Haven’t posted here in a while, but thought some might be keen…
The new issue of WoodenBoat has two feature articles: one on wooden customs from Maine’s Grain surfboards, and the other a more academic history of surfboards.
Quite good, the both of them.
While the Grain fellows are relatively new to surfing and shaping, their foil, outlines, and rails look pretty “on.” Also, they have a super stoked vibe that’s pretty infectious.
The article notes that they’re developing a line of wooden hollow boards to be sold in kit form.
Seriously, my issue came just yesterday. I could have sworn someone else had also posted on this, but I can’t find it with a search. WB did a very good job with the Grain guys (although the caption of one picture seems to indicate that Rich is intends to give up making boards in favor of kits and plans, while the article text implies otherwise).
The history article was OK, but fell down on a couple of details. The fish illustration in the sidebar (“topbar”?) was pretty pathetic and the description not a lot better, as it failed to make a meaningful distinction between “fish” and “shortboard” (and perhaps the categories should have been “fish” and “thruster”). As a long time subscriber, I’ll have to take Matt (gently) to task in the letters column. And yes, I’m being picky. The accuracy for both stories is probably better than what is provided 90% of the time by magazines exclusively about surfing. But WB has set the bar very high for themselves in their diligence on researching boats; I expect no less of them when they venture into surfboards (and they no less of themselves, I’m certain).
In point of fact, I am a little tired of the EpoxyBoat magazine’s emphasis on plastic wood. Wildly Expensive Shoddy Technique Resin Co. might as wll use them as ad copy…
In point of fact, I am a little tired of the EpoxyBoat magazine’s emphasis on plastic wood. Wildly Expensive Shoddy Technique Resin Co. might as wll use them as ad copy…
doc, boatbuilder of the old school…
Now, now, they do still have a lot of material on traditional methods. I don’t think that Harry Bryan is going to cold mold a boat anytime soon - the man won’t even use electrical power unless forced to… They are trying to cover an expanded definition of wooden boatbuilding, an effort that is certain to leave no one completely satisfied. I recall seeing two letters in recent issues: one castigating them because “all they cover is sailboats”, and the other complaining about the excessive power boat coverage. OTGH, in an era when marinas are routinely banning boats merely because they are made of wood, an inclusive reader base is probably not a bad strategy. NTM that it wasn’t that many years ago that anything and anyone connected to wooden boatbuilding appeared to be doomed, and Wooden Boat and its championing of the aesthetics of John Gardner was instrumental, probably crucial, to its survival and revival. I’d be inclined to give them a tremendous amount of latitude for that reason alone.
Regarding Paul’s issue, I don’t think any intentional bias was involved. WB relies heavily on submissions by contributors (I don’t recall ever seeing anything previously by either author of the current surfboard articles) and I don’t get the impression that they hang onto unsolicited stuff for very long. Peter Spectre was undoubtedly editor-in-chief when that material was sent, since then Peter has retired and publisher Matt Murphy has taken over. That could account for the expansion of focus to include surfboards. Paul, I’d submit something again, or better yet, get someone else to submit it so that it doesn’t appear to be entirely self-promotional. I had already planned to mention other HWS guys who inhabit Swaylock’s when I write them, you are certainly on that list. No guarantee the letter will be published, of course, but I think there’s a fairly good shot.
I sent the folks at WoodenBoat a bunch of info on how I make my boards the first year I started building hollow boards…
Detailed the whole thing…Pics & Text…Pretty complete…
They sent me a curtious letter saying they were a boating magazine and surfboards ain’t boats, thank you, goodbye…
I guess they’ve expanded their defintion…
Amazing that they would do a write-up on the grain boards over yours, paul. I’m sure, as has been suggested already, your submission wasn’t even on the radar anymore when they did this or they likely would have included a mention of you, at the very least. That being said, those guys over at grain seem to have some really good PR folks working for them. they certainly aren’t doing anything particularly innovative or original, and just from what I can see from the gallery on their website, their shapes aren’t as clean as Paul’s or Daniel Hess’. The sure have some pretty pictures, though!
Also, in reading the website, they have a history of boatbuilding. That grandfathers them into a boatbuilding magazine, I guess.
Hey there Paul. I was going to post this earlier, but life’s been busy. I just read this thread and the other one on this topic now, and so I had to post. I have built one HWS, and I love it. I went through your site and explanation and it worked out good for me, although I did cheat it a little and modified some techniques(more for lack of clamps than for trying to make things better.) Anyways, I was just out in Washington 2 weeks ago and went to Westhaven on the Saturday. I was coming out and met some guy with a big Ford pickup who wanted to know about the board. Anyways, He totally knew you, and was aying he hadn’t seen many of those boards. I thought that was cool, meeting someone who knew about paul and could tell that mine was a HWS just form looking at it. I don’t know his name, but I asked him to say ‘Hi’ to you and thank you for the site. That’s really the end of this story. ok.
PS I just started on my second, a hollow cedar board, although I plan on building it a little different. Anyways, you have a good one and I’ll update with pics.
Joel Feenstra
PS. Iam2sam… I don’t build HWS and sell, or ever plan to. Cedar canoes yes, but not the boards.