# Hollow core surfboad



## TheRecklessOne (Jul 22, 2008)

It has begun! (In my best highlander accent)

I had a conversation with someone on here at one point about building a hollow core balsa surfboard. I think it was frankp, but I'm not really sure. Anyway, whoever it was here we go!

I just got the kit in the mail last Thursday. Everything was packaged well, it only weighed 8 lbs, and I only found 1 tiny flaw on the main balsa spar. I haven't had a chance to build the assembly table it will be temporarily attached to, but I have gotten all the ribs and the main spar released.

The manual recommends breaking free all the extra balsa that is big enough to be cut down and used later for vertical supports.

I plan on making mdf templates out of everything so that I can build this one again if I choose. 

I have all winter to finish this, but I will be updating this as I go. (inspired by BudK's guitar build. what happened to that?)

Take care!
:thumbsup:


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## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

I was wondering why we haven't heard from you in a while. You were unpacking the pieces. :laughing: Great looking project man. Looks like a good one for the winter. Take your time and enjoy the finished product. I'm looking forward to this one.
What ever happened to BudK's guitar anyway?
Ken


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## TheRecklessOne (Jul 22, 2008)

Seriously! Where'd he go? I was hooked.


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## TheRecklessOne (Jul 22, 2008)

*Noreaster!!!*

Here of the coast of VA Beach we're battling a bit of a noreaster.:boat: Very wet and windy today so Old Dominion University canceled all classes which gave me the chance to do a little work on the surfboard. Take care dudes (and lady dudes!) Stay dry!!:thumbsup:


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## TheRecklessOne (Jul 22, 2008)

cont'd


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## Al B Cuttn Wud (Oct 14, 2007)

KC,
You are more than welcome to come on over to my backyard, with the wind I've got about 3 foot waves....ha.


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## TheRecklessOne (Jul 22, 2008)

No thanks Al! :boat: I hope your family managed to escape the storm other than the monsoon waves! My house has been situated in a temporary peninsula for the last 2 days. Only 1 way in or out of my neighborhood off the Elizabeth River here. I can only imagine what it like to actually be a VA Beach resident though!


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## Maveric777 (Jul 30, 2008)

Looks like a cool and fun project. Cant wait to see more....


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## PTownSubbie (Mar 6, 2009)

TheRecklessOne said:


> No thanks Al! :boat: I hope your family managed to escape the storm other than the monsoon waves! My house has been situated in a temporary peninsula for the last 2 days. Only 1 way in or out of my neighborhood off the Elizabeth River here. I can only imagine what it like to actually be a VA Beach resident though!


I went without power for 23 hours. Tree down across the only inlet and outlet to the neighborhood. Good thing I have a generator but poor planning on my part.....didn't stock up on gas.:thumbdown: I ended up siphoning gas from one of my vehicles to keep the generator running!!


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## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

*???????????????????????????????????*

I don't get it. I mean, I'm no expert on surfboards, but I'm positive that the board that you are sanding with the belt sander will not support your weight in water. Shouldn't it be bigger?!?!?!?!?!:laughing:
MORE PICS MAN!!!!! 
The anticipation is killing me.
Ken


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## TheRecklessOne (Jul 22, 2008)

Damn Fred. I'm sorry to hear that! Losing power around here is the worst...usually it takes a couple days to get back. I'm glad you got your power back relatively quickly. You're not selling a lathe and grinder on craigslist right now are ya? It's from your area in portsmouth if I remember correctly so I figured I'd ask.

Ken... The little surfboard will be fused together with 19 others to create a full sized one! I tried surfing this one and sank like a brick... It's going to be a slow project, but I'll add pics anytime I work on it!!!

Take care guys!!!

KC


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## dragonslumber (Nov 7, 2009)

Cool way to spend the winter.
Don


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## TheRecklessOne (Jul 22, 2008)

*One step closer...*

Hey dudes! It's been particularly rainy this season. Not a fan, but it gives me time to work on the surfboard. One step closer, but many more to go. So far I've completed the torsion (rocker) box and now the main spar has a place to sit! This thing will be in dry dock for the whole winter now. All comments and questions are welcome!! :boxing:


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## TheRecklessOne (Jul 22, 2008)

*more pics with ribs in place*

Do you know why Gorilla's have such big nostrils?

