I am about to start shaping my new summer longboard. Its a 9’7" pintail. I want the board to be a good all rounder but i am also interested in keeping it fairly traditional. All of the longboards i shape are fairly traditional (single fin, 50/50 rails, low rocker etc), however, the relationship between nose and tail lift has always been that of a more modern board (more lift in the nose and less in the tail). The board i currently ride has 3.7" lift on the nose and 3.2" lift at the tail with a flat bottom. I rode a mid-sixties Hap Jacob this summer and it was one of the most enjoyable experiences of my life. I understand that the old boards generally had a lower flatter nose and more kick in the tail with a slightly convex bottom.
This is where my query comes in. I would like my new board to ride more like the Hap Jacobs i rode in the summer but i would like to keep some of the versatility of a more modern board. When riding the Hap Jacobs i nearly had to stall right on the tail to turn it and trim forward to gain any speed, i loved it. With my current board there is a lot less trimming needed. I would like a board the falls in between these two. If the Hap Jacobs had 3.4" in the front and 3.75" in the tail, would i be able to compromise the two designs, find a medium between the two. Perhaps 3.5" in both the nose and tail. Also might I compromise the apex of the rocker (further forward than the Hap and further back than on my board) One more question. What would be the most versatile bottom shape. I am thinking flat.
Basically i’m just looking to pick the brain of someone with more experience than I.
You can do a few things. You can special order a rocker from Clark with those specs, or you can get to stock blank and shape it backwards… use the tail for the nose. One of my favorite things to do is get a bigger blank by about 6 inches, use the nose for the tail so you get this killer tail kick, and flatten out the entry nose rocker by pushing the template back. You’ll get a fast, nose rider that has tha 60’s feel your looking for.
i have a further question. Where approximately is the apex of the rocker on a traditional board? How far back from the nose?
Also should the rocker apex line up with the widest point and the thickest point of the board. For example if a had a traditional plan shape with hips 2/3s down from the nose, should that also be the thickest point of the board and the apex of the rocker.
I get my blanks with custom rocker so changing it is not a problem.
You didn’t say whether you will build a single fin board of whether you want to have the option of rail fins.
I have a 9’10 Hap single fin that turns beautifully while in trim. I don’t have to go way back on the tail the manuever the board unless the wave face is completely backing off.
I also have a 9’5" Michel Junod that surfs beautifully with a single or with three fins. This board has Michel’s rocker, rail and bottom and it’s probably the most versatile board in my quiver simply because it’ll ride waves for 2 feet to double overhead.
If you want some details on either board I’d be glad to give them to you.
9’7" could be a good choice for the length of the board depending on how big you are and what the predominant surf conditions are where you live.
Check in and give you some more details if you’re interested.
It sound like we are basically working on the same project except i am going for a 9’4 to 9’6 up in north county. Do you usually use clark blanks? What model? Do you plan on making your own fin or buying one?
At the moment i am living in England until June. There is a great shop in Cornwall that makes custom blanks. www.homeblown.com. They are very good and i can custom build blanks exactly how you want them. I have never used Clark foam before so i couldn’t recomend a blank. I am deffinately going to make my own fin. There are some good recources here on fin building.
I am also building a mostly traditional 9’6" pintail noserider, 50/50, high rail line through the tail. I am thinking about using the 9-10H Clark blank which stock has 5" in the nose & 3 7/8 in the tail. Given the more traditional performance I am looking for in a board, would one recommend less nose rocker?
I am looking more at the 9.9W due to the exact fact that it has less nose rocker. It comes in at 3 5/16. I am not sure what rocker range a “classic” longboard uses but i believe that this falls within the range. Maybe a knowledgable soul could enlighten us.
My basic outline, with a couple adjustments, is that of a Bing lightweight noserider pin. That seems like a good outline to start with.
According to an older post here:
The nose rocker of the Bing is exactly 5 1/4 inches to the center of the tip and 3 1/8 inches at the tip of the tail. (From one particular board from which the measurements were taken.)
This was surprising to me, given what I have learned here at Swaylocks.