normal wear in the use abuse cycle

General Discussion
1

on sunday I took a fully refunded return on a custom surf board

for give me for I have sinned .may this pennance redeem me.

I took an order from a guy I have known for 30 + years for his land lady.

he paid me in increments over a month or so preceeding her birthday.

a noble gesture.

bend ing over to get the plan right to accomodate .

.custom.

I never make three finned boards.

when I am requested I farm them out to my friend who is a production glasser.

I pigment colored the foam,hand illustrated a turtle underwater revealed in a wave with pigment

including a laminate underneath the deckpatch…to further accomodate the customer’s whim.

the effort I put into this board was overlooked

when after one use…

every knee impact in the deck,as the standing style of the rider includes knee contact,

resulted in spider crack imprints in the deck surface.

none of which breached the glass hotcoat or gloss.

The shatters were in the color layer,there were no dents in the glass.

the full refund was above and beyond required courtesy.

The fact that the board was ridden and depreciated by the poor technique of the rider

allowed them at least some responsibility.

I felt that to allow this person to own one of my boards

that I dillegently toiled over was likely to continue to abuse this beautiful board.

It had to be saved for someone who would be more likely to cherrish and respect it.

Upon two days of ruminating on this topic I have concluded

that these people are the perfect surfers to ride south eest asian

produced surfboards.

Abusive techniques should go hand in hand with boards touted as stronger construction

and money saving alternatives.

As to custom efforts these should be reserved for those who realise the value of such.

The elitieist attitude I cultivated for years as a dilligent surfing youth

that I thought was best left behind when I achieved a semblance of maturity

has a specific place in a well balanced conciousness.

There are KUKS and there is also a stage where Kuks must not be treated as peers.

I was once condemed for having a condecending attitude.

I have tried hard to temper this out of my character.

This is a case where I believe a spade must be Identified as a spade,

A KUK IS A KUK IS A KUK

and they shall never breach my sensabilities again.

being a nice ,helpful friendly person is well meant and gratifing.

Appreciation of ones efforts is an essential part of the process.

The rewarding nature of building a fine strong spirit charged wave toy

can be completely undone in a situation like this.

Would serious price increases help weed out experiences like this?

or perhaps a strict policy of no responsibility after delivery?

or a minimum ability level screening?

what is the solution?

AM I A condescending elitist prig?

In this case I believe that by becoming one I can defend my self esteem

and insulate my self from kuks who may now as we speak be ordering a surfboard

on line from a mass manufacturer or checking out at a discount merchandiser

for perhaps hundreds of dollars less than I could

produce a respectable custom surfboard of a design I believe in.

I hope they can please themselves and develop a long relationship

with the manufacturer of their choice.the thirty year + aquaintence

with the guy who ordered the board must be downgraded to something less personable.

…A beautifuly weighted aqua blue 9’6’’ surfboard awaits its destiny in my front store…

…ambrose…

hand foiling and hand laying the three fins gave me the itch for the first time in eight maybe ten years

…there are tiny cracks amidships of little consequence.

…my friend dennis mentioned the H-word

…he has been trying to overcome his prejudices.

2

Ambrose, You went beyond the call of duty. Some people just don’t get it. One time I made a custom board, per request, a 6’8" mini-gun for a guy who was going to Costa Rica. He said he wanted it for head to double overhead conditions. He brought it back after the trip (complete with airline dings!) and said it did not work and was the worst board he ever owned. I gave him a refund. Later I found out from his friend that the waves on their trip never got above waist high and he surfed my board every day although he had a normal short board with him! Sometimes it just doesn’t go as planned,but you have to do what you think is the right thing. Not so much for the kooks sake , but for your own.

3

Ambrose,

In the early days of his automobile company, Enzo Ferrari would not sell a car to you if you did not meet certain qualifications. Not the least of which was an ability to drive. Crafters of fine surfboards might do well to set some standards of customer quality/ability. Weed out the unworthy.

4

anf ferrari would also have dinner with you and if you had poor table manners “NO CAR FOR YOU!”

