EPS or ultra light longboard

[pridmore]

I am shaping a progressive longboard soon and am considering doing it in EPS, and am interested to hear peoples experiences ( preferably mal riders ) with lightweight longboards....it'll be mostly for tiny soft point waves but to be ridden about 75% modern performance type surfing , not normal by any means...keen to hear thoughts...ps- this is the anti-log...

[pridmore]

quite a contradiction with small point waves and perf surfing I know...but I mean it wont be standing on the nose much, mostly floaters, cutbacks, reos etc, with occasional more aggressive turns when waves or conditions allow it...but generally it'll be on small point waves, lookin to liven the thing up as much as possible with design and weight/materials etc......

[Beerfan]

Ok, before you freak out, my mate has a surf tech 8'6". Unlike most of them, it is 2 1/2" thick, and the rails are quite thin. This makes it a very good board, and it turns quite well. I reckon with eps even 6x64 would be super light weight and strong enough, and it would have some very good points surfing wise. Glide would probably suffer, but a hi per longboard doesn't need glide hey?!. Absolutely worth a try. I hate to say it but If my mate was to sell his, I'd grab it. Must be 8 years since he's had it, and even after snapping it ( we were young and thought we could charge. Turns out we can't ! ), it still in great shape.

I'm sure in the us where eps is a bit more accessible, some people shape eps epoxy longboards with good results. I'm sure I've seen a couple on sways.

Any kind of wind though, and it blows. Away. Literally hahaha.

[pridmore]

cool, I know they are donw but no first hand experience myself...when I say light, I prob mean lighter than a standard PU-Poly but not super dooper light coz I do want some momentum and some strength in it, so would wrap with sufficient cloth...but the float of eps means I can go thinner, ( or not and have extra floatation ) andn have more response....anyway, lots to consider and thats just the materials...haha...thanx BF

[otway1949]

I know you haven't gone away but nice to see you on and about.

the main issue as I see it would be strength, i snapped a super light in less than 3 ft surf just rolling under a wave.
I love the back foot on the tail shortboardish way of surfing a longboard , something about the arc of the length in an off the top turn of a reentry really seems something. Wanna see what you are gonna come up with.
BTW floaters are the killers for ultralight longboards they tend to snap just under your foot placement, reentries are mostly OK because the force is following the board shape .
bring it on Mark

[pridmore]

cheers Otts
if I run with EPS, than carbon will be involved too....its been somethin I have had in my mind for years, but now have a team surfer in the Aussie titles, he has mentioned a few things, plus I got plenty of ideas, so might be a time to bring it to life...He surfs well on a fairly standard board of mine, but I want to take things further, alot further....

[damo666]

Is it worth mentioning that the current longboard world champ uses an eps/composite board? (dare I mention the brand he rides...)
Certianly looks the go for 'high performance' longboarding.

[pridmore]

yep, he does too....mine would be shaped foam and laminated in the traditional way, no vacuum baggin or parabolic rails or anything too flashy...cleaver use of carbon to gain strength but keep some flex would be likely...
Probabaly an evolution of the Swinger in shape too....

[Beerfan]

I find it odd more shapers don't do hand lammed eps boards. Can go up a glass schedule, so stronger but still light n lively. No extra skills or tools or time either. How are you going with your eps epoxies mark????

[Beanpole]

The great advantage of heavy glassed longboards is momentum when you are walking the board, trimming, etc.
I've had both and am considering getting another tuflite to encourage me to carry it down to the beach Also thinking about when I'm really old and needing something light. Basically too lazy to be bothered lugging a big old heavy mal out, sticking it on the roof, getting it out of the bag......I'm feeling tired just saying it.

My current mal is about eight years old and great but I don't take it out much. Its a big heavy glassed number. I've had two tuflite boards and they've been great as well. I think half the anti raves are because they last too long so the surf shops don't make as much money.

[grimshine]

The great advantage of heavy glassed longboards is momentum when you are walking the board, trimming, etc.
I've had both and am considering getting another tuflite to encourage me to carry it down to the beach Also thinking about when I'm really old and needing something light. Basically too lazy to be bothered lugging a big old heavy mal out, sticking it on the roof, getting it out of the bag......I'm feeling tired just saying it.

