$$$

[supthecreek]

SUPsideATX said:
"In addition, when do celebrity shapers start adding to the total cost of the product? Seems like all major brands MARKET their shapers with board.

Do I care about these celebrity shapers? "

I can't speak to raceboards but when talking about a quality Surf SUP, the shaper is the single most important factor.

Shaping boards is easy, heck, anyone can pick up a power plane and mow foam.... I have made surfboards that looked just fine.

BUT.... the very best boards are shaped by the masters...
A truly world class shaper stands head and shoulders above the rest.

The total understanding of why surf SUPs work, and the best combination of rocker, foils, rail line, flex etc, is where the rare shaper stands out and makes a board that is in a whole different class.

The boards they design become timeless wonders and those shapers are revered for their gift.

The great part of the addition of C.A.D. to the mix is, a shaper can take a really good design and tweek it in micro bits, for different riders and conditions.


So.... yeah, IMO.... if you want a board that really works better, the shaper is the key factor.

[PonoBill]

Agreed STC. Shaping a board is tremendously subtle. I think that's an aspect of boards that gets easily lost. There are LOTS of shapers, but only a few real masters. Formula One cars rise and fall on the basis of their aero. Billions of dollars spent pushing cars through a thin medium. A millimeter of change on one end gets reflected all the way through to the other. It's a game of almost  undetectable differences.

Now move to water, which is a thousand times more dense.  You have a board shaped by Wally, who thinks single concave in the front, V in the tail is going to make a noserider because he read that on swaylocks. And then you have the real deal.

If you can't tell the difference, then buy cheap. If you can, then cheap is pointless.

And no. that doesn't apply only to surfing. You can take two race or downwind boards that look a lot alike, then paddle them. One does everything you ask it to, the other is a log.

What's interesting to me is how the human eye and brain can gather up all these millimeter-size cues and appreciate a fine design. Years ago I listened to a designer who worked for Pinninfarina talk about car design. He spoke about the language of brands, and how the tiniest change in body shape was reflected all across the entire car. Add a little width along the centerline and a Ferrari no longer looks like a Ferrari. He had drawings that showed tiny changes that transformed cars from elegant forms to ugly busses. A tweak in the nose translates into a fat ass. The differences were immediately obvious. When I look at a modern Corvette I can see how much the designers want it to look like a Ferrari--and how badly it misses the mark.

[beached]

there is another underlying factor as to why prices are going up extremely fast on everything...central banks around the globe are flooding us with money to keep the markets high. more money in circulation, less value per dollar (or whatever the unit is). so spending $3k on a board today is like spending $2k on a board a few years ago. but you say your salaries haven't gone up that much?! yeah, that's the real bummer. when the govt/banks are 'creating money' only the first people in line get any benefit; by the time it gets to the average joe, everything already costs more so at best it's a wash. but Harry Hedgefund likes it.

sorry for the tangent into economics 101, but it didn't seem to be addressed above and we probably shouldn't be putting so much blame on the SUP business/distribution model.

[Bean]

Beached, what countries are you speaking about? 

I would not say we are experiencing greater than average inflation in the US.

[mrbig]

Feel blessed to have ridden boards shaped by Pat Rawson, Dave Daum, and Ed Angulo.

My special needs led me  down the custom path and am grateful to have worked with three master craftsmen!