here is a another one that left bordeaux for the Maldives last monday. Lucky bastard!!!
I like the lookof the board…a lot! I rode a bonzer years ago, back when the concaves were about an inch deep (mine was a Mike Eaton, Bing). It was super fast but I felt I had to wait for it to slow down before I could cut back. Please let us know how these modern boards work. My guess is smooth and fast but kind of stiff? More for long drawn out turns?
hi LLilibel !
…was that a three fin Bing you had ?
My guess is that with narrower , thinner boards , a bit more rocker , thinner foils, MUCH shallower double concaves , and four smaller runners , that the modern bonzer is not as stiff as the originals.
look mate, i’m actually not riding them, i glassed them.
For what i know, i’ve met people with eaton bonzer saying just what you said. For the modern now, it’s totally different. They are still super fast but very controlable. My mate, the shaper of those, rides a 6’2 just like this one, turns off the lip without loose of energy. His round cut back look smooth but goes faster than a regular thruster. And last week, he got a barrel just in front of me, got fully covered and because of the natural speed of the board got out like a rocketship. Sounds like modern bonzers are better than regular thrusters. Now it’s the people that decide. Already in the seventies, surfers would say that. But surfing industry is still kinda conservative and close minded.
There is one thing important on the other hand, bonzers don’t suffer mediocrity. They have to be crafted by shapers that know exactly what they do. Fins position is crucial, you must find out the center fin position yourself, and of course the concaves must not be “kinda like that”.
Mine is on the go, and i can’t wait to start glassing it…