How To: Build An Alaia With Ryan Burch
Ryan Brower
- February 19 2009
- 6,923 views
- 24 comments
Flat spells do weird things to our brains. Before the internet, surfers would at least show up to the beach with some hope of new swell, but now we all just log onto a website and see a swell model that mimics the shape of the waves for the upcoming week. During the ‘08/’09 winter in California, the model usually showed a flat line stretched across the bottom of the chart, a fitting symbol of our flat-lined hopes for waves. During a seven hour internet coma, I mistook the flat line for a picture of an Alaia in profile. I was convinced that it was a sign from surfing’s original pioneers that I needed to build one of those penis planks in order to save the world from a never-ending flat spell (computers turn brains to goo). After the second week in a row of nothing but Lake Pacific, I contacted expert Alaia-builder Ryan Burch and told him of my internet hallucination; he agreed to help if it might end the flat spell, and this How To is the result. –Nick Jiampa
All photos Billy Watts
STEP 1:
Buy Supplies. They include: 5 or 6 planks of light wood (we used 5 pieces of Douglas Fir 8’ x 4” x 1”), wood glue, 4 large heavy-duty clamps, 4 smaller clamps, a tape measure, sandpaper, an electric planer, a hand planer, a circular saw, a pencil, and a quart of boiled linseed oil.
STEP 2:
Lay out the wood inside the large clamps. Make sure the clamps are spaced so they fit the width of the planks of wood. Lay each piece of wood on its thin side.
STEP 3:
Glue the wood. Stop huffing the product for a minute and read the directions. Apply a line of glue onto each of the face-up sides. Then lay the pieces wide-side down and press them together. Line them up so they meet evenly at the nose and tail of the future board.
STEP 4: 
Clamp the wood. Tighten down on the 4 large clamps, then put 2” x 4” pieces in between the board and the smaller clamps to flatten the deck and bottom. Wait for the glue to dry for up to 24 hours and remove the clamps.
STEP 5: 
Measure and draw the outline. It’s good to use a template, but if you’re really artsy you can probably freehand your lines. You could probably design your alaia to look like a giant tampon and it’d work fine, so don’t take it too seriously.
STEP 6:
Cut with a saw. A circular saw or sawzall probably works best, but if you want to get rootsy then you could use a non-electric wood saw.
STEP 7:
Plane the board. If you don’t have the funds for a new electric planer, scour the internet for a cheap one or borrow your shaper’s, he’s probably not using it anyway. Fine tune the grooves left by the electric planer with a hand planer.
STEP 8:
Sand heavily. Unless you’re Amish, you’ll want to use an electric sander because it will cut down a lot of time.
STEP 9:
Seal the board with Linseed oil. Apply a thin layer to the entire board using a rag or brush, wait for it to dry, and then repeat. You’ll want to ride the board, but you’ll have to wait a few days and will have to seal the board several times. You can also stain the board different colors before sealing.
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February 19th, 2009 at 6:19 pm
Step 10. Plane your pubic hairs off!
February 20th, 2009 at 11:24 am
Also building an Alaia and documenting the steps on bitness.com. I started from a blank and probably next time I’ll take a stab at gluing the boards to make my own. Good stuff, thanks.
February 20th, 2009 at 1:40 pm
step 11. comb your stache in the back of your VW bus. then drown self.
February 20th, 2009 at 5:19 pm
step 13. Pretend it works and you are surfing like you are Rob Machado…
February 21st, 2009 at 1:50 pm
step 14. Realize that these boards do nothing to help the average surfer surf any better…then light on fire.
February 23rd, 2009 at 12:44 am
are you serious? slip sliding sideways and calling it “soul” . gimme a fucking break.
February 23rd, 2009 at 7:53 am
Looks so good, I wanna eat it up. Wish you’d published some actual dimensions and told us how to do the concave and the rails. Oh well.
To the haters posting comments, you guys must be transplant longboarders or douches riding “big-guy tris”. Don’t f*&k with the Hawaiian mojo.
February 27th, 2009 at 6:48 am
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNFfs40xGhE
if that belittle what you said, then do yourself a favour and lose your ego
seriously this video will blow your mind on what guys with some real skills can do (not off the shelf surfers with a, too small for you shortboard, cos you want to look like andy irons walking down the beach)
peace
February 27th, 2009 at 7:20 pm
step 15: realize that you left out step 12. Become proud of your lack of numeracy and embrace your inner-hippie.
March 4th, 2009 at 11:14 pm
shit. at least no ones showing people how to make sups. though i’ve heard justin uses windsurfers or anything he can find to sweep around
April 1st, 2009 at 5:40 pm
Why is there always some idiots that leave stupid comments. They’re like children that have just learned to say fuck and can’t wait to use it in a sentence..
