How to Make an Alaia or Paipo Bellyboard from Paulownia Timber

The history of the alaia, the makers who revived it, and two ways to build your own: laminated 2mm Paulownia sheets or a traditional solid Paulownia alaia blank.

Paulownia Timber Supplies Australia. Version 1, October 2026. General information only.

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The alaia is a thin, finless wooden surfboard that Hawaiians rode for centuries. It almost disappeared in the 20th century, then came back after 2004 thanks to lightweight, plantation-grown Paulownia timber. Today there are two practical ways to make a Paulownia alaia at home:

  • Laminated paipo bellyboard or alaia: glue four 2mm Paulownia sheets together over a curved form, pressing in the rocker as the glue cures. The finished board is about 8.5 to 9mm thick. Most builders use this method for paipo-sized bellyboards; a full-length alaia uses the same method with extra layers.

  • Traditional solid alaia: shape a solid (edge-glued) Paulownia alaia blank about 20 to 25mm thick with planes and sanders, then finish it with oil.

Both make a light, flexible, fast board that is challenging and rewarding to ride. The main difference is the tooling: a solid blank needs planes and patience, while a laminate needs a simple form, a vacuum bag and careful gluing.

A short history of the alaia surfboard

The board of the people in ancient Hawaiʻi

Ancient Hawaiian surfers used several types of papa heʻe nalu (wave-sliding board). Short boards of about 1m were ridden lying down, often by children. The alaia, about 2 to 4m long, was ridden standing in all kinds of waves. Longer boards, the kikoʻo and the very long, thick olo, were used in bigger surf, and the olo is traditionally associated with the aliʻi (chiefs). Popular histories often say the olo was reserved for royalty under penalty of death, but early accounts are more mixed, and some historians argue the strictest rules applied mainly to boards made from scarce wiliwili timber. The alaia, by contrast, is described as the board ridden by people of every rank.

Traditional alaias were carved from koa, ʻulu (breadfruit) or the very light wiliwili. They had a rounded nose, a square tail and no fins, and relied on sharp rail edges to grip the wave face. A breadfruit alaia held at the Bishop Museum in Honolulu measures about 12ft long, 20in wide and 1½in thick at the centre, and the museum also holds a board of about 7ft 4in thought to have belonged to Princess Kaʻiulani.

How Hawaiians made alaia boards

The best-recorded account of traditional board making comes from Kona and was published in 1896. Before felling the tree, the maker placed a red kumu fish at its roots as an offering. The board was roughed out with a stone adze, smoothed with coral and stone, and stained with ti root or pounded kukui bark, with burnt kukui-nut root giving a glossy black finish. After surfing, boards were dried in the sun, rubbed with coconut oil, wrapped in kapa (bark cloth) and hung indoors. Oiling and careful drying are traditions that today's oiled Paulownia alaias carry on directly.

Decline and the move to fins and foam

Surfing declined sharply in Hawaiʻi during the 1800s as disease, colonisation and missionary disapproval reshaped Hawaiian society. When surfing revived at Waikīkī in the early 1900s, board design moved towards longer, heavier boards. Tom Blake studied the Bishop Museum boards from 1926, went on to patent a hollow board in 1932 and added a fin in 1935, and boards then moved through balsa to foam and fibreglass. The thin, finless alaia dropped out of everyday use.

The modern alaia revival: Paulownia from Noosa

The modern alaia revival began in Australia. Noosa shaper Tom Wegener, introduced to Paulownia by a local grower, measured the traditional boards at the Bishop Museum in 2004 and began making Paulownia alaias. Professional surfers began testing them around 2006, starting with Jacob Stuth, with Dan Malloy, Dave Rastovich, Chris Del Moro and Harrison Roach also giving design feedback. Surfing magazine named Wegener its 2009 Shaper of the Year.

The film that brought the alaia to a worldwide audience was Thomas Campbell's The Present, which premiered in Santa Barbara in March 2009 and featured riders including Malloy, Rastovich and Rob Machado. (Campbell's earlier film Sprout, from 2004, is sometimes named as the alaia film, but it features other craft.) In California, Jon Wegener of Encinitas began shaping alaias in 2006, and they made up most of his business between 2008 and 2010. Since then, Paulownia has become the standard timber for alaias worldwide because it is light, stable, glues and finishes well, and is usually finished with oil rather than fibreglass.

Who makes alaias and Paulownia boards today?

Today's makers fall into two groups that match the two build methods in this guide.

