Thanks Joe.
Ready for winter?
Category Archives: board porn
hulls
hulls
I’ve been on a quest for the perfect hull for San Diego for several years. As a result I’ve reached some conclusions about various combinations of belly and concaves. Now I know a lot of people are going to holler about real hulls having no concave. Maybe they’re right and once you start putting concaves in it’s no longer a hull. I happen to call my variant the “hillbilly hull”. Under that general designation I have shaped a variety of planshapes and bottoms. Always staring with a nice roll in the nose. Malibu style dictates a somewhat flattish middle and tail and results in a very fun hull that you can read all about on Greg Liddle’s websight.
Now it gets interesting. When I’ve introduced a bit of concave to double concave towards the back, I’ve noticed more accelleration off the bottom and while kind of pumping down the line (not thruster style wiggling but more like weighting and unweighting a transition while pool skating). The more extreme the concaves the more bonzerish squirt there is. The boards still turn and drive from your front foot but are capable of surfing off the tail as well.
Now when the concave is started further forward again, you start losing the front foot driven goodness that is the hallmark of a good hull. You can still move forward and pump down the line but real cutbacks need a tail weighted bias. The plus side is a fast, glidey board that’s more in tune with the San Diego spots I frequent (Tourmaline, Cliffs, Pipes).
I used to call these boards little eggs, fried eggs, or little fried eggs depending on the combination of belly and concaves and I may go back to doing so. I have one of each and love them all equally depending on the day. If you spot me in the lot at Swami’s or Tourmaline, holler at me and you are welcome to test drive anything I have in the van.
Peace
7’3″ hillbilly hull
Part displacement hull, part bonzer. It’s a hull that works in San Diego. Surf it from a forward stance for that full rail hull sensation or step back and surf from the tail. Your choice. Available now.
Awesome show!
The show awesome. Although nobody sold a lot of stuff, everybody was stoked on the amazing collection of ridiculous boards. Got some interest ( and orders) from Japan and delivered the nicest old school pig I’ve ever done.
Demo, Demo, Demo!
Come on down to Del Mar, 15th st. the first morning of the show and demo some of my boards, along with a bunch of others, at the TransWorld SURF Sacred Craft Magical Morning Board Demo.
New stash on the way
Well these babies are now in the capable hands of the craftsmen at Channin, up on the hill in Encinitas. On the list are a 9’11” Pig made from a 1954 Velzy/Jacobs template, generously provided by “the genius”, a 9’1″ EDB for a friend in San Francisco, a 7’3 1/2″ hull, a 6’8″ arc tail downrailer, and a 7’7″ Cali fun gun for the same client who ordered the pig. there will be a variety of bells and whistles including but not limited to resin tints, resin panels and comp bands, wooden fins by Willy/Bahne and more. They will all be on view at this years Sacred Craft show, Oct. 10th and 11th.
Hope to see you there.
wave wagon
Spotted at Tourmaline
My beloved 7’11”
I shaped this board in ’04 along with a batch of three others. The color struck me so I kept it for myself (product developement and all). It soon became a favorite. I surfed the largest waves of my life on it. The most fun, however, were the days at Tourmaline when it was about waist high, and I’d sit with IRS Dave and Larry and pick off waves that most people thought you needed a long board for. So glidey. I caught SanO this past June and the day was just about perfect. Overhead on the outside with a nice south push at low tide. Sittin’ with a bunch of guys bitchin’ about there ten footers not being long enough. I had a great time on my 7’11”. It ain’t the size of your stick, it’s the amount of trim you get with it. Get it?
the “thumb”
Having been a student of board design for a while now, I am pretty stoked that a lot of barriers are coming down. With Joe Bauguess’ mini Simmons boards and Tom and Joe Wegener’s alaias etc. breaking down all pre-conceived notions of what makes a board work, it seems a door has been opened that hopefully will never be closed again.
I first saw one of Joe Bauguess’ mini Simmons at the 2007 Sacred Craft Show at the Swift Movement booth. I had to ask the guy there if it actually worked. Of course I had heard of Bob Simmons and his text book on naval architecture by Lindsay Lord. I was intrigued to say the least. As the next sacred craft show approached I decided to give the concept a try.
This is a Lidsay Lord planing hull and this concept was the basis for Bob Simmons’ keel fin designs. It’s no stretch to see the similarities. I also honed in on a photo of a Bob Simmons twin that looks like it was taken at Windansea. The belly is there, as is the deep single concave through the tail, and the keels of course. The concept of displacing water and then redirecting it back under the board into the concave and sweeping it back through the keels for control was a little hard to wrap my brain around at first, but now seems perfectly natural. This is a really organic shape.
My desire was to do a board along these lines without really being a replica. I took an old egg template and chopped it to 6’7″ because it just looked right. The wide point moved back to form nice hips and the tail ended up just over 16″ wide. I really loved the flow of the belly-single concave bottom plan and felt pinched soft rails would be comfortable. This is the result.
I absolutely love this board and everyone who tries it seems to have a good time almost immeditely. I showed a smaller one at the 2008 Sacred Craft Show and who showed up but Joe Bauguess. I had heard from an aquaintence that he was a bit upset with people stealing his new idea. When he introduced himself I said “Oh shit! Are you here to beat me up?” He was actually quite pleasant and we discussed the design for a while. He even was kind enough to stop down that evening to Surfindian in PB where I was having a show with Sam Cody (my boards, his art).
Joe is a master craftsman and a real gentleman.
I have since made several of what I call the HPH aka”the thumb”, named after Bob Simmons’ insistence that his boards were “hydrodynamic planing hulls” and my friends’ endearing nickname. I have a feeling that these boards will start showing up everywhere soon. A lot of people are doing versions and it’s a testament to the fundamental design that they work so well.They are just so fun that everyone will want one in their quiver. And we should thank Joe Bauguess and RK for the inspiration.
cali fun gun
A very fun winter board I made several years ago and had as a personal board for a long time. I let Jacek talk me out of it in a moment of weakness and have missed it ever since. Of course being the true friend that he is, he still lets me borrow it occasionally.
mast surfboards 