Short-oil alkyd resins were prepared by using five different oil types: corn oil, rice bran oil, sunflower oil, soya bean oil and dehydrated castor oil (DCO). Among these, soya bean oil gave alkyd resin with the darkest color because oxidation occurred. Auto air-dried coating films were developed and it was shown that film prepared from rice bran oil-based alkyd exhibited the longest drying time due to the low number of double bonds compared to other and the extra natural antioxidant in rice bran oil. DCO alkyd-based film revealed the shortest drying time, the greatest hardness but the poorest alkali and sea-water resistance. This is caused by the differences in the type of fatty acid and double bonds, the high amount of double bonds being in DCO. In addition, an increase in the reaction temperature only had an influence on darkening the alkyd color and decreasing the drying time of coating films. In terms of technical properties and cost competitiveness, soya bean oil-based film is the best. Coating films derived from all oil-based alkyds, except DCO, look promising for use in surfboard manufacturing.