Solid Paulownia alaias are the classic form. In New South Wales, Ocean Playgrounds on the mid-north coast makes traditional-style Paulownia alaias, including a 6ft round-tail with twin bottom channels, and on the Gold Coast, Maywood in Burleigh Heads builds alaias from Paulownia and reclaimed Australian cedar. Overseas, makers range from small shapers such as ALONG in San Diego (a 6'0" x 17.5" x ¾" Paulownia alaia) to Naish, whose mass-produced Paulownia alaia is 5'9" x 15⅝" x 1" and weighs about 4.1kg.

Laminated Paulownia boards, pressed from thin sheets, are the newer form, and this method is now well established in Australia, especially for bellyboards. Good Surf People, run by cabinetmaker Hugo Austin on Queensland's Sunshine Coast, lists its Classic bellyboards as four 2mm layers (8mm total) at 80 to 120cm long and around 1kg, and its 130cm XL Glide as five layers (about 10mm) for riders over 100kg. Our customers who laminate paipo-sized bellyboards from our 2mm Paulownia sheets include Jason Grant of Woody Bandit in Victoria and Adam Williams in Wandandian, NSW.

Method 1: How to make a laminated paipo bellyboard or alaia from 2mm Paulownia sheets

A laminated alaia gets its stiffness from several thin layers glued together over a curve, much like plywood or a skateboard deck, rather than from thickness. That means it can be thinner and lighter than a solid alaia, and the rocker is built in permanently when the glue cures. Our 2mm Paulownia sheets are 600 x 2400mm, so a full-length alaia layer fits on one sheet, and two bellyboard layers of up to 1200mm come from each sheet.

Most people who laminate 2mm Paulownia make paipo-sized bellyboards, about 0.8 to 1.3m long and ridden lying down. This is the proven use of the four-layer method: commercial four-layer bellyboards weigh around 1kg. It is also the best first project, as it needs a short form and only half a sheet per layer. A full-length stand-up alaia is built the same way, scaled up with extra layers; the layups below are reasoned starting points for that, so make a test panel first and adjust to suit your weight and waves.

Paipo bellyboard starting sizes

  • Kids and small adults: about 800 to 1000mm long, four layers.

  • Most adults: about 1000 to 1200mm long and 350 to 450mm wide, four layers. Two layers come from each 2400mm sheet, so two sheets make a board.

  • Riders over about 100kg: about 1300mm long, five layers (about 10.5mm).

What you need

  • Four (or five) 2mm Paulownia sheets, plus a 4mm or 6mm Paulownia sheet if you want a thicker centre

  • Waterproof glue: single-part polyurethane (PU) glue, or a marine epoxy such as Bote-Cote or West System with a gluing filler

  • A vacuum bag and pump (with release film and breather cloth) and a simple rocker form: MDF or plywood ribs on a straight base, covered with a thin flexible skin and packing tape

  • Glue roller or notched spreader, gloves, eye protection and a respirator

  • Jigsaw or router with a half-template, sanding blocks, random-orbit sander

  • Your chosen finish: oil, marine or water-based varnish, or epoxy (with optional light fibreglass cloth)

Step 1: Choose your layup

Four 2mm sheets and three glue lines finish at about 8.5 to 9mm. The thinner the board, the more it flexes and the less it floats, so add layers as board length and rider weight increase. Starting points (deck to bottom):

  • 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 (about 8.5–9mm): bellyboards and prone boards up to about 1.4m, and short stand-up alaias for lighter riders (roughly under 75kg) in small surf. The most flex.

  • 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 (about 10.5–11mm): riders of about 75 to 100kg and boards of 1.6m and longer.

  • 2 + 4 + 2 or 2 + 6 + 2 (about 8.5–10.5mm): fewer glue lines and a stiffer centre, but harder to bend and more springback.

  • 2 + 4 + 4 + 2 or 2 + 2 + 6 + 2 + 2 (about 12.5–15mm): heavier riders or bigger waves; closer to the stiffness and float of a solid alaia.

You can also add short "doubler" layers under the middle of the board that stop short of the rails and ends. This copies the thick-centre, thin-edge foil of a traditional alaia. Before committing to a full board, glue up a small offcut panel of your chosen layup and flex it to feel the stiffness.

Step 2: Plan the grain and joints

Run every layer lengthwise along the board. This gives the most spring from nose to tail and uses each 2400mm sheet in one piece. Our sheets are edge-glued from strips, so stagger the strip joints from layer to layer so no joint runs straight through the whole board. Put your cleanest, best-looking sheets on the deck and bottom; small, sound knots are fine in the inner layers.

