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The First And Only World-Wide All Online Vintage Surfboard Auction
www.USVintageSur
Shaper Spotlight: Todd Proctor
By Erynn Im
The evolution of Todd Proctor begins as the story of a skinny young boy who tagged along with his older friends to the beach. He was the grom who wasn’t so hot on the waves, and the older boys weren’t afraid to tease his lack of skill. Then one day, his neighbor let Todd try one of his boards, and all of a sudden he was surfing, surfing well. That’s when he realized that there’s something about surfboards that really affects how one surfs. At the age of 33, Todd now leads a life dedicated to helping others find their magic boards as a successful shaper with his own label, who’s laughing now?
Todd first learned how to shape from a book he checked out from the public library, titled How to Build a Surfboard. It was an old green book from the ‘70s that outlined the most elementary basics. Todd had been watching shapers for years and asking them questions, but most were always hesitant to share all their knowledge with him. He laughs now at his first steps in becoming the shaper he is today.
He took his first four shapes that he ever made to McCrystals in Oxnard to get them glassed. Though he was a little embarrassed, he was surprised by how impressed Casey McCrystal himself was. He was immediately offered a job and a couple years later, he was working alongside one of the shapers for the company Lost in San Clemente, handshaping boards for pro’s in his own shaping room. “I got feedback from the best surfers in the world…that kind of thing is priceless,” said Todd. He was gaining experience shaping a lot of different types and styles of boards. But in the back of his mind, the Central Coast was calling him, and soon enough, he realized that he had enough of a reputation to start his own line. His move to begin his own label was carefully calculated, and with the experience he gained from the industry thus far in his career, he began Proctor Surfboards in Ventura.
Customization is the key to Proctor’s success in the business. Every board that Proctor makes is as unique as the surfer riding it; the board has its own living, thriving soul. This is because Proctor takes the time to talk to each of his customers to assess and achieve each of their personal needs, whether they be professional surfers or retired businessmen who want a new hobby; there is no discrimination. Just like his neighbor who equipped him with the right board years ago, Proctor wants each of his customers to have the best board possible for the kind of surfing that they want to achieve. “It’s not like basketball where you just use any basketball,” Proctor said about surfing. “Boards are such an individual thing, it can make a huge difference what type you use.”
Proctor’s commitment to the most advanced technology and his state of the art factory allows him to produce his dream of individually specialized boards. When he first started his own label, he had ideas for some kind of computer system that could take any aspect of a board design and accurately customize it. Coincidentally, at this same time, Brazilian shaper Luciano Leao was in the throes of designing a system and machine that would revolutionize the world of shaping forever. Proctor went to Hawaii himself to check out the machine himself and even gave input as to how to improve the system. He was one of the first to own and use this program that allows for customized accuracy. The system records and adjusts the different design features that the board will have, and then sends the information to a machine that mills out the exact measurements. Proctor keeps a huge database of all the boards he’s ever handshaped, and this program can adjust each to the unique needs of his customer. After recording all of the customer’s information, Proctor handpicks the different design aspects from the database to create one, accurate, customized board. All of the customer’s information and their customized designs are then saved onto a disc. The customer can then come back to Proctor and say, “Hey, I really liked this one board, but I’ve gained 20 pounds,” and Proctor can accurately readjust the design but maintain its original functions. “It’s a new frontier in precision and design,” said Proctor. “People know what they’re getting every time.”
The production of his boards is also completely in-house, meaning that everything from the start to finish in making the boards is done within his factory. This insures the very best quality, best technology, and best customer service every step along the way. And unlike many shaping rooms, Proctor’s factory is impeccably clean, from the showroom all the way back to the airbrush room. The factory boasts a special filtering system that filters all the harmful vapors and brings in fresh air into the workplace. He’s just as meticulous with the business aspect of his shaping career as he is with the design.
Honesty and true love for the art of shaping is what keeps Proctor’s factory running and flourishing. With the loving support of his wife, Charissa, the two have created a business built on principles that is sure to stand the test of time. For more information on Proctor and his boards, visit www.proctorsurf.com .
Hello Todd .... nice website .. really like the personal touch you have in creating and selling your boards. I grew surfing here in LA. My work (and serious focus on music) has pulled me out of the water for the last 8 years. I'm finally at place where I have the time and stability to get back.
Generally, with sports, I'm like to push-it ... i.e., I have an aggressive style .. skating, skiing, snow-boarding, surfing, dirt bikes (I've broken a lot of bones). I'm getting up there in the years (37 years old) and I haven't surfed for awhile .. but I imagine my surfing personality will be the same as it was when I was a kid. I'm 6' and about 205 lbs ... most of my boards have been 6'1'' or 6' 3''.
