Surfboard Design Guide V1.7 KS

1About Compare Surfboards <a href="/goto?url=http://comparesurfboards.com/" target="_blank">CompareSurfboards.com </a>is a Sydney, Australia-based website featuring real surfboard reviews by and for real surfers. Built for everyday, weekend-warrior surfers, CompareSurfboards serves up weekly reviews and more from a vast range of shapers -- some Say Hi! underground, some iconic. 2About Benny Hi, I’m Benny! Welcome to Compare Surfboards and welcome to the family! Like many of you, I'm a regular, everyday surfer but I LOVE IT! When it comes to surfboard design, there is a lot to know & lots of jargon. Whether you’re just starting out or a seasoned veteran, understanding your equipment can help take your surfing to the next level. This guide will help you understand the basic surfboard design features and how they work together in unison to achieve the purpose of a given board. 3Table of Contents Introduction <a href="#5_0">5</a><a href="#6_0">6</a>Before Design, Think Physics Surfboard Plan Shape or Outline Surfboard Tail Shapes Surfboard Foil <a href="#8_0">8</a> <a href="#10_0">10 </a><a href="#12_0">12 </a><a href="#14_0">14 </a><a href="#16_0">16 </a><a href="#18_0">18 </a><a href="#20_0">20 </a><a href="#0_0">22 </a>Surfboard Rocker Surfboard Rail Volume and Shape Surfboard Bottom Contours Surfboard Fins Surfboard Fin Placement 4Introduction Good surfboard design is part science, part art + a lot of trial and error. Like a good symphony, all aspects of a board’s design serve a specific purpose and these elements must come together to produce the desired outcome. Understanding each component and how they contribute to an overarching design is the primary goal of this guide. •••One of the most important steps to becoming a more informed surfer is understanding your equipment Surfboard design is complex and multi-faceted, however, a few basics principles apply Understanding the ‘big picture’ will help you make more informed decisions about your equipment 5What forces are applied to surfboards during use? 6“Surfing is al physics.” THREE BASIC FORCES APPLIED TO SURFBOARDS DURING USE: • BUOYANCY - Buoyancy counterbalances the weight of both board and surfer and stops them from sinking. • GRAVITY - The force of gravity, on the other hand, effects the opposite. It pulls the surfer toward the water, essentially helping him hold his position on the moving face of the wave. • HYDRODYNAMIC FORCES - These forces coming from the moving water dictate the form of the waves and their interaction with the surfer. 7Surfboard Plan Shape or Outline 8Image Credit: Haydenshapes Surfboards HERE ARE A FEW BASIC Surfboard Plan Shapes/Outlines SUITED FOR DIFFERENT WAVE TYPES A Tale of Two Outlines On the left: is a short, wide, fat design intended for maximum wave catching & speed generation in tiny, weak surf On the right: a sleek, longer, narrower design purpose built to handle the speed & power of large, powerful surf To learn more about the perfect shape/ outline for you 9Surfboard Tail Shapes 10 10 Surfboard Tail Shapes Explained <ul style="display: flex;"><li style="flex:1">Round </li><li style="flex:1">Swallow </li></ul>••Surfboard tail shapes are integral to a surfboard’s design and are generally suited to a specific wave type. Speed, maneuverability and hold are controlled by tail design. Here are six popular tail designs & their purpose: Pintail Rounded Pintail Round Tail: wider, more circular edge enables easier turning & overall versatility because of the introduction of more lift to the tail while still sitting comfortably in steeper, better quality waves. <ul style="display: flex;"><li style="flex:1">Square </li><li style="flex:1">Squash </li></ul>Pintail: crafted for control & hold in big, critical surf. Decreased surface area minimises lift, thus maintaining direction and momentum. To learn more about the six basic tail shapes 11 Swallow Tail: allows for more bite and control in instances where the surfer needs to work around and maneuver in and out of the waves. Small wave boards may have a wide swallow tail for increased surface area on the rail line for drive but the cutout releases through turns. A big wave ‘gun’ surfboard may have a tight swallow tail for hold and control with slightly more maneuverability vs. the standard pintail or rounded pintail. Rounded Pintail: slightly more versatile vs. the rigid pointed tip on the pintail, rounded pintails are still geared for controlling speed. Square Tail: less prevalent and generally used for designs intended for airs or punting. The sharp corners create a precise pivot point, which breaks the water flow hard and fast in short, tight turns. Squash / Rounded Square Tail: Geared for modern performance surfing, this designs translates to better management of turns while maintaining speed in slower spots. By far the most popular tail shape of WCT and WQS surfers. 12 SURFBOARD FOIL 13 What is surfboard foil? ••Surfboard foil refers to the board’s overall flow of thickness/volume through the outline Visible while looking at the board from a side view • Significant because it determines how the surfboard will plane across the water when it’s slow or flat, or how it will cut into a steeper face through turns The distribution of thickness contributes much to the surfboard’s performance and a surfer’s riding style ••Determining the right foil for a given design is an unsung art form that world’s best shapers have mastered 14 Surfboard Rocker 15 What is surfboard rocker? Surfboard rocker is the structural curve of a surfboard’s bottom, top & rail. However, rocker usually refers to bottom rocker. •A well planned bottom rocker is fundamentally important to a surfboard’s overall design • More bottom rocker = more friction as a board moves through the water, which is better for controlling speed in bigger, better waves •••More rocker also allows a board to sit more naturally in curvy or hollow waves and have a tighter turning radius Less rocker creates less friction, allowing a board to plane across flatter wave faces with less effort Tail rocker is the curve at the back of the board, which contributes to the how your surfboard will turn 16 Image Credit: Chilli Surfboards Surfboard Rail Volume & Shape 17 Rail design influences the surfers ability to make turns, speed up, hold in steep waves or plane in slow, mushy waves. In simple terms, there are two basic rail types, hard and soft: • Harder rails are more precise but are less forgiving •Hard rails are commonly used in performance oriented boards, allowing these to penetrate the water more easily while allowing quicker turns ••The softer and rounder a rail, the more neutral and forgiving it will feel Soft rails are common on longboards and small wave boards. They decrease the likelihood of catching an edge or ‘bogging’ the rails 18 Surfboard Bottom Contours 19 What are surfboard bottom contours? Image Credit: JS Industries Surfboard bottom contours refer to the subtle and often intricate shape of the surfboard bottom. These contours affects how water is channeled along the length of the board, contributing to speed, stability and overall manoeuvrability. Starting from the basic bottom shapes – flat, channel, vee, and “concave – most surfboard designs How bottom contours work is perhaps the most complex and poorly understand aspect of surfboard design theory. will incorporate a combination to fine tune performance. 20

Surfboard Design Guide V1.7 KS

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