unRIDDLING GEEnius - Part II

After hand-measuring the original Gee Rainbow 9'2 x 22 x 2.75 from every angle and every curve, I was able to map out a Shape3D file for this HPLB with the help of a prominent local shaper and board manufacturer. He came highly recommended by friends, and it turns out he and I are from the same area in South Florida... with a ton of mutual friends. It was actually a no-brainer because of his savvy and expertise using a board cutting machine, and because his clients included some of the most respected surfboard makers on the planet. His Central Florida factory is full-service for shaping, glassing, and finishing surfboards, plus a state-of-the-art cutting machine. After he finished smoothing out some curves and perfecting the Shape3D file, it was time to purchase a PU longboard blank from US Blanks and do some cutting!

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Part 2 - The Build

I went with the 9'4 B blank, which was going to be a tight fit for the shape, but totally within the measurements if there was no mess-ups during the cutting. But my guy was a pro, and I never worried for a second. I also went with a slightly heavier "green" blank, described as a "cruiser" weight as opposed to standard "Blue" blanks, or even classic heavy longboard "Brown' blanks. The important part of the process here is making sure the blank is mounted and centered correctly, otherwise the cut is going to be uneven. And again, we had no margin for error, there was only going to be an inch, if that, to spare in some parts of the blank.

Gee's original shape was hand-carved from a Clark Foam blank back in 2002 with a double wide balsa stringer. The center rocker was pretty mellow with a large flat area making up most of the bottom. The rail rocker in the back 3rd of the board, the over-pronounced vee, and the razor thin precision put into the pin tail was going to be difficult to replicate. But i was going to be happy with anything that "felt close" to Gee's board. Gee was part of the process giving me insight into what he was thinking when he made that board. He even found me another longboard he made around the same time so I could compare it. His direct quote was "I didn't put too much thought into the outline, it was all about the tail". And when I pressed him more he basically explained that his concentration was to control the big board that would be going really fast, and make it "turn like a shortboard". It was more than 20 years ago. But Gee didn't make a ton of longboards back in the day, so he remembers more details than I thought he would.

A couple passes of the cutter as it carved out the outline and rocker in my board... rad technology

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After the Cut

Once the foam blank had been cut by the machine, it was time for finishing. This included sanding and fine tuning the rails and tail, adding a single fin block, several coats of glassing, and final sanding. This process went quick and from the time the board was cut to having it ready to ride was only a couple of days. With advanced notice and a proper order, I could easily manufacture this high performance longboard shape in bulk using this factory.

I think the price point falls around $1200 retail if I make them one at a time, but definitely cheaper if I did a bulk order. I now know the building process is doable, and not terribly difficult for the region I live. And I've gone through it once, so it's really up to me if I want to make a bunch of these longboards or not.

So it's time to do some testing, and with plenty of small and rideable days of trade swell lapping on our beaches, there should be plenty of opportunities for testing and trying out different fins. Yewww! Check back for the next installment in the series. Hope you're surfing where you are!

FLASHBACK BOARD BUILD: Going back to early 00's when Gee made me a custom fish...