“All foreign board makers are paid handsomely “. I wanna go to that foreign country and be one of those. If someone is so concerned about the similarity between templates; go to the USPTO and patent it and then spend a fortune$$ on lawyers and lawsuits trying to enforce the unenforceable. Good grief!!
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Ohhhhhkkkaaaaayyy, a few things.
A bunch of methods have been described, from quick and dirty to some very nice work with measurements (offsets) and battens like we do in the boatbuilding trade, taking the lines off as we call it. All will work to a greater or lesser degree, depending on skills and experience.
But this is to replicate one board one time. Keep it simple. Do a couple of templates, one for your rocker, one for your outline. How you do those is up to you, myself I’d square down from the rails to a flat sheet of template material, but whatever you do, transfer from the template to the foam the same way.
And one thing hasn’t been mentioned. You’re not going into mass production, do you need templates? Keep it simpler still.
You own the board you want to replicate. Trace it direct on the new blank. Copy the rocker. Done, no intermediate steps. Put the original in the rafters in case you need it again someday, after you’ve used it as a master for your rail shapes and thicknesses and so on.
The simpler the better and the less chances to screw it up. I know about screwing things up.
hope that’s of use
doc…
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This is where the computer can generate simple, precise templates with a few measured data points. Once you have the “flat” template, you can measure deck and bottom rocker curve length with a clothing tape measure. Stretch the template to match top or bottom planshape lengths if you like.
I don’t have time to type up the in-depth details of simple measurement collection. (Was tempted to go out and draw a straight line grid on my small concrete front porch/beer garden, center an old surfboard over the grid, and plot the planshape perimeter points with a “combination square” — using my granddaughter’s sidewalk chalk. But it has been rainy and cold lately and I’m not that motivated to demonstrate my point.)
Stripped Down Basics:
If I was making the actual template, I would draw the straight-line grid (long straight edge and framing square), center the board over the grid (weighted down) and plot planshape perimeter points with a combination square on large pieces of poster cardboard (Walmart) taped together with clear packing tape.
Might take me 2-3 hours, But I would have precise data points that can be recorded and stored on the poster board, in a Manila folder or on a CD — easily adjusted for multiple lengths and widths.
Precision and accuracy aren’t that complex or difficult. Just takes a few hours of time.
Just sayin’
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Apex, Apex.
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This is what I mean by a line grid.
Combination Square tangential to rail apex to plot planshape perimeter points.
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I was told at Mitch’s Surf Shop in La Jolla CA that US Blanks will adjust blank rocker based your specs/order. You specify when/where you want the rocker to change (eg 12" from the tail of the 8’1" EA blank etc) and apparently they can do that. For reference this convo was w/ a shop-worker in 2023, I believe.
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If you have a fabric store nearby, you can source fabric template material which is a 1" grid and sold by the yard and use that for measurement/reference. There may be some ‘stretch’ in the fabric depending on how tightly you tape it so your mileage may vary (YMMV)
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PNW-CD,
Thanks for the input. That material idea has potential.
But the precision/accuracy I like requires rigid but flexible template material.
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Doc bringing the heat with the PhD level of advice! Honestly hadn’t thought of just tracing it directly onto the foam but I think I will do that because I will keep that board for ever and only need to do it once. Thanks!
If you really want to trace it use a scrap piece of foam and shape it like an “L” . Shove a pencil through that inside corner at a 45 degree angle so the tip of the pencil barely comes out that outside lower corner in line with the vertical wall. Then just trace the outline by running that piece of foam along the rail. But the cooler thing to do would just be to talk measurements and make your own template.
A lot of good topics discussed on this thread.
The IP topic could be discussed at great length.
I wonder if a compound complex curve is patentable? Is a general board outline payentable, i.e. Lis Fish…?
My belief if that shapers/designers probably do a little bit of copying ideas, etc. In my personal opinion, hand duplicating a board may not be illegal, it borderlunes being unethical. Personoslly trying to copy a magic board, in my opinion, is not unethical.
Without mentioning names, in the 80’s and 90’s you could take a board to a reputable shaper for duplication via hand shaping, and never did you here them say, “Go back to “X” brand or shaper and get another one made, I cant be unethical.”
As for duplication a plan shape, anyone hear Joel Tudor talk about the soup can method? I think what the soup can does is keep the pencil at a 90 degree angle. Does anyone have a video or pic of tracing a plan shape with a soup can?
Ha! Everybody copies everybody and if they don’t a lot can be said for coincidence. Nothing has changed. Go to USPTO and see how many surfboard designs are patented.
One of the common competitions at the boardroom show is for shapers to duplicate a classic board. Which shows you how the industry views copying. The best do it, and are proud of it. No shame brah.
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