Because they have such big fingers!!:laughing:


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## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

Looking great man. I love this stage of any project, when it starts to take shape. When the little pieces of wood that you spent hours on start to actually look like something more than a bunch of little pieces of wood that you spent hours on. :blink: Either way, looking great. I'm looking forward to the rest of this thread. This is a fun one. 
BTW, sorry to hear about all of the rain. It has obviously hindered your ability to get out and purchase some razor blades. :laughing::shuriken::boxing:
Ken


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## Runs with Chisels (Jun 4, 2009)

*Not missing east coast weather*

Looks like alot of meticulous work there. Also, not so sure about the eggrolls in that last pic. Maybe they got deep fried too long....? At least they have built-in toothpicks!:smartass:


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## TheRecklessOne (Jul 22, 2008)

It's going to be winter soon Ken! I have to insulate...:laughing:

Thanks for taking a peek guys! I had to decide what would be the best way to align all the pieces and make them level so I devised a mini clamping block and story stick with tick marks method... That's the technical terminology. 

The skeleton is now "floating" above the table by about 50 - 4 and 5 inch supports. No more clamps. I need to find a redwood supplier and pick up some balsa blocks for the fin cup. Hopefully I'll have more pics soon!


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## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

Looking great buddy. Nice clean shave too, with no knicks. :laughing:
This is definitely a cool build. Keep the pics coming.
later
Ken


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## TheRecklessOne (Jul 22, 2008)

Thanks a lot Ken! I would still look like a caveman if I didn't have to put on a parents meeting for the wrestling team I coach. The good thing about a beard is that I can always grow it back!

Ha! I think you may be the only fan I have on this build Ken, but I'll keep the pics coming. It's not near as meticulous as your scroll work, but this thing is time consuming!! I love it! irate:


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## frankp (Oct 29, 2007)

Looking good, Reckless. I believe it was me you were discussing the hollow core board with way back when. What kit did you end up with? Which manufacturer? I just found someone (maybe from a link on here) making essentially geodesic designs out of cardboard with glass stretched over it... very cool stuff. Not as light as I would expect, but transparent, which is cool in its own way.

A buddy and I keep planning to make a couple boards but as usual, other projects take center stage... especially since we both have boards to ride in the meantime. 

Since I'm a huge fan of modification, have you considered making lightening holes in any of the cross-members/stations? It also looks like you're only going to have one stringer, is that correct?


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## BudK (Mar 6, 2007)

:thumbsup: Hey Reckless . Awesome project . Your gonna be the proud to paddle out on that bad boy .

\mn/

Bud


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## TheRecklessOne (Jul 22, 2008)

BUD! Welcome back! Life tends to get in the way sometimes, but its good to know the guitar build is still on!

Frank. I thought it was you who I was talking about this with. The company is called Hollow Balsa. It is extremely light as is so no need for the holes. if it was something a little more rigid I would consider the holes. It is single spar. Even the long board kits they sell are single spar, but I have seen multiple spar boards.

I'm trying to track a bead on anyone local that carries redwood. It's harder than I thought to find redwood. Are there any other softwoods that compare in strength and flexibility? Anyone? THANKS EVERYONE!


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## frankp (Oct 29, 2007)

Reckless... Western Red Cedar is a good wood for strip boats and I suspect a surfboard as well. I was going to recommend a decent source for cheap cedar or redwood, but they seem to be only local to the DC area...


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## TheRecklessOne (Jul 22, 2008)

In my mind western red cedar won't be clear. knots and such. Am I wrong in thinking I can't get clear cedar?

p.s. Does anyone know anything about paulownia?


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## frankp (Oct 29, 2007)

Reckless, I just found a guy here selling clear cedar for $4 for a 1x4x6... and some longer lengths too, but didn't get a price on those yet. You can definitely get clear cedar, though you often have to dig for it. Hell if you can't find it, I've got several sources up here and we can arrange something, I'm sure.

There've been a couple threads on here and the kayak forums I read that suggest paulownia is an excellent choice for water-related wood projects. Cheap, renewable, and easy to work, plus light-weight (relatively) and strong.


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## Brad Tucker (Dec 2, 2009)

Howdy Reckless! 
I stumbled on this forum today....good stuff!
I am the Wood Surfboard Supply/Hollow Balsa designer of your kit. I read in your post that the spar in our kit has a slight flaw. Could you tell us which kit you purchased and where the flaw is located? I'd like to know so as to correct this on future kits. Any comments or questions are always welcome.
We look forward to progress pictures of this build.

Cheers,
Brad Tucker
[email protected]


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## TheRecklessOne (Jul 22, 2008)

Frank I may have caught a line on some clear leftover redwood 2x4's here for cheap. If that falls through I'll let you know. Thanks for the lookout!