Step 3: Build a rocker form

A 9mm laminate is too thin to plane rocker into, so the curve is pressed in. Cut MDF or plywood ribs to your rocker curve, fix them along a straight, rigid base, and cover the top with a thin flexible skin and packing tape or plastic so the glue won't stick. Make the form a little longer and wider than the board. Many traditional alaias are almost flat; a gentle nose lift of about 40 to 70mm over the front 400 to 600mm, with a near-flat tail, is a sensible start. A shallow tail concave can be built into the form if you want one.

Allow for springback. A laminate relaxes slightly when it comes off the form. A common rule of thumb is that it springs back by about the bend divided by the number of layers squared, so a four-layer board loses about a sixteenth of its curve. For a 60mm nose lift, set the form at about 64mm or a little more. More, thinner layers hold a curve better than fewer, thicker ones.

Step 4: Glue and vacuum bag

Do a dry run first so you know the order and have everything within reach, because glue starts curing quickly.

  • Polyurethane glue stays a little flexible, which many board makers prefer for a lively, split-resistant board. It cures with moisture and foams slightly, so lightly mist very dry timber, apply an even coat, press firmly and evenly, and clean up squeeze-out before it hardens.

  • Marine epoxy gives a stiffer glue line that holds rocker well and matches an epoxy seal or glass finish. Mix accurately and coat both faces; leave some glue in the joint rather than squeezing it all out.

  • Avoid interior PVA glues. Even "waterproof" PVAs are not suited to timber that will be soaked for hours at a time.

Stack the layers on the form, cover with release film and breather cloth, seal the bag and pull the vacuum. Vacuum bagging over a simple form is the best way to press a laminated board. PU glue foams as it cures, and clamps and cauls rarely hold even pressure over the whole board, so the foam pushes the layers apart and leaves gaps and soft spots. The bag presses the whole board evenly until the glue has set. Leave it under vacuum for the glue's full cure time.

Step 5: Cut the outline

Once fully cured, mark the outline with a half-template flipped about a centreline, then cut it with a jigsaw, router and template, or CNC. Do-it-yourself stand-up alaias usually sit around 6'0" to 6'6" long and 15 to 17in wide. A laminate floats less than a solid blank, so for a 70 to 80kg adult a laminated first board of about 1800 to 2000mm long and 430 to 480mm wide is a reasonable start.

Step 6: Shape the rails

There is little thickness to work with, so keep it simple: a small radius on the deck edge and a sharper, lightly bevelled bottom edge, especially through the tail, where the rail grips the wave. Sand through to 180 to 240 grit. The rails expose every glue line, so seal them more thoroughly than any other part of the board.

Step 7: Finish the board

  • Oil (tung oil, or raw linseed oil thinned with turpentine) is the lightest and most traditional finish, but it needs regular re-oiling and leaves glue lines more exposed.

  • Marine or water-based varnish, built up in several thin coats on dust-free timber, gives tougher protection with little added weight.

  • Epoxy, with optional light fibreglass (two to three coats, the first thinned, with 2 to 4oz cloth if wanted) seals every glue line and adds cross-grain strength. It adds weight and stiffness and needs a UV-resistant varnish topcoat.

As a guide, Paulownia weighs about 280kg/m³, so a 1900 x 450mm board at 8mm contains roughly 1.4kg of timber before glue and finish. Expect a finished laminated alaia of about 2 to 3kg.

Method 2: How to shape a traditional alaia from a solid Paulownia blank

This is the way alaias have been made for centuries: start with a solid plank and carve the shape, foil and rails by hand. Our Paulownia alaia blanks give you a flat, ready-to-shape starting plank. Paulownia is ideal: it is light (about 280kg/m³), very easy to plane and shape, stable, and takes oil well. It is a soft timber that is not naturally durable, so a good sealing finish and proper drying and storage are essential.

What you need

  • A Paulownia alaia blank about 20 to 25mm thick (contact us for current sizes and prices)

  • Hardboard or MDF for a half-template, a long straightedge and callipers

  • Jigsaw, a sharp block plane or jack plane, a spokeshave, and an electric planer for bulk removal if you have one

  • Random-orbit sander, sanding blocks, and sandpaper from 80 to 240 grit

  • Oil (tung oil or raw linseed oil and pure gum turpentine) and lint-free rags

  • Dust extraction, a P2 respirator, eye and hearing protection

Step 1: Choose your size

There is no standard sizing chart for alaias; these are starting points based on builders' reports:

  • First stand-up board (about 70–80kg rider): 1.7 to 2.0m (5'6"–6'6") long, 38 to 43cm (15–17in) wide, tail 36 to 38cm, 16 to 20mm thick in the centre.

