I am going to start an eFoil project this winter - assuming I’m going to do everything wrong I don’t want to drop too much money on the board and foil so I’m seeking a bit of advice…
I come from the eSk8 world so I’m familiar with most of the technology necessary for this project, but I know nothing about water.
Option 1: I have a wakeboard I’m willing to sacrifice. I assume this isn’t bouyant enough for eFoil?
Option 2: It’s not too difficult to get a short (6’) surfboard on Craigslist for about $400. I would then have to get a Foil, which presumably I can get from AliBaba based on thread recommendations here.
Option 3: I happen to live about 4 hours from Hood River, OR, which apparently is the kite surfing capital of the world. I can get a used complete foil setup for just under $1,000.
Lastly, at 200 pounds what length of board should I be looking for?
Also consider this option: Buy an old beat-up windsurfer on craigslist for $100 (you can save that search and they will email you as they are listed). Where I live here in Florida there are quite a few around gathering dust since that sport has fallen out of favor. Windsurf boards tend to be thicker, wider and more buoyant than your other options. That will give you more flotation and a more thickness to cut into if you want to flush-mount electronics, batteries, etc. That what several others have done here and I will likely be doing the same. There are a few linked videos on this forum showing people re-purposing windsurf boards for efoiling.
I bought a windsurfer via Craigslist last night for $45 in remarkably good shape. No sailing rig which of course didn’t matter. Saw another one today for $100 that was literally overgrown with weeds in someone’s backyard. That one had a ridge (spine?) running lengthwise on the bottom - not ideal for mounting a foil base - so I didn’t buy it.
I found out just today that there are swap meets 3 times a year in Hood River and if you go near the end of the day you can often get old boards for free from the vendors who don’t want to bother loading them back up.
So I’m going to find out when the next swap meet is and go down for the day.
I think I’m going to err on the side of excessive bouyancy fir this first round since I’m 200 pounds and I haven’t factored in battery weight yet. And I assume I’ll be doing a lot of paddling back to shore.
In the meantime I’ve got my first model completed for a waterproof remote. I hope to test it out with a brick in the bathtub this weekend.
I’ll start a build log as soon as I have something to write about.
Sorry, I don’t have anything to add, but I got a good chuckle out of - “assuming I’m going to do everything wrong…”. All too familiar. Hope your swap goes well! Make sure you update the post!
Thanks @Jon - I’m going to start a build log fairly soon. I haven’t got much to put in it yet but have been playing around with a design for a waterproof remote so I’ll start with that. It’s currently under a brick in the bathroom sink full of water, so we’ll see how it fares.
Looks perfect! Happy hunting! And I suggest you make yourself a checklist on what to look for. For example, many windsurfers (like the one I bought) have a large box running down the center that houses a retractable daggerboard. That may or may not be in issue. Some (like mine) are super wide and others are very narrow. Etc.
For other folks considering this project; why not build your own from PIR, epoxy and glassfiber. All you need is a saw and sanding machine to shape it. And its hugely satisfying (but messy;) it took me a few days.
The point with second hand boards is that you have to cut and saw anyway, I imagine that this is almost as labor intensive as starting from scratch.
