I am not into making a fish (although I think they are great shapes). If you are familiar with the Dewey Weber Feather Fastback or the Cooperfish Comet, that’s the kind of board I want to shape. This will be a my third board (that I shaped) and I need help with dimensions. I want it to be 7’,2". I don’t know wide the nosed, middle, and tail should be, along with thickness in the nose, middle, and tail. Plus, what about the rails? I feel rude in measuring a board on the racks. I am, indeed imitating a popular shape, but hopefully that isn’t considered immoral. Any help would be very appreciated. Thanks
I’ve done a little experimenting with this shape and have found that for the length you want , 21.5" - 22 " is a good width range. It will still have an egg profile, yet give you a little more response than boards that tend to be wider. Here’s a suggestion: 7’2 x 17 1/4 x 22 x 14 1/2 x 2 3/4 These measurements are for a half template outline. For whole measurements, just multiply x2. The length is drawn a 1/2" longer to allow for rocker. The widepoint is just forward of center. Place your marks every foot, include nose and tail marks. For the tighter curves (nose & tail), I’ve included marks at every 3". Hope this helps. Total Length 86 1/2" Middle 43 1/4" Widepoint 40" 3 in 4 9/16 6 in 6 9/16 9 in 7 7/8 1 ft nose 8 5/8 2 ft 10 3/8 3 ft 10 15/16 widepoint 11 1/32 4 ft 10 3/4 5 ft 9 3/4 6 ft 7 3/4 Tail 7 1/4 80 in 5 3/8 83 in 3 13/16 86 in 1 3/32 86 1/2 in 0 
Sorry, this might be easier to read. 
I just had a commercial account ask me to duplicate a Cooper Comet, I have always felt it is next to treasonish to copy a fellow craftsmans work. I got a Comet for one of my Japanese pals a while back, so I have had one in my hands, but to pull all of Gene’s dimensions off one just isn’t kosher. Yeah, so I made a round pin that “looks” like a Comet, or should I have bribed Bill Bahne to secretly cut me one over the weekend. No Benedict Arnolds here
Thank you Ghunt. That was great. Now, about that half template you helped me create: Believe it or not, my first two boards I simply traced from other shapes and then modified. Perhaps that is why they aren’t such hot designs. Anyway, once I draw out those designs, should I use a flexible piece of PVC or a fishing rod, etc. to get the arch? I’m afraid that if I do the dot-to-dots freehand it will come out jerky. What’s your opinion? Jim: I don’t think imitation is treasonous, necessarily. I mean, it would be impossible, literally, to copy the board freehand. Only a computer could do it. I think it’s theft to copy a design to make profit, but not if it’s for personal use. I mean, we often sing other people’s songs in the shower, right? But we are not collecting money at the door for them to hear it. Ghunt: what about the rails? Aren’t they kind of fifty-fifty near the nose and soft until the tail? How far should hard rails extend from the tail? Finally, I went to Clarkfoam.com and decided that maybe the 7,3E would be the best blank to use. It was shaped by Phil Becker. It has 3 7/8 nose rocker and 2 1/2 tail rocker. I was thinking of actually having the nose rocker dropped an inch to get a really flat board that easily catches waves. I might even kick up the tail a little to make cheater fives easier and to make turning easier. Oh, and what about concave in the nose? Good idea? Bad idea? too many questions, I know. But thanks anyway.
Another question. Can you believe it? What about foam density? I plan to put Volan glass on it for a little extra weight and that old school look, but what about density? I plan to ride the board at Cardiff Reef and San Onofre. San-O is primarily for longboards, I know, but I have seen those shapes do well on a bigger south swell when the waves are coming in a little steeper and especially on the inside.
Here I go again: I like your template, but the nose is just a tad wider than I prefer. I think I’ll draw it in a little. What do you think? Plus, what about foil? Nose, middle, tail?
New Shaper: these lines I posted are from my own egg model, outlined with a good old fashion cedar stick. The first 40 attempts were discarded and this is the one I kept. If you’re interested, it’s just something for you to reference while you come up with your own dimensions. If you want something different, I encourage you to experiment with your own lines drawn onto masonite, that way you’ll be truly satisfied. Fyi, these weren’t intended to be drawn dot-to-dot freehand style. There’s a continuous curve working over these “dots”. Connect them with a high tension, bendy stick. Consider your rails. What do you want your board to do? I like 60/40 around the mids and a much harder tail. Someone else would do something totally different. Check the archives - there’s tons of info relating to rail design, glassing, foam density, etc. Good luck!
NS, I prefer to use Clark Green for all of my boards, stronger than Blue, without sacrificing too much weight. As far as pulling in the nose, hey, bring it in if you feel its too wide. I think the beauty of shaping your own boards is that you are free to do whatever you please. You can take bits and pieces of others shapes and put in your own thing and come out with a totally unique creation. I guess what Im trying to say is dont be afraid to do what you feel is best for you. Good luck with your egg… FD
New Shaper/Old School? You need to follow the wisdom of your elders. Jim Phillips knows what he`s talking about. Listen carefully and show some respect.
Jim, It is not treason…if it is most of all the great legendary shapers are traitors. We have all copied templates and ideas. Design is based oncommulative knowledg and feed back from the guys who surf the boards. It might not be Kosher to trace a template from a store board etc. But at least your friend (Jap) did buy a cooper fish…etc. Even when one produces a new template, many of the numbers come from an existing template. Do you not set your side fins 1" to 1 and 1/4 inches because Rusty does… This piracy issues needs to be resolved… Jim, tell me that you hav never copied a Brewer template for the beatiful 7’ plus boards—his finest Hawaiin templates…I can’t stop looking at how smooth those puppies flow…
I didn’t mean to be disrespectful to Jim. The guy is a legend. I was just wondering about those issues and had questions. but talk about stealing. I stole a buddy’s girlfriend once, and then he stole her back a year later. Now that was painful. I’ll keep away from that mess. I learned my lesson the hard way. But she was a good ride. Wait, are we talking about surfboards? Sorry.
what you might want to be asking is; where did Brewer come up with those plan shapes? Time and experimentation. Work on your own curves, don’t go for the quick fix.
No one was being disrespectfull… everyone has there own questions. and everyone has there own solutions. what works for one doesnt always work for another…
I’m thinking of dropping to six-six. I am beginning to think that 7,2 would be too big. I want it to be able to do roller coasters and figure eights.
say what?
Spinout King: Go Away!
I love you man. Now do the right thing.