Crescent and thereabouts

This trip North really had its moments, on arriving , their was not much swell but an offshore Low developed and by Friday , a 150 ml of constant rain and wind ..... I'll let the pictures tell the story. The Crescent Classic had their finals on Sunday in classic Crescent waves 3 to 5 foot and consistent, by Monday everyone had gone home and on a another sunny day it was  what you drive north for. The boards went really well, the yellow one continued on where it left off at the PASS in Byron. Great trip great people ,and when she walked out to the point ,hahaha! yeh! its surfin!

North Again

Ah , bugga, I'm off north again, this time to Scotts and a few trips down to Crescent, I've had my share of wonderful and bad days BUT! they were all still good, long live Northcountry air ALOHA

Last week Steven Butterworth succumbed to cancer. A Newcastle boy born and bred, and one of their better surfers. I first met him in 1971 and his passion for surfing, shaping and design was as strong then as the last time I saw him at the Glass and Wood show at Pacific Dreams Surf shop on Darby Street. He has left a long legacy of surfshapes, and the last boards, which were his Channel bottom finless, were absolute gems. We only pass this way but once so let us do what good we can, Steve did.

I caught up with Bob Mctavish and told me the board I thought was a Kevin Platt was definitely a Mick Hall who shaped many a board , after he left. I put a new fin in her and a little bit of restoration. The other Keyo is a Mctavish plastic machine with a rolled bottom, that Paul Joske dragged out of his archives board store,and wasn't sure who shaped it, Bob said it was an earlier one as the fin is placed closer to the back

There are many reasons for going north and when you get good waves every day , thats what its all about

Be back in 2 weeks, time for me to get back where I once did play.....going north

This is a KEYO and I'm positive its a Kevin Platt shape, its 8'10" x 23" and 3" thick. If you have ever ridden any of Kevins shapes I need not tell you how good they were and, still are. This one is about 65 to 66 only a few dings and I had to replace the fin due to warpage, she's a lovely shape and if I owned her I would never part with her.

Young Byrons 7'4 and his brand new wizbang TIKI fin ,the first..... OLD mate ROY MEISEL from Bare Nature surfboards,has been doin abit of bodysurfing, my handshape for a handplane, I used to use one when I was 13

GOIN NORTH

I'm BACK,
Our computer packed it in and was sent off to be repaired , after awhile we were told that she's to be replaced, and the new one we got shit itself so.... they gave us another and, we're waiting for our memory from our hardrive ,so we can install it.  Young Byons green board is finished and has been surfed  , the boy is rapt, and as soon as get the hardrive I'll post the photos. At the end of this month until 13 th of May I'll be up North spending most of it in and around BYRON BAY.... I lived up there for about 9 years working for various Surfboard shops and as  a sugar cane cutter in the canefields, and every time I head North and come to the canefields of the Clarence river( I cut cane here for two years) I get a little teary and I feel a little younger again cause shit! I'm going SURFIN.... Cheers  TIKI  

The Deck glassed on Young Byrons' board.... 2 layers of 6 ounce on top and 1 layer on bottom

Bottom tint on Byron's board,remember Lime Splice paddlepops? ha!

This is Byron's first ever surfboard, he's 8 years old and his Grandfather has introduced him to longboard surfing via his very big longboard..... Byrons board is 7 foot 4 inches by 20 1/2 inch wide and 2 1/2 inches thick. She is only roughed out and the Lime green board ( an older board I made 3 years ago) will be the colour that Byron has chosen , and I must say ,Good choice!

Greg Long and his Cortes Bank ,NEW quiver from Christensens Surfboards, these are just stunning! the ultimate and essence of board design and craftmanship, makes a man want to go and make one , just for the fun of it eh!

Like art there are many different styles with fins, upright to leaned back , area to nearly none...and these all perform ,but not for everyone . Sometimes the amount of twist and flex, positioning and depth play a very important part with your boards performance...if you don't get it right a well shaped board can be a dog......If you want a custom made precisionally and professionally foiled fin ,contact me and I'll make to order and help you with placement on 0404892397.....I'll keep outlying this Fin section with a bit of history and hdrodynamics info, remember..... without a good rudder a ship is useless....