Shaping a free blank (advice needed)

[SUPerMorg]

Hey everybody,
I need board advice.

A dude I met surfing here in Cleveland offered me a free blank (with glassing kit) to make my own board in exchange for some shop space to finish glassing his other four boards that he's shaped. I know it's not going to be the most perfect board ever since it's my first, but it's free haha.
My question is what should I make?

I'm a 6'4", 195lbs male with about 20-30hrs of experience and very good level of fitness. Currently surfing an 8'4" BIC funboard and can handle this board without too much difficulty (still perfecting the pop-ups) but it's not a crazy challenge. I

My local break is here on Lake Erie but I will be taking a couple east coast trips, a three-month pacific coast trip, and some Spain, France, or Portugal trips (during semester abroad) in the next two years. I also plan to be moving to Cali after college so I want to make a board that is versatile enough to handle my mushy poor form local break, but also a good board to take out West/East. I kinda want to try shaping a fish or fish hybrid but am worried that a steep drop-off in L will make it extremely hard for me to enjoy it. I don't mind a challenge but what's the point of making a board if I can't even enjoy it until I'm out west.

What do you guys recommend? (The dude doesn't have a large enough blank for a longboard over 8', so that's off the table.)
Should I go with a Fish, Hybrid, Groveler, shorty, or another, shorter, funboard?

I included some pics of my usual waves. (Best conditions are with winds that create a NE swell which give me rights and a couple A frames)

[jaffa1949]

At your stage in surfing shaping and all else in your quest.
For your skill surf a long a board you can shape , nothing fancy a genuine basic board. Call it a fun board if you like but well shaped and glassed, it will foster your development on any coast.
Get fancy and go fishy grovelly or any other more complex shape, you may nail if you are a skilled craftsman but you will make board which is not suited for your surfing at this stage. Nor your weight and height.
Well shaped it will feel like freedom after the BIC.
Great opportunity, scary I remember the first board I shaped . Lumps bumps and wobbly rails Dogs breakfast I was 15, but I was pleased with myself. It sort of surfed ok but broke due to my lousy glass job after a few surfs

[oldmansurfer]

I vote for funboard as well. Make sure you give some consideration to outline, thickness, bottom contour, rails basically every aspect of the board before you work on it. Make sure also you watch lots of videos about how to do it before you try or better yet watch the other guy make the four boards and ask questions. Be careful to conserve the resin when you glass because it is easy to just squeegee off all the resin and not have enough to cover all of the glass. I watched 2 boards get made and then made one (no youtube back in the day). It was fun and I was so proud of it (till it got all dinged up)

[SUPerMorg]

Jaffa1949,
I can handle my own in a shop but I'm no master craftsman, so I'll stick with a basic design like you suggest
Haha, hopefully I don't break it after a couple uses! But I would definitely love some freedom from the BIC!!

oldmansurfer,
Funboard sounds like a good option! Plus it would be cool to get a new perspective on the funboard and a probably better experience than with my BIC. I'll definitely be observing him and asking questions while he shapes! I just recently experienced the community aspect of surfing as I've now got a couple of surfing friends and was in my first official lineup this past Saturday. Where I usually surf, I'm almost always the only one out there. But this new spot that I went to had like 8 other surfers. I was in awe of the whole experience of surfing with other dudes/dudettes!

Now, I have a question for both of you: I want to reduce the size of the board that I'm riding, so would it be a bad idea to go down to a 7'8" (keeping the proportions of the length to width to depth, etc in line with other funboards)? Or if that's too small should I only reduce in 6" increment down to 7'10"?

Thanks for you help, guys! I really appreciate it!

[SUPerMorg]

I looked up the dims of a Torq funboard to see what their recommended weight to volume is. For their 7’2” x 21 1/4” x 2 3/4 board, they say its recommended for anyone 110-200lbs. I want to model my dims after a board that already exists so that I don't screw it up too bad but I'm not sure if this is an unrealistic volume for me.

[oldmansurfer]

Fresh water and fresh new surfer? My advice is don't go down in size yet. The odds are a smaller board won't help you. Hey but if you end up with a useless board at least you have some experience.

