i was told by a well known shaper that a board should be the same width 1 foot from both ends of the board. i dont know if i was high or he was high, but i still dont know if its true or not. i used the rule for my fun board i made, but now im shaping a 6’7’’ short board and have to know. it seems that the noses on shortboards are way thinner than the tails these days but i dont put a measuring tape up to them so it remains a mystery to me.
help me out swaylockers!
that’s the most ridiculous thing i’ve ever heard.
Ummm, yeah, well… either you were high, he was high or you miss-heard what he said.
Was he by any chance holding a board that had a fairly wide nose (like a longboard or mini-mal) and possibly said “THIS board has the same width from both ends of the board”?
There is nothing wrong with a board being the same width 1’ from nose and 1’ from tail so long as that’s what the shaper intended but apart from possibly the odd longboard that I’ve borrowed off people on smaller days to my knowledge, I’ve never ridden a board fitting that bill… some may have been close though.
-Cam
bro, thats why im trippin’ out right now. i dont even know what he was talking about. i might have misinterpreted what he said, but im almost positive about what he said. damn, i must look like the biggest kook ever, eh? hahaaa.
so are you saying that short boards dont follow that rule at all? i just made a template that didnt follow that so called rule, but im second guessing my design bacause im fretting over what the dude said.
he could have been talking about long boards since he shapes mainly long boards for his friends, so yeah, thanks for the info.
ignore what he said…there are no “rules” for design…you can do whatever you want. take a look at Aqua’s “stingray” or some of the “edge” boards. the only rule is that there are no rules.
and on another note, i have never ridden a board (short, long, or in between) that was the same width 1’ from the nose and tail. that’s not to say that you can’t make a perfectly good shape that happens to be the same width 1’ from the nose and tail…but to say that that’s the rule for all good boards!!!..MALARKEY, BALDERDASH, FIDDLE-FADDLE, HORSEFEATHERS, and any other synonym for BULLSHIT that you can think of!!!
Yep, I agree Soulstice… there is no hard and fast rules.
BreakwaterLocal, don’t feel like a kook… we all learn and we have to start at some level of understanding… from then on we ask questions and gets peoples opinions and they help to shape our knowledge. At times, people give miss-leading or incorrect information and it sets us off on the wrong path but the reason why you shouldn’t feel like a kook is that you have been able to judge for yourself that there was something smelly about the info and that you didn’t just bottle it up, you asked the question.
My opinion if you’re still a little unsure would be to walk into a reputable board store and ask the question… you’ll get a funny look, a belly laugh and then probably followed by a good opinion / ideas on shaping.
Remember, He who asks the question is a fool for 5 minutes, he who does not ask the question is a fool for life. Sorry to get philosophical 
-Cam
Anyways, a field experiment for you to prove this point.
Materials:
1 large piece of cardboard (about the length of your intended surfboard and just over 1/2 the intended width)
1 Pencil
1 Ruler
1 bendable / flexable piece of 1" wide by 6’ long ply, metal, MDF, masonite (or even the edge of your tapemeasure)
Procedure:
On one edge of the cardboard, mark the mid point of an intended board shape (not necessarily exaclty 1/2 the length of the cardboard but you can use that measure for the sake of this experiment)
On the same edge, mark a point 1ft from each end. Mark these as 1ft from nose and 1ft from tail.
At each 1ft from each end point, draw a line vertically up. Use 5 inches as your measure initially (i.e. a 10 inch nose), but we will extend on this later.