Basically, I want a board that will allow me to find my way back to ripping and grooving ... with the compromise that, at 205, I don't want a board that requires perfect waves to get up to speed (we don't get them often enough up here ) ....
what would you recommend?
Cheers,
Sigi
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Hi Sigi,
I know the perfect board to get you back into it and ripping…..6’8” x 20” x 2 5/8” Groveler IV.p. This is my most versatile performance shortboard design since it generates it’s own speed in small waves, yet holds in and surfs fast and loose in punchier top-to-bottom conditions. The bottom has single-to-inset double concaves which give it a wide open sweet spot….this type of bottom makes it easy to find your footing to get the board to fly. This is a fuller board than what you rode back in the day. More board is what you need for your height and weight and for the transition back. Down the road if you want to drop down you can, but you will probably want to just stay with these dimensions since it has all the responsiveness or a modern high performance board.
I grew up surfing Malibu….we might recognize each other….
Please feel free to ask any other questions you may have.
I know you would be stoked on a magic Proctor custom.
Looking forward to your reply,
Aloha,
Todd
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That sounds great ... as long as you're certain this board will be nice and loose. My first reaction is to be very afraid of a board this long.
I was once talked into buying a 6'8'' Stewart 'shortboard' that I hated b/c it just wanted to go straight .. super stable, great for carving on bigger faster waves but it did not like to snap turns.
I really want a board that feels loose and responsive. I might be wrong, but I don't expect to spend too long getting back into form .. and with the prices being what they are these days ... I'd rather get something that I'm forced to grow into than get something that'll I'll want to trade-out in 6 months.
So ... I won't want to trade this out in 6 months right?
btw ... I didn't surf Malibu much ... I was always on a tiny board ... that didn't float me... losing waves to long boarders ... so, I mainly surfed Zero's, County, and Zuma .. back in the day I mainly surfed boards shaped by Dan Egan (IG surfboards) ... long time ago ...
Cheers,
Sigi
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Hi Sigi,
Ok....so why don’t we go a little shorter to 6’6” x 19 5/8” x 2 5/8”. ....and no you won’t need to swap this board out in six months....very fast, loose and snappy. Guaranteed to huck buckets and bring the stoke back. Would you want to go with polyester, or custom epoxy/ Proxy technology?
Looking forward to your reply,
Aloha,
Todd
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Played B-day Hooky yesterday and when out w/ a borrowed board ... one taste and my addiction is back 100%. So ... how much for this board in the different forms (I don't require any aesthetic anything). I found a basic description of the epoxy/proxy thing on your site but I'm still not clear on what the pros/cons are compared with the poly. Is there more info you can point me to?
Thanks,
Sigi
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Hi Sigi,
Happy Birthday!!... Sounds like it was a good one.
Standard polyesters start at $555.00 and includes fin system and fins. If you go this route I suggest getting two upgrades that will add significant strength and longer life to your board without adding weight or rigidity.....Y2K-uv resin ($20.00) – the highest grade of polyester resin made. It is also light cured so your board is cured when you pick it up. No waiting, just straight into the water. The other upgrade is D-size glass ($14.00) or S-glass ($35.00). These are higher grades of fiberglass than the standard “E” glass that is typically used in the boardbuilding industry.....D-size is stronger, and S-glass is much stronger. Both of these glass upgrades also add strength with adding weight. This gives you the strongest possible polyester board available.
The premium board I make is the Proxy series. This is our unique custom epoxy process refined over the course of the last eight years. These boards are much stronger than any polyester, they are lighter, slightly more buoyant, and they keep that lively “new board” feel under your feet much longer than polyester boards do. The Proxy custom epoxy starts at $715.00 and also includes fin system and fins. If you have the budget for it, I always recommend going with the Proxy technology – the best in both performance and strength.
Well, please feel free to ask any other questions you may have.
I know you would be stoked on a magic Proctor.
Looking forward to your reply,
Aloha,
Todd
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Thanks for the consultation on all of this ... looks like the price difference between the poly w/ upgrades and the proxy is only around 100 bucks .. so, I'll likely go for the proxy.
I'm expecting the final notice on a big research grant I'm getting in 1 or 2 weeks (I'm a scientist) ... the board will be my celebratory reward to myself for getting the grant. I'll email you then and order the board.
cheers,
Sigi