Ordering a Custom Surfboard & FAQ's
Custom Orders are the backbone of what I do, I am always taking orders, and always eager to help connect you with the right board for your own exploration within surfing. My desire isn’t to build one board that will satisfy all of anyone’s needs. I want to shape you a board that makes you curious and asks you to apply your knowledge, one that grows with you and keeps you engaged for years. Customizing your shape generally means me taking into account your specific details and modifying slight areas of your board to fit that need - this can all revolve around the types of waves you surf, the area you live, where you travel, whats currently in your quiver, your height and weight, experience, etc.
If you 100% know that you want to order a board and are ready to get into it, I’ve made a page above (Place A Deposit) that’ll let you put money down to get your order into the que and in process - once you place your deposit I’ll contact you by phone or email, whichever you prefer, and we’ll nail down your details together! Given how long it takes me to get back to everyones emails this can save weeks off the end of the wait time for your board. The final price depends a lot on color and fine details, but the balance after your deposit isn’t due until the board is finished.
I try to offer a small range of boards that I believe will get our conversation going in the right direction; Ones that have answered questions for me and close friends, from professional surfers to weekend warriors over the years.
If you can wrap words around how and where you want to surf, someone or something that sparked your imagination in the water, or want to get my opinion on what might be best suited for you, please feel free to drop me a line. The surfer/shaper relationship is the basis of our journey in the water, and I'm always stoked to connect!
If you’re just curious or have some questions just bear with me as it usually takes a week or two on average to respond to each email as I handle all my messaging and administrative work alone and I want to give legitimate attention to every note I get. I've also made a list of Frequently Asked Questions a little lower on the page, it may be helpful!
FAQ's
How long does a custom order take?
It depends on the time of year and amount of orders I've currently got in line; Once I have a deposit and your order's details nailed down with you it generally takes 6-10 months. My average over the past three years has been 5-6 months, and that is generally my default wait time if everything is business as usual.
Do you ship, or how do I get a board in another country?
-If I'm not traveling to your area any time soon, I ship boards alllllll the time - not a problem at all! I charge a $50 boxing & packing fee to make sure the board will be safe, and different locations have different shipping costs after that. The freight companies change their pricing often so below is a really really rough list of what shipping usually costs to a few different locations around the world in USD:
-East Coast US $150 (shortboard) $275 (longboard 8' and up)
-Australia $375 (shortboard) $500 (longboard 8' and up)
-Europe: $350 (shortboard) $475 (longboard 8' and up)
-Japan $300 (shortboard) $425 (longboard 8' and up)
I often travel to the east coast Glide Surf Co, Europe and Australia to shape batches for customers and shops, so if you're interested send me a note and I can give you an idea of when I'm heading there next.
Why is your wait time longer than most others?
-It depends on how many orders I have at any given time, but the crux of the matter is that I still legitimately shape my boards by hand myself. The majority of my peers in the alternative surfboard world as well as larger brands in the industry all use a CNC shaping machine to pre-cut the designs, and then fine tune them from there - many even have a small stable of ghost shapers that finish the blank from the machine; this is standard practice in the industry though it is very seldom discussed publicly. I take my planer to your surfboard every time, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I shape 2-3 surfboards a day 6+ days a week, so have no fear I'm working as fast as I can while still holding my promise to hand shape 100% of my work :)
What Shops can I find your boards in?
Santa Barbara is my home base on the west coast of the US, outside of my shop here you can find my boards at Daydream Surf Shop (Costa Mesa), Glide Surf Co. (New Jersey), Surf Garage (Hawaii), Down The Line (England), Surfer's (Japan), and Surf Code (Korea).
Can I pick it up in person?
-Absolutely. I'm at my shop 7 days a week so when I let you know that your board is all finished up we can easily set up a time to meet for the hand off.
What if I need a board for a trip or like NOW?
-Totally do-able! I can rush an order or make sure its done on an exact date/timeline for $250 extra.
How does pricing work?
-Each model has a base price (ranging from $875 to $1350 USD) which comes with a clear glass job, wetsanded-gloss finish (a matte finished gloss coat sanded to 600 w/d), fin boxes and leash plugs. Resin color cost is added per side ($50 per side, I don't generally airbrush or paint boards unless specifically asked except on the RabbitsFoot, aside from that all art is done in resin). Fabric inlays and abstracts cost a little more, as well as resin panels, glass-on fins and pinlines.
