my 2 cents even though I shape mostly EPS now…
Rhyno is excellent technical quality. The cell structure is amazingly tight and shotgun air almost non-existent.
More dent resistant than Clark and whiter and lighter too. Incredibly tough stringers.
US Blanks just like Clark(which is not a bad thing) and a custom rocker program to boot.
Surprised no one’s mentioned Eskimo----it seems to have a following for high performance shortboards due
to it’s flex characteristics. Lotsa pros are on it.
Mike
Decided to re-ask the question at this thread, because this thread closely matched my search. Apologies if there is a more current thread on the topic.
What is your preferred PU blank? It would be helpful if you stated your location, etc. You are welcome to answer this blank for short boards, this blank for long boards, this blank for cnc shapes, this blank for hand shapes. Granted, more than likely the preference for cnc vs hand shapes might be irrelevant, as you still have to fine tune and sand cnc shapes as you do with hand shapes, etc.
Well things have changed a bit since the old thread was started back in 2007. Only a couple remain in operation. Names and formulas have changed. U.S. Blanks is still under the same ownership, but has greatly improved their formula and glue ups. Whiter and harder, consistent density. Surfblanks America became Arctic. There were shrinking issues with the old Surfblanks Australia/ Midget Farelly formula. With help from Barry Bennett the owners of Arctic were able to come up with their own formula. Poured and stringered in Ensenada BC. Headquartered and delivery from their warehouse in Oceanside. They ship worldwide and recently struck a partnership with Surftech that will give them a presence in Australia and New Zealand. Their foam is more conducive to hand shaping than the old Surfblanks formula was. Bright white, medium hardness, great glue ups, a glistening sugary finish when screened. I’m not 100% sure but I heard Millennium bought the King-Mac(Blair)factory in Ensenada. Millennium Foam is a division of Millennium Rubber. So their financial backing is strong. I have shaped and sold quite a few Millennium blanks. They are crisp, white and shape easily by hand. Glue ups are excellent. I guess what I am saying is that all three manufacturers are great!! You can’t go wrong with any of them. It boils down to personal preference and what kind of relationship you build with the owner and their reps. They all continue to work on improvements in logistics and delivery. Arctic. Millennium and U.S. Blanks. They make Clark Foam look like something from the Stone Age. Take your pick.
Thanks OSS1. When I was at the 2025 Board Room Show at Del Mar,I was talking to the guys at the Millenium booth. I was commenting that their blanks looked really white, whiter than US Blanks. Then the rep. said, “I think US Blanks have updated there formula and they are whiter than they used to be.” Kinda cool to hear a competitor be honest.
While it sounds like the main manf.’s have good quality blanks for hand shipping, it would be nice for someone to chime in on the small nuances and there current preferences. Nice to hear glues ups have improved formally the main blank companies.
I have been generous with U.S. Blanks. Their product looks better than it did when it first started. I shaped some of their early blanks that I got from Fiberglass Hawaii on Maui. The owner of Fiberglass Hawaii being a “silent partner”. They were the softest of the “Big Three”. I am not suprised. The three people involved in ownership of the company either were former Clark employees or had close ties to Clark. I had an account to buy their blanks direct and they canceled me. Being six hours south of their big dog Fiberglass Supply was just to close. So I was “Clarked”. My personal opinion is that both U.S. Blanks and Millennium keep a close eye on Arctic as a threat. Arctic is the innovator of the three when it comes to quality foam. Arctic is the standard that the other two take their clue from. Arctic goes whiter. The other two follow. Arctic works up a formula that satisfies both hand shapers and CNC. The other two follow. Arctic’s biggest obstacle up to now has been financing. They needed enough money to carry them through a cycle. From paying employees to pour, stringer and deliver blanks. And then waiting 45–60 days(or longer) to collect their money from some of the biggest high profile board builders on the West Coast. You know who they are. This left Arctic in a position with NO room for expansion. U.S. Blanks took the existing Clark Skeleton and put a new skin on it. Millennium was an existing Polyurethane Company who had their chemists come up with a formula and jumped into the Surfboard Foam business. Personally I think Millennium Rubber wish’s they had just stuck to rubber and polyurethane wheels for fork lifts and roller coasters. Arctic is a two partner start up. Two guys that went into hock personally to finance a dream. Former Rip Curl employees that loved surfing and the surf industry. Pretty damned dedicated and deserving of respect. Their new deal with Surftech will hopefully give them solvency and the ability to spread their dream. Like I said; it gets down to personal preference and relationship.
>>>Like I said; it gets down to personal preference and relationship.
Agreed. You have to have a good product and treat your customers with respect, gratitude and fairness. That is just my personal take.
Even if i am an eps board builder and use more and more “exotic” build, i had to finish and lam a pu blank those weeks (us blank) and i find the foam easy to work with. Better than Clark foam i learn shaping on 35 years ago, ftom my memorie. Lam with uv poly is also a child’s play.
Here in bali up untill a couple of years ago all blanks were imported…ie expensive sizes not available ..started making boards for myself eps Epoxy…had dodged epoxy for 20 years .. in the end felt good to get back to pu blanks poly glassing..
It’s wild how much we still compare everything to the old Clark days. For me, Millennium has been the most consistent lately, especially for keeping the deck from getting too ‘crunchy’ under the glass.
Explain; “crunchy”. I don’t follow. And just out of curiosity; Have you ever shaped a Clark?
Apart from a couple of massive tandem board blanks in the mid 90s (12 foot plus).never had clark blanks in australia
Understood. You got some great foam companies down there. Sorry to hear you lost a couple with the demise of their owners. Surfblanks(Midget Farelly) and Bennett(Barry Bennett). I was interested in syndrela’s comments and her experience with Clark and others like Arctic, U.S. Blanks. Was hoping for a little dialog. Was wondering if she shaped any Millennium Red density before they reformulated.
A little off subject…
Will there ever be a time when one can manufacture a quality back yard blank at a reasonable price.
I never thought of the day that a back yard shaper or beginner could order cuts, but it happened.
Blanks are still kind of expensive. Curious as to what the mark up is on blanks.
Transport/shipping is the killer. Oceanside to Oregon in a van and trailer or truck, paying Newsom’s California gas or diesel prices 2/3’s of the way. Or; A container from Gardena to Hawaii or Tahiti. Therein lies the cost. Since Covid shipping costs are through the roof. A lot of people don’t take into consideration the amount of space that a couple hundred blanks can occupy. Most of the freighters won’t take over a certain length. So you can’t do FedEx or UPS. As far as whether or not you’ll ever to do backyard blanks; if you are in California CARB, California Air Resources Board would be all over you. And mark up in Southern California is not the same as Hawaii. It all comes back to shipping.
Cheap is EPS slab cut with a hot wire. Get handy enough with that Hotwire and unstringered blanks can get pretty low dollar. Hotwire for a stringer and glue up for the cost of wood and glue. Then pay one of those shops at O’side Airport to CNC them.
Pretty sure the insurance premium on a blank factory would extremely high too.transporting iso cyanates got to be a nightmare too.
I did the hot wire eps thing ..in hindsight was good for my shaping . Pu is a dream after dealing with density issues sometimes in block cut eps…
anyone as haver used Formula one blanks?
Remember; You should be able to get your hands on a Second once in awhile. Those usually have to be bought directly though.
Do you go to US Blanks directly and ask if they have any seconds?
Use to go down to burfords pick thru the second pile..some gems if holes bubbles not in planshape zone…q cell or foam plug and or decal…perfect for personal boards