A couple of Mini-Widgets join the loaner pool...

I try to keep at least one sample of every shape I do in stock, as a loaner. I realize that people like to "try before they buy", and this is especially true with alternative shapes like my Mini-Widget. So, here's a couple of "demos" for you to try if you're looking for an alternative to your shortboard.

The tall one is 5-10 x 23"-x2-3/4" 40.5L and was built for the bigger surfer up to 190lbs. The shorter one is 5-6 x 22-3/8" x 2-3/8" 30.4L and would be a good fit for someone less than 170lbs. Both boards are FCS 5-fin set-ups, with quad fins. Both boards are PE/PU construction, with 4oz E-cloth on the bottom and one 4oz E-cloth + 7.5oz Volan deck patch. Weight with fins is 9lbs and 8lb4oz respectively. You're invited to check one out for a couple of days. Call or email me for more info on loaners.

Summer is just around the corner....

A quick check of the local surf conditions confirms that Winter is over and that it's time to break out the small-wave gear. Here's a few ideas for maximizing your fun quotient in small waves.


         


                48" T-Belly

5-4 Mini-Widget, 5-fin set-up

5-1 Mini-Widget, 5-fin set-up.

7-3 Widget 5-Fin Set-up

7-8 Kingfish with Gephart Marine-ply  Keel Fins




And, of course an irreplaceable 9-6 Single-fin Classic

Summer orders are starting to build, but current wait time is only 6-weeks. Wait a minute, in 6 weeks it will be mid-June!? Better hurry!

Mini-Widget for Dan....

This blue beauty is Dan's new 5-8 Mini-Widget five-fin. The MW is the ideal small-wave shortboard. At 33L, it has plenty of volume for even the smallest conditions. Dan asked for a little more flip in the nose than the standard MW, and why not? It is a custom shape.

The full outline and flat rocker of the MW get it up and planing quickly, while the bump-wing tail and tail-V allow short-radius turns. Unlike traditional mini-Simmons shapes, the Mini-Widget is designed for surfers who want more "performance" in their small-wave equipment. Not that the MW is limited to small waves. Customers have reported that this shape works well in shoulder-high to head-high waves as well.

Don't wait for summer to get your Mini-Widget, order one today!

Mini-Widget deja vu...

Customer Jordan liked the butterscotch 5-4 MW so much that he ordered one just like it...well, almost. He asked me to reduce the length to 5-2 and went with FCS Fusion boxes instead of Futures.
Here's the "pick-up day" photo

5-2 Mini-Widget gets glossy...

Like most exceptional surfboard sanders/polishers, James, at Lucke Glassing, likes to do his own gloss coats. Here he is applying a gloss coat to customer Jordan's 5-2 Mini-Widget

Nice and glossy...

Mini-Widget II for Gordon...

Here's Gordon wth his new 5-6 Mini-Widget II

The Mini-Widget II has all the Mini-Simmons characteristics of the original Mini-Widget, but has the nose pulled in making it a little more user-friendly in larger, steeper waves. 

Dimensions are 5-6, 17-1/2" x 22-3/8" x 18-3/8"  2-5/8" Deck has plenty of crown which keeps the rails standard shortboard thickness. Five FCS Fusion boxes give Gordon plenty of opportunities to experiment with fin configurations. 

The Mini-Widget II is an excellent choice for the better waves of winter, and gives the rider quite an edge in paddling power when competing for waves with weekend crowds. Give me a call and let's start talking about your new Mini-Widget. 

Mini-Widget II is born...

I think this shape provides an insight into the benefits of ordering a custom surfboard. Early this past Sept., new customer, Gordon B., saw the ad for my 5-4 Mini-Widget on Craigslist, and after a long discussion via emails, he arranged to take it for a couple of weeks as a demo. When he returned it, he reported really liking the shape’s performance in small, mushy surf, but wanted to make a couple of tweaks to the design. First, he wanted to add a couple of inches in length to gain a little more paddling power, and then he wanted to pull in the nose a bit so that it would be less likely to catch in the wave face on steep drops. The rocker was tweaked just slightly at both ends to accommodate the added length, but the belly-to-flat-to-concave bottom was left unchanged, as was the outline of the back-half of the board. This is what we came up with:
Dims: 5'6"  17-1/2" x 22-1/2" x 18-3/8"  2-5/8"

The end result I’m now calling the Mini-Widget II, and it’s aimed at those surfers who enjoy the fast planing, skatey feel of the mini-Simmons style grovel board, but want to surf more vertically, especially as wave conditions improve.  This board will be fitted with 5 FCS boxes to provide plenty of fin options.

Got a shape you want in mind? Send me a text, email, or give me a call and lets get started!

Mini-Widget rider review...

