About
Ihlen Surfboards is dedicated to making high quality and educated surfboards.
Over the years I have worked in a couple of surfboard factories as a ghost shaper and I am still an active production shaper at the moment making boards under 5 different labels, excluding my own.
It’s about 20 years down the line now, and I have hand-shaped a good couple of thousand surfboards and scrubbed quite a few.
With my own label, I strive to give customers the same amount of care and attention to detail I would expect if I had to buy a new surfboard. A good board is the sum of everything done the right way.
It may take a little longer than most big manufacturers, but with my experience and industry knowledge, I have been producing boards long enough to know the right way to manufacture a high-quality surfboard.
I have made boards for surfers from all skill levels all around the world, and I shape every kind of surfboard from traditional Logs to high-performance Shortboards.
Most of my board designs are fun, performance-orientated shapes that are easy to surf and have been tried and tested in a wide variety of wave sizes and conditions.
We are not all pros, but at the end of the day we all surf for the same reason.
Website: https://ihlensurfboards.com/
Over the years I have worked in a couple of surfboard factories as a ghost shaper and I am still an active production shaper at the moment making boards under 5 different labels, excluding my own.
It’s about 20 years down the line now, and I have hand-shaped a good couple of thousand surfboards and scrubbed quite a few.
With my own label, I strive to give customers the same amount of care and attention to detail I would expect if I had to buy a new surfboard. A good board is the sum of everything done the right way.
It may take a little longer than most big manufacturers, but with my experience and industry knowledge, I have been producing boards long enough to know the right way to manufacture a high-quality surfboard.
I have made boards for surfers from all skill levels all around the world, and I shape every kind of surfboard from traditional Logs to high-performance Shortboards.
Most of my board designs are fun, performance-orientated shapes that are easy to surf and have been tried and tested in a wide variety of wave sizes and conditions.
We are not all pros, but at the end of the day we all surf for the same reason.
Website: https://ihlensurfboards.com/
Ian Ihlenfeldt
South Africa
PERSONAL STORY:
I made my first surfboard when I was 15 and never looked back.
There is no greater time to be a surfer than now. We have so much freedom and variety regarding the boards we can choose from, which keeps things fresh and exciting. I personally think that as a shaper, you have to be able to combine working with your planer and using the technology of today. This allows you to be both creative and versatile.
There is no greater time to be a surfer than now. We have so much freedom and variety regarding the boards we can choose from, which keeps things fresh and exciting. I personally think that as a shaper, you have to be able to combine working with your planer and using the technology of today. This allows you to be both creative and versatile.
AGE:
41
STARTED SURFING:
1995
STARTED SHAPING:
1997
FULL TIME SHAPER?:
Yes
SHAPING INSPIRATION:
I've read a book called Surfing in South Africa, at the end there was a section about fixing and making boards, that was the start for my shaping.
BOARDS SHAPED:
>1000
SHAPING STYLE:
I design all my models in 3D and finish them by hand
DOES OWN GLASSING?:
Yes
FAVORITE MATERIAL:
PU
NATIONALITY:
South Africa