Learning the Craft

How do you learn to shape and glass a surf board?

I took the overly academic approach and did a ton of reading before starting. That lead me to almost bail on the whole project: For instance, I read on Swaylocks.com about a nasty incident of acute dermatitis from epoxy and fiberglass exposure... The warning labels for the chemicals used are several pages long... Carcinogenic ingredients in resins... Catalyst can cause blindness... Respirator required... The list goes on and on. In the end, what swayed me was the safety list in the book "Essential Surfing" by Gorge Obelian. The last item on the list, item 12, reads in capital letters: "Don't let all these safety requirements scare you out of working with fiberglass materials and resins. The experience can be rewarding if you are careful."

So I told myself to go ahead.