Experimental Surfcraft

Overview

This board started as an exploration into hollow wooden surfboard construction — building a rigid, lightweight internal frame out of laser-cut cedar wood ribs and a steam-bent solid cedar rail, then skinning it with a fiberglass shell rather than shaping it from a solid foam blank the way most boards are made.The idea was to come up with a construction technique and materials that would mitigate the amount of petroleum products used while maintaining performance in the water.

The build was presented to a design review panel, including a full engineering analysis validating the frame against real surf loading conditions — a standing surfer, wave impact, nose-riding, and torsional flex — before the board was ever paddled out.

Process

Each rib was laser-cut with an internal truss pattern to shed weight without sacrificing stiffness, then laid out and test-fit before assembly. The full rib set was glued up on a strongback jig, and a steam-bent solid wood rail was clamped, glued, and shaped around the outline to tie the whole frame together.

Once the frame was faired, it was skinned with tissue paper and a fiberglass layer, then sanded and finished to a smooth, translucent shell that shows the internal structure through the skin.

Engineering Analysis

Before committing to a full build, the frame was validated against four load cases: a 180 lb surfer standing at center, a simulated wave-impact pressure load, a nose-riding load at the front of the board, and an equivalent torsional load to check flex patterns.

The resulting deformation and stress results across all four cases stayed well within safe margins, giving confidence in the frame design before any wood was cut — then a physical load test with weight plates and a rigged sawhorse jig confirmed the analysis against the real thing.

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