OK, working on my first shaping attempt. Got Shaping 101. Got Essential Surfing. Got my blank. Built my stands. I’m making a round tail egg out of a Clark 7’3" blank - Dimensions are to be 7’, 16 x 21&1/2 x 15 and 2&3/4 thick. I followed the Shaping 101 template making method (don’t have a similar board to copy) and marked the mid point and 1 foot marks on the blank. Then I put nails in each measurement like JC and then used my Home Depot aluminum flooring “dealie” batten to draw the curve. Well, it didn’t bend easily enough for the fuller nose or tail curves, so I sketched them by hand (laid out a piece of string as a guide). They look OK so far. The curve in between the nose and tail dimensions (the long part) seemed a little straight, like the batten was too stiff (it was up against all three nails). It appears to follow the blank curve pretty well and doesn’t seem odd.
My widest point has ended up about 2" forward of the mid-point. It’s only about 3/16 out. I was thinking I would place my wide point aft of center to improve turning since the waves are usually small in North San Diego County. Or perhaps an egg’s usual outline is to have it forward?
My question is this: When people list dimensions, does the “middle” dimension mean at the mid-point, or the wide point? I thought JC measured and placed his at mid-point. If I want the wide point moved back, should I measure the rail and put my nail 2" back from mid-point and then apply the batten? Or should I measure at mid-point and let the wide point fall where it may and be what it is?
Widepoint is the widest point of the board, and is usually described by its relation to the midpoint of the board (+2, 0, -2 etc). There’s lots of information about templating in the archives, check it out. Afterwards, go to your local hardware and buy a piece of doorskin or masonite and determine your outlines on this rather than on the board (JC method). First, it’s easier to erase on, and you will probably be doing a lot of that. Second, getting the kinks out of the template will be good practice for developing your eye and shaping your first board. Third, once it’s finished, you can use it to reproduce the board or create new curves.
Also, I haven’t had much success with long curves and aluminum battens. Lots of advice in the archives on this one, too, but I’ll put in my vote for the 8ft 5wt fly rod.
Thanks Retro. I did check out the forum, been lurking for a while. I think I have a good handle on wide point versus mid point, but what I wanted to know was, when I see a board in a surf shop, and the dimensions are marked 7’ 16 x 21&1/2 x 15 x 2&3/4, is it 21&1/2 at the mid point, or the wide point? I always figured it was wide point, but JC marked his off at mid. Maybe he did that to keep things simple and not go into heavy design theory of moving it forward and back of center. Anyway, I just want my wide point to be 1" aft of center, so should I mark that as my 21&1/2?
Also, I was contemplating the outline on masonite etc. but JC makes it look so easy on the blank!
I’m pretty new at this, so take it for what it’s worth… but I had pretty good success creating my template in Adobe Illustrator (I’m sure you could do it in any bezier program you happen to be handy with) and printing it out life-size, then taped all the pages together + cut em out. To make sure I was on track, I imported the pages in the clark PDF into the document, made the printable area the same size as the clark dimensions, and resized the PDF to fit.
I wasn’t insanely worried about everything being perfect though, so your milage may vary…
I still have the paper template if I ever decide to build another one, + the original illustrator doc if I ever want to adjust the template. And If I come up with one I really like, then out comes the masonite…
Nice board Moai! I’d also like to see the finished product. Also glad to see that I’m not the only one trying do this in the midst of raising little kids.
I just got out of the garage after messing with the blank a bit more. I played around with the metal batten a bit more and penciled in the fine points on the tail and nose. Then I drew over that with a Sharpie so I could lay a piece of paper over that and trace it. Now I have a paper half template that I plan to use to make a masonite template. The wide point is still a bit in front of the mid point, but only about 1/8 wider. So maybe it will end up 21 & 3/4 instead of 21 & 1/2.
I still haven’t cut into the blank, and still have one unmarked side to work with. I think I’ll make another paper tracing so I can tape them together to see what my full outline will be. I might have the nose a little pointy for an egg shape. Maybe I’ll post a pic of that to get your guys’ take on it.
Masonite templates are a good idea. If I’m trying a new template shape, I usually make it a little larger than I want final to be & then go out on the sidewalk & trace it in chalk. You can stand on it, lie down on it, step away from it…really helps see the shape. If its good, just take off that last 1/2" all around with a router & trimming bit. If something looks off, you’ll have enough room to adjust. I usually make spin templates because I end up mixing & matching for boards, and there’s really no way to look at a spin & tell if its got good lines.
Plus the kids love the chalked surfboards all up & down the street. They have ‘races’, jump from one to the next, pretend they’re paddling…
It is actually a ‘bastardized’ traditional fish: I pulled in the nose a bit because I don’t like extremely fat noses on takeoff, and made it a little narrower than normal : it’s 6.0 x 21 x 2.5 roughly, it’s the first time I shape, and didn’t use any of the “appropriate” tools, my shaping racks were two chairs.
I’m not an experienced surfer (but I’m an experienced product designer), I just tried to put to god use the info I found on this site and make sense of it.
I used a 6’2" C blank with standard rocker (probably too aggressive for a ‘true’ fish, but this isn’t ‘true’ anyway
attached you can find my template, with the 6’2" blank trace around it. Being it a GIF file it’s out of scale, but if you manage to scale it to the right proportions and print it lifesize it should work.
I don’t know how it rides yet, I’m waiting for the glasser, plus I had my nose broken sunday therefore the doctor reccomended a couple of weeks out of the water
hey ted… i use 1/2" pvc pipe. i use cardboard or masonite, i attach the cardboard to the wall in the garage, or something i can screw into(like the kitchen cabinets or the neighbors house) . i put a screw or two at main points to hold the pvc, then put intermediate screws til it flows right. with the white pipe, its real easy to see the kinks and bumps.
Thanks Benny, I like that chalk outline idea. And I have plenty of sidewalk chalk to steal from my daughter! Anyway, I made a paper half template after sketching out a line on the blank. I’ll convert it to full, play around with the chalk, then cut it out of masonite. I have to say that it looks like fun to cut the blank about 1/4 wide then shave it down like JC does in the video to get out the bumps etc. Then take a tracing of that. I shouldn’t be so worried about perfection, it’s only a $60 blank, and I’m trying to have fun. Moai’s first attempt is a real motivator, it looks sweet!
OK, Benny, the chalk outline is gold! I went out and tried it with my paper half template. Flipped it over and now i can see the whole outline, looks just like what I wanted. And I have not even cut into any real material. My daughter also had fun helping me, and we outlined our foot placements. Thanks again for the tip.
OK, here are some pics. Been working off and on for a few weeks taking it slow, one step at a time. Had camera problems so don’t have pics of initial cuts etc. This is after about 85% of the work on the rails and before finishing nose and tail details. Since I took the pics I’ve done all the rest through finish sanding. Ready for paint! Waiting for that one guy who tried out the Krylon H2O spray paint to post results pics before I buy some cans.
I used the Krylon water-based acrylic on a 3-part spray on a board I just finished. Went on over an epoxy-laminated & filled deck patch and under more epoxy/glass. No other sealing. No runs, no drips. Covers nice. Brown first, then white, then red…
