So you want to make a surfboard?

I read a line on a forum this past week that said basically ‘a surfboard is something any _______ could make with a few weeks training’.

Is that a true statement? After all I made a surfboard when I was 13 that was good enough for me to learn to surf on. And I’d never seen anyone make one or was ever trained to make a surfboard.

First lets qualify that the board I made started with a blank that was pretty much pre-shaped. I had to cut the blank in half and glue in the stringer but didn’t need to do any real shaping. So I had to laminate the board including the fin, sand and gloss the board after I’d done the prep work on the pre-shaped blank.

Today it’s possible to do about the same thing. If you can get a pre-shaped machined blank and clean up the ridges all you need to do is set fin boxes and laminate the darn thing. Reality is it’s not to difficult to do.

The question is will the end result of the board made by the person with a few weeks training or no training be commercially viable?

Let’s face it, there are plenty things that you or I could do on our own that a professional may do every day. My brother in-law built a good sized addition to his house and he’s no carpenter. He needed a little help lifting some of the heavier framing lumber but that’s about it. I’m not a mechanic but have done some repair work on my own cars, the same kind of work a real mechanic would charge $50 an hour to do. And guys that don’t know much about surfboards or surfboard construction can make a surfboard.

I trained my son how to sand surfboards. After about six months sanding everyday five days a week he’d gotten good enough at it to make a fairly decent wage with few screw ups. To be fair…. He’d been around surfboard work some, and done other related kinds of tasks, but still getting to a sufficient level in six months may seem like at least that part of making a surfboard isn’t to difficult.

Doing clear free lap short board laminating is not that difficult either. One could learn to do that sufficiently in a relatively short time as well. But, getting to the point of doing good color laminations and heavier fabric work. Nice tints and foam stains will take a long time to get down. And, fact is some guys just can’t do it.

Shaping? Easily the most difficult part of making a surfboard, now easily done with a computer controlled machine that allows just about anyone to become an over night shaping sensation. Geez, only about a year ago CI was advertising their need to hire shapers, you only needed a year of shaping experience to qualify for the job.

Honestly it takes a lot of shaping experience to get really good at it. Sure you can clean up a machined blank, though I’ve seen guys mess up a machined blank pretty good. And if you get a 6’3 H and shape the same 6’1 every day in a few months you may get pretty good at making a 6’1 but, any other shape? May not come out to well…

I think it’s cool that people make their own boards, it can be fun. I know I enjoy making surfboards so why wouldn’t anyone else. There is enough information floating around these days that can help make the process much more successful. If only I’d had it so good when I was 13….

But the reality is, to do anything craft or trade related well can take a life time, and making surfboards so no exception. Sure you can get proficient enough in a fairly short time but to get really good? It will take longer.

BTW, I thought what the heck, I’ll apply for that shaping job at CI, filled out the online application and sent my resume. I never got a reply… I think I may have been over qualified!

D.R.