  • Heavier or less agile rider: the longer, wider end of the range, 43 to 46cm wide and 19 to 22mm thick.

  • Prone-first beginner: 1.4 to 1.7m long, 38 to 43cm wide, 15 to 18mm thick.

Boards much narrower than about 30cm are very hard to stand on, and extra length adds weight faster than it adds useful float. Choose clear, straight grain, particularly through the nose.

Step 2: Mark and cut the outline

Check the blank is flat and draw a centreline. Make a half-template of your outline, trace it on both sides of the centreline, and cut 2 to 3mm outside the line with a jigsaw. Fair back to the line with a spokeshave or sanding block. Work carefully: you can always take more off, but you can't put timber back. If the blank has a slight bow, set it so the deck crowns up.

Step 3: Plane the foil

Mark target thicknesses around the edges and plane the board so it is thickest through the middle and thins gradually towards the nose, tail and rails. Check often with callipers and a straightedge. A sharp hand plane does much of this work on Paulownia, and planing creates less fine dust than sanding. Many alaias have no rocker and rely on flex; you can plane a slight lift into the bottom of the nose if you like. Avoid a rounded "belly" across the nose bottom, which tends to lift the nose up the wave face.

Step 4: Shape the bottom

Keep your first board's bottom flat. Once you are catching waves and trimming well, a second board can have a single concave about a third of the board's width, running from the tail two-thirds of the way up and fading out in the front third, around 6 to 8mm deep. Parallel channels are another option for extra grip. Cut either with a round-sole plane, a shaped sanding block or a router with a core-box bit and guide.

Step 5: Shape the rails

Alaia rails are thin, with a sharp bottom edge and a rounded top. Mark a line around the rail just above the middle, bevel the deck edge down to it, then bring the bottom edge up slightly, keeping it crisp. Keep the deck bevel narrow (under about 5cm), as a wide bevel can leave thin "wings" at the tail. Hand-sand the rails and nose, sand the whole board to 180 to 240 grit, wipe with a damp cloth to raise the grain, then give it a final light sand.

Step 6: Oil the board

Oil is the traditional finish. Two well-proven options:

  • Raw linseed oil and gum turpentine: a first coat of about two-thirds turpentine to one-third oil, left for 24 hours, then three half-and-half coats over about two days.

  • Tung oil: three to four coats, one side at a time, wiping off the excess after 15 to 20 minutes and letting each coat dry.

Give the end grain at the nose and tail extra coats. Re-oil after the first few sessions, then whenever the timber looks dry or furry. For a tougher, lower-maintenance finish, seal with epoxy and topcoat with marine varnish instead (harder to touch up than oil).

Looking after your alaia

  • Rinse in fresh water after every surf and dry the board out of direct sun.

  • Store it indoors, out of the rain. Oiled Paulownia left damp will eventually go mouldy.

  • Re-oil or touch up the finish as soon as the timber looks dry, and seal any dings promptly: sand, fill if needed, and re-coat.

Safety

  • Wood dust can cause skin and breathing problems. Plane rather than sand where you can, use dust extraction, clean up with a HEPA vacuum or damp cloth rather than compressed air, and wear at least a P1 respirator (P2 recommended).

  • Epoxy and PU glues can cause skin sensitisation. Wear gloves and eye protection, work with good ventilation, never sand partly cured epoxy, and never clean resin off skin with solvents.

  • Oily rags can catch fire on their own as linseed and tung oils dry. Lay rags flat outdoors to dry or soak them in water before disposal.

  • Riding: alaias are fast and unforgiving. Start lying down with swim fins in small, clean waves before trying to stand.

Buy Paulownia for your alaia

We supply plantation-grown Paulownia for board builders all over Australia, from our workshop in Hornsby, NSW:

  • 2mm Paulownia sheets, 600 x 2400mm, edge-glued with waterproof polyurethane adhesive, ideal for laminated alaias, bellyboards and handplanes

  • 4mm and 6mm Paulownia sheets for thicker cores and stiffer layups

  • Paulownia alaia blanks for traditional solid alaias

See our prices or send us a quote request. More free guides, including a solid-blank shaping guide and a laminated paipo guide, are on our downloads page. If you build an alaia from our timber, we would love to see it: email photos to info@paulowniatimber.com.au.

Sources and further reading

This guide is general information only. Dimensions and layups are starting points; test and adjust them for your own weight, skill and waves. Paulownia Timber Supplies Australia is operated by Sine Surf Pty Ltd (ABN 24 655 648 374), Hornsby NSW.