8 Foot Fun Shape--Board #5

I wanted to make a bigger board for the smaller waves and used an old fiberglass board that I liked as a model. My goal was to see how accurately I could copy a board I like and also to have a bigger wooden board for the small days. This board has only two fins made out of quilted maple. When I took the center fin out of another board I ride, I liked it so much I kept it that way. Since this board is a little bigger I worked on keeping the weight to a minimum--fir rails, door skins, lots of weight off the framework. 6 & 4oz cloth on the top and 4oz cloth on the bottom = 12 pounds 4 oz total weight. The original foam board I modeled it after weighs 12 lbs, so I couldn't be happier about the weight. For the finish, I like doing the burst color scheme, but wanted to do something different than the last board, so I gave it a green burst. I have taken it out a couple times; it has good drive and it's very maneuverable.

# 4 Walnut Egg Finished

It's been a while.

#4 Walnut Egg

This is the board I am working on now. I'm about a day's worth of work into it. I'm not concerned about the weight as much, but I'm shooting for less than 13 pounds. I'm building it out of solid wood this time--walnut and mahogany--because i like the way it looks. More framework=more support, slightly different rail shape. Concave nose that flattens out into a slight V at the tail. Walnut is such a strong wood, I might skip the cloth this time.
Check it out so far.

A couple weeks ago I broke my fin off my last board. I should have been more careful and pulled out of the wave sooner but I rode it into the rocky shoreline. I fixed it this week and rode it today. Almost good as new. The waves were only okay today so it wasn't the best test. I might retire it as soon as this one is done, ride this one, and think about the next one.