PU boards have been around since 1957, when a resin salesman walked into the surf shop owned by Hobie Alter and handed him a chunk of polyurethane foam for the first time. Before that, cutting-edge surfboards were made out of balsa wood, with a hard, plastic shell made of fiberglass and polyester resin. Balsa had a number of advantages, not the least of which was how light and buoyant it was. It had been adopted from airplane wing technology and adapted to the ocean, and for most of the 1950s was the universally accepted standard for surfboards. But when Hobie first held that chunk of polyurethane foam, he knew he had something revolutionary in his hand. Polyurethane had been popularized during World War II, and became commercial to the public in 1952, and polyurethane foam in particular began to be produced in 1954. The foam had a number of advantages over balsa when it came to surfboards, including being even lighter, easier to shape, and maintaining better flex memory and buoyancy ratios, which provided an all-around better ride. By the early 1960s, PU boards (which technically refer to boards that use a polyurethane blank and a polyester resin, along with fiberglass)...

DoubleDart Surfboard Construction from …Lost Carbon fiber surfboards are all the rage, but that wasn’t always the case. In fact, a short 10 years ago, there were hardly any carbon boards available. …Lost was one of the first surfboard companies to offer a full-deck carbon fiber construction offer with it’s BlackDart construction, and in many ways helped to usher in the current era of hyper-futuristic board construction. And now that the rest of the world has caught up and there are dozens of carbon fiber boards available from various brands, …Lost has upped their game once again with a refined process called the DoubleDart.   Using the same carbon/S-glass hybrid as the BlackDart, DoubleDart boards offer carbon on both sides of the board—the deck and the bottom—for added strength, durability, and memory. Because carbon is stronger than fiberglass, this runs the risk of creating a board that is too rigid and doesn’t flex well, but to overcome that challenge   …Lost uses shorter cut laps and a 4-oz fiberglass wrap on the rails rather than extending the carbon all the way around. This provides torsional twist that replicates the feel of a traditional poly board, but with all of the...

Helium Technology Surfboards A look inside: The Seaside built in Helium Tech – an ultralight EPS foam core with flex controlled in the rail from nose to tail; a blend of paulownia and balsa wood. Aerospace composite deckskins make you feel like you’re creating footwells in the deck, but it often looks new even after a month of surfing. Ridden by everyone from Kellly Slater and Stuey Kennedy and Pacha Light. It’s our lightest surfboard ever, shaped from a 0.8 pound EPS faom blank with flex controlled at the rails similar to Timbertek.  When describing Helium compared to LFT in his Gamma shape, Kelly Slater says “On a typical day to day, especially in beach breaks, I would be on this.“ Kelly Slater waxes his Helium Gamma. He prefers it in beach breaks more than the LFT Gamma to the right that he likes in point breaks. When we released Helium for the first time in 2017 we were most excited by its weight and flex characteristics. But since then surfers everywhere have come to love Helium for reasons different than what we expected, most notably its durability.  #RippersWithoutStickers love Helium for it’s weight, flex and durability. Ryan Clancey at Trestles. We’ve heard many surfers remark that...

Black Sheep Built Matt Biolos on Black Sheep Built Surfboards   …Lost has always been the black sheep of the surfboard industry, intentionally going against the grain to create boards that are fun and functional, rather than trendy. Ironically, that “no cares given” approach and commitment to boards that ride as well as they look has led to …Lost being one of the trendiest and most popular board brands on the market. But Matt Biolos’ committed following of world-class team riders and loyal customers hasn’t made him any less of a black sheep, which is why …Lost’s latest board construction process is called exactly that: Black Sheep. Boards build with the Black Sheep process start with a 1.5-pound virgin EPS blank, which is topped with a layer of Triax-NFC (no crimp fiber), which is a high quality, multi-directional carbon fiber. The carbon fiber is layered only on the deck, and then sandwiched between four-oz D fiberglass on both the deck and bottom. The unwoven, non-crimping fibers of the carbon fiber provide a more natural flex serve as a lively “stringer” that gives the board flex memory and a lot of snap through turns. The lack of woven fibers also eliminates 90-degree,...