Now take that bendable piece of whatever (here in called the bendy tool) and hold it at the centre point. Point it towards the nose end and hold it so that it dissects with the point 1’ from nose. The bendy tool should now be dissecting the centre point, the 1ft from nose point and extending past the end of the cardboard
The corner of the cardboard is representing the nose so for a shortboard nose, so you need to get the bendy tool to now dissect the corder of the cardboard while maintaining the other 2 dissection points. (You may need a friend to help here or a brick to hold the other end in place as you only have 2 hands)
Now using your pencil, draw a line along the inside of the bendy tool from the nose to the centre point. (You will now have the template for a shortboard nose that is 10" at 1’ from the nose… although maybe a little rough and crude)
Take your bendy tool away and do the same for the other end by dissecting the centre point and the 1’ from tail marker but this time only take the bendy tool in at the tail to 1/2 the width of your expected tail width (on tail… not 1ft from tail) If you want a pin or rounded tail then that is OK but you will need to dissect the bendy tool through the corner of the cardboard in the tail.
Draw your line as in step 6.
OK this looks alright, but what if we want more volume inthe tail?
OK then, we take our measurements up to lets say 8 1/8" for step 3. This makes a 16 1/4" wide tail.
Now try doing your tail… yeh we can get a fairly wide fish tail in there… now try doing the nose… oh my lord, that’s not a shortboard, I’m not riding that !!!
Use this procedure to make your own templates… it’s fun and it’s a really good way to get a consistent and flowing shape - just try to avoid using the same measurement for nose and tail And also keep in mind that the centre point (widest point) does not ncessarily need to be 1/2 the length of the board.
-Cam
What a kook… This guy, you’re, you’re crazy, you’re crazy man, what dart?
i was told by a well known shaper that a board should be the same width 1 foot from both ends of the board. i dont know if i was high or he was high, but i still dont know if its true or not. i used the rule for my fun board i made, but now im shaping a 6’7’’ short board and have to know. it seems that the noses on shortboards are way thinner than the tails these days but i dont put a measuring tape up to them so it remains a mystery to me.
help me out swaylockers!
I gotta know who this well known shaper is, I mean, what the hell does he shape, GIANT FOOTBALLS?
You’re being messed-with my friend.
I gotta know who this well known shaper is, I mean, what the hell does he shape, GIANT FOOTBALLS?
<— laughed so hard i just (figuratively) shat my pants.
Could he have said thick not wide? I can see - maybe - someone making an argument to support that idea.
dude, i must have been gone. i could of swore that this guy said what he said. he is a really well known shaper. if i say his name you will all really crap your pants, then again what he said might make more sense, somehow.
tucker, get outta here. he he he. your in the middle of the US right now, 1,000 miles from the closest wave… cry me a river. KOOK
I’m curious too. Certainly couldn’t have meant for ALL boards. It occurs to me that pintail guns are often nearly symmetrical width nose & tail (e.g. around 10") maybe he was just talking guns…
check this one out.
Sweet Zap!
I got about 30 doodles on the drawing board right now, really like the shape. Author of Essential Surfing is currently headed in that direction.
BreakwaterLocal, wonder if he means HalfMoonBay, JeffC, Cowboy crowd.
Seems some of the boards are close, but not quite.
Profile doesn’t seem close, as guns are askewed tail thin, shortboards more like nose thin.
No hard and fast rules on surfboard outline and shape parameters, you’ve seen the kid on the plywood paipo riding as well as anyone.
Solo is that one of McCoy’s 05 surftechs?
Waaaahoo,
After over twenty years Geoff has finally conscented to redo his retro lazor zaps. That is a hand shaped by Geoff Mccoy Lazor zap.(the real deal) 05
The outline of the Surftech looks ok, but something about that process makes them look thicker and beefier than they already are.
They are available for order now. I am discussing getting Cheyne to sign a few limited edition retros. I have one coming in on my next order. Same checker pattern.
i was told by a well known shaper that a board should be the same width 1 foot from both ends of the board. i dont know if i was high or he was high, but i still dont know if its true or not. i used the rule for my fun board i made, but now im shaping a 6’7’’ short board and have to know. it seems that the noses on shortboards are way thinner than the tails these days but i dont put a measuring tape up to them so it remains a mystery to me.
help me out swaylockers!
Doesnt sound too awfully bad as any competant mat rider could tell you,
–Works for Bodyboards and Mats.