The first step in making a surfboard is getting the foam for inside of it. This is also called a blank.

Blanks come in many sizes, from five feet nine inches to thirteen feet tall. There are 40-50 different sizes of blanks and each one is made from it's own individual mold.

Molds are used to shape the foam into the shape of a surfboard. Most molds are made out of cement, and liquid foam is poared into it. It takes one to two hours for the foam to harden. Once the foam has hardened, the blank is taken out of the mold and then put into an oven to harden it.

The average cost of a blank ranges anywhere from $20 - $100. However, some blanks can go up to $800. Each price depends on how long it is and how much wood is used. Wood in a board is called a stringer. Stringers are placed in the middle of the board from the tip of the nose to the tail. This is done by cutting the board in half after it is taken out of the oven and cooled. Then the two pieces of the blank are glued to the stringer. Finally the stringer is sanded to fit the blank. Most boards have just one stringer although some may have up to four stringers depending on the board's use.

The more stringers you have in your board, the stronger your board will be, but stronger is not always better. It all depends on the size of the waves that you want to ride. For small waves you want to use a smaller, lighter board to move around the wave easier. For large waves, you want a slightly larger, heavier board so that it can handle the larger waves so that it doesn't crack.

Stringers can be made of just about any wood you can think of but most are made of bass, mahogany, redwood, rosewood, mango, or spruce wood. Bass wood is easier to shape and lets your board flex on large waves. Spruce wood is stronger, but does not allow your board to slightly bend or flex.

Once the stringer is put in it is inspected and then shipped to board making factories or individual shapers where it will become a surfboard.