Wooden Surfboards Day 2011 & night at the Gold Coast Surf Museum

On Saturday night 6th of August will be a get together at the
Gold Coast Surf Museum.

This is great opportunity to meet other people interested in building and riding wooden surfboards of all kinds. It is also a chance to hear from some very talented individuals who build them. Building a wooden board is not an easy thing to do but a very rewarding journey. Mitchell Rae, Paul Joske and Mike Grobelny will give a brief overview of their backgrounds and experiences with building boards. This will be followed by an open question and answer forum with the guys. This is just a sample of the talented shapers locally and internationally you’re likely to meet at the Wooden Board Day in the park at Currumbin Alley the next day.

Mitchell Rae

Mitchell is based at Scotts Head on the NSW mid coast and has recently completed a small factory in nearby Urunga. He has been shaping for more than 30 years and favours balsa when making wooden boards. Over the years he has been influenced by skills he gleaned from travelling abroad – namely Japan and Hawaii.It has been said, “His influence in Australian surfboard design has been considerable and could be said to parallel what the Campbell Bros (creators of the Bonza) did in California. Yet he remains at the cottage industry level of production. He has followed his own path, remained his own man, stayed underground and never been seen to beat his own drum”. Today Mitchell continues to make unique craft for a largely custom market, and is widely known for his concaves, balsa guns and the “spirit eyes” which feature on the front of his boards.

Mike Grobelny

Mike hails from Auckland, NZ where he is a design technician in the workshop at the School of Art and Design. After a year at design school he realised his passion was more in creating and building physical objects like furniture instead of 2D visual communication.This led to an honours degree in product design.
With a keen interest in surfing he applied his newfound high-tech skills and modern technology and began experimenting using CNC routing and a large block of paulownia to create a surfboard that has the skeletal strength and high performance qualities of a synthetic surfboard.
Mike’s approach to wooden boards comes from quite a different direction and it will be interesting to see what he believes the future holds.

Paul Joske

Paul resides in the Nambucca Valley on the mid north coast of NSW and has been building surfboards since 1969. In 1970 he founded Valla surfboards, which he still operates today with the assistance of his son Sage. His involvement with timber goes back to his youth when he built a twin fin belly board out of balsa, followed by his first surfboard which was hollow plywood. He has always been interested in using wood for surfboards. In 1998 he was commissioned to build the first Paulownia surfboard, which was a huge success and saw the attributes of this timber realised. Paul’s interest in surfing and surfboards is broad, both in the water and in the shaping room. He relishes the challenge of different designs and timbers, and building one-off specialty boards.

The Gold Coast Surf Museum is in Tomewin Street, Currumbin
Saturday 6th August 6.30pm for a 7pm start
$10 admission to the Museum includes one cold drink
To book a place or buy a ticket please call the Surf Museum : Ph: 07 5525 6380

Surf World Gold Coast is a not-for-profit museum dedicated to celebrating the history and culture of surfing.

www.surfworldgoldcoast.com

Meet and talk to Peter Walker this Saturday at the Gold Coast Art Centre

In conjunction with the Peter Walker - FLUID AND HOLLOW Wooden Surfboards exhibition, join Peter as he discusses the design and shaping of his surfboards, reference to key moments in the history of surfboard design and collaborations with other artists. A great opportunity to meet with Peter and ask all those questions you know you want to ask himm about his beautiful boards.

Date: This Saturday 9th July

Time: 3.00 – 5.00pm
Venue: Gallery 1 - Gold Coast Arts Centre Bundall
Cost: Free
RSVP: gallery@theartscentregc.com.au or 5581 6567

Paul Jensen board building class.

Five Day - Build Your Own Board Workshop

To be held in San Francisco, California
September 3 - 7, 2011

This classes will have up to ten participants build their own boards and at the end of the class the boards will be ready for glassing. Tuition is $800 USD per person, with materials extra, typically around $50 per foot of board length. A "How To Build A Hollow Surfboard” CD ($100 value) and a Frame Kit of your choice ($200 value) will be included in the cost of the class.

