After getting back into windsurfing 4 or 5 years ago, after a 30 year break, i started thinking whether I'd ever make a board or two.... I'd made more than 100 pu/pe surfboards, and several polystyrene/epoxy ones, with mixed results including burning down a workshop after an exothermic batch of epoxy!
I have ended up with a couple of Tabou rockets, a simmer free move and a mistral shock wave, so wanted to base the new ones on the dimensions of the ones i had, tweaking them to better suit local conditions, and my abilities (and lack of!)
I used shape 3d to design a float and ride board after really enjoying a 150L rocket in the waves, but restricted by a 50cm fin! I also drew up a 105 ish L wave board for cross on windier conditions with mushy waves in mind.
The designs sat on the computer for several months while i checked how glassing them would differ from surfboards, and asked several questions on here...Thanks for the responses!
I managed to get 2 blocks of eps 200 (28 kg/m3) which was the minimum order, and cut the two to make 3 boards, one glued together from the 2 offcuts , and one for a friend, who'd also designed it on shape 3d. The intention was to get them shaped locally on a machine, and I'd glass them, however lockdown came along, so i borrowed a hotwire from a friend, and got started!
I decided on 2 cm tail rocker for both, and as near to 20 nose rocker as i could get from the 20 cm foam.
i started with the smaller board, and scrounged old boards to salvage the mast tracks, footstrap plugs, and main boxes to keep costs down, and reduce environmental impact ( very slightly).
As i never really expected them to work, i thought I'd try something different with no.1 and go with a 5 fin bonzer set up, so got some lok box fin boxes as i already had the fins. more later......

Probably just me, but I like my "float and ride" boards with LOTS of tail rocker for dropping in late and snappy turns, while my planing wave boards are similar to your smaller board.

Select to expand quote

LeeD said..
Probably just me, but I like my "float and ride" boards with LOTS of tail rocker for dropping in late and snappy turns, while my planing wave boards are similar to your smaller board.

if the waves I'd planned it for were steep and fairly heavy, I'd agree with you, but for the weak mush it is for early entry is more important.

For the first time using a hotwire and rocker templates, i liked the relative accuracy, and as i was cutting the rocker in halves, i skewed the templates to cut in the vee, glued the blank, and cut the outline....all good. Cutting the rail bands with the hotwire failed, so resorted to planer and surform for those, and bonzer style concaves.
The plan was to have wide tailed boards, and run the concave out of the rail near the tail, to increase the rocker along the rail line.

Nice.Like the plugged in electric hand saw lying on the floor to make it more of a challenge ; )

Select to expand quote

Icelake said..
Nice.Like the plugged in electric hand saw lying on the floor to make it more of a challenge ; )

I do like to keep a tidy workspace! haha

I decided to glass 2x6oz bottom, with fin patches, and 2x6oz top, carbon on the rails , forward of the front fins, with veneer and 6oz patch on the rear 2/3 of the board, all done a layer at a time, so that the rail had alternate laps, which in my opinion would be stronger, and less likely to suffer pin holes I put the main box in a block of high density pu foam, but routed the side boxes directly into the eps.
I was worried about the veneer without a vac bag, but used cling film and tape, which was ok. One or two patches of veneer had lifted, so i sanded them back to the glass, and patched them with a different colour veneer just to see what it would look like.
As I'd scrounged mast track and strap plugs from other snapped boards, these were already set into high density pvc foam, which made things easy, and i also left the existing glass/sandwich on these.
The deck grips wouldn't have been my choice, but were free! (I am certainly no nationalist!)

After the final sanding, and liking the leopard look, a sugar grip coat, and sealing the bottom, I first tried the board in cross on, 3-4' messy swell, to the ridicule of a couple of friends who had never seen a bonzer before, I was well powered up with a 5.8, and the thing took off across the bay. 3rd wave, and i managed a decent jump, and i hooted because the thing actually worked!
The board is pretty heavy,( about 9kg) but sails well, feeling smooth, gybing well and jumping well. (i managed an over rotated back loop, so can't be too bad!) it seems to smooth out the chop, and i even get comments that it appears to work really well!
Several months on, i still really like the board, so much, that i have finished the float and ride, and also made a small wave board, as a bonzer, with glassed on side fins. The board has survived really well, after numerous flat landings, and only has a heel dent on my front foot (jumping side).

With the following 2 boards, i used the same foam, as many second hand bits as i could, and used 2 pack paint to finish. I gave the float and ride a carbon deck, and various patches, so it worked out very heavy (11kg) I was not at all optimistic that it would work, but figured i had made 1 that was great for me, so it didn't matter.... On it's first outing my doubts seemed to be well founded, the board felt slow, and dull, but was very easy to turn and uphaul quickly, which i felt was needed for a low wind beach break board. There were no waves to catch, so didn't get to try it properly.
A week or two later I turned up at the beach expecting a good sail, but the forecast wind had never turned up. As there was a small swell, thought i'd give the new board a second (and maybe final) try. It floated out over the waves very easily, and gybed on a penny into a wave. The thing then took off and considering the weakness of the waves and wind, came alive . I have since used it in bigger waves and stronger winds, but when fully powered is a handful, but that isn't what it was intended for. In light winds and ok waves it is great!
I have only managed to sail the 3rd board once, but first impressions are good! i think i'm hooked on making my own boards! I glassed this one with smaller carbon patches, s glass (double 4 bottom, double 6 top) and a deck patch of a new cloth given to me to try by the local supplier, so the weight is good.

Great work and thank you for sharing! How do you plan on addressing the weight?

Estimate on the overall cost and time?

Would love to get into this as well!

Select to expand quote

Manuel7 said..
Great work and thank you for sharing! How do you plan on addressing the weight?

Estimate on the overall cost and time?

Would love to get into this as well!

Thanks.
I think the 3rd board is certainly within decent limits by reducing the overall amount of cloth, and keeping reinforcements where they're needed. S glass is also great, but only comes in narrow width. I will keep trying to destroy no.1 by flat landings etc and see how strong it is! Even though they're heavy, in choppy conditions it doesn't seem to matter too much, but maybe in cross off.... I might have to try vac bagging and sandwich? but that will add cost and time!
Cost wise, i think about 300 pounds/euros, for foam, glass and resin, and time, an hour or two per day for a couple of weeks, so overall about 15- 20 hours, but that includes looking at it and drinking beer!