Meet “Lumicork” – The Aluminium And Cork Wrapped Board

New boards enter the market every week sporting carbon fibre wraps, XPS cores and a surplus of hi-fi materials which promise to revolutionise your day-to-day sled. 

Album Surf recently appeared on our screens via the Instagram of the freshly retired Mr Josh Kerr, throwing tail on a board which more than sparked our inventive eyes.

Yes, we’ve seen cork adorned boards before. They pop up every now and again and perpetually grab the eyes of those trapped in the PU prison. In reality, cork on a surfboard is nothing new in the technological age. 

Here’s Mason Ho atop a cork decked …Lost.

But Kerrzy’s first surf on Album Surf’s latest number had something special, and as it turns out, there’s a little surprise underneath. Specifically, the board is constructed on an aluminium slick. Probably don’t whip out the al-foil on your old faithful just yet – there’s more than meets the metallic shine in this stick. 

This cork x aluminium collaboration had our interests piqued, so we hit up both Kerrzy and the guys at Album Surf for further details about the boards construction, performance and of course, how it rides:

The cork rail wrapping process

Photography

Album Surf

“It has an EPS core and then a layer of fiberglass & epoxy resin, it’s vacuum sealed with a cork wrapped deck and rails with an aluminium bottom. There’s no sanding involved and therefore no fiberglass exposed” – Matt Parker from Album Surf told Stab.

“We’re calling it the ‘Lumicork’”. 

“The method was developed and patented by a couple of industrial designers and engineers in Italy who love to surf. We met up this past summer when they were visiting in CA and thought it would be rad to collab on some boards, so they came back and spent the last month staying in Oceanside working out of our factory”.

Not only does the Lumicork bring a spark to your usually plain-white stick, but it’s also potentially – albeit slightly – more beneficial to the environment.

“Cork is a pretty ubiquitous and sustainable material. I’ve seen it used with boards before, but I don’t think anyone has done it the way these boards are done, fully wrapping the rails in cork and then using really thin aluminium underneath as the base – which can be produced from recycled resources as well.”

It may not be much, but even reducing a fraction of the fibreglass offcuts which go into non-recyclable waste is a benefit. 

There’s no sanding involved here

Photography

Album Surf

The board Kerrzy is currently riding in Mexico is a 5’4”, with a quad-fin set-up for that added down-the-line spice. 

“It’s feels like it has an extra gear than most boards I ride. The board already has a great fun shape to it, but seems to react really fast.” said Kerrzy about his newest quiver addition.

The aluminum slick and cork wrapped rails aren’t merely for added aesthetic or promoting the eco-life; as it turns out, they have added performance bonuses too. 

“The aluminum is uniquely slippery in the water – it feels so slick when wet – this extra scoot is really noticeable the first time you surf one; the cork combo’d with the EPS is a great combination of floatation and dampening.” Matt told Stab about the performance improvements of the construction process. 

The final cork wrapped package.

Photography

Album Surf

Considering Kerrzy isn’t usually a fan of alternative foams, there might just be something unique about the cork x aluminium mixture.

“I normally don’t like standard EPS boards but with this tech it’s a bit more stiffer than usually which seems to help stable the board out a lot without losing the spark EPS gives.”

However, there is a slight downside, “I feel a bit like a oversized shark lure riding it!”

Or you could spice things up further with an asymmetrical outline.

Photography

Album Surf

If you’re interested in throwing a little cork under your feet so you Mum can spot you from the sand, or if you’re keen for that little pinch of extra “pop” off the top, then Album Surf have one for sale online right now – but you’ll need to move quick.

It’ll set you back a cool $920 USD, but Matt ensures us that this baby is near impossible to ding. “Great for a crowded day at Lowers, banging rails and whatnot. Can take some serious abuse ha!”