What’s NOT included: Food and lodging.

To book and get more information : www.hollowsurfboards.com/fins.htm

Wooden Board Day Sunday 7th August 2011

I am in the throws of organising the guest speakers for the night at the Gold Coast Surf Museum Saturday August 6th the night before. Should be a good night to meet a few other wooden board builders from near and far. A few quiet beers and yarns is always a good night . Early morning surf Sunday and a day in the park with a picnic lunch and a plenty of boards to check out.

Wood in Florida

Some great looking boards Drew McCormick from Florida - Cambium Surfboards.

Frank's new fish

Frank is a bus driver here on the Gold Coast and in his down time loves a surf and spending time in the shed building his next wooden board. Here is his latest offering.

" I’ve started the new fish and attached are some pics of it as it was last week. I went to Tyalgum today to pick up the timber for the rails from John White, who has the paulownia plantation there. For the deck I’ll be using mainly hoop pine and some hardwood as a contrast. This board will be built almost entirely without the use of fibreglass or epoxy, the exceptions being to securely anchor the finboxes (quad-fin setup) and leashplug. I’m using only polyurethane glue and will use varnish to finish it. Now that the framework for it is assembled it already looks like a fast, slippery shape."

" I’ll keep you updated with the progress and with a bit of luck it may be finished for this year’s Wooden Board Day."

Thanks Frank and I hope you get enough time to have it ready for the first weekend in August.

Handplane making by Thomas Bexon.

Thomas Surfboards from Bird Man Media on Vimeo.

Check out Thomas at : www.thomassurfboards.com

Board building classes in Wales, UK

After a very successfull workshop last March, where ten hollow wooden surfboards where build, Paul Reisberg will host two more workshops at his place in Solva / Pembrokeshire / Wales / UK.

Paul and Rich Blundell (treetosea, grain surfboards) will teach you how to build a hollow wooden surfboard with the strip and feather method used by a lot of builders.

No woodworking skills are needed. all the paulownia and cedar needed to construct the shape of your choice will be provided.

Dates are: 12.-14. August and 19.-21. August
For more information : paulitspaul@gmx.net or call him 07790795117

Bruno's French Fish

" I am Bruno Hubert (36 years old), I live in France (Bretagne, Finistère (29 ) ) and I have built a hollow surfboard Fish.It is 5' 8" x 21 3/16" x 2 9/16"
I use the Paul Jensen Method, and the wood used are : Balsa, Red cedar and Sipo (fins) with
Epoxy resin."

" This is a good surfboard, it's very cool to surf with it."

For more shots of the board and the building process check out his blog:

www.surfobsession.canalblog.com/archives/le_pesk_nij__poisson_volant_/p40-0.html

" I love hollow surfboard and i am building a new hollow : 6'2" X 18 1/2" X 2 1/4 "
www.surfobsession.canalblog.com/archives/6_2_brian_hollow_pro_model/index.html

Thanks to Bruno for sharing a great looking board. He has done the Jensen method proud.

The "Nohu" from Charlie

Charlie Loiselle from Hawaii loves building wooden boards and gives them all names inspired by the sea. Mostly fish.
" The Nohu, or scorpionfish, is a real ugly fish. Thus I named my newest design after it."

" Latest out of the Island Dream factory (i.e. my car port). It's a twin-fin fish with little bitty fins and minimal rocker - kind of like the "bluegill" that Jon Wegener is doing in Cali, but hollow wood. Bookmatched redwood top, lauan bottom (ripped and alternated for a better look). Solid laminate rails - this is the first board I've done that I didn't strip-rail, and I don't think I'd do it again. It's faster, but strip-railing is lighter and...more elegant? Anyhow I'm taking it out this weekend (once the varnish coat finished drying) and will try and get some pic in action."