Here's Justin with his new 5-1 Mini-Widget

This is what he said after his first session a couple of weeks ago:

"I took the mini-widget out today at the point and had a blast!  The waves weren't great, but the mini-widget shined.  I got quite few set waves (waist - maybe chest high) and the thing flew like a bat out of hell.  The way you pulled in the tail with the wing is awesome.  I had another mini simmons with a much wider tail and found it difficult to get it to do quick directional changes.  No such issue with the mini widget.  Turns were effortless and smooth.

The board also performed really well on the smaller waves too (knee high or so).  I'm a goofy foot, and have always found surfing small rights on a short board to be a pain - I'd rather just trim on a longboard.  The mini-widget had all of the glide I like from a longboard in small waves but I could still do turns and get in a few little floaters."

If you love to ride a shortboard and don't want to ride a longboard on small days, you need a Mini-Widget. I have a 5-4x22-3/8"x2-3/8" MW available for you to demo. Just give me a call  805-856-8554

Mini-Widget for Justin...

Just finished a 5-1 Mini-Widget for Customer Justin. Justin noticed the 5-4 MW I have for sale and asked for one just a bit smaller.





Board will glassed with two layers of S-cloth on deck to help combat those dreaded heel-dents. Fin setup will be quad Futures with FCS plugs in center fin position. Justin will have multiple fin config options!

Mini-Widget for Joe...

In an earlier post, I documented the shaping of my mini-Simmons design, which I like to call the "Mini-Widget". After lamination and hotcoating, the Futures boxes were added ansd the leash cup, followed by more sanding and a lot of polishing...

And, here's the final result...

    The Mini-Widget is a great small-wave alternative to a longboard or a fish. They can be built with a variety of tails including wide arc-tail, straight, or a fish like notched-tail. Fins can be twin keels, or quad.
Contact me if you want to try a demo.

Let's make a Mini-Widget...

 Basic Shape:  The Mini-Widget is a variant of the “mini-Simmons” design, and is a shape that lies somewhere between my T-Belly, belly board and my Widget mid-size shape. The common ground here is maximum planing surface and volume in a very short length. Wide-tails are notoriously hard to turn, so I like to use single-or double-wings in the tail (depending on board length) to loosen things up a bit. The diamond-tail also helps here as well. The T-Belly and the Mini-Widget also share some Simmons-esque features, i.e. belly in front third, flat in middle and progressive tail-concave through the fin array. The T-Belly and the Mini-Widget also have a beveled rail that starts just in front of the fins and continues out the tail. The bevel increases the rail-rocker in the back third of the board (another turning-aide). See Widget   T-Belly

Getting started:  I design all new shapes using Aku shaping software, and the Mini-Widget was no exception. While I handshape probably 95% of my boards, using the software has three advantages: (1) I can place the profile of my new shape over the profile of the blank I intend to use to see if it fits or if I need to make adjustments to rocker when I order the blank, (2) the software will print out a full-size outline which I’ll use to produce the template for the board, and (3) the software has a feature that allows me to view the shape in 3-d from all angles.

rough-cut template

The Template:   I print out and trace the outline on a piece of Masonite. Since this is a “spin template”, about 2/3 of the outline curve is on one side (nose to just past middle) and 2/3 of the outline curve is on the other side (tail to just past middle).

I’ll be able to use this same template when shaping MWs a little longer or a little shorter. 

Finished  spin-template

Ordering the blank:  This shape calls for a very wide outline with a very low rocker curve. While a fish blank has the width, thickness and full nose I need, surprisingly it doesn’t have the low rocker numbers I’m looking for. While I could order a fish blank with less rocker, the amount of decrease in nose rocker I need is so high, that it would require extra stringer thickness to prevent the blank from “springing-back” to its original shape, adding weight to the finished shape. Instead I chose an 8-6EA, and after cutting off about 18” from each end, I had a rocker curve very close to what I needed, enough width to accommodate the full outline, and could stick with the light 3/16” bass stringer.

After trimming off both ends, and cutting blank to length

Finding the best location for outline on the 86EA. 

Outline cut

Shaping:The MW is a challenge to shape, with the multiple bottom-contours and the “spooned-out” nose on the deck. Main consideration is to try to take most of the excess foam off the bottom. Foam blanks become less dense (softer) as you plane away the excess foam. You want to leave the deck as dense as possible to alleviate excessive heel denting (“Blue” density foam was chosen for this reason as well). The shaper also has to keep in mind the desired thickness of the finish board (in this case 2-5/8”) and not exceed it.

Finished blank showing belly flat middle

Finished blank showing tail concave and rail bevel

Finished blank showing belly in nose

Finished Blank:  This blank will receive full resin-tint color, which means the blank itself had to be sanded with progressively finer grit until it had almost a polished look. After the blank is finished, I mark the fin placement and place it in the rack where it waits its turn. Attached to the blank is the production order which calls-out the glassing schedule, color, logo placement and fin-box type.

To be continued...