Hey Zac its Stevo. You should get a job at surf n sail in Leederville. They might be able to help.

Anyone in Perth supply pre shaped blanks?
Thinking of making a carbon fibre board (will have left over carbon cloth from a different project) but don't want shape from scratch.

Hey Zac, find someone in your area who is still doing hand shapes (almost extinct...will probably be very old like me )...offer to clean up after him on the proviso that he lets you watch him work....put on a set of earmuffs...some protective eyewear and a dust mask and stand in the corner behind him and do not move or speak till he is finished....be prepared to walk out of there looking like a human lamington...I have done this for a lot of kids over the years and I can tell you now not many hang in there when the planer starts screaming...the ones that do...I will help as much as I can...I learnt the same way...watch every move he makes...but not just once...do it until he kicks you out...after a few you will start to pick up the shapers technique...that's all it is...shadows and technique...combined with tool control...don't worry about the design aspects in the start, they will fall into place later....keep your eyes out for old cheep boards that are much bigger than what you want to shape for yourself and start collecting a supply...the sailboard idea is good but you will have far too much foam to hack out...a board that is bigger than you want to shape means you can make your template...mark it out onto the donor board then cut it out with the glass still on...you can then just get under the glass an lift it...it will just peel off leaving you with not so much mowing...my first half dozen or so boards were done like this...I have shaped thousands since...good luck

Select to expand quote

arkgee said..
Hey Zac, find someone in your area who is still doing hand shapes (almost extinct...will probably be very old like me )...offer to clean up after him on the proviso that he lets you watch him work....put on a set of earmuffs...some protective eyewear and a dust mask and stand in the corner behind him and do not move or speak till he is finished....be prepared to walk out of there looking like a human lamington...I have done this for a lot of kids over the years and I can tell you now not many hang in there when the planer starts screaming...the ones that do...I will help as much as I can...I learnt the same way...watch every move he makes...but not just once...do it until he kicks you out...after a few you will start to pick up the shapers technique...that's all it is...shadows and technique...combined with tool control...don't worry about the design aspects in the start, they will fall into place later....keep your eyes out for old cheep boards that are much bigger than what you want to shape for yourself and start collecting a supply...the sailboard idea is good but you will have far too much foam to hack out...a board that is bigger than you want to shape means you can make your template...mark it out onto the donor board then cut it out with the glass still on...you can then just get under the glass an lift it...it will just peel off leaving you with not so much mowing...my first half dozen or so boards were done like this...I have shaped thousands since...good luck

champion

arkgee, you;re a legend.

Select to expand quote

arkgee said..
Hey Zac, find someone in your area who is still doing hand shapes.....
...I have shaped thousands since...good luck

What a great post!

Lesson 1 on Sunday was about making good templates, then we glued a large offcut from a blank onto the nose of 2/3rds of a stringerless bank Colin Earle so kindly donated to create "franken blank". its about 5'6 long and were are going to make a 5'6x 19.5" from it.

Lesson 2 today: some basic tool usage skills. We got Zac on the electric plane and mowed an old piece of a blank down to paper thickness as he got used to it. He also got to know the block plane and the surform better.

Lesson 3 next week will be precision cutting with the hand saw and getting the outline perfect and then getting the skills up further on the electric plane.

Anyone in Perth with a crusty old board ready for the tip Zac is your guy to take it off ur hand and turn it into dust. Send him a PM if ya have one.

I've got about 12 boards sitting here good to go...

Stoked to see so much proactivity to help a young bloke chase his dreams.

Great Stuff!

Bertie you are a deadset legend! Keep up the good work.

Zac is going to be the redhot planner of his generation. Go Bertie!