Does a board need foam?

[Threeo]

Plastic boards... hmm. We need to reduce as much plastic as possible (and recycling isn't actually that great... long story) so I'm not sure how that will go down.
I'd be interested to see/hear about these boards more Clint. Any idea when you'll be testing one?

[jaffa1949]

Plastic is an oil/coal by product, don't be fooled into thinking that surfboard petrochemical ingredients are any greener. As it stands the only current way to make a full foam board any greener is to use it until it is beyond redemption dead. Recycling plastic is using stuff that is already made not adding new stuff to the pile.

Make plastic recycling economically viable and somebody might start mining the oceanic gyres and the plastic reefs in Asia. I hope so.

[Threeo]

don't worry, I realise that the resins in traditional means are just as bad. The green situation with boards is very hard. The recycling of plastic is worse than making it in the first place and it's not a simple case (unfortunately) of re using whats here. The chemicals involved in breaking down and recycling plastics is extremely toxic and make bad times all along their lifecycle. Even more so than the original plastic manufacturing process. THese chemicals are also oil/petro products which require mining etc so the advantage of recycling plastics is really questionable. It's only pushed in society to invoke the mindset change of recycling, such that it flows into other realms of life choices. The best way is not to use it in the first place but having said that... we still need boards without going back to the redwood planks :/

Lately I've become a massive plastic nazi and have dove into this in some depth. The saga continues....

[garbarrage]

I think that if you can make an extremely durable board from a form of plastic that lasts, and performs as well as current PU/epoxy boards then the issue will be well addressed. There are surfers who go through 4-5 boards a year. Even normal surfers will only get a few years out of some boards.

One board that lasts a lifetime would go a long way to reducing any environmental impact.

[jaffa1949]

:) don't worry, I realise that the resins in traditional means are just as bad. The green situation with boards is very hard. The recycling of plastic is worse than making it in the first place and it's not a simple case (unfortunately) of re using whats here. The chemicals involved in breaking down and recycling plastics is extremely toxic and make bad times all along their lifecycle. Even more so than the original plastic manufacturing process. THese chemicals are also oil/petro products which require mining etc so the advantage of recycling plastics is really questionable. It's only pushed in society to invoke the mindset change of recycling, such that it flows into other realms of life choices. The best way is not to use it in the first place but having said that... we still need boards without going back to the redwood planks :/

Lately I've become a massive plastic nazi and have dove into this in some depth. The saga continues....

That's food for thought what you've just said.
Only way out sounds like the plasma heat incinerator, reaching plasma temps that break down things to their component elements and do't produce toxic waste only trouble is the immense amount of power needed, so a kick in what ever generates power. Looks like durability is a better way than constantly producing more plastic.

Bamboo, Balsa, paulownia, Agave, bacterial digested plastic or body surfing only
There are insulated chip containers made from potato starch, starch might be an agent that can be foamed, but can it be made salt water insoluble and would that be safe in the environment?

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[CLINT]

Funny how you get a few positive people together and good things happen--- while we were talking about new designs and materials we all said it would be a good idea to make a board that could be taken on a plane and we naturally talked about the Pope Bisect and other multi piece boards but we thought that the multi piece concept just revolves around how many different ways to cut a board into pieces.
Better off to work on a collapsible craft, starting with a prone board but looking to make a shortboard after that.
What we worked out was a frame made of sections that were no longer than 21 in and a hull that can be rolled up. The whole craft would take a bit of construction to get it ready to ride but the benefit is that you would have a solid craft that you can carry in a knee high tube costing nothing to carry on an airplane.
From an engineering point of view , which is my background I can see that if you have a 2 piece board all the forces will be concentrated on the join but if you engineer it like a bridge then all the components share the forces between them.
EDIT: didnt see your coments above till now, as for plastics, I think if you look to other construction techniques there will be no need for foam/glass. ATM we all look at surfboards as a solid volume with a hard coating, end of story. But if you look at it as a 2D perimeter and build it from there , then there are alternatives for design and material selection for all surfcraft.
In the end tho, if you want a zero carbon footprint you wouldnt eat, breath or poo so I think environmentalism has to accept that people need to live and enjoy themselves, some evil materials will be used to make the things we need and want but we have to accept that people will do what they want despite the current Jihad against petro chemicals.
We cant all go back to the plough!
As for plastics or other new materials, I can see that even if a lighter stronger surfboard was built there would still be people who would say that they like heavy weak surfboards so with any advancement there needs to a level of acceptance of change.
Now that theres a world wide surfing market easily reaches thru e-commerce the chance of a financially successful brand of alternate craft is a lot more viable, it'd still be a slim niche, but the market for alternatives is global.

[jaffa1949]

My bisect has traveled to New Zealand already and Taiwan is planned later this year, so I'll use my evil Petrochemicals as jet fuel.
An aside to the bisect, , taxis in Taiwan haven't got roof racks and pre booking part of the trip became a little weird, surfboards do no come in square bags, must be something else, we are not sure if we will carry it????

NZ was interesting there is a carbon fibre cylinder inside another cylinder as support for the joint, the inner cylinder has screw caps, ideal for smuggling= close inspection, allied with an abalone disease scare even closer inspection and swab, customs guy was a surfer, even long discussion about the board, benefit, hooked up to lots of secret surf spots.

Plant products could be a quarantine issue
BTW there is an inflatable surfboard, brand name ULI.
There may
well be others.
I also have surf mats!

I think there is a great opportunity where you are playing, please protect your intellectual property with patents and copyrights

[CLINT]

Im thinking more like a collapsible bodyboard ( to begin with) that fits into a 6inch tube that you can stash under your car seat or sling over your shoulder.