…Lost’s LightSpeed       Light Speed is …Lost’s proprietary construction process for building the world’s most advanced surfboards. Combining lightweight EPS foam, high-strength epoxy resin, Rapid-Reflex carbon fiber and Innegra fibers that help dampen vibrations, Light Speed boards are extremely lightweight, fast down the line, and proven through thousands of hours of R&D by the world’s best shapers and surfers. The proprietary fiberglass blend and woven carbon fiber adds strength and pop, loading up under the feet and providing a lively feel through turns, while the two aligned center exo-stringers on both the deck and bottom of the board provide torsional twist for a more sensitive and responsive board. Meanwhile, the fused carbon fiber tail patch increases strength and transfers more input into the rails. When all of these elements are combined, the result is a fast, responsive, lightweight board that doesn’t sacrifice strength or durability.  Lost Boards in LightSpeed Construction: Driver 2.0, California Twin, Rad Ripper, RNF '96, Sub-Driver 2.0 SHOP NOW

Surfboard Construction Guide I get the same question every day, “What is the difference between and epoxy board and a fiberglass board?”  First of all, all surfboards have fiberglass. Epoxy is just different type of resin. It is questions like this that made me realize the consumer really has no idea what they are buying.  I made up this list of types of surfboard construction to help customers understand the different types of construction.   PU or polyurethane production is traditional surfboard construction. This was started in the early 60s and to this day is an industry standard.  It’s just one of those rare times where we got it right the first time.  Polyurethane blank can have a density as low as 2 lbs which is Ultra Light Foam or as high as 12 lbs which is Tow Foam.  There are several densities between these but you have to figure out what is the best strength to weight ratio for you.  Obviously, a light surfboard is going to feel the best but it will get destroyed much faster.  Can you afford to buy a new short board every two months?  A heavy board might last you five to ten years but...

Firewire Taps into Primal Energy with Its New Volcanic Tech   Firewire has been at the forefront of surfboard construction essentially since the company started, leading the race to use the strongest, lightest, most durable and ecofriendly materials in surfboard design. Now the company has taken things to the next level, moving beyond carbon fiber to something called basalt fiber. Basalt fibers are extruded from volcanic rock at extremely high temperatures and woven into a cloth, similar to fiberglass and carbon fiber. The difference is that basalt fiber is superior to fiberglass in terms of strength and weight (similar to carbon fiber), and it is superior to carbon fiber in terms of flex memory, temperature tolerance, and eco footprint. Basalt fiber has been used extensively in the aerospace industry due to the fact that its heat tolerance makes it a good option for rocket and jet engines. It hasn’t been used much in the surf industry, but Firewire aims to change that and is currently releasing two boards in its Volcanic Tech, which is the company’s name for its basalt fiber-based board construction. The El Tomo (from Daniel Thomson) and the Seaside (from Rob Machado) are both being built with...

Firewire’s I-bolic Construction   Firewire has spent the past year innovating newer, better construction processes for its wide range of boards—which is pretty impressive, since it already led the industry in futuristic tech. The latest option is the Ibolic Construction, which replaces the LFT construction. Ibolic was designed around the fact that many of Firewire’s more futuristic shapes had pretty complex bottom contours, particularly the vee quad concave bottom used on many of Tomo’s boards. This “performance hull” contour is quite involved and is difficult to glass with a bottom skin, which was the typical process used for the LFT boards. To address this, Firewire developed the Ibolic construction, which features parabolic high-density foam rails and a foam I-beam down the middle to create the central spine that provides the foundation for a pronounced vee. This results in a build that is 35 percent stronger than LFT and more strength in the rails (which results in a lively flex, similar to the Helium build), but without sacrificing the LFT’s feel and performance that so many surfers have come to love. The Ibolic still uses a single skin on the deck, providing a strong, durable platform from which to do your...

