Hi swaylockers,
for my next, allround to performance orientated, longboard I want to combine some modern full rails with a tucked under edge.
Where do you place the edge and what angle do you use?
Is there a safe (allround) starting point one can’t go wrong with this?
Can I use the bottom tuck postion from the railband dims for the edge? Or will the edge be too sharp then?
Best regards, Andi
I hate to tell anyone where the edge “should” be placed. I generally place it about 3/4 to 7/8 in from the edge, at the widest point, on a longboard. If you draw your rail in profile, you can work it out. The rusty big cat has a tight tuck and the edge at about 1/2" in.
If I used the rail band in your drawing, i would still round it as it approaches the bottom, its just that final transition to flat that doesnt get rounded, leaving an edge for release. thats just me, you can do it any way you like! 
Hi Huck, thank you very much for your reply. And your criticism!
Changed the subject and the key question of the threat…
I’d say tuck under the width of your thumb…out nose fade to zero, in near to the edge of fins fade out to zero…just sand w edge of a block, stiff foam drywall sanding sponge also works…finish carefully w 150 gr sanding screen.
The angle: slight, or just enough… just make it feel like a edge, and don’t make inside dipped down…the dip should be towards edge. I’m still learning, but I think you gotta build several boards to know how much is right. I tucked edges on every single board I’ve shaped. On my first two I didn’t do enough tuck…prob a couple mm’s deep at edge?
I’m finding this quite useful. I didn’t quite understand the meaning of a tucked under edge fully but it’s a bit clearer now. I learnt while researching before doing my 1st board, that cutting the angle with a Fred tool with the surform blade at 30° is the best way to do a tucked under edge but that was at the time the only way I saw.
STEVE - it is confusing. tucked under edges is actually INSIDE the radius of rail band (on the bottom)… this was common back in the eighties. Not sure about before that? Yrs back when I started my first boards, I didn’t
Quite know how much to put in…it seems about two millimeters deep, and a thumbs width wide mostly - except out ends… there you want it to fade to zero in front of the fins, and out close to tips, or close out nose… probably dont have to take it up to nose tip… how it feels: you almost feel like it develops gobs of speed, but helps turn the board. I could be off slightly? It’s just how it feels like to me. Try it! It’s kinda dated, but -it does something I think?!
As for - Andi wondering if he could leave a rail beveled. That’s no good. You want to sand down the edge into a nice round “edge” for the bottom rails…the only place I want a hard edge is from fins-back. From here lightly start ur tuck from fins forward…and when you near nose, what you fade to zero out tips… I think as - Huck suggested a 1/2" , or a thumbs width give or take? I’d like to hear what a pro would say about it.
How it feels: crisp and responsive. That’s just my take FWIW.
he knew tuck from way back
Blend it 2 or 3 inches in front of the lead fins. There. Easy. Mike
scribbled the rails to see the effects. think 3/4’’ looks very harmonic and will be my way to go:
Thank you so much guys!!
Thanks shapaholic for the info. I like the idea of the tucked under edge. What’s the alternative that’s used these days to it them if it’s an older way of doing the rails? Is it just cut and smoothed out?
The tuck and edge are all subjective. Old school Brewer style “D” rails had a defined edge rounded but you could feel the edge. Egg style rails not defined edge. except in the tail. Now look at a Stweart long board and he has his chined hull with two well defined edges first in the rail and then a longer one that is part of the hull into a bottom surface. 30 degrees isa good starting point. But you can make the Fredtool at diffrent degrees.
you’re part right! The only thing you left out is: the tuck starts at the rear of tail - and - stops at front edge of forward fins where it fades to zero or blend into the rails… there rest of the rails are w out tuck - they’re just rails… But just have radius.
Not sure, but I think it’s how my glasser sanded hotcoat also… we got a hard edge from tip of tail to 4-6" up front of fins…slight variation?in a nutshell: what we have is very hard edge in the tail section.
found this old sketch from a past board, working out the details of the rail before shaping
as was stated, its a subjective call, no clear-cut answer to exactly where to put it. Here are some shots showing the edge on other boards
I stopped in a surf shop recently for the express purpose of studying / fondling rails, to get a “feel” for whats going on in that department these days. It seemed like pretty much all the hpsb’s had down rails with a tucked edge for at least 2/3 of the board, some had a more rounded rail in the front 1/3, but a lot just carried the tuck / edge all the way through.
The exception was the longboards and “funboards”, this is where you still see some old school round rails and pinched rails showing up, although probably half the longboards had the modern tucked edge.
FWIW - the tucked edge, which has the combined effect of increasing planing surface while still maintaining some rail bulk, is far more important on shortboards than longboards. Longboards generally have enough planing surface that maximum planing efficiency isn’t all that important. For most of us a bit of roll and softened rail makes for fewer dug rails and wipeouts.
Just for reference, here is an actual rail template taken off a longboard that was shaped by a famous guy. This is the rail profile at the mid point with a super imposed square for reference. The rear third of the board had sharp down rails but little if any ‘tuck.’
https://swaylocks7stage.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/t_square.gif
John - that’s nice! Did you make that? It looks like a traditional pinched rail? 50/50 pinched??
Something tells me my version of a " tucked under edges " is different from -Huck’s .perhaps a variation.
John - I’m with you on lb rails… I really haven’t seen many lb w tucked under edges. But I’ve think ive seen one or two.
John - good point, and nice looking rail profile. Maybe it was just me, but it seemed like the other correlation was that the tucked rails were more common on the thrusters and quads, but rounded rails or pinched (your example seems to be about halfway between the two) if it was a single - be curious to know if your example was from a single fin longboard.
I posted that contour gauge over 12 years ago… http://www.quivermag.com/boards/john-mellor-2002
Yes - it is the rail profile from the middle of a single fin longboard. No - it’s not quite a 50/50 - maybe more like 60/40(?) There are arguments for and against various design features on longboards but I’ve found in many cases that a lot of old school stuff still works.
The shaper in question does a variety of lengths and fin arrangements but the lifted rails, bellied forward section, and harder/flatter tail sections seem to be fairly consistent features on many of his boards.
Agreed about the old school stuff. I did a build thread awhile back on an 8-4 mini glider single with belly in the nose, pinched rails and v but no concaves. The board works great. Almost never dig a rail with that board.