It’s a 7’ twin fin fish with minimal rocker and a wiiiiiide tail. I made it for small days when it’s too mushy for an alaia, as an alternative to a longboard. We’ll see how it rides – the fins are real small, so it should slide quite a bit but "

Check out Charlie's blog and his other projects at : www.islanddreamssurf.blogspot.com

We have been building and riding wooden boards a while now

Thrill of the Surf 1949 from Gary Crockett on Vimeo.

If you would like a board like this get hold of Parrish Watts at Noosa and he can build you one.

http://vintagepacificsurfcraft.blogspot.com

The Cabbage Tree and Agave board.

"Have you ever wondered how surfboards are made? If yes, do you know how the whole process and materials involved? Yes? Then, do you know how to make a wooden one? If you do, now forget everything you know about all of that and look at how Roger Hall makes a stunningly impressive surfboard made out of Cabbage Tree and Agave. The wood he uses is pretty much found on the side of the road, thereby turning a whole lot of surfboard building and commercial concepts on their heads, even throwing them out the window! Observe as his glasser, Matt Waite, reveals the wide colour ranges and textures that each wood offers. An extended version of this will be available as a bonus feature on the SEWN DVD. So get into some droning beats and admire this craftsmanship marvel of surfboard making, simply the best in NZ!"

This years Wooden Board Day is coming up...

Saturday August the 6th will be a night of meet and greet , a few beers and a BBQ with 3 guest speakers at the Gold Coast Surf Museum around the corner. A chance for you to put some faces to names and hear from some interesting and talented individuals.

Sunday August the 7th will be the day to bring along your board, lay it out in the park and go for a surf. Share your ideas, thoughts and experiences with a whole bunch of other stoked individuals that have put in the hard yards to build a wooden board as well. As you will know from building a wooden board there is no easy way of getting there. So you will find a very accepting and a whole lot of mutual respect amongst those that have gone the journey. So if you have a board you have built, please bring it along and share the experience. If you want to know more about building a wooden board, there will be no better chance to find out all you could ever want to know. There are many ways of building a board and they will all be there to see. Bring the picnic lunch, swap boards and ideas with others in the park opposite the Currumbin Alley.

If you have any questions , please contact me : grantnewby@bigpond.com

Matt builds a nice board

Matt Wachtfogel has been working with wood since he was a young kid. He says "It's just in my blood". He has been a General Contractor since 1982 and builds custom homes in Manhattan Beach and Hermosa Beach California.

Matt started surfing in his twenties and after taking an extended vacation on Kauai a few years ago and seeing a hollow wooden surfboard he thought, "I think I can build one of those". The first board took a while to construct and after it was completed Matt felt building it was time well spent. Matt hand builds each board himself. The process starts with design and then hand selection of materials. All material must be milled to size, straight lined, glued up, shaped and detailed. The process is tedious and rewarding at the same time.

The boards are composed of wood, glue, fiberglass cloth, polyester or epoxy resin, fin boxes or fin plugs and leash plugs. A lot of labor and love goes in to each board too. "Matt finds it hard to part with a board when it's finished, he says it becomes a part of him". Matt's focus has been to try to keep the construction process simple and let the beauty of the wood do the talking.

Each board takes approximately fifty hours of labor to construct and shape, after that it's off to the Glasser. Matt uses one of the top glassers in Southern California to glass the boards to a mirror finish. The strength of the wood allows for a minimal amount of fiberglass (4oz. glass on the bottom and 4oz. on the deck with a 2oz. deck patch).

Check out his boards and how he goes about it :
www.wachtfogelcustomhollowsurfboards.com

Vincent's mini simmons

" Here are some news about the wooden Mini Simmons. I've cut all the ribs and the spine and glued them. I've glued the "counter rail" and now I will start to glue the strip planking deck skin.
Attached, you can see the Mini Simmons skeleton."

Look forward to more pics and progress on this board from Vincent.

