Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Wooden surfboard plans and what to look for

If you are looking for wooden surfboard plans you should watch for several key items.

  • How long have the surfboard plans been available?
  • Can the surfboard plans be printed easily?
  • How much are the surfboard plans?
  • How many people have purchased the surfboard blueprints and been happy?
  • How quickly can the plans be delivered?
  • Are the surfboard plans full size or scaled plans?




How long have the surfboard plans been available?
You should look for surfboard plans that have been around for a while.  Some products are here today and gone tomorrow but with most things in life you should go with time-tested products that have stuck around for years.  These surfboard plans have been around since before ebay even existed... That is a long time yet revisions have kept it current and up to date.  Don't fall for the fly-by-night surfboard plans but rather go for a trusted source.

Can the surfboard plans be printed easily?
Some surfboard plans aren't able to reproduced which can be a huge problem if you want to build more than one surfboard or make surfboards over and over.  Some surfboard plans also require you to have access to a large format printer which doesn't work well for most people trying to make a surfboard.  You should choose a surfboard plan that allows you to print the plans on your home computer as many times as you like and using normal 8x11 sheets of paper.

How much are the surfboard plans?
Surfboard plans should cost no more than about $12-$20 bucks.  There are some surfboard instructions that costs over $100 which is shows the amazing value and some people will pay for a set of blueprints but general about $15 should cover the cost of a basic set of surfboard plans.

How many people have purchased the surfboard blueprints and been happy?
You should choose a surfboard plans that has a proven track record over many years with plenty of online positive reputation.  Deciding between the few surfboard plans out there can be a challenge but a quick google search should produce enough feedback from purchasers and builders to determine a good style, type, and quality of surfboard plans and instruction on how to make a surfboard.

How quickly can the plans be delivered?
The wooden surfboard plans should be available instantly.  In this day and age it is very outdated to expect the surfboard templates and drawings to show up via snail mail or even up to 8 hours via email.  The only acceptable choice for getting wood surfboard plans is via instant download the moment the payment has cleared with a credit card.  Too many times people have needed to interact multiple times with sellers that provided the timber plans by email since it sometimes exceeds the maximum size of attachments or ends up in a junk mail folder.

Are the surfboard plans full size or scaled plans?
One should also ask if the plans are full size or scaled.  If the blueprint is scaled then there will be a lot of extra time trying to transfer and calculate the correct ratio to build the plan by. You will also not have the benefit of building the board on the plans.  Scaled plans would only be acceptable for planning purposes only.

Enjoy the occasion of building a timber surfboard from quality wooden surfboard plans such as these.

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Why Build a Wooden Hollow Wooden Longboard

Why Build a Wooden Hollow Wooden Longboard
Surfers are more and more starting to choose wooden long boards and asking the question - how to make a surfboard or more specifically how to make a longboard.  With the costs so high it would be easy for the average surfer to be excluded without a long board to ride on.  Many long boarders are floored to hear a hollow longboard can be made for $100 in wood and the lumber can be bought at a store.
 Though they are slightly challenging to make yourself, it IS definitely possible for the garage wood worker. The surfboards look great and have the classic not found since those built many years ago but are lighter with hollow designs not seen in the early surfboards.
One of the biggest differences between the original surfboards of the retro wood longboards of the present day is the hollow wood design.  The surfboards can be built longer without the extra weight of the wasted wood.  An "SUP" has become much more popular than the early models in the 50's because of the hollow construction.  Foam longboards will always be lighter but wood longboards can come be fairly light considering and still provide the classic retro style most surfers and long-boarders are looking for in a surfboard.
What makes these hollow longboards so light? Instead making the longboard from solid wood, these surfboards are built with a hollow construction.  The inside of the board looks more like an airplane wing on an airliner that a longboard built for riding waves. Even the initial structure of the board weighs less than you would think, when completed, the longboard is as strong as most foam boards.
Many surfers prefer these hollow longboards when thinking of the mass produced longboards because of the cool factor of their looks and telling their friends that they can build a  longboard surfboard.  With regular store-bought longboards you can paint them with any color imaginable, but these hollow surfboards can be built with wood inlays and painted designs that are completely original, not attainable in mass produced boards,  and custom to the designer of the board.
 A variety of shades of lumber, shapes, and preferences are available and limited only to the long-board builder. When making your own longboard, the material is also much more forgiving to work with than the foam kits.  On the internet can be bought some wood kits for wooden hollow boards but after shipping costs and times saved is not that much so many choose to just build a wooden longboard using plans that are available for inexpensive prices and downladable.  
All the surfers in the lineup will be impressed with your garage built surfboard when you explain to them how to build wooden longboard surfboard using full size plans and blueprints.  You will be in new/old club of surfers that surf retro surfboards.