I can't believe you think no one else is capable of shaping a decent interpretation of the Sea Gypsy. Alternative progressive? Really? I ride boards like this and they ain't progressive. Very firmly retro with a few modern tweaks to make them work better. Personally I think you are kidding yourself if you think Joel Fitzs (or any shaper) boards are touched by magic unobtainable by anyone else. Lots of people do good guns, not just Brewer, and lots of people do good longboards, not just McTavish. Lots of people can do something as good and comparable to the Sea Gypsy.
The cult of personality really annoys me.
Select to expand quotethedrip said..
I can't believe you think no one else is capable of shaping a decent interpretation of the Sea Gypsy. Alternative progressive? Really? I ride boards like this and they ain't progressive. Very firmly retro with a few modern tweaks to make them work better. Personally I think you are kidding yourself if you think Joel Fitzs (or any shaper) boards are touched by magic unobtainable by anyone else. Lots of people do good guns, not just Brewer, and lots of people do good long-boards, not just McTavish. Lots of people can do something as good and comparable to the Sea Gypsy.
The cult of personality really annoys me.
OK ...as annoying as it may be, the point that's being missed here is i quite rightly suggested that people are more than capable of doing an "interpretation" of someone else's design, but it will be that an interpretation the specifics of foam distribution are rarely the same even if shaped by the same person. Machines have made this so much easier in recent times hence the branding of particular models that are shaped under licence to exacting specifications and only by those who have been scrutinized by the original designer and deemed competent to do so. In this case Aku shaper (or similar) will have files and if a more old school method is applied the original designer will supply the templates and pre-cut gauges to get it as damn close as you can, GREAT!
However the as the case's in point, we need to be reminded that the thought of showing a sharper a picture of a board and saying i want that and getting the same thing as to what the original board is, simply not going to happen, not without a lot of luck at least. You can get some thing quite easily that looks the same, hell yeah...but it wont be. Give a good shaper a 3 d picture with cross-sectional detail ( Like a File for Aku shaper, does for example ) and you could get close. This will be an interpretation and that's what i mentioned initially, and an interpretation ain't the same thing, the distribution of foam down the rail line, a hard rail a mid rail or soft and where along the rail this happens are all very critical as are the starting points and depth variations to concave and perhaps the transition from the concave to the Vee. You cant get that stuff from a picture, ask your shaper.
So that's one of my annoying points. 
My second annoying point:
Is that its extremely unlikely that a person who has not designed a particular model, has not spent many hours riding it, feeling it and noticing the subtle changes that are evident with each improvement( which for many even gets down to the fine tuning with the sanding of rails) to the design made through the experience of riding it could possibly understand the board and design... as much as a person who has done all of those things with a complete focus on the development of that design.
So Drip, what is annoying to me is that the science, design and engineering fact's associated with manufacture of surfboards is clearly mistaken as a "cult of personality" for one, but clearly you don't know me from a bar of soap so i guess that's an easy assumption to make, but let me assure you its far from the truth.
Also at no time did i mention that no one could do an interpretation, my point was you would get an "Interpretation"... it just wouldn't be the same.
Draw a straight line without a ruler, then try again to do it exactly the same.- I probably should have just put that off to start with and wouldn't have annoyed anyone,
Sorry 
Trust me, I've been looking far and wide for something like the Sea Gypsy, My local shaper who is bloody good and good mate, can only promise me something similar, there's a few that on first impression look similar, yet are completely different boards. I'm not being factious when i ask this as i generally am interested in this style of board concept, so could you please point me in the right direction as to something that is as good or comparable that's available in WA? And again that's a genuine "Please Help"
Select to expand quotethedrip said..
Nah. There's none. You'll need to get a Sea Gypsy.
Haha! Gold ,Well played, love it. 
Touche!
