Check out some of Jim's original resin art at jimhannanart.com
Maritime Surf _custom board shaper_Jim Hannan
Growing up on the east coast of Florida in the summer of 1972, I bought a used surfboard with money I made mowing lawns, and that’s when I started a life long love affair with surfing and surfboard craftsmanship.
A few summers later me and a few of my buddies decided to make our first surfboard. We cut down a longboard that we all shared in the summertime, and made a hideous looking short board. But that wasn’t enough. My next endeavour in the art of surfboard building was when I bought a blank (instead of tearing up a classic), and shaped it on my parents back porch. They were ok with the foam dust, but what got them upset was when I glassed the board on the porch, and left a resin ring on the floor, that is still there to this day.
In the late seventies, I started working for Dick Catri, where I was a factory-rat fixing dings, hot-coating, sweeping floors, whatever they needed. After high school I enlisted in the navy, where I was stationed in Groton, Conn. and Portsmouth , NH . When my duty was up, I headed back to Florida and started sub-contracting work from Ricky Carroll. He had me foiling fin sets, hot-coating, and polishing boards, and although I loved my job I still wanted to travel, and ended up living in the Bahamas for the next 10 years.
Upon my return to Florida I was very fortunate to learn Ricky had started his own, top notch surfboard manufacturing facility (R&D Surf) and was gracious enough to give me another opportunity to do what I love. For this I’m eternally grateful. My first eight years with R&D was spent glassing, airbrushing and doing whatever was needed to get the boards on the road. The past 8 years have been spent in the shaping dept; fine sanding for world class shaper Ricky Carroll. During this time I have also been fine sanding for Donald Takayama, and am lucky enough to learn from shapers like Chris Birch and Tommy Maus.
Over the last few years I have been shaping boards for family, friends and I am very stoked to be shaping custom boards for Maritime surf... I was twelve years old when I rode my first wave, and my passion for surfing is just as strong now as it was back then.
A few summers later me and a few of my buddies decided to make our first surfboard. We cut down a longboard that we all shared in the summertime, and made a hideous looking short board. But that wasn’t enough. My next endeavour in the art of surfboard building was when I bought a blank (instead of tearing up a classic), and shaped it on my parents back porch. They were ok with the foam dust, but what got them upset was when I glassed the board on the porch, and left a resin ring on the floor, that is still there to this day.
In the late seventies, I started working for Dick Catri, where I was a factory-rat fixing dings, hot-coating, sweeping floors, whatever they needed. After high school I enlisted in the navy, where I was stationed in Groton, Conn. and Portsmouth , NH . When my duty was up, I headed back to Florida and started sub-contracting work from Ricky Carroll. He had me foiling fin sets, hot-coating, and polishing boards, and although I loved my job I still wanted to travel, and ended up living in the Bahamas for the next 10 years.
Upon my return to Florida I was very fortunate to learn Ricky had started his own, top notch surfboard manufacturing facility (R&D Surf) and was gracious enough to give me another opportunity to do what I love. For this I’m eternally grateful. My first eight years with R&D was spent glassing, airbrushing and doing whatever was needed to get the boards on the road. The past 8 years have been spent in the shaping dept; fine sanding for world class shaper Ricky Carroll. During this time I have also been fine sanding for Donald Takayama, and am lucky enough to learn from shapers like Chris Birch and Tommy Maus.
Over the last few years I have been shaping boards for family, friends and I am very stoked to be shaping custom boards for Maritime surf... I was twelve years old when I rode my first wave, and my passion for surfing is just as strong now as it was back then.