[waikikikichan]

can handle this board without too much difficulty (still perfecting the pop-ups) but it's not a crazy challenge. I

My local break is here on Lake Erie but I will be taking a couple east coast trips, a three-month pacific coast trip, and some Spain, France, or Portugal trips (during semester abroad) in the next two years. I also plan to be moving to Cali after college so I want to make a board that is versatile enough to handle my mushy poor form local break, but also a good board to take out West/East. I kinda want to try shaping a fish or fish hybrid but am worried that a steep drop-off in L will make it extremely hard for me to enjoy it. I don't mind a challenge but what's the point of making a board if I can't even enjoy it until I'm out west.

1) If you can't even Pop Up correctly yet, then probably you can't Bottom turn, Trim and Cutback. So how are to understand what rail design, edges, bottom contours effects how the surfboard works.

2) Your going on surf trips in the next two years. So your board will be 2 years old

3) You "want" to bring the board you make to Calif AFTER you graduate. Then your board will be 2 more years older ?

4) "what's the point of making a board if I can't even enjoy it until I'm out west". Because if it doesn't work, why bring it.

I'm sure you can re-create the outline of a Torq funboard, but do you understand rocker, bottom contours ( Vee, single to double ) Rail ( full, taper, tucked under edge ).

Question: who is going to glass it ?

[SUPerMorg]

Waikikichan,
1,2,3) True. I don't fully understand bottom contours, rail design, and edges affect the board, but I would like to learn more.
It's basically a free board so I'm not really worried about making a xxxxx board because at least I'll be learning more about the sport. Ideally, I would make a board that's suited for my conditions here and get some fun out of it.

4) What I meant by that was this: I don't want to make a cool looking board (shortboard) if it's wholly unsuited for my conditions and skill level that I won't be able to regularly use it until I'm living in a place that gets better waves and where I can surf on the daily instead of once a week. "Make (x board) as it should perform well on Lake Erie, but also be a decent board on (x condition) days in the ocean as you progress in skill. A versatile, all-around board."

I see, the outline won't be too hard but I definitely need to do research on rocker, contours, and rail design, I have a basic understanding of rocker but need to to much more in-depth research. Do you have a favorite website, youtube channel, or source that helps explain these design elements? Or would you mind sharing some of the knowledge that you've obtained will a little noobie like me?

I plan to glass it. Good experience and free. Even if I mess it up at least I'll be learning.

oldmansurfer,
Okay, gotcha! I'll try to keep the size close to what I have now. His biggest blank is like 8' long so I'll definitely have to reduce by 4" but hopefully that isn't too much of a drop. Thank you for your help!

[dtc]

Have a look at a site called 'swaylocks' - it's a shaping site. Probably overload but you might be able to find some more beginner level threads

[Big H]

Just curious....how come you're bagging on the bic so hard? What is so bad about it? I've never ridden one....it's an honest question. Most people who've only surfed 20-30 hours are stoked to be in the water regardless of the board. Wondering what it is about the bic that you need to free yourself from.

[SUPerMorg]

Have a look at a site called 'swaylocks' - it's a shaping site. Probably overload but you might be able to find some more beginner level threads

I took a brief look at it this morning before leaving for work, and yeah I could get lost in there haha but it looks like it'll really help me develop the knowledge and lingo! Thanks!

Hey Big H,
My bad for as bagging on the BIC so much instead of just spreading . But I think because I've heard "real surfers" dishing on it, I really want to get a board doesn't say "beginner" on it. Haha not that I'm trying to pose as a long-time surfer though. The main reason is that I've ridden low-quality SUPs and then when I finally got a nice SUP, I was blown away by how much faster and more fun it was, which makes me think that a better material surfboard will make my experience that much more fun. I still have fun on the BIC, don't get me wrong, but it's the construction material that I don't care for. The BIC just feels too plastic-y for my taste. But hey, as a beginner I really shouldn't complain.

[waikikikichan]

The main reason is that I've ridden low-quality SUPs and then when I finally got a nice SUP, I was blown away by how much faster and more fun it was.

Yeah, but the fact was you were riding a SUP, bleeech !

[SUPerMorg]

The main reason is that I've ridden low-quality SUPs and then when I finally got a nice SUP, I was blown away by how much faster and more fun it was.

Yeah, but the fact was you were riding a SUP, bleeech !

