Imagine the larger size of the machined plug required to make a curved board. The material between the curvature in the plugs has to be solid.
No it doesn't! dowel it, bolt it together in parts. If machined well, it would need zero touch up work at the seams beyond the polishing that would have to be done regardless. If Uncle Larry can have a Cobra chassis built out of billet aluminum, something simple like a dagger mold can't be that bad, (size wise). And have a billet aluminum chassis that can hole up to a 600hp side oiler.
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Rigidity is also quite important in any mold and it will require more consideration for the curved item. I wouldn't be surprised if the tooling cost for a curved board wasn't 3 or 4 times the cost of a straight board's tooling not considering the trunk.
The loads can't be that bad. When I bend up laminations for curved parts I do them on particle board molds and I'm putting a huge load on the mold when its getting clamped up. I'm not sure what it actually would be, but 20 pipe clamps cranked on hard is a whole mess of pressure. If particleboard can handle the loads, something stiff like aluminum, not being loaded up at all during layup should be fine. And if it is an issue, bolt or weld some bracing to it then bolt or weld it to a stand.
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OK, so floating isn't THAT special...but a board that can lift a 360lb boat and two sailors while under sailing load and still be light enough to easily float in water is pretty cool.
That is cool. Especially when other boards (all manufactures) have had issues with normal boards breaking.
Karl, I dont understand why a ferrari costs more than a hyundai, I mean they both have 4 wheels and an engine...
And let me assure you that its not possible to have a flat pack mould that bolts together... next we will have Ikea doing them!
Sure, its possible to build a curved board in your backyard, but to do a production quality run with repeatability, control and warranty is not such an easy task.
Look at it this way: If it was so easy then why isn't everyone out there doing it?