5

A few bits, more or less in context…

Quote:

I took an order from a guy I have known for 30 + years for his land lady.

he paid me in increments over a month or so preceeding her birthday.

a noble gesture

Unfortunately, no good deed goes unpunished

Quote:

the full refund was above and beyond required courtesy.

The fact that the board was ridden and depreciated by the poor technique of the rider

allowed them at least some responsibility.

I felt that to allow this person to own one of my boards

that I dillegently toiled over was likely to continue to abuse this beautiful board.

It had to be saved for someone who would be more likely to cherrish and respect it.

True.In the same way I’m not going to let somebody abuse my good chisels, and instead show 'em how with pine and a Marples…and expect 'em to go out and buy Stanleys when they get their own.

Quote:

Upon two days of ruminating on this topic I have concluded

that these people are the perfect surfers to ride south eest asian

produced surfboards.

Abusive techniques should go hand in hand with boards touted as stronger construction

and money saving alternatives.

As to custom efforts these should be reserved for those who realise the value of such.

Couldn’t agree more. This kinda demonstrates what I have been thinking about the inexpensive imports versus handmade custom boards; both have their place and one will never completely deny the other a market. Like custom fishing rods, firearms, tools of all sorts that have been adjusted, set and finished to fit a specific hand by the owner or by a craftsman of skill, a custom board should be saved for when whoever’s using it is up to the challenges and understands the rewards.

And for monkeys to monkey with, there are mass-produced items that just about all could use, relatively cheap and tolerant of abuse. Some will dub around with 'em before consigning them to a dusty corner of the cellar , some will learn and advance, some will learn and decide their skills won’t justify anything a whole lot better.

Like me and my Harbor Freight wrenches - I’ll never be a pro-level mechanic, so a set of Snap-ons would be wasted on me, but for my buddy who is using his all day, every day, that extra level of finesse that’s in 'em is of considerable value. On the other hand, his woodworking tools are awful…

Quote:

The elitieist attitude I cultivated for years as a dilligent surfing youth

that I thought was best left behind when I achieved a semblance of maturity

has a specific place in a well balanced conciousness.

There are KUKS and there is also a stage where Kuks must not be treated as peers… …AM I A condescending elitist prig?

Not at all- I get beginners coming in who want to buy boards to learn on, with a whole laundry list of fins, concavities and convexities, every little thing they saw in some worthless magazine. The few that’ll listen, or better yet the ones who didn’t do the ill-founded research, them I like better.

'Cos then I don’t have to haul out my stock speech about ‘when you learned how to drive, that was in a double A top fuel dragster, right? No? It was, then, in a Formula 1 car or an Indy car? No again… well then, learning how to surf, should you be doing it on a high performance board or maybe something easier?’

Some get it, some don’t. We live in hope, I guess.

The same goes for newbies who manage to position themselves in the way out in the water, every time. They use ‘I’m only a beginner’ as an excuse, one which only works if the perpetrator is a nubile blonde in very little suit. Friend of mine asks if they learned to drive in the midst of a racetrack, during a race, or perhaps on a quiet back road with much less traffic.

Quote:

the thirty year + aquaintence

with the guy who ordered the board must be downgraded to something less personable.

Ah, he meant well, and perhaps delicacy forbade him from mentioning that his landlady was a pachyderm, or perhaps Mabel Dick ( Moby’s equally plump sister who escaped the wrath of Capt Ahab ) , which might have allowed you to inlay the requisite half-inch steel plate sections in the deck. Bound to be some sore feelings, and I’m sure he’s feeling guilty as well, having let you down some.

But time will dilute it all. Hopefully in less than 30+ years -

doc…

6

Ambrose,

Honor is in such short supply it seems. Do what you say you will do. Keep promises. Work hard when you take someone’s money or time. Try to do the right thing. You’ve kept yours and it aint always easy. It can be pretty painful when you find out your friends and aquaintences don’t have it. Maybe he’ll find his? Mike

7

A wise and compassionate man once said “not to cast pearls before swine”. I suppose the same thing would apply to hand-crafted surfboards. I knew a guy once who wouldn’t sell his well-cared for used cars to someone who he didn’t get the right vibe from.