Surfboard Construction Guide: What is the difference between an epoxy board and a fiberglass board? I get the same question every day, “What is the difference between and epoxy board and a fiberglass board?”  First of all, all surf boards have fiberglass.  Epoxy is just different type of resin.  It is questions like this that made me realize the consumer really has no idea what they are buying.  I made up this list of types of surfboard construction to help customers understand the different types of construction. (1) PU or polyurethane production is traditional surfboard construction.   This was started in the early 60s and to this day is an industry standard.  It’s just one of those rare times where we got it right the first time.  Polyurethane blank can have a density as low as 2 lbs which is Ultra Light Foam or as high as 12 lbs which is Tow Foam.  There are several densities between these but you have to figure out what is the best strength to weight ratio for you.  Obviously, a light board is going to feel the best but it will get destroyed much faster.  Can you afford to buy a new short board every two...

WHAT IS HYFI 2.0? Our unparalleled epoxy technology, HYFI, is a unique multi-layer construction that feels like nothing else out there. Think of it as a futuristic exoskeleton for a surfboard that allows it to be lighter and stronger than ever before, while still maintaining the ideal spring-loaded flex for maximum performance. Now, in the last 5 years since it was first released, we’ve taken everything learned to improve each aspect – the performance, flex, speed, materials used and manufacturing processes.   View this post on Instagram A post shared by Hawaiian South Shore Surf Shop (@hwnsouthshore)   SCALED ENGINEERING We found the next level of this technology by developing precision engineered stringers, or pins, which are scaled specifically for each board. The size of the pin changes depending on the dimensions of the HYFI, and therefore the weight of its intended rider. The shape of each board’s pin perfectly reflects our goal of making the stiffest part of the board at the centre, tapering out to each end. This results in an even better flex pattern that helps you load and explode into turns. We’ve also changed the balance of strength – whereas the top and bottom were the...

Cutting-Edge Combination of Nature and Technology When most people think of Firewire, they think of TIMBERTEK. These are the brown, wooden-decked surfboards that first put the company on the map. Combining lightweight EPS blanks with a laminated wooden skin and proprietary parabolic rails, these boards look good and perform great. They are strong, lightweight, and snappy, utilizing the strength of paulownia wood to supplement the strength and flex of the EPS foam and epoxy resin. Paulownia is a fast-growing tree that produces strong, light timber, perfect for use in surfboard construction. By utilizing this wood in their construction process, Firewire is able to minimize the amount of petro-chemical products that go into the boards. The boards are still not entirely sustainable, but they certainly use less petro-chemicals than many other boards. Plus, because they are so strong, they tend to last longer, which is better for the environment. The TIMBERTEK surfboards are just as impressive for their performance. The parabolic rail construction eliminates the need for a center stringer, and instead moves the boards’ flex and life to the rails, where more torque and movement occurs. The result is a hyper-sensitive and maneuverable board that is stronger while at the...

Tell Us About The Thunderbolt  Surfboards You’ve Ridden... Thunderbolt. Well Thunderbolt came into my life about five years ago when Mr. Sumitomo, Yu Sumitomo gave me a phone call that began my journey with the Thunderbolt team. A good friend of mine that I’ve surfed professional longboards with for years, Kapono Nahina, gave me the original call that told me I needed to try this construction. I went to Hawaiian South Shore and that’s when I started my relationship with Dave. His awesome staff down there set me up and I tried my first Thunderbolt Harley Ingleby HIHP model designed by Billy Tolhurst. It changed my life and opened my eyes to the details within board construction. That was a serious turning point that really got me back into surfing again. I was enjoying everything about it like when I was full throttle professionally. The support got me motivated again and back to feeling excited about doing things in the surf industry! So right now the models I ride, they’re all good haha I don’t know where do I start. I basically ride the Harley Ingleby series and it’s become my absolute favorite. Harley’s 9’1 HIHP model in full carbon is the one, that you know, really sparked my...