Looking for rail advice

Ive been searching the site for an answer to my question for about a week now… I need some advice on my rails, i’m looking for some direction on how to shape the rails I want. Im looking for the right rail shape that will allow me to go vertical off the top and hold through a round house. Heres the kicker, I also want paddle power… I want it to be easy to fight the line up and catch waves. Im willing to compromise on the response of the surfing, i know you cant have the best of both worlds. 

Also what makes a board want to rebound off the lip. The last board I shaped seems to lack the “bounce back” off a snap. I’m a novice and only shaped one board, but im looking to fine tune this next board.

Thoughts on what works with this shape? It will be a twin + stabilizer fin set up.

Dims 6’0 x 20.5 x 2.5/8

 

…and you want a hard glass but light and strong and want projection but to turns in a dime and a bro deal and all in 3 days cause you are going to Indo…

Sorry.

More to do with your surfing ability than your shaping ability.

Hah you’re a tough guy aren’t ya!!?

Im the one shaping the board. Thanks for your help.

This outline looks like a pretty solid shortboard outline to me, but I’m not the shortboard expert, I’m more into mid-length and longboards. 

But since it is a pretty decent outline, just go for the average standard shortboard rails, which are, as far as I know, rather hard edges in the tail to rounder in the middle and front. This will not ruin anything and the board will definitely work. 

Regarding paddle power and paddle speed, the influence of rails on that subject is minor, as far as I would evaluate it. The majour influence is outline and rocker. The flatter it is, the faster it will paddle, but with some negative effects on turning abilities. What kind of waves do you want to surf, the steeper they are, the more front rocker you usually need?

But finally it is like one of the posters above said; it may be more the surfers abilities, than the boards. If the outline fits to your purposes, the other design features will influence the boards performance only little; so if you stay to the average, you are not doing something wrong, except your surfing is on pro level.

Awesome thank you, i appreciate your input. Sadly my outline turned more performance short board lol rather than hybrid eggy shape which is what I wanted for paddle power. 

This is out of my league shaping wise, but do people change rail shape from the nose to the tail. For example say 80/20 in the nose tapering into 60/40 through the middle of the board into the tail?

 

Hey man. That is a really nice looking outline. 

 

to answer your last question - yes. Most boards do change rails as you progress from nose to tail based on how you want the board to perform. The rails should compliment the outline, rocker, and fin set up. Herein lies the challenge in shaping - getting all those correct to compliment one another for the desired effect. 

 

just a few examples to provide context:

  1. a straighter outline provides more rail hold in the water. You can loosen that up by having sharper rails through the mid section. 

 

  1. A quad or Thruster has more fin hood allowing for harder rails in the rear to release. 

 

  1. More rocker in a board reduces rail amount in the water holding. This is why a more rockered boards turns easier. 

 

The list goes on and on. It’s a balance and the quest to find the perfect individual qualities and orchestrating all into harmony with one another. It’s always a give a take as well. 

 

Good luck!

Thanks for that compliment curlz! I appreciate your input. All this info is great. 

Does more tuck on the bottom create a “looser” rail and more edge create a “stiffer” rail. Or do I have this backwards? 

 

Here’s a picture of the rail I chose… I have 1/2 in marked out for the tuck. 


50/50 = hold. Stiffer. 

80/20 = release. Looser

that’s why most shorter boards have hard rails in the back. The fins provide the hold. 

 

Remember this. Water clings to rounded surfaces and sheds off hard surfaces. 

 

you didn’t ask this but I’ll offer it as a lesson learned on rails. As you shape them don’t touch the actual outline. Shape the top down to desired band then shape bottom up to desired band until they just almost meet. Otherwise you’ll start getting the wobbly outline. If that makes sense. 

 

post pics when done and share the stoke!!

Sick, thank you! Thankfully I got to discover that tip of advice before shaping the rails on my first board. Ill share pics when im done.

Finished up the shape. Rails ended up more turned down. They look about 60/40. But it’s difficult to get a good picture of the rail shape. I’m real happy with how it all turned out. 

Here’s some pics 

open to criticism… or advice :smiley:

 

 





I think that board will surf pretty nicely.   

You didn’t ask, but if you want a backyard hack for shaping rail bands you can lay them out in masking tape (one band at a time) and just use a sanding block with #36 grit  - sand to the edge of the tape and you’ll get a nice clean and well defined band. Sand end-to-end with long strokes and keeping your sanding block at a consistent angle or combo of angles.     When you’re done with them you can blend them together.   Just remember that you’ll need to blow the blank off real well before taping in order to get the dust off or the tape won’t stick.   

Then when your planer skills improve you can skip the tape lines and go back to using dots or whatnot to lay your lines out.