Ive come across a pretty good site on how to make a balance board. Ive been wanting to do this for a while. Its pretty straight forward, what I would have done anyway.
I can’t believe that someone actualy made a site for building indo boards.
If your gonna make one. Make it a longboard style. If your gonna make it out of a piece of wood and just seal it up. Use a “sand surface sealer” as you don’t need the tuff polyurathane. Useing a “sand surface sealer” you can cover it, sand, and recover it every 45mins for a very nice looking product. Adding the non-slip if you feel it to be nessary.
If your gonna be a bad ass trick indo guy. Make the board out of 1/8" plywood, carbon fiber, and heavey biax glass.
For all of you whom are ready for a indo challenge.
Find a nice round log or a 6’ piece of telephone pole and cut it down the center. Put the flat side of the log on the ground, the pipe on the log and the indo in the pipe.
If you want surfing balance training there it is. I know a guy that can laydown as he’s paddleing, get to his feet and walk the plank on the long. He’s a master at the indo board
I built one (2 more waiting to finish).
I found the ABS pipe to not be very strong. I like the schedule 40 PVC. OSH will sell it by the foot. I used the non-skid additive in my varnish http://www.xshelton.com/users/kathy/balance_board/images/tools/03.jpg on the deck side. Made for a very nice surface.
My little boys love to play with it. They use a 4" pipe and I use a 6" pipe. The first one is the standard Indo Board size/shape. The 2nd not cut yet, but waiting, will be the longboard size/shape.
I dowel jointed and wood glued the end boards for extra strength.
On one of those leave the stops off. You can really stall it out there on the nose and tail. Of couse, if you screw up you can go fling also.
People at work made fun of me when I built mine. So, when I finnished it I made a bet that I’d pay $5.00 for every min. to anyone that could stay on without touching. The longest was about 30 seconds and my boss flew off backwards sending the board fling across the shop. HAHAHHAHAHAHA
I have been using a different balance board modeled after a physical therapy tool. It is for improving balance, reflexes and trengthening the ankles as well as intrinsic foot muscles. It is a super simple design but really difficult to do, making it a great tool. It is just a circular peice of 3/4" ply with a 4X4 post (about 5" long and shaped to a rounded poitnt) nailed to the center of the bottom. You then balance on the post. Works yoou 360 degrees, not just back and forth.