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Surfboard bag install

874 Views 8 Replies 4 Participants Last post by  Hein
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Recently I rebuilt my bed platform, adding 3" of height to my garage at the expense of 2" above. Next step was to hang my surfboard bags, but the recycled windsurf and wakeboard bags I was using weren't ideal. My new platform is ~6'x6' and I came across this 5'10 surfboard bag (which is exactly 6' long), and it even has useful pockets for fins and such.
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The bag is hung from the ribs using fender washers to prevent tear-out. The loop on the nose provided a convenient starting point to align the bag, and the nose section can be taught, starting with a center screw. The nose section is harder to reach, and the spread of the screws needs to leave enough slack to accommodate your specific board thickness.
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My bed platform has four ribs (spaced 2' apart), but I have a quad kitesurf board that I want to leave straps and fins on, so there needed to be some slack between the second and third rib for the straps, and the bag design handles leaving the fins on.
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Three 1 1/4" screws with fender washers should suffice, with the outside ones spaced for the board thickness, but the bag may stretch out over time.
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The main problem to watch out for is putting too much pressure on the zipper, so the tail attachment needs to allow slack and distribute pressure.
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Finally, to help alleviate zipper stress and to pull less-frequently used boards out of the way (this one's now holding my Slingshot Converter, used for light wind and kitefoiling), I added brackets and a strap:
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Note: if you're wondering where I got those brackets for the straps, they came with the Professional's Choice Horse Trailer Caddy that I installed on my driver side rear door as well as two of the half-height version on my interior wall. I haven't found a source for them otherwise, but they sure beat using eye rings, especially for wider straps.
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Pretty jealous your board fit under the bed. I only surf on SUP(6'-8') so mine are sticking out under the bed. Recently got into SUP foiling, now my setup pretty much take over the whole under storage area.
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Pretty jealous your board fit under the bed. I only surf on SUP(6'-8') so mine are sticking out under the bed. Recently got into SUP foiling, now my setup pretty much take over the whole under storage area.
My race board is 11'6" and yet another reason I had to do away with the bulky 'T' pillar in my 1st-gen platform. For SUP and windsurf (and to learn wing) foiling, I am using the 7'8" SIC Marlin, which I can now stand on rail under this new design, secured by the plastic boxes I store harness, helmet, foil hardware, etc. in. I recently got the Takuma Helium 1750 and am toying with a wall hanger for it (using a garden tools hanger), so I'll post those pics here too.

Oh, and the windsurf board bag I previously cut short to use resulted in an open nose that I was able to hang a longboard in (like a sling), but it was way too heavy-duty and bulky so it was worth upgrading, and I already have a good board travel bag so I wasn't focused on quality.

I have a spare windsurf board bag available now, if anyone wants it (in Hood River).
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I decided to get rid of my surfboard bags as the boards are out of the sun and well protected in the van. I use cam strap loops like we use to secure coolers and dryboxes to the raft frame. Easy to make or buy. The loops will attach to your metal bed struts. I currently have the foil boards together as that's all we've been doing. But, I can easily put the fins on the surfboards and then, I put one foilboard on top of the surfboard on each side. Quick and easy to get them out. I'm lucky in that my longest board is 4'8". I think we're tired of waiting for the water to recede and are heading over to the gorge tomorrow for the summer. Maybe we'll see you there!!
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I think we're tired of waiting for the water to recede and are heading over to the gorge tomorrow for the summer. Maybe we'll see you there!!
Sweet! Big fan of the KISS principle. I hadn't looked at your build thread before but noticed we used a similar approach on the bed platform - wish I'd have done that the first time around.

Dwarfcraft and Firewires?

Will look for you the week after next; pretty sure we've crossed paths before. Reports about the weather and massive current and submerged sandbar were main reasons I held off until the 4th weekend. Safe travels and good winds!
Yeah, 2020 DC micros and Firewires. Good eyes! We've been hanging around at home doing disagreeable yard projects waiting for the water to go down. Gage height at HR is 80.19' this afternoon so I'm guessing the sandbar is about 3' underwater. I'll probably hit 3 mile tomorrow night and foil on Wed (no wind tomorrow). Then, we may just go down to Jones Beach. At least there's a beach. Or the coast. The last report I had from Jones a couple of days ago is that the water is about 12' - 15' higher than normal, to the top of the sand cliff. But, at least there's a beach. We just have to watch for debris!! I may just pull out the surfboard instead of the foils. I'd rather sacrifice some fins rather than a mast or wing!

I couldn't find your build thread. I assume you have a white van, Ca plates. Anything else?
Oregon "Share the Road" plates, two Maxx Air fans at the rear (long story), and a 'Bender' sticker on the slider window. We head north on the 30th but may dwell at Sherman depending on conditions (and crowds). I'm on Lincoln Street once up there (if you see a white extended PM it may be Bjorn's, which is definitely worth checking out if he's around).

Although your trip would be the inverse, for some reason that old Ultronz song about driving to Idaho to find wind popped into my head.

Good luck at 3 Mile! OMG that place can be epic - hope it serves you up!

See ya soon,
-Pete

P.S. Isn't the water situation ironic... too much in some places, not enough elsewhere. :rolleyes:
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Added the second bag last night and another bracket to use the strap across both boards. Had my wife pull it taught while I fastened it, and the bag still stretched enough to accommodate the foot straps and fins on the quad. Was going to move the first bag over some, but it works great to secure the SUP vertically, so I decided to leave 'well enough' alone.
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Added a hanger for the hydrofoil, with trailing edges protected by leftover insulation from @Hein. Was going to add braces for a strap but this particular wing (Takuma Helium 1750) is sitting in there quite snug.
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Look forward to seeing you all in the Gorge and would love to see your vans. I did CAD design and CNC work for Slingshot in the early days (circa Y2K). We helped produce their first kiteboards designed by John Doyle.

All the best,
Hein
DIYvan
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