I saw a picture of Rob Machado on a alaia and searched a bit and found this site http://www.tomwegenersurfboards.com. I’ve never surfed anything but shortboards, not even bodyboards,and nothing over 6′6″, I won’t give them up but I like the idea of shaping my own board.
I think we’re going to see more of these boards in the future.
April 10th, 2009 at 11:55 am
It’s really hard to have new ideas accepted by the masters of conformity who’ve been spoon-fed marketing slogans since they were little kids watching cartoons.
Actually stepping out to make a wood surfboard, whether it’s pine, redwood, or Paulownia represents a little bit of independent thinking, and straying from the proven and safe.
Maybe trying new things outside of the commercially accepted and “cool” will open your mind to new and even better things in your life. But then, it might lead you to question the established norms. That might be a scary thought.
May 6th, 2009 at 1:33 pm
Nice but a little weak on details…
For the cheap alternative buy a pre-glued pine plank from Home Depot, or some redwood or cedar fence boards.
Start with something short and just ride it prone cause most of us can’t surf like Machado despite our ego…
5′6″ x 15″ x 5/8″ with square 1/4 rails. Start with gentle belly bottom and slight crown on deck. Add in the concaves or v-bottom later.
Best of luck… ignore the haters. I’m a kook, but at least I am having fun.
-Brian
May 20th, 2009 at 6:24 pm
Hipster sheep vs. OC ripper sheep. Who’s winning? Who cares. Pissing off surfers is like shooting fish in a barrel. This is all supposed to be fun, weird, different right? “Only a surfer knows the feeling” etc.
Only an Alaia rider knows the feeling bro.
http://www.surfinggreen.com.au/How-Shape-Alaia-Surfboard
May 26th, 2009 at 9:11 am
thanks for all the info on making these! its not everyday that most waveriders can build a board on their own at home. we should all take advantage of this. sure its not gonna make you surf like slater, but it will improve your surfing, because riding one of these is so challenging. you are forced to draw the right line, and put yourself in the pocket of the wave. its not like riding a surfboard, where you have all the time in the world to set up and turn, or catch up after you bog or make a mistake. Much like riding a bodyboard, its all off the rail!! its really sad that most surfers will never know that feeling. they all wanna look cool like the rest of the sheep. stop caring what others think and ride, and enjoy the ocean for the reason you started surfing…..FUN at any cost! i have every type of wave riding board in my quiver. i suggest that all you close minded monkeys step out of the box, and understand what some of the original wave riders were using. different boards for different waves and sizes. also, try riding a surf mat sometime. that is really humbling and super fun. Alaia riding takes you through a different dimension of wave riding. sad that most surfers are one dimensional.
June 29th, 2009 at 11:23 am
To the haters:
you’re all victims of capitalism
July 3rd, 2009 at 7:35 pm
I agree with the general idea of your reply Bill, but to say its a new idea sorely misses the history behind the Alaia.
August 10th, 2009 at 5:58 pm
So, today I’ve just put the first coat of oil on my first Alaia. The process was fun fun and inspiring. To those of you who want to shape one.Get To It! dont worry about templates and the rest. look around ,there are a few good sites whrer you can get a grasp of the concept. If you have basic woodworking skills you’ll do fine. Ive been surfing over 30 years and look folward the experance and challange.Good luck!
August 11th, 2009 at 12:20 pm
I just checked out http://www.surfinggreen.com.au/How-Shape-Alaia-Surfboard and it is an amazing resource. I think plank boards will allow surfers to shape and ride their own products w/o worrying about the intricacies of shaping and glassing foam boards.
August 20th, 2009 at 10:15 pm
just shaped mine based off your post and tom wegeners video creation plantation and the board rides awesome thanks for the tips
September 8th, 2009 at 9:09 am
haters just don't hate me coz you aint me!
September 15th, 2009 at 5:06 pm
Karl,
It's not capitalism, It's marketing. We all Surf because it is fun, enlightening, cool, etc… Haters are the one's that have bought into the hype that the major companies have sold to them over the years. Think about it this way; Your LOCAL shaper is a capitalist to some extent. He/She is doing it for the love, sharing, and stoke it brings to others. A person just can't bring that stoke without making some money to finance thier (and our) dreams. To do that takes capital & cash… It is just the way it works.
November 3rd, 2009 at 5:38 pm
Longboard, shortboard, sup, alaia, I’ll still catch all your waves. If you can’t handle it stay out of hawaii and the water in general. Your all the douches putting the aggression in the water and making everyone have a bad time cuz you have some kind of a chip on your shoulder cuz you surf like a ragdoll. If you plan on coming to Hawaii with that attitude your guaranteed to catch slaps. Thanks for this post though guys, it’s super useful^.^
November 12th, 2009 at 12:29 pm
Well done Bill, you took the words out of my mouth. People are truly shaped by the media and the haters listed above are just cogs in the consumerism wheel. I bet they're quite content in clocking in and clocking out every day of the week………….