A classic pintail Balsa Gun, with a distinctive Redwood stringer pattern. This surfboard is commissioned as a rider, and tribute , to big wave riding history. It will be chambered, and glassed with epoxy resin. The subject surfboard will be 10 feet long, by 22 inches wide. The target weight is twenty pounds, finished weight, for this surfboard. For decades I used a marriage/blend of three of my templates, to create this design. For this one, I created a single tempered Masonite spin templete. The lines of this gun were influenced by the design work, and discussions with the likes of: Wayne Land, Alan Nelson, Del Cannon, Pat Curren, and Jim Fisher, as well as my own experiences in larger waves. The fin will be a glass-on, of my design. Which fin, as well as what wood will be used, will be determined later. The fin will be 3/4ths inches thick, and hydrodynamicly foiled. This will be one of the classic Red Dot series boards. The owner of this board is a seasoned North Shore regular, from the 70’s. With a working history glassing for Brewer, Diff, and many other notable shapers.
makes the hair stand up on the back of my neck!
Can’t wait!
Love ya Thrailkill but what do we have to do to get you into the age of modern digital photography?
Pray for me.
you guys are hilarious!
and BTW, 20 lbs. finished weight sounds awful light for a 10 footer of any material (let alone BALSA, which is heavier than foam)! Gene Cooper’s 11’ 4" chambered tow weight foam and redwood “ultimate craftsman” entry weighed 26 lbs. after chambering, before glass (down from 40 lbs.), and 38 lbs. after glassing. I would think about 25 - 30 lbs. would be a good weight for this craft, but what do I know? I stand to be educated. When you say 20 lbs. finished weight, does that mean after glassing?
I agree, Huck. The 20 pounds, is the ‘‘wish weight’’, of the gentleman the board is being made for. My estimate was also in the 24/25 pounds range. And, that is the FINISHED WEIGHT. It means that the chambering will have to be very aggressive.
wow, what a project! I was just revising my guesstimate up a bit as you were responding 
Anyway, we both know in the end, the board will be what it will be, weight wise, but that isn’t going to be the big factor here. Its going to be a very challenging, historic project, for waves of consequence, and its gonna be beautiful cuz balsa and redwood are an awesome combination. Good on ya for taking on this challenge!