Tow In Planshape, Etc.

Greetings all,

I’ve been digging thru the archives and I’ve turned little up on Tow in board dimensions, rocker etc.

the only numbers I’ve found are on modifications to the 6’8" R blank and one set of dimensions.

My buddy wants me to build him a tow in board for head high to double overhead surf. We found a spot here in the straits, we need a board for this winter and I have no idea where to start.

The only dimensions I have are for a 7’2" but that seems as if it may be too long .

7’2" x 9.5 x 16 x 11.5

thickness: n1.25" c2.1" t1.35"

rocker: n5.35" t1.5"

From all the web research I’ve done, most boards are in the 6’0" - 6’8" range.

To the point:

Does any one have any other dimensions / suggestions:

  • Length

  • foil

  • planshape

  • rocker

  • fin placement

Thanks for the help!!!

Head to DOH doesn’t need specialized rocker, and you are prolly going too narrow also. Also, if the wave is not really fast, you just might want normal shortboard rocker, for a 6’6" size shorty anyways.

All the tow-in boards you see are made for QOH and bigger, so the speeds are much higher.

Many current tow boards range from 5’ 10" to 6’ 6" for waves significantly larger than the double over head waves you will be riding. The smaller boards work well in “smaller” surf, although there is substantial debate about the ethics of towing in conditions where paddle surfers are in the lineup …

That said, you should be very comfortable with dimensions such as these:

Length: 6’ 0" to 6’ 4"

Width: 10 1/2 " nose x 17" to 17 3/4" widepoint x 12 3/4" tail

Thickness: 1 3/8" nose x 2 1/4" widepoint x 1 3/8" tail

Foil: Leave a little more volume forward than you would in a short board as it’s imperative that the board has forward momentum at all times - low well foiled rail to keep it in the water at the speed you’ll be going - carry the rail foil all the way to the stringer.

Plan shape: Your choice, although swallows seem very positive with a lot of control over the surface area in the tail.

Rocker: Same as any high performance semi gun.

Bottom contours: Vee or roll in entry, single concave from entry to fins (with max depth under your stance) with double concave or a hint of vee through the fins and out the tail.

Fin placement: Rear fin: 4 1/2" from tail. Rail fins: 13 1/2" from tail, 1 1/8" from rail with minimum toe in, perhaps 1/8" max

Strap placement: You’ll want to use inserts with 4 holes. Back edge of rear foot strap plugs: 7" and 13" and 1" off center of board. Back edge of front foot strap plugs: 36" for one and 40" for the other, each 2 1/2" off center for 5" span between. You can adjust those numbers to suit your stance and the length of the board and you can always add additional plugs if the stance doesn’t feel in sync for you and the board. Remember. You really want to keep the front end of the board down as the forces you’ll encounter when being towed and riding will want to lift the nose of your board.

Weight and glass schedule are very important. Order a 63H for a 6’ 2" or smaller or 68R or 68H for 6’ 3" to 6’ 6". (You won’t get a 6’ 8" board out of either of these blanks.) Foam density: “tow.” Stringer: 1/2" minimum.

Glassing schedule: 4 layers of 6 ounce each side. I laminate 2 layers on the bottom, 2 layers on the deck, then repeat the process - 2 more layers on the bottom and 2 more layers on the deck. This allows me to get a really well saturated and very tight lamination AND lap the rails 4 times.

You’ll want the weight of your finished board to be in the 14 to 18 pound range.

The impact of the board on your “sled” is significant. Hectic, split second, high speed recovery by the driver and surfer puts a lot of stress on the board. This glassing schedule really keeps the board in good shape.

Steve - can’t seem to open your webpage from the link listed on your profile

It’s spelled wrong, try

http://www.naturalcurvesboards.com/

Cornelius , Lee & Keith,

Thanks guys, this is exactly what I’ve been looking for!

I really appreciate it!

Take it easy!

Thanks for the spell check, Keith.

your friend must be a real petrolhead if he wants to tow in to waves of the size you mention --why don’t you just point out that he has arms --much cheaper and don’t pour unburnt fuel into the sea or use more than 1 gal every mile or kill people if they accidentally hit them or make a horrible noise…i could go on…

de nda - I just figured that if you bothered to put your URL on your profile, you probably wanted it to work! Otherwise I wouldn’t have pointed it out… nice web page, by the way.

Silverback,

The spots we have to tow at are 1+ miles off shore, uncrowded and if one was to try to paddle out to one of our target towspots, to save a half mile or more one would pay extensively for trespassing. You MUST realize, this ain’t California I’m talking about towing in @ and noise pollution & petrol consumption of a 4 stroke are no comparison to the 100 + boats regularly salmon firhing in the straits with leaky 20 + year old 2 strokes. So Calm the horses…

I feel adamantly about not towing in to paddle spots, I have experienced glassy walls ruined by jet ski chop. I’ll be Roy about this and stay polite…

Much respect…

hmmm…

OK - I forgive you for using petrol to get somewhere difficult - we all do that - but why do you need to tow in once you’ve got there - as the waves you’re describing are well within paddle surf capabilities.

I dunno - something lame about tow in surfing small waves dontya think…