My current mal is about eight years old and great but I don't take it out much. Its a big heavy glassed number. I've had two tuflite boards and they've been great as well. I think half the anti raves are because they last too long so the surf shops don't make as much money.

Know the feeling mate, but tuflite, really. Don't do it, get one from an Aussie shaper..

[pridmore]

good info boys ...good to reconfirm stuff fresh from the horses mouths....
been doing a fair few shortis in EPS with great feedback and results, got a very specific glassing lay-up I do on my stringerless ones...but also doing some fairly standard lay-ups one stringered eps and also really enjoying pu blanks wrapped in epoxy, so got the different combos sussed...be different things to consider with a longboard obviously.....
I am happy to sacrifice a little momentum to gain performance ( manouverability ) I guess, but still need to get the mix right....
done a few longboards with epoxy and carbon but no EPS as yet in a lboard.....

[Trev]

I do have a preference for heavier in my longboards.

But the swinger is great fun Mark and really suits small, fast beachies. It's about as light as I reckon I would want, though.

[Cuttlefish]

Uh If you want to have a go on my dvs full carbon 9'er which is super light give me a bell. Could help with the idea.

[Beanpole]

I always find it funny when people draw the distinction between a tuflite by an aussie shaper and a "local" board. Obviously the shaper thinks its okay or they wouldn't do it.

[grimshine]

The distinction is that a tuflite is made overseas regardless of the shapers nationality.

Buy a board from an Aussie shaper that hasn't sold out. There's a lot of good ones around.

[Beanpole]

Yeah well I've got two tuflites, one firewire and about four fibreglass boards that I ride. Three tuflites and eight fibreglass boards at our place in total. Should get rid of a few really. The thing with the tuflites is unless you snap one they still retain their appearance.
I've had so many boards and quality is extremely variable. I think surfboards are cheap really from one angle but if they collapse after a few months use they are a rip off. I'm too old to not buy boards from shapers who are at the top of their game.

Would probably get an epoxy shaped board in preference to fiberglass these days.
So I guess I shouldn't buy boards made by Bob McTavish, Billy Tolhurst, Simon Anderson, Bear, Wayne Lynch, Geoff McCoy, Byrne, Wayne Deane or Mark Richards?

[Cuttlefish]

The distinction is that a tuflite is made overseas regardless of the shapers nationality.

Buy a board from an Aussie shaper that hasn't sold out. There's a lot of good ones around.

Easy to be pious when you're not the one that has handshaped many, many thousands of boards as all the shapers who have Surftech models has done.
I don't blame them for a moment if they have signature models that they can sell worldwide (not just Australia) that don't have to shape over and over again,
It also frees up their time to hand shape customs for those who want them made locally.
They get bugger all from board sales so why begrudge them extra income from boards sold globally?
Surfers are cheap and it's surfers who have kept the prices down.
Shapers must be over-joyed with every Tom, Dick and Harry trying to wangle a "Bro" deal out of them when they order a custom.
Now with the proliferation of shaping machines and boards on file we are seeing Aussie boards being machine shaped all over the world under licencse.
If you argue that they are ok as they use surfer labour I have to say personally I couldn't give a rats arse if surfers overseas are getting work through an Aussie shaper as opposed to an Asian probably working harder to make ends meet in a society challenged by Westernisation.
Lets face it Asians make most of what we use nowadays already so figuring that's all ok except for surfboards smacks of hypocrisy.
For the record I've got one Surftech (Takayama scorpion) and 2 Completely hand shaped McCoy and DVS and four more that are machine/hand shaped in Qld.
The scorpion is available as a machine shape from Byron but only in resin tint, full gloss and polish at $1495.
I wanted a lighter weight one for lots of paddling in crowded point break conditions and so no option from the Byron factory for anything less than all the bells and whistles.
Donald's passed on and so no option for a handshape from him.
Though plenty of people who bought his boards before he died were buying the machine shaped ones thinking it was hand shaped by Donald because it had the sinature in pencil on their board.
Rode my gst More today and yesterday btw.
God I love that little zinger.