the final weight

I cut all the internal ply from the ribs and the stringer and the total combined weight of the wood is.........251grams...thats a quarter of a kilo!...i think its worth the effort

To cut or not to cut?..that is the question

So i cut the majority of the internal timber from the stringer as most wooden board shapers tend to do to help reduce the weight, but after looking at the total amount of weight removed (72grams!!) i wondered if i needed to.... i still got the internal part of the ribs to cut out as well, so i thought i might as well weigh the whole lot once i'm done for future project knowledge...stay tuned for total weight

the rib bone connected to the spine bone...

The stringer has been cut and i attached the ribs loosely just so i could try and see the outline of the board. If you squint you can make out the shape of the fish!. Thats what i keep telling myself anyway.

The dimensions

Well i've joined in on this journey and and hopefully get to the destination as planned. The deadline is set for the wooden surfboard day in August 2010...so heres hoping. The ribs are cut and theres plenty of sanding to be done still on those...next comes the rails and the stringer...

Shaping Table - Prototype 1

Just finished off the shaping table today. Rough, knock up job, but should do the trick I think... The hardest bit was getting the prongs at the top to be strong enough. I just pretty much used my eye to work out heights etc.. Time will tell if it is a good design. The dog seems to like it though...

Fish ribs

Well it has begun, I've made the first cuts. The plan is to create a board from plywood. Grant Newby tells us it can be done and has been very generous with his tips and pointers to get started. Now that I have jigsawed out each rib I will now sand them back to be the perfect size. Because Scotty and I will be building from the inside out, the skeleton has to be precise if the final outcome is to be any good. Stay tuned...