Midweek in the Workshop

Day three of the workshop with Darren... The aim was to prep the inside of the board and put an edge on the rails to make sure we could get the deck glued down by the end of the day. This would give the glue time to cure properly overnight and give us two days to shape the board. You can just about shape a board in a day, but it's a bit of a push and I always find that having a break and looking on it with fresh eyes on the second day you can spot things that you didnt notice the day before.

So we were pretty hectic today, with putting nose and tail blocks in place, making sure the vent block was in place and the foam blocks ready to accept the fin box too! Then Darren had to learn what is was like to use the surform to create a smooth edge on the top of the rails to give us a good glue join. We managed to get it all done in the day though....and to my surprise, we were finished by half 5, perfect, time for a surf?

Darren cutting the rail strips in preparation for the nose blocks.

Getting to grips with using the surform on the cedar...a good amount of concentration on his face.

With the nose and tail blocks in you really start to get a sense of the boards outline.

It's always nice to watch people using their hands to 'see' what is happening with the timber, it still surprises me, how much more you can find out with your hands. The rail edge taking shape!

Darren popping the last couple of clamps on after the frantic glue and deck layup frenzy, again utilising all the clamps available in the workshop!