8

One of my favorite custom order stories was a large girl that wanted a strong surfboard, i explained that strong demands some added weight… she showed up after the board was hotcoated and complained that the board was too heavy… i forgot to say that when i told her the price of the board at order time , she said “you charge THAT much”, hmmm…so i immeadiatly gave her her full down payment back… finished the board and gave it to a man that taught me how to weld, for his wife… i still love the feeling that i have when i remember the whole situation…weeding out customers is a great idea, i’ve sent more people to costco than i’ve made custom boards for…in mathamatics it’s called the significant digit i think, and a lot of people just don’t have that particular digit… yet… Ambrose, you’re the man!, it was good to hear that story from you, i really appreciated your action! i think it was the BEST thing that you could have done for you.!.. danny

9

Dang 'brose - does the guy (30+ year aqu.) even surf? Seems so painfully obvious that he would know… As all have pointed out - you are a shinning example. Keep up the good fight. Taylor.

10

Gee Ambrose… ‘Can’t you just…’

Answer… “Hell no. You ‘can’t just’ anything… it’s way more complicated than that and takes way more time than you could ever imagine. I got bleeding fingers, fiberglass dust in my skin and I’ve put my freakin’ heart and soul into this thing.”

They don’t get it and don’t deserve it!

11

Aloha! I’ve had the privilege of being close to Ambrose for almost 20 years. Him having taken the time to share that experience with us , to me , really says a lot about the impact of the whole incident. One major thing that I’ve realized in my many years of surfboard making, is that “there’s a home for all of them”. Most likely, that particular board is destined for another caretaker, that will truly appreciate all the love and soul that Ambrose puts into his creations. As far as taking these things too seriously, I personally try to remember that the objective of the whole movie is “toys for tots”. Also, mahalos to brother Doc, for his reasonable and well balanced perspective on just about everything. Aloha…RH

12

Ahmm- not to derogate or devalue this thread, but…

Quote:

Also, mahalos to brother Doc, for his reasonable and well balanced perspective on just about everything.

Oh, that I could have that cast in bronze, for the edification of the various and sundry ladyfriends of past and present, let alone the world as a whole.

But in truth, I have to give credit to several things;

First, this is a print medium. Which means my responses, at least those few which are spelt correctly, are the product of both initial reflection and considerable revision. So my initial and bad-tempered responses are tempered somewhat.

Next, and perhaps more important, 'cos it influences the general outlook, is the dietary factor. I have eaten an awful lot of crow over the years. For those not familar with the phrase, over the years I have managed just about all the non-fatal forms of idiocy. Including reflecting on all of 'em and trying in vain to avoid repeating them.

I was, fortunately, influenced by a very bright guy in all this: my father. Whose general greeting would be something like “You stupid, dimwitted, _________ _______ _____ ( fill in the blanks ) , what did you #uck up this time?” - a statement which was far too often true. One learns. And develops humility. When you are working on commercial fishing boats your errors cost lives at worst and somebody’s income at least:it’s important to get it right. Especially if you are shipping out on the next trip.

Lastly, and I am sure many are grateful for that, Ihave been on both sides of what I may call the ‘ordering dilemma’ : you, as the guy taking the order, do the best to steer the buyer into the right choice as you see it. But the buyer’s word is final…and on more than one occasion I have discovered that 'damn, when they said extra large, they bloody well meant it" and immediately consigned an ill-fitting shirt to the rag bin. 'Cos I ordered, I insisted, and when it came through wrong it was my fault.

So…please don’t give me any credit. Rather, study on my mistakes and strive to learn from 'em. Which, coincidentally, were my late father’s last words to me.

in all humility

doc…

13

Thanks for sharing that. Not sure how I would (will?) deal with something like that.

Now what was this H-word you mention?..

… heffer? …

14

Hi Ambrose,

Got any pics of the board? The original customer may not have appreciated it but I’m sure the Swaylocks crew will. I for one, would love to see your artwork/craftmanship!!

Kind Regards,

Matt.