Best Old School Fish

General Discussion
1

Hey,

I know this is a matter of opinion, but what do you think is the best old school fish on the market today? I’ve been riding a single-fin that I shaped for myself modeled after the Dewey Weber Feather Fastback (the first board I ever shaped), and my craftmanship isn’t really cutting it anymore. I’m looking for a smooth ride, with real old school style. Thanks for any responses.

Tom Alberico

2

well tom, i know my first board was a POS but that made my second board less of a POS and i bet my third board will not at all be POS

3

Tom,

Why give up after one board? For the cost of a new board from one of the more popular fish shapers you could build three more fishes. Try again. Mike

4

hi Tom !

I’ve been riding a single-fin that I shaped for myself modeled after the Dewey Weber Feather Fastback (the first board I ever shaped), and my craftmanship isn’t really cutting it anymore

is the “Dewey Weber Feather Fastback” a single fin FISH , then ?

I was a bit confused by that , having never seen one…

or do you mean you were riding a single fin , didn’t like it , and now for some reason you want a twin keel fish ?

my question being… have you ridden a twin keel fish before ?

…because …depending on what size and shape the ‘Dewey Webber Feather Fastback’ copy is / was , you may find it totally different . [not a bad thing of course , but as Mike [‘rooster’] wisely suggested, you might like to try making yourself a fish or two , rather than waiting months and forking out LOTS of $$$$$ for something that may not be as easy or enjoyable as a single fin]

Another better option [“in my opinion”] might be to borrow one from someone you know , ride it for a while [give them your board during that time] , then you can decide for yourself if you still want to go down the expensive , long wait path.

cheers !

ben

(this, of course, is only MY opinion …and I’m sure others will have different ones . That’s cool.)

5

hey chip,

the weber feather fastback, is across between an egg, and a retro single fin. basically. there is a pic in the attachment.

tom,

there is a big difference in the way these boards will ride. if i was going to make/buy a fish i would definately go for a quad set up, with some wings to pull the tail in a bit to help it turn. twin keel fish are made to go straight, very fast, not for doing any kind of fast turny type surfing.

as far as being discouraged about your first shaping attempt, don’t take it too hard. if you don’t like your board, you now know what to do, and what not to do next time. shaping a fish isn’t too hard, just get the right blank, and keep the bottom flat. there are tons of resources on here to help guide you too. i think everyone, even guys who are now in the 1000s of boards shaped will say their first was a bomb.

back to the fish thing, i just made a series of fish here in brazil, and rode one again for the first time in 3 years. i hated it on the first couple waves-i had been riding a 6’5" thruster. it took me about 1 hour to figure it out again. now, it is my favourite board. fish are a totally different animal than other boards, and require you to ride them differently. i would make one, or take chip’s suggestion, and borrow one first.

if you want some outlines, pm me and ill send you some.