The worse thing about dinging your surfboard is the time it takes to get it repaired and back into the water. Often you are looking at a minimum of two weeks and that is when your surfboard shaper is not busy. Typically though you will damage your stick during an epic swell along with a hundred other surfers, so your shaper gets busy and then you really have to wait. Sometimes I have had to wait for over a month to get my surfboard fixed

The real problem with this is the time out of the water. If you have to wait two weeks to get your surfboard back, that could be 2 or even 3 swells you miss. You will be sitting on the beach while all your mates are out catching one epic wave after another.

Thats why I was so happy I found the

Gold Coast Surfboard Shapers ding repair service

. They have a priority service which will get your surfboard fixed withing 48 hours. You need to pay a little bit more to gt priority, but personally, I am happy to pay this to get back in the water before the next swell. You can check out the service at the

www.goldcoastsurfboardshapers.com.au

website.

The Perfect Finish

You can basically repair any damage to a surfboard. This includes ripped out fins, folds and buckles, fin cuts and even full snaps. In fact, if you board is completely snapped in half, getting it repaired will make the repaired area, the strongest part of the surfboard. So no matter what damage you do, do not throw out the baby with the bath water, a professional ding repairer can probably fix it for less money than a new surfboard will cost you.

If you damage your surfboard, either in the surf or through  negligence, contact a ding repairer. Not all ding repairers are the same though, so if you are a keen and regular surfer, it is a good idea to develop a relationship with someone you know does a good job. I have had some repairs come back only to fall out after a handfull of surfs. I have had other repairs come back without a smooth finish. Some seem to have been spray painted… goodness know what they were hiding. But when a repairer does a really good job, the finish will be so smooth you can hardly can tell there was damage there to begin with.

Glassing

One of the things that I have found on the Gold Coast is most of the surf shops here “fix dings”. This is one of the unfortunate results of Ding Repairers not sorting out their marketing and websites. You see, as ding repairers never have good websites, we cannot find them when we need them. This means we have to go to the shops. The shops know who the ding repairers are though, they need them to fix damage to their rental boards. So they will send your surfboard to their repairer and pay the repairer the fee. Then they will add their cut onto the fee and charge you a higher amount. Do you see what this means? To you, it means you pay more for the same job. That is why we set up this website – so you can find a ding repairer quickly and easily

Perfecting Your Tail

If you are a dead keen surfer, at some stage your ability will improve to the level where you can tell how a surfboard is performing and therefore, want one designed so that matches all your performance preferences. It can be difficult to get this specific with a surfboard shape you find at a shop and purchase off the shelf, as often even the best you find will have some design element that is not to your liking.

This is when a surfboard shaper comes in handy. A surfboard shaper will work almost like a consultant to you. You will go and see him, discuss the level your surfing is at, where you want to take it, what you think of your current surfboard and what you’d like to see in your next one. A good shaper will then take all this information, ply his art and put it all in your surfboard. Then for the next 12 – 18 months, you get to ride a surfboard that has been designed specifically for you. There will be no room for excuses about your board anymore ha ha, its just you, your skill, your courage and the ocean.

If your shaper did a good job on your first custom designed surfboard, then it is a really good idea to develop a long term relationship with him. He will then track your progress over the years and when it comes time for your next stick, he will design one that suits you at that stage in your life.

I am not sure if you have noticed, but professional surfers always have had the same shaper with them for years. It is such an intimate relationship between a surfer, his shaper and the surfboard. When all three parties come together in harmony, you end up with a performance that is nothing short of spectacular.

On Australia’s Gold Coast, there are many, many shapers, all plying their art in a very tough industry. It is nigh on impossible to find them on the internet though. They just do not seem to have the time to create and effectively market a good website. That leaves you and me at the mercy of the shops. We are left to use the shapers they make available to us.

It is for this reason that we put together this website. If you leave your name and email address above, we will send you a list we compiled of all the Gold Coast shapers we could find and their contact details. This will mean you can contact them, find a shaper you are really comfortable with and have your next surfboard shaped to your requirements.

Surfing is not so easy as grabbing a surfboard and catching a wave, it is an art which can only be expressed, never perfected.For a surfer to ply his art, many elements must come together in harmony.

Firstly the surfer, he must be fit and skilled, but more than that. He must be aware of and in tune with his connection to the ocean. He must feel the waves pulse, as they build near and approach. He must feel them as if he is a part of their inexorable approach, as if the ocean is a living organism which he is part of.

