Hollow wooden surfboards

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Hollow wooden surfboards are surfboards made of wood and epoxy. They specifically have no foam in their construction. (boards made with foam and wood are commonly known as Compsands or veneer boards )

In 1995 Roy Stewart and Paul Jensen were amongst the first shapers, as reported in Pacific Longboard Magazine, to switch back to using wood, after the foam revolution in the 1950's had changed all surfboard construction to the use of foam.

The main inspiration apart from beauty, is to turn to a more environmentally friendly method which uses fast growing plantation wood such as Paulownia, although Cedar, Spruce, Redwood, and of course Balsa are also popular.

The Hollow wood Surfboard (also known as HWS) revolution is spreading as more and more "back yarders" are attempting to build their own boards and discover the true soul of surfing.

The Paul Jensen HWS (Hollow wooden Surfboard) Method is descended from the 1930's Tom Blake paddleboarding method and favours a central stringer, with individually shaped transverse ribs, covered with a skin and lastly, rails which are then shaped. Some dispute over Paul Jensen's boards being real wooden surfboards as he uses cork on the rails, thus making his method a hollow hybrid board.

The Roy Stewart PPS (Parallel Profile System) is developed from cold molded (double diagonal) boat building and uses at least four layers laminated over a male mold into a curved blank, including enough wood for rails, which are then shaped.

The chambering method as used by "Empress Surfboards" follows a system whereby Planks of Paulownia are selected and the rocker of the board is cut into each. The planks are then chambered to reduce weight and then bonded together to form a hollow, or "chambered" blank which is then shaped .

The perimeter stringer method used by "Cedar Surfboards" utilises laminated rails as stringers, which are connected with a series of plywood ribs. This skeleton is subsequently sheathed with 5mm thick wood strips, forming a lightweight, fast, and eco friendly hollow with good flex properties. This is a sophisticated, modern interpretation of Tom Blakes work.