Dennis' new board

It's 5' 10 1/2" LOA, 25" wide and 3/4" thick. It is a twin with 2.5 surfdog fins. Basic material is pressure treated 3/4 CDX. The inspiration was from Ed Sullivan's "skim this".

We'll report back on the ride tomorrow.

Cool can't wait to hear more

The shape is quite unique. When James and I built his halfpipe this was a section of the plywood that was left over. Dennis and Bunny stopped by yesterday and commented that he wanted a 5'10" skimmer Viola, 15 minutes later we had the fins attached and just to make it safer I threw a hot coat on both sides. Like Dennis said, we need to make sure the bottom running surface is smooth

Oddly enough I had stored the scrap in such a way that it has some nose rocker and a bit of concave.

We'll take a run in your honor Ed.

I know you're all anxiously awaiting the review

First, PROOF that we rode it. This first picture a lovely little bit of white trash surfstyle board building right here:

It was Dennis' idea, so he got the honor of first ride. As Dennis was saying that's some sheet

James stylin' backside. C'mon admit it you want to ride the ply too!

Not to be left out, they call me master of the plywood.

Wrapping up with Dennis backside.

It was certainly fun, but I think we also comfirmed a few thinks. First is that the thickness of the board doesn't really affect whether the "board" is ridable. For a long period of time folks talked of bounacy as a factor and I can assure you this puppy had none. Surface area, I think we all agreed was the key. This board was amazingly fast, down-the-line, I believe principally because it is HUGE - 5'10" + and 25" wide.

Rail-to-rail responsiveness was sheer TORTURE. A true log, in every sense.

The thickness issue is interesting. Jerry Price of Shred Stixx observed it about a year or so ago and was telling me that after looking at the skimboarders he was rethinking the necessary thickness on a surfboard. I'd like to try one that was just thick enough to route the fin boxes in and see how that rode.

Oh and one more thing. I have a SWEET radical prototype board available for sale.

I’ve seen pictures of blanks and homemade boards that Jeff has posted online. Dennis’ Plywood Flyer is no doubt a step back from the foam core boards that you’ve made, yet you’ve made some discoveries and looks like you’ve had fun too.

A project like this is an opportunity to try things that are different or that may have been previously dismissed. Doing something vastly different bring an opportunity for innovation and a change, it provides a chance to rethink why thing are they way they are and may provide a glimpse of what might be.

Very cool, thanks for sharing!

Quickest board from design to production ever. A great riding experience if there ever was one. I think wew could cut off at least 6" before next ride.

I always carry some tools on board my boat. I've never considered carrying a saw to make adjustments on my riding gear

Maybe a plane to adjust the rails?

You know in reflecting back - as a master woodworker Ed, you know the medium offers great flexibility. If a person wanted to test outline shapes you could create five or six boards in a few hours. With the first board make the wide point one foot back from the nose and the shift this wide point one foot back (or whatever increment) closer to the tail with each iteration.

Another item you could easily test is fin placement. Shifting the fins from the tail FORWARD - say at 1 inch increments. Also, shifting the toe-in, perhaps in 1/8 inch increments. All it requires is a drill and a sticker to cover any holes, or a dab of bondo if you want a more permanent fix.

Not that anyone would stay with the plywood flyer, but for rapid testing of specific design elements, I don't think you can beat it.

Ed S, thanks for conjuring the initial Surf This and Skim That ideas. It was great fun and I think helped me understand substantially more about the hydrodynamics of a board behind the boat.