Peter Walker Exhibition

Peter Walker, a Sydney-born surfer, divides his time between Adelaide and working as Associate Professor at the Rhode Island School of Design in New York. Always fascinated by hand skills and fine craftsmanship, Walker’s awareness of the complexity of surfboard performance and design led him to start making his own wooden surfboards – embellished with the work of leading Australian contemporary artists.
Walker has researched and references notable surfboard designers from the past with his series of new hollow boards. Tom Blake, an American who lived in Hawaii in the 1920s, was an early proponent of the surfing lifestyle. He invented the ‘skeg’ or fin which helped to stabilise a board through the water. He also refers to Californian Bob Simmons who in the period immediately following WWII incorporated the new technologies of fibreglass, Styrofoam resin and plywood construction with his experience as an aircraft engineer to experiment with the dynamics of drag and turbulence. The beautiful boards are all meant to be used – yet they take on a presence of sculpture within the gallery space.


The exhibition is open from 28th May to 10th of July at the Gold Coast Arts Centre.

On Saturday 9th July 3 - 5PM Join Peter as he discusses the design and shaping process of his surfboards and collaborations with other artists.

RSVP P 07 5581 6567 / E gallery@theartscentregc.com.au

Thanks to everone

Well the jour­ney of the Earth­quake Surf­board has now had a happy end­ing. We wanted to thank every­one for the sup­port and well wishes over the past few weeks.

We were amazed at the unfold­ing events of the auc­tion. This resulted in hav­ing 9974 hits on Trademe with over 100 peo­ple watch­ing the auc­tion, which far exceeded all of our expec­ta­tions. The final bid was $2061.00 NZD, which will be mak­ing its way to the Red Cross.

The win­ner of the Earth­quake Surf­board and hand­made wall racks is a Cantabrian surfer. It is pretty fan­tas­tic to think the board will go to some­one who has per­sonal attach­ment to the City of Christchurch.

We are eter­nally grate­ful to those in the surf­ing com­mu­nity both in New Zealand and inter­na­tion­ally who embraced this cause. It was also hum­bling to get so many heart­felt mes­sages from those peo­ple who told us they were not from a surf­ing back­ground, their sen­ti­ments expressed to us greatly con­tributed to the sig­nif­i­cance of the Earth­quake Board.

Once again we wanted to thank everyone!!

Ledgends night at the Gold Coast Surf Museum this Saturday night

Surf World Gold Coast is hosting an evening on 28^th May featuring Joe Larkin, Gordon Woods, Scott Dillon and Bill Wallace, four of the pioneering fathers of board manufacturing in Australia and the industry and lifestyle that followed in their footsteps. These four men between them trained some of the most highly regarded shapers and manufacturers involved in the industry today.

Listen to their stories about the introduction of the Malibu in 1956 and the transition from 16ft hollow ply boards, to ply Okanuii’s, to balsa and then to foam and their humorous stories about the disasters they had in creating the modern foam blank.

Hear how the ‘Gidget’ era changed surfing into a mainstream sport in the early 60s’ and how the short board revolution affected their businesses in the late 60s’.

All good surfers in their own right these four together, are part of the living history of our sport. With larrikins Joe and Scott and gentleman Gordon and Bill telling their stories it promises to be an entertaining night not to be missed and one that all those in the industry should attend.

This Saturday 28th May at 6pm - don't miss a great night

Early Balsa short boards

A great little piece from Mark Riley's newletter that I thought I would share.

" Congrats Bob Munro for sending me this great 1959 photo - he received a DVD on How to Build a Balsa Wood Malibu and sent me this email:

Hi Mark, thanks for your note, not much to add, the beach in the background was Cronulla, the boards accompanied us on safaris to Qld (gold coast) and a number of the beaches in the Noosa area. We travelled in a 58 Holden van and were the centre of attention when we stopped in a country town as most people had not seen these "short" boardies let alone made out of exotic material. We did further trips all the way to bells where we surfed for a few days with guys that were still on wooden boards, our boards were good performers and handled all round conditions. The boardies (Okanuis) were home made (by mum) and in retrospect we (like some did) should have gone commercial! Thanks for the offer of the dvd its appreciated.
Cheers Bob Munro Ps the other guy in the picture is Ian Walsh. "

Check out all the great blanks and boards from Riley Balsawood Surfboards Australia