Wanted to share my project on here for anyone interested. I built a surf foil and custom board from scratch. This is my first time building a foil or foil board. I’m very excited to give it a go when things heat up here in New York.
The front wing is foam and has a projected area of 3000 cm^2 so its pretty substantial for my weight (175lbs). The rest of the foil is made of low density wood, and everything has a ton of layers of fiberglass to reinforce. Mast is 38 inches.
The board is also made of low density wood covered in fiberglass. I used some veneer strips of twisted maple on top to create a cool pattern.
I’m an engineering student here in NY, and my next steps this summer are going to be creating a modular system to transition to an E-Foil.
That wing is HUGE! IM curious how the board to mast/wing ratio will work out. More is not always better. Utsav good that you have taken on this personal project because it will help you in any career you do as an engineer. I have worked with many engineers over the years and have only had one experience with one that worked perfectly. 99% of engineers seem to not have any concept of practical application if it looks good on paper.
Like I mentioned. The board to mast/wing ratio is my immediate concern so if it doesn’t work out well that that’s your first area to adjust.
Why are you concerned about the board size?
Board size depends on how much power /how skilled you are/what you prefer. The smaller you are able to start with, the better it becomes once airborne.
You have boards from 90 cm to 250cm, depending on your level and what you want it for. You could spot a kiter with a 1m mast riding a 90cm board as well as a foilSUPer with a 70cm mast…
Hi, I would like to know how your board-foil combination behaved in actual tests. I also am interested to know about the mast and the mast-head you have used. Are they purchased ready made or did you make them yourself too?
Hello,
I’ve been able to get out a few times on the foil so far. It works quite well from what I can tell, but I am new to the sport and don’t know how to ride yet. The foil lifts me out at like 7 Mph (11 Km/h) so it is great at low speed. The mast and mast-head were both purchased as part of a kit from clearwaterfoils.com.