The ocean too must play its part. It must send through consistent swell lines, swells  which wrap around the earth, peaking and pitching, offering the surfer steep wave faces and caverous barrels, gifting them to him as if he were a loved child, it was Christmas morning and these presents in their terrifying perfection, were exactly what he asked for, wanted and needed.

And finally there is the surfboard, the medium with which the artist expresses his creativity. It too must be perfect for the day, perfectly crafted to complement both the surfer and the waves offered by the ocean. Out of sync with either, danger and disaster looms. Perfect though, and a masterpiece is created.

Surfboard shapers are the mortar that hold it all together. In crafting custom designed surfboards, a master shaper offers the surfer the perfect medium in which to ply his art.

1. Go Cheap – Find a Second Hand Board

Pros – The pros of this one are that you will save your pennies. Getting a second hand surfboard for sale will always be cheaper than buying a new one. Some good options for finding such a surfboard on the Gold Coast are surf shops, Cash Converters, garage sales and online, at websites like eBay.

Cons – The cons of this method are that the chances of getting an appropriate surfboard are slim, particularly if you are new to the sport. Further, even though you may save some coin, the chances of getting what you paid for are also slim. If you buy a second hand board from a shop, you will be paying a mark-up. This is the shop’s commission which they add to the price. This commission is not there because they have added any value to the surfboard, making it a better board. It is there for no reason other than they are the middle man, meaning you pay more for a lessor value board.

If you go direct, online or to a cash converters shop, you are dealing with people who just want to get rid of a surfboard. They may not even know anything about surfing and they will say almost anything to get a buyer. This means you may be sold a surfboard which is completely inappropriate for your abilities. So caveat emptor – buyer beware.

2. Go To A Surf Shop For A New Surf Board

Pros – Firstly, the shop assistant will know something about surfing, if only at a high level. This means you can at least be guaranteed the right category of surfboard. The prices of surf shop surfboards range during the different seasons and depending on what is going on in the surf industry. Sometimes you can pick up really good bargains, so keep your eyes peeled for these “special” times.

Cons – Surf shops work on turn-over. The more they sell, the better they go. This unfortunately, will occasionally give them a short term perspective, meaning they will 100% try and sell you now, before you leave the shop. They know once you leave their shop, they potentially have lost you business. So, you may get the big sales pitch/pressure, trying to get you to buy near enough, even if it is not good enough. Naturally, this varies from outlet to outlet.

Every surf shop will have many surfboards for sale though, so they should stock something you can ride, no matter what level surfer you are. Keep in mind though that these surfboards are mass produced. As such, they will be short on performance features, long on forgiving elements. They are mass produced for the masses.

3. Get A Custom Made Surfboard From A Shaper

Pros – You will get a surfboard made exactly for you. It will complement your abilities and assist you to develop into a better surfer. You will build a relationship with an artisan, who will track your progress and improvements and ensure your next board, then complements the next phase of your surfing life. Shapers do not so much have surfboards for sale, rather they make them to order. This way you can be confident in the knowledge that the surfboard you buy will be tailor made for you.

Cons – For getting exactly what is good for you and your surfing, you may have to pay a premium. This is not really a con though, it is the cost of the value add, of having a surfboard constructed specifically for you.

One thing you should think about though before fixing your board is whether you think you can do as good a job of repairing it, as a surfboard shaper would be able to do. This is important as, if you cannot, the chances are that your repair will impact the dynamics of your surfboard and therefore, your own performance in the water. If this is the case, it is highly recommended that you get a surfboard shaper to repair your surfboard.

Time is always another critical factor. Do you have the time and the care to do all the little things, that make the difference between a shoddy and a beautiful job? If not, again, give the job to someone who does. Your surfing will thank you

This is why I think all people who are serious about surfing should at least once, treat themselves to a custom shaped surfboard. When you have a professional talking to you about what you want to achieve with your surfing, who knows how every element of the surfboard responds in the water, they can craft something that will really improve your performance. So if you are considering this instead of buying another board from a shop, don’t hesitate, find a shaper and have him design a surfboard just for you. You will never regret the decision, even if it does cost a little more.

1. Learn To Surf Longboards

Many people buy longboards to learn how to surf. They do this as longboards being large, are buoyant and easy to stand on, balance on, catch waves and ride. People looking for a longboard to start surfing with do not need to find anything technical or crazy, all they need to look for is buoyancy. So find a longboard surf board with plenty of foam in it. A soft longboard like the G-Board variety would be preferable as these are even more buoyant than fiberglass boards. The longer, wider and thicker the surfboard is, the better it will be for learning to surf.

