dan Tomo board that I’ve seen on the web - a sort of high performance simmons-esque shape. The deep concave (just less than half an inch at deepest) is inspired by some of the stuff Maurice Cole is shaping.

The board is 5’8"x19"x2.5". It has a 9.5" square tail and is about 14.5" wide a foot from the front and back of the board. Wide-point being just ahead of centre. The bottom contour is a rolled nose in the first third, to a deeeep concave - deepest between the feet, which almost completely flattens the centre line though the back half of the board. There is some rail rocker in the back half - about 1.7 inches max. The rolled nose exaggerates the nose rocker to just over 4 inches. The rails are boxy and fullish with a hard edge starting just ahead of centre and continuing right out the back. I’ve kept the foil thickish as a board this small worries me as to whether its going to effectivly float my 6ft 176lb (76kg) frame (excl the 4/3ml hooded wesuit I wear 90% of the time).
I’m hoping to use this as an all-round shortboard/hp fish replacement and give it a 5-finbox setup to maximise its versitility. I’ve been surfing for over a decade, but am far from pro - more of a happy-go-lucky weekend warrior, surfing mostly cold atlantic beach-breaks (in the Cape Town area - for those that know it).

My main worries are:**

  1. Is the concave too extreme? If so, what would you recommend I do to correct this at this late a stage of making it?**
  2. Is the hard edge too far up?  - Will this make the board tracky, or will it do what I hope - make it release quickly?**
  3. Is the completely flat centre rocker out the back going to make the board too stiff, or is my modest rail rocker sufficient to help it to turn easily enough?**
Any other critiques/suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Attached are a few pics of the beast. Ciao**

[img_assist|nid=1064682|title=Tomo ripoff - back view|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=480|height=640]
**

 

[img_assist|nid=1064683|title=Tomo ripoff - front|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=480|height=640][img_assist|nid=1064684|title=Tomo ripoff - rocker|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=640|height=480][img_assist|nid=1064685|title=Tomo ripoff - rocker2|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=480|height=640][img_assist|nid=1064686|title=Tomo ripoff - bottom1|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=640|height=480][img_assist|nid=1064687|title=Tomo ripoff - bottom2|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=640|height=480][img_assist|nid=1064688|title=Tomo ripoff - concave|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=640|height=480]
2

all those questions will be answered in the pursuit of building better surfboards. surf it and all your questions will be answered. 

I do suggest a handle change, not sure what flamer means where you live, as you didn’t include location.

3

I have no actual experience in shaping boards (yet) so feel free to completely ignore what I have to say, but it looks to me from the photos that you still have a massive concave at the rear of the board, It may be an illusion from the photos, but a deep concave so far back is exactly what I will be trying to avoid when I come to shape my board due to a similar thing ona very bad purchase I made last year on a board that ‘‘just doesn’t go well’’

    I am personally going to go with a moderate concave which dissipates at the front fins,  A concave through the tail is not nessesarily a bad thing imo but you dont want it too deep too far back or you might have difficulty turning.

 

  But like I said feel free to ignore me and listen to someone else who might know what they are talking about

 

 

4

Sounds llike you have all the elements of a Nano to me. Outline at the nose looks wierd but that may be the camera. Great job for your second board! Foil and rocker looks good. The concave is very deep and looks like it’s a little abrubt where it transitions to the rail. I know they have hard edges further up than a regular HPSB but I would’nt go up to the midpoint with it, maybe bring it back and do a tucked under edge starting 6-8" in front of your front fins.

There’s a lot of stuff going on with those Tomos, it’s hard to blend them all together. I bet you that thing will work great and would be fast as hell.

5

Yeah looks like you went for the Nano and then chickened out on the tail (just bustin yer chops) You should’ve gone for it and made it WIDE. While some might think that concave is too much I think it’ll work. Hell Tomo’s boards have way more radical bottoms than yours! Look at Ace’s boards and Simmons and many others.  Deep channels and concaves work on stubby little  thick boards.  I think you nailed it except for the tail! Ha! I like Tomo’s designs…I’ve made a few little experimental (mental) boards that will never see this forum…they all surfed. They all had pro’s and con’s just like every other surfboard ever made.

Great job on your second ever board!

6

Hi Guys,

Thank you all very much for your advice - all was taken :) 

I ended up giving the middle third of the bottom a tucked edge (as opposed to a hard one), then giving it a slight  rail roll into the deep concave. I shortened the board by around an inch and a half by rounding the nose a bit more and lengthening the tail width by about another quater inch. So the board is a little less ‘extreme’ and feels much better balanced as a result. Hopefully this will translate into a speedy, easy to surf board. Final, pre-glassing dimensions are 5’6.5"x19"x2.5" (Tiny!)

I’m not glassing it myself (I know, not very Swaylockian!), but the guy that does it, has epoxy glassing nailed. Its super light and strong :slight_smile:

I’m going with a five fin box setup, for versatility and will be using FCS fusion boxes. In the past I’ve used futures, but here in SA the futures range of fins is both limited and expensive. 

Once the board is glassed, i’ll post lots of pics and a ride report. 

Thank you all :slight_smile:

Ciao