paul blacker is one of the uk's top board shapers. he's been cutting, sanding and finishing boards by hand for more than 35 years. machine buzzes. in that time, he estimates he has crafted around 5,000 boards. i'll take you down to where the process all starts now. and that is in the shaping room. making them by hand doesn't mean the materials he has to work with are any better for the environment. so what is this made of? this is the polyurethane foam that is made from. to get it smooth like that, it starts off as a core so we cut around the outside, and then with the planer... machine buzzes. oh, my god, it's right in my eyes... if it gets in your eyes, it's really bad. and you can see all the dust. and that's polyurethane, it's not a great material