making retro skateboards

i watched dogtown and z-boys the other night, and its inspierd me to mack myself a retro carver(my board to long to slide). i was wondering if anyone has any tips, iv got a template ready, and iv got a thick peice of mahogany, and im all ready to cut it, but befor i do has anyone got any first hand experience of making reto boards and got any tips for me??