More blanks , more timber , more boards

A bunch of freshly hot wired blanks in a couple of grades of EPS all ready to be CNC cut on the machine.

 5ft Simmons on the top, 6ft Hydro Fish , 2 off 7ft Hydro Simmons and 2 different longboards

So these are all ready to send off and get cut , top and bottom on the CNC machine. Ready for the timber to be added.

Well the timber has arrived thanks to Geoff at Paulownia Timber Sales and I can get these under way.

One busy weekend later and they are all bagged and ready to start laminating the rails.

6ft 6" single fin

 Just getting the last of 3 x 5mm rail bands on this 6ft 6" single fin project.To get around the round tail, I have laminated it with end grain 5mm , so that the grain is vertical , this has allowed me to bend the laminates around the tail with ease.

  You can clearly see it here.

Once I clean it up it will just add a little contrast in timber colour.

Brians new toys

 A couple of new toys for Brian. I shaped them , he glasses them at home and then tests them with lots of feed back.The fish has a square tail at ther moment and then I believe he is to give it a bit of butt crack action. He is never afraid to experiment and rides a wide range of shapes and sizes. Good guy to know.

Loving the winter sun

Went for a four hour surf at the Alley , oiled these girls up for a sun bake in the 26c winter sun. How good is this. 2 x 5ft 6" x 22 and one at 19" wide.

People ask where did my flying fish logo came from

People often ask me where my flying fish came from. This is it , I hand drew it about 10 years ago and I love flying fish. I never forget the first time I saw one while out game fishing by the Poor Knight Islands of the east coast of Northland New Zealand in the 70's. I even had a boat in Fiji called Ika Vuka which is flying fish in Fijian. So no it has nothing to do with the Patagonia logo at all. It even flys the other way.

Custom order 8ft x 28" wooden SUP for the UK

 The 8ft SUP is close to being packed up and air freighted off to Haris in London. It has been a big project.

 

 This board is a custom order for Haris Zambarloukos, BSC who grew up in Nicosia, Cyprus, an island outside of Greece. He is a well known cinematographer based in London , who loves his surfing and travels the world for his work and his board travels with him.It has been a great experience to build this board for Haris.

 5ft 6" x 22" and 5ft 6" x 19" unglassed Hydro simmons show the family resemblance

 

 Haris wanted to try the keel fin setup as well

 Rasta Quads in place

 Will apply clear traction on the deck before sending off.

 Nice proportions for a big board, I am very pleased with the outcome. 4mm deck skin and 3mm bottom with 4oz glass all over as it will need to stand up to a few knocks from the paddle from time to time.

And here it is in Portugal

Darren's 8ft 6" x 22" x 2 5/8" pintail

Lots of solid red by Peter "Mo"

 Nice 9" Volan flex fin and side bites

 Built for speed in Bali

Jennies 8ft 4" x 22 1/2" x 3"

 Great glass job by Peter "Mo"

Single concave to double and V through the tail

 Nice 9" Larry Alison volan flex fin

Nice waves in Byron this morning Sat 17th May

The water was 23c , slightest of off shore, water as clear as gin and alive with showers of bait fish. It was like being in a water park.We were just East of the wreck. So nice.

Another one in the bag

Just bagging this Hydro Simmons for Peter Wikins from South Australia who saw my boards in New Zealand at the Waipu Fish Fry while on holidays there.

 All tidied up

First rail band on and we are underway

Boards on the go at Mo's

Down stairs at Mo's I have him busy glassing Darren's 8ft 6" and ready  to cut the fin box in.

 Haris's wooden 8ft x 28" SUP getting a 4oz glass job

And in another room Jennies 8ft 4" ready to have the fin box cut in

 Upstairs in the shaping bay I get stuck into Neil's 4ft 8" simmons and shape the rails

 Next up is Peter's 5ft 6" Hydro Simmons

 Making a start on the rails

Starting to get a little form.