Alaia Blank - Standard Paulownia Wood

Anyone can build themselves a surfboard with some simple tools from the shed, a bit of creative thinking and these affordable Paulownia timber blanks especially designed for Alaia surfboard construction.

$169.00

Flat, machine finished, straight, lightweight Paulownia wood blank. Ready for you to start shaping your own Alaia board. These blanks are the cheapest, easiest way to get started, making Alaia surfing affordable for everyone.

Our Paulownia sheets are great for Alaia blanks as they are the perfect size and have fantastic flex.

Included in your order:

- 6.8 or 7.8ft  x 18 inches x 3/4 inch Paulownia blank – suitable for stand up Alaias
- comprehensive PDF instruction manual  ($15.99 value – emailed)
- Fluid Earth bio plastic leash plug
- outline templates (emailed)

You can read about the PDF instruction manual here on our website.

Paulownia wood is a lightweight hardwood that does not soak up salt water and is perfect for making Alaias. Once shaped, simply oil with linseed oil and go surfing!

The Alaia Surfboard

The Alaia is a finless, thin wooden surfboard with hardly any rocker which was ridden by the ancient Hawaiians. Recently more and more people have been riding Alaias all over the world. Usually between 5 and 10ft long and 14 and 18 inches wide, Alaias can be ridden lying down with fins or standing up. Without the drag of the fin they generate tremendous speed and allow you to do sliding turns and 360′s in the pocket of the wave. It takes some skill to ride an Alaia standing up but once you get the hang of it, it is a real buzz.

Summary of Alaia construction-

1. Draw outline onto timber

2. Cut outline using handsaw or jigsaw

3. Shape rocker, rails and foil using electric planer or hand plane or electric sander or sanding block

4. Clean up scratches with higher grade sandpaper

5. Burn/carve/paint on logo or design if desired

6. Coat with linseed oil 2-3 times, allowing 6-12 hrs drying time between coats.

7. Install leash plug if desired

8. Go surfing!

Full email support on building Alaias is available when you purchase one of our blanks. As you can see only simple tools are required to build an Alaia. The coolest thing about them is that you can make adjustments to the board in between surfs simply by sanding or planing some more and then re-coating with linseed oil.

Freight – These boards can be sent anywhere in Australia. You can also pick up the blank from Coolum Beach, QLD free of charge. Freight costs are below. Please select the correct location when ordering so the correct freight amount is added to your order. If you live in North QLD or NT or have any questions, please email us before ordering.

The package will be delivered by a courier usually between 9am-5pm Mon to Fri. If no one is home at the time of delivery, the courier will usually leave it at the front door if it is safe to do so. If not they will leave a note for you to call and arrange redelivery. If there is somewhere in particular you would like the courier to leave the package (e.g. side of house), please let us know when you order.

All blanks are fully inspected before transport, so if there is any damage to your blank, let us know straight away.

THE FREIGHT COST IS THE SAME FOR 1-4 BLANKS TO MOST PLACES IN AUSTRALIA. The shopping cart should calculate this automatically for you, but if it doesn’t please email us and we can help you.

South East QLD and Northern NSW – $35 (QLD to Sydney Harbour Bridge)

Southern NSW – $40 (Southern Sydney to VIC border)

VIC and SA- $45

WA – $50

NZ – $100