Hollow balsa paddleboards

Check out this attempt by Hollow Wooden Surfboards to make their first balsa wood stand up paddle board.

Roy’s company does exactly that, makes hollow wood surfboards and has been for a couple of years now. Recently, he was approached by a customer who wanted a custom-built wooden board with a difference - this one was to be a SUP paddleboard. He hadn’t made one before, and althought the principle build technique is the same, he had to overcome some difficulties along the way.

The board was modelled on a Naish Hokua 9'0

The board he chose to base his creation on is a Naish Hokua 9’0 performance SUP paddleboard. He left the tail slightly wider but made the rails softer for more bite when turning. He also gave the board slightly less rocker as speed was a big factor for the customer. The board is made using a marine ply internal frame. The decks are mainly balsa, with some western red cedar accent strips and the rails are solid balsa throughout. The rail fins fit FCS plug types and there is also a custom wooden paddle to accompany the board.

The finished project

HW Surfboards build all their board as completely custom and with the exact dimensions of the rider taken into account.

Visit Roy’s site at hwsurfboards.com