nose/rocker/blanks

I am looking into shaping my first longboard. My template board will probably be a weber stylist( or another old school shape). While the board is thick in the middle the nose becomes pretty thin. How can you make a thin nose with out lots of rocker?. Can you get blanks with less rocker than others? And in jc shaping 101 they use an angle thingie to do the rails. So if i want to make 50/50 rails can i just use a 90 degree. Thanks.

I am looking into shaping my first longboard. My template board will > probably be a weber stylist( or another old school shape). While the board > is thick in the middle the nose becomes pretty thin. How can you make a > thin nose with out lots of rocker?. Can you get blanks with less rocker > than others? And in jc shaping 101 they use an angle thingie to do the > rails. So if i want to make 50/50 rails can i just use a 90 degree. > Thanks. Rocker has nothing to do with thickness. Thickness is the “foil.” Every blank is thicker in the middle and thinner toward the nose and tail. To make the nose thinner, you just carve foam away and make it thinner where you want. If you carve away gradually and evenly throughout the blank, you won’t really be adding any rocker. All blanks have their own rocker. If you don’t like what’s there, you can order a custom rocker. But you don’t want to play around with that too much, as it complicates things a lot if you make big rocker changes. Look at the blanks available at www.foamez.com. The picture of each blank shows its “natural” rocker, in other words, the rocker that the shaper designed into the mold. If you want something different, say, 1/2-inch less than what is pictured there, just tell them when you order it: “I want 1/2-inch less than the natural rocker.” You can have them make bend adjustments from either the center of the board, the last 24 inches, or whatever. The closer to the nose the bend is, the more noticeable the “flip up” will be. As for the rail tool, I assume you’re talking about the “Fred” tool. Don’t use that for 50/50 rails. That’s just for making turned-down edges for harder, more performance-oriented rails. I sometimes use it on the nose or tail rails when I want more of an edge. But pay attention to how JC makes marks on the blank. Just do that on both the top and bottom and carve down to your marks. For a better picture, go to the “Diagrams” page in the board forum on this site, and look at Peter Rijk’s “Rail Line Tool.” His diagram illustrates how rails are made. Just do that on both the bottom and top of your board. After you’ve made this “rough cut,” then take rough-grit sandpaper (36- or 40-grit), bend it in your palm to make kind of a “U” shape, and start shaping the rail with the sandpaper. The tighter you close your hand when sanding, the thinner the rail will be. It’s a little hard to explain here in writing, but hopefully this helps some…deeb…

I am looking into shaping my first longboard. My template board will > probably be a weber stylist( or another old school shape). While the board > is thick in the middle the nose becomes pretty thin. How can you make a > thin nose with out lots of rocker?. Can you get blanks with less rocker > than others? And in jc shaping 101 they use an angle thingie to do the > rails. So if i want to make 50/50 rails can i just use a 90 degree. > Thanks. Deeb gives good info. I’m an amateur with only a few boards behind me. I make mid-board rail templates. One for deck, one for bottom, and one overall. I make them out of 1/8" plywood with the intended shape of the foam cut out of them. I also make a nose bottom template. First you should decide on mid-board thickness. Then try searching the archive for “Noodle Rail” for examples of matrix numbers for drawing rail foam template cross sections. After smoothing out the foam bottom, mark the rail lines. Then shape the lower rails and V. Flip the board and take the mid-board deck and rails down. As you do this, blend the mid-board rails into your intended nose and tail shapes. Keep a sharp eye out for symetry and smooth lines as you shape. The best way is with lighting. Use downward facing flourescent tubes all around your blank if possible.

Josh: Look closely at the board that you are using as your guide, not only the outline but down the rails as it lays vertically in the rack. The outline is important but there other factors equally as critical. Using the same lighting that you will be using to shape with, study the thickness or foil of the overall shape from nose to tail. Turn the board over and lay a straight edge across the stringer at various points and look at the bottom contours. It wouldn’t hurt to document these observations at incremental points along the stringer. (at least at the Nose, Midpoint and Tail dimensions you are using for the outline). Once you have a good mental picture of the board then look for the blank that come closest to your board. You will probably find that the bottom of the board is not flat at all points from nose to tail. You will spend the same if not more shaping the bottom contours as you do on the rail bands on top. Go slow and and steady and concentrate on keeping everything that you do symmetrical with the shape as a whole and you will end up with a magic board. Good luck and post a picture when you finish it! Tom>>> I am looking into shaping my first longboard. My template board will > probably be a weber stylist( or another old school shape). While the board > is thick in the middle the nose becomes pretty thin. How can you make a > thin nose with out lots of rocker?. Can you get blanks with less rocker > than others? And in jc shaping 101 they use an angle thingie to do the > rails. So if i want to make 50/50 rails can i just use a 90 degree. > Thanks.

You can have > them make bend adjustments from either the center of the board, the last > 24 inches, or whatever. The closer to the nose the bend is, the more > noticeable the “flip up” will be. How do the two different approaches to rocker affect performance? I guess I’m trying to find out the difference between a board with an overall curve and a board with “flipped ends”. What happens if you use a combination and blend nose rocker from the center but flip up the tail? Or the other way around?

How do the two different approaches to rocker affect performance? I guess > I’m trying to find out the difference between a board with an overall > curve and a board with “flipped ends”. What happens if you use a > combination and blend nose rocker from the center but flip up the tail? Or > the other way around? You can’t spend as much time on a flipped nose. It pushes too much water. Flattened wide noses tend to pearl dropping in. Progressive tail rocker is multi-faceted. Progressive tail rocker, flat across, can allows for flat entry. This shape is generally a Yater rocker. Yater rocker’s flat entry makes a board glidey and fast as a bat outa hell. But Yater tail rocker is generally 2% to 2.5% of board length. It doesn’t turn so well, or maneuver well in hollow surf. You have to stand on the tail to turn. I like tail rocker which is about 3% to 3.2% of board length. Put some progression (rear flip) in it and tail V. This means you have two tail rockers, progressive at the stringer, and even at the rails. Offset the outline wide point forward a little. This type of setup turns well without backpedaling, and it handles juice. Limit the nose flip to 25 degrees off center bottom tangent. Most of this board is tail, with plenty of rocker. The offset provides lift under the nose, so you can travel there without needing a passport. It’s a longboard. You don’t need “that” much extra glide or speed. I can help with templates if you want.