Haha hey when the lake's flat, you do what you gotta do

[saltydog]

I've been thinking about shaping a board and have read up on it a bit. I'm too busy to actually get to it at the moment, plus all that foam dust that it generates might make me VERY unpopular in my household I'm also A bit nervous about glassing the whole board without running into issues... Anyway, I've come across this site that gives pretty good info on how-to for complete beginners. http://www.surfersteve.com/introduction.htm
As the website above mentions, there's so much into designing a surfboard. If your blank is mostly shaped like one of those on US Blanks catalog, then you are in good shape (pun?!) otherwise you'd have a lot of work ahead of you. Also, since you haven't had much of actual surfing so far, make your board as long as the blank allows.
As dtc has mentioned, swaylocks is an awesome forum for technical support. If you decide to go ahead, make sure to post pics as you proceed! I'd be super interested

[waikikikichan]

Or would you mind sharing some of the knowledge that you've obtained will a little noobie like me?

I don't mind, just ask me again AFTER you have shaped and glassed a few boards on your own.

There's over 70 steps in making a surfboard. Good Luck !

[SUPerMorg]

Or would you mind sharing some of the knowledge that you've obtained will a little noobie like me?

I don't mind, just ask me again AFTER you have shaped and glassed a few boards on your own.

There's over 70 steps in making a surfboard. Good Luck !

Thanks, I'll give you a message after I get some more experience!

[SUPerMorg]

Or would you mind sharing some of the knowledge that you've obtained will a little noobie like me?

I don't mind, just ask me again AFTER you have shaped and glassed a few boards on your own.

There's over 70 steps in making a surfboard. Good Luck !

Thanks, I'll give you a message after I get some more experience!

[Big H]

Not to be a wet rag, but if you managed to handshape a planshape that was at the least symettrical Iwiukd be impressed.....forget all the other considerations, nuance, contours, rocker line, tail shape, fin positioning and cutting the foam so that the box actually goes in at the right depth then choosing the fin position, cant and how much to toe in.... and rail shape, volume and edges, how much or little to shave when shaping the foil. People complain here about drag on fins the wrong size....imagine 15* variance from ideal fin toe in angles and 12* too much cant! No of that means anything to you since you just started surfing....means something to me but I haven't the foggiest how to put all the elements together. I would be surprised if you managed to glass one strong and properly enough to use. Look at a skateboard, the contours, multi ply wood construction; it is more than just cutting an outline and screwing trucks to the wood. The blank is free but what about the materials? Stuff isn't cheap and uaually comes packaged in bulk for multiple board applications. You aren't asking but I would save the money, buy a used longboard for learning in the lake, sell and buy another board each time I moved after that. I have ridden some very good boards (Mitchell Rae Outer Islands is a magic board I have) and some that just seemed not to work right for me. I would not come not on being able to ride a board that you make yourself....good for a learning experience, but don't count on results to work much if at all. 2c

[SUPerMorg]

saltydog,
hahaha I'm sure that my family wouldn't like me too much either if I was planning on doing this in my room! What's your current quiver look like and what kind of board would you add? I'll for sure check out surfersteve.com! Thanks for the info!

Big H,
Nah, I appreciate realistic assessment. The older I get the more I hate it when people aren't honest or realistic with what they think about something I'm trying to do so a reality check is always welcome! The dude is actually giving me everything I need to get it done, so my only expense is giving him space to glass his boards (not a bad deal )! However, in the future I think your suggestion about selling/buying when I move is a good idea. Board shaping would be wicked fun to learn but idk if I'd have the time or skill in the future to make a quality enough board for a regular use quiver.

[oldmansurfer]

I made one board. It was not the best board in the world but it had it pluses and minuses. It held onto the wall high up so it was a very good tube rider. It was really fast. It wasn't the best board for turning but it was ok. I made mine in the days before leashes and multiple fins. It was a 7 foot swallowtail singlefin. When I had first made the board and had just finished polishing it after the gloss coat dried I was just looking at the magnificent beauty I had just created and a friend of mine came by and said "Oh wow you got a new board." I answered "Yeah I just made it", he said "Can I pick it up?" Well this guy had loaned me his surfboard when I was repairing mine so I let him and he promptly dropped it on the edge of a slab of cement where I had been working on it. There was huge rail ding all the way through the glass and gouging an inch of foam. I was so pissed off but because of this that board became my favorite board for a couple breaks that broke close to a rocky coastline. That board had so many dings in it's lifetime. I broke the nose off once and both of the swallow tails off a couple times but it was still a great board for fast tubing waves and I didn't mind getting it all dinged up. Through all of that it never got water logged. I patched it up really well each time.