I reckon you'd need more than 100 sailors to make a plug worthwhile, and there in lies probably the biggest fault in this idea.
Also I believe it was Glitch, not macro, who posted the details of the made in china boards eps and glass boards. It's like watching a sitcom, where two people are arguing with each other about completely different topics without either of them realising.
That said nothing wrong with EPS and glass, my nude custom is eps and glass, i think with a tiny bit of carbon under the footpads??.
^^^ I think you will find the Nude is polystyrene with a glass and PVC sandwich then more glass.
When that Chinese mob say "EPS and glass", I reckon that is all you are getting. Missing a whole layer.....
It is a pic of a windsurf board, with NSP surfboard construction.
If you can get a whole community to agree on a universal board then you could probably solve world hunger as well. :)
However I like the idea of a generic / universal starter board, which could be good for the sport. I'd like to see manufactures get behind this by sponsoring a model with very low margins to make the sport accessible to all potential newcomers.
^^^^ Yes their SUP construction is good and I know it is Cobra
I was using NSP as an analogy as many people seem unaware of the different construction methods. In using them, I mean their surfboards of the last few years which are EPS and glass, no sandwich layer of PVC foam or wood or coco etc
Don't mean to disrespect their product
Macroscien, macroscien
If you reckon it is such a good idea and that you can produce boards that people want to buy for $300 then shut the **** up, go make some, sell them for $1200, makes 400% profit and take 99% of market share.
You'll be a millionaire over night won't you ?
Or have you no faith in your own idea ?
I have just done my own business model into this idea.
Unfortunately I found full carbon sandwich slalom boards made by some of the biggest and oldest names in the windsurfing business for considerably less than $300, and they don't sell like hot hash cakes at a WI meeting.
Here is one prime example :
www.seabreeze.com.au/Classifieds/Windsurfing-Boards/~aa-9m/Fanatic-Hawk-275-cm-96-litres.aspx?search=6dS%2bE7kXONTosEqWwF%2fRz8E1ZeDGH%2baU
This Dragon is out.
Imagine what would happen to the current secondhand market for freeride/slalom boards in OZ if you could get a brand new 110L slalom board for around $500-$700!
If I can offer some advice...... Someone should design ONE board only, get it made, give it to someone to flog the ** out of, and if they give the thumbs up after a season, look into producing a few more. I am only just getting into the sport literally (about 4 weeks) and I know I will buy a board if it was that expected price. as I can not afford spend thousands on a really nice fancy named board.
It only take one to be made and tested to make or break the idea.
We hear this every year on here, why are boards so expensive bla bla bla.. they only cost $300 to $350 in materials to make bla bla bla.. yer if you buy 1000 litres of epoxy 2000 meters of glass 1000 meters of carbon, 300 kgs of eps etc.etc etc, you prob will get costs down to that per board..
There are such things as design, devolpement, proto types, molds, machinery to build them, employee's to build them.. shipping etc, etc, etc..
If you have ever built an epoxy board, windsurf or surf, you will know how much work actualy goes into it, hours and hours of shaping, glassing, and every builders worsrt nightmare **** loads of sanding, and then the painting and finishing.
If this was built in Australia, work out how much a highly qualified tradesman would charge for a full weeks work then add $700 for materials to this. If you still winge about board prices after this you need to do another sport. I here tennis is cheap..
Perhaps improved 3D printers will make boards cheaper. The technology is advancing rapidly and perhaps it won't be long before someone makes a plastic fantastique in their garage with a downloaded design and $50 worth of materials.
Some people believe 3D printers will bring about the end of capitalism.
My experience of successful community projects, (you mentioned Linux for example) have nothing to do with saving money!
As an example there are already a few seabreeze'ers that are building fins, in particular, and I doubt very much there doing it purely to save money.
If you approach the problem from the point of view, of building something better, faster,easier or something fun to do you might have some more success.
The biggest concern I would have about producing these "disposable boards" is the amount of toxic waste they would contribute to the environment every year.
It's bad enough that manufacturers don't have a recycling program in place but at least their boards last in most cases 4 to 5 years.
So basically you want to make a "one design".
Think this has been done before.
Read somewhere recently that it may of have killed windsurfing.
Macro, I don't like the idea of under cutting shapers and going to China. It's the wrong attitude for a community project. If you wanted to become a shaper and then invited other budding shapers to create something from scratch, then that would be a fantastic idea.
You gave the example of Microsoft versus Linux. Your idea is more like Microsoft in my opinion. Many software/electronics professions cut their teeth in the early days by making their projects free to use. In the early days at least (not sure now ?), it was all about the learning and sharing knowledge. It was never about the end result. Good on you for being honest anyway.
