alright, i hear about rails and how they are soft hard 50-50
someone help me out cause i’ve never really been explained rails at all…
thanks a lot ya’ll!
aloha!*
-big rick
Hey Bigrick,
Grab a cup of coffee and head to the archives. I typed “different types of rails” into the search function and found over 600 results. Fortunately, there aren’t that many different types of rails…
http://www.swaylocks.com/swaylopedia/index.cgi?Rails
At the top of the page where it says “Swaylock’s Surfboard Design Forum”…
Look for SWAYLOPEDIA… Go surfing on Swaylopedia !
Good stuff
Ray
alright,-usually point breaks in santa barbara
i hear about -kinda like an aussie walkabout but listening
rails and - really rails hand having to do with what you hold rails with
how they are-they are fine and waycationing in central coasts worldwide
soft hard 50-50 -having to do with intensity of attenuation and a number value of articulation from top 12 0’clock to 6 O’clock bottom
someone help-like homework for a purty girl in art class
me out-come on wake up get up dont count yourself out
cause -the anthisis of effect
i’ve never- dont be afraid to try new things
really-to begin again making agreements to pool energies
been -a receptacle like a box for wood ashes .or fire wood or laundry
explained-before it was indecernable now it’s flatline is unremarkably flat
rails at all…
I’ve looked at rails from both sides now
from up and down
and still somehow
I really dont know rails
at all.
every body who shapes
shapes rails to fit their hands
every hand shaped rail is a reflection of the shapers anatomy
a strange insight into the touch of a craftsman.
describing rails beyond the reach out and touch can get wordy
a difficult treatise that can get over-involved and confusing.
questions posed like this
can lead far and wide afield of hard information
to walk down a line of twelve to five thousand boards
will illuminate the truths of rails
and their percentile inclinations.
…ambrose…
bigrick, here is an illustration of a 50/50 rail.
rails at all…
I’ve looked at rails from both sides now
from up and down
and still somehow
I really dont know rails
at all…
ambrose
place foil as desired,
edge as required.
for best results, shape daily…before and after surfing.
enjoy…nik
One other thing to remember that will help with your rails. When you cut out your template outline, you want to have it as true as possible. It is one of many important steps to making consistent rails.
To oversimplify… if you put a board in the rack rail up, where the apex of the rail is determines the type of rail. If you have the apex at center, 50% of the rail is on one side and 50% on the other - you have a 50/50 rail. If you have 60% of the rail curve on the deck side and 40% on the bottom side, you have a 60/40 rail. And so on…
“Hard” edges are literally a corner somewhere on the rail, usually tucked under and in the back third. “Soft” rails have no edge so they are round or “egg” shaped.
“Down rails” are any rail with the apex below the 50/50 mark, often near or at the bottom plane of the board, and are often seen on retro boards.
“Pinched rails” are rails that have a tight apex and otherwise more “angular.”
Nearly all boards have rails that transition from on type to another along the foil of the board, and these transitions should not be detectable. The apex should wind it’s way around the rail and back, fading into edges or falling off the bottom without a noticeable transition.
I don’t use rail templates, only because I never learned to use them properly. I do it by eye and by feel, and so I’m never sure how accurate my rails really are. But if they look and feel right, they will most likely work fine for me. Sliding my hands up and down the rails, and putting the board under my arm helps me determine rail volume relative to thickness and deck contour. Careful examination of the rail profile helps me determine rail type, foil and flow.
good luck!
So does the shape of the top of the rail change anything? if you had a down rail, does it matter if the top is very steep to the edge or shallow?
If I understand well your question (not sure if) the difference is in the volume of the rail, i.e. “boxy” (almost square) or “tapered” (going from thick to thin). Thick rails will usually help in small inconsistent waves, thin rails will usually be better for fast or big surf.
I agree… the top of the rail determines the volume of the rail, and to some extent, the deck contour/volume. Carrying the volume out to the rail gives you a thicker rail, which is harder to bury. Thinner rails allows the water to flow over the rail bury deep during turns or on steep sections of the wave, like in the barrel. On small waves, some extra volume in the rail helps catch waves and maintain speed through turns. On bigger waves, you generally want less volume in the rails, especially on steep, late take-offs when you want to get your rail in the water quickly.
Generally, and to oversimplify, tucked under edges get a board up and planing faster, and are most commonly found on short boards when a more banking turn is desired. Many longboard have soft rails even in the tail, to do more pivoty and vertical turns, as the tail rail easily sinks into the water.
nik: how did you get those templates???
i would mind making me some and using them to my advantage when shaping…
this is a lot of helpful info on here!
i really appreciate all the info you people provide when a question is brought up
aloha!*
-big rick
Nik, those rail templates are great! Now I know what to do with the leftover foam from board #3.
Yeah Nik, pray tell, where did you get those profiles? A couple of them look very familiar.
so now, while I have Wade’s snapped thruster here , I can kill two birds with one stone …
Here ya go … you don’t get to see this everyday [Well…hopefully not , anyway !]
Of course these shots also show what happens to the DECK of a board after 7 years of heavy surfing by a 6’3 , 200lb surfer , here in Perth , down south , and up north . [It was actually a well overhead Perth beachbreak it snapped on a week or two ago]
cheers !
ben
I don’t use rail templates, only because I never learned to use them properly. I do it by eye and by feel, and so I’m never sure how accurate my rails really are. But if they look and feel right, they will most likely work fine for me. Sliding my hands up and down the rails, and putting the board under my arm helps me determine rail volume relative to thickness and deck contour. Careful examination of the rail profile helps me determine rail type, foil and flow.
NJ, that’s the way to do it………rail temps are best used as a guide….mostly to the volume required…very helpful when shaping models to ensure consistency.
and to set a fussy client at ease, pull out a rail temp and he thinks…. yep this guy knows what he’s doing…little does he know we are still trying to work it out….
And really helpful when,…… like me…… you shape by brail……
TedZsurfer got it in one….
just square up a waste piece of tail
wrap a piece of sandpaper around the rail you like the volume off…
duct tape the sandpaper down…
saw out enough foam to get you started
and sand away.
“Tip”….to find the thickest part of the foil
stand on the deck side board in shaping rack
slide fingers along bottom palm on deck side, back and forth
take note of the thickest part of the rail…you will feel it… …you can refer to this later when shaping your board and repeat the “Tip” above to ensure the foil flows correctly and thickness is where it should be.
place the sandpaper just aft of this point where rail is thinner…allowes for the glass and sandpaper thickness.
nik
Quote:
and to set a fussy client at ease, pull out a rail temp and he thinks…. yep this guy knows what he’s doing…little does he know we are still trying to work it out….
Hahahahahahahahahahaha! Join the club!
Quote:
" rails at all…
I’ve looked at rails from both sides now
from up and down
and still somehow
I really dont know rails
at all.
…to walk down a line of twelve to five thousand boards
will illuminate the truths of rails
and their percentile inclinations."
…ambrose…
the cat in the hat
who lay on the mat
said 'my rails are fat
so when I get shacked ,
they help me get spat’
…how good is that ?
…Dr.Seuss is now available for private surf design lectures…The current going rate is 200 green eggs and ham per hour . [No Spam though , please !]
ben
whats all the fuss about rail templates?
contour guage…$8 at HD…easy transfer to cardstock
Nik - brilliant sums you up easy in one word.
craftee - WHAT is that titleist doing not on a golf course?! Just getting into golf myself…
Love that contour gauge… can you lock it in place to set the contours??
L