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[sick pigeon]

as a newbie - first off thanks for the overload of information, inspiration and innovation enticing me to make my move from the straight eps-e glass-epoxy-enviro into a more customizable method.

I am very anxious to attempt my first compsand which will be a layup of 3mil Balsa over 1# foam with 5# rails basically as an experiment familiarize myself with the process.

But my main question arises from the fact that it appears most composite boards are being designed to mimic the rocker of traditional boards albeit more flex and additional components to provide snap back, but shouldn't the rocker be relaxed by introducing camber and letting the sandwich develop resistance under both static and dynamic loading?

How effective is camber design in maximizing spring from the boards skin and core? 

SP

[dougirwin13]

It depends on how much flex you have in your compsand.

If it's stiff then go with a traditional rocker.
If it's quite flexy conventional wisdom is to slightly flatten the rocker.

Welcome aboard and... Apologies it's so quiet around here of late

[norwester]

I agree. Traditional rocker is the best way to go for an all wood thicker build up (stiffer).  When you start introducing high density foam into the skins and rails and thin the profile out you will definitely notice increased flex, which may warrant a flatter rocker to compensate.  It's all trial and error.