Brad! Thanks for the reply. I'm glad to see your interested in the flaw. It's nothing major and I've already reinforced it, but I'll post some pics here. Thanks again!


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## Brad Tucker (Dec 2, 2009)

TheRecklessOne said:


> Frank I may have caught a line on some clear leftover redwood 2x4's here for cheap. If that falls through I'll let you know. Thanks for the lookout!
> 
> Brad! Thanks for the reply. I'm glad to see your interested in the flaw. It's nothing major and I've already reinforced it, but I'll post some pics here. Thanks again!


Sounds good Reckless. If it was a design flaw I wanted to know so I could correct it in the computer. Looks like this was just that we must have scratched it while packing it. We'll be more careful in the future if you need any replacement parts let me know. Have fun with the build! Looks great so far! Brad


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## TheRecklessOne (Jul 22, 2008)

Brad, while I've got a chance to ask a couple questions. Does your company recommend any particular fin for their kits? If I can't get redwood what would you recommend for the rail strips? Thanks a lot!!


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## TexasTimbers (Oct 17, 2006)

Looks like a fun little project Wreck .... but not so "little" is it. 

Brad welcome to the community. I like the way you step in and support your product.


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## Brad Tucker (Dec 2, 2009)

TheRecklessOne said:


> Brad, while I've got a chance to ask a couple questions. Does your company recommend any particular fin for their kits? If I can't get redwood what would you recommend for the rail strips? Thanks a lot!!


You don't need to make it out of Redwood. The hard truth is we use a lot of Redwood because we're cheap and we can get a good price at Home Depot in the garden section. :thumbsup:The ultimate” green" board would be made of re-claimed lumber and we have a ton of customers who do that. You just need to make it as light as you can if you're going to surf it. Hardwoods make a great looking "brick" of a surfboard. Balsa is of course the lightest wood available its great for most of the board but on the weak side for the top. Balsa is the best material for the rails because it bends so easy so you may want to use Balsa on the rails just for that reason. The rail strips don’t have to be full length so you can use short balsa from a craft or hobby store. It’s a little pricey though. I make a lot of Balsa boards but I always work in a stronger material into the top like redwood or cedar. Pawlonia is another excellent material. I can't get it for a good price on the west coast. Bottom line is you can make the board out of what ever wood you want depending on what you have available and/or how much you want to pay. Brad


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## Brad Tucker (Dec 2, 2009)

TexasTimbers said:


> Looks like a fun little project Wreck .... but not so "little" is it.
> 
> Brad welcome to the community. I like the way you step in and support your product.


Thanks Texas for the welcome! I’m glad that you’re OK with me jumping in with the support like that. I often worry about posting on forums since I’m a manufacturer. I don’t want anyone to think I’m spamming. Forums like this are great help to me for improving and to communicate with customers so thanks again for the welcome! Brad


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## frankp (Oct 29, 2007)

Reckless, are you putting in a fin box or glassing one in place? If you don't mind my presumptuousness, I'll recommend the box so you can experiment with different fin styles and positions...


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## Brad Tucker (Dec 2, 2009)

Hi again Reckless-
sorry I didn't answer fin question...
This is probably our #1 question. Unfortunately, there are about a thousand correct answers to this question. It's going to come down to personal preference, how you surf and where you surf. The #1 best answer is exactly what frankp advised. A box will allow you to play around with different fins, moving up, forward and back etc. I just measred our single fin longboards that we know surfs really well it has a 10" box that is mounted 8" from the tail. Hope this helps.


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## TheRecklessOne (Jul 22, 2008)

*Finally!*

Around here the weather has been unseasonably cold...in an unheated shop not much gets done. Today we saw weather in the 50's which is about 20 degrees higher than it has been... I know I know some of you live in the frigid tundra of East Jesus, Antarctica and 30 degrees is nothing to complain about. I just don't like to work in the cold...neither does glue...

I finally got out to the shop and added some rail strips to the surfboard. I added a couple glue blocks to the ribs as well so I can very shortly begin adding the strips to frame.

It's not much progress, but its something!


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## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

saaaweeeet!!!!!!


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## frankp (Oct 29, 2007)

Nice, reckless. What do you suspect final dimensions of the board will be? My current board is 9'4" by 21" by about 1 3/4". It's really too long for most east coast surfing, but I'm not good enough (or motivated enough) to bother learning how to float a shorter board. I have surfed my daughter's 7'6" board, but I don't really like the lack of buoyancy from it. Yours looks like it's going to be pretty thick as a final dimension.


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