To explain with an example, if you were rowing a little tin boat in the ocean and tried to stand up, it would be very bouncy and unstable, the rocking frrom side to side would make standing difficult, wouldn’t it? When comparing to a cruise liner though, you would not even feel the swells and rollers that threaten to tip you out of the tinny, when standing on the deck of the cruise ship. This is because the size of the cruise ship gives it additional buoyancy and stability that the little fishing boat did not have. Surfboards work in exactly the same manner.

2. High Performance Longboards

High performance longboards are surfboards that are made to be ridden like longboards, but also refined for additional speed and maneuverability. I know on the occasions I have headed down to the Malfunction Festival in Kingscliff on the Gold Coast to watch longboarders in competition, when a surfer really uses his long performance longboard well, it is quite a spectacle to watch. Longboarders who want high performance boards can end up doing aerials, 360s and all kinds of tricks. Some of the kids these days riding longboards well, throw them around as if they were shortboards. Combine this with graceful malibu lines on slower sections on the wave and you have a pretty amazing mix of surfing.

Using a surfboard shaper to design you a high performance longboard is a good idea if this is the style of surfing you are pursuing. Getting the shape of the board right for you will take some fine tuning, so it is best to talk to someone about the specifics you are looking for or at the least, buy a specialist off the rack longboard like the ones Bob McTavish crafts.

Longboard Surf Shapes

3. “Toes On The Nose” Classic Longboards

The final category of longboards are the classical ones. The longboards you ride with grace, with peace and to be one with the wave (as opposed to destroying the wave ). Often, you will see proponents of this type of surfing with their “toes on the nose”, hanging five or hanging ten to get the most out of every ride. These surfboards will have a very different shape to the high performance variety of longboard. Typically they will be longer, wider and flatter to facilitate walking up and down the face of the board. They will be rounder at the back too, offering more stability and will only have one single, albeit big, fin.

These single fin longboards are almost a “specialty retro” board now. Off the rack single fin boards are hard to find in surf shops, unless you go to specialty longboard shops. These types of board also bring out many creative varieties, really getting the “art” out of the shapers who put their heart and soul into these longboard surf shapes. For example, it will be this style of vintage surfboard that you will most commonly find shapers using wood and balsa to construct them with, rather than the common fiberglass or epoxy materials. Surfboard art is also common on these classic styles, there is after all, plenty of surface to play with.

So there you have it, longboard surf shapes in a nutshell. I hope this post helps you choose the shape that suits your style the best.

How To Buy A Surfboard

If you want to buy a surfboard, there are three basic ways you can go about this. I will cover the three options with some commentary about the type of surfboard you can expect to find from each and the level of surfer such a surfboard is appropriate for.

1. Buy A Second Hand Surfboard

You can buy a second hand surfboard from many places. Surf shops, online websites like eBay, from your mates or even general seconfd hand shops. Cash Converters I know is a great example on the Gold Coast, they are a constant source of second hand surfboards. I’ll stop as I wonder past Cash Converters on ocassion as sometimes they accidently stock a real bargain. As a general rule though, any outlet selling second hand surfboards will have bought the same board cheap, whacked a big mark up on it and will be selling the same surfboard to you for a lot more money. It really makes sense to try to get the middle man out of the equation and buy your second hand surfboards direct from the people who want to sell them, not the dealers.

Personally, I think you should only go the second hand option if you are desperately short of money and need to surf, or are just beginning and when you know that you will trade up very soon anyway. Surfboards do have a limited shelf life and you do not know how many wipeouts are left in any second hand surfboard, you just do not know where it has been.

2. Buy A Stock Surfboard From A Shop

Off the rack surfboards are great for average surfers. These surfboards, tend to be made to fit the general population. They will have different colors and come in all shapes and sizes to make them look unique, but really, you are getting a mass produced surfboard from a bulk producer. For a mass produced surfboard to work, it must be made to be usable by the masses. So off the rack surfboards are a little light on when it comes to the high performance design features of a surfboard, but many surfers will not notice the difference.

3. Buy a Custom Made Surfboard

Custom designed surfboards are for surfers who know what they want with a surfboard, want their surfing to develop and therefore want a surfboard which will match their style, their competance level and their ambition. If you are going to buy a custom surfboard, it is highly recommended that you develop a relationship with your shaper, so that as you progress in this awesome sport, your shaper ensures your surfboards keep up and complement your development. This is only possible when your shaper understands who you are, how you surf and where you want to take your surfing. I know this is the approach I take, I talk to my Gold Coast surfboard shaper all the time about my boards and surf sessions. He is like a trusted adviser, closer to me than any finacial adviser, accountant or life insurance broker.

I guess it is about what is important to you isn’t it.