One thing for sure after watching the “Gamboa” video and looking at all of the photos scattered throughout this thread; The only way you can get a hull to climb up into the face of the wave is to gain momentum by going thru a series of “slingshot” hard off the bottom, off the top manuevers, that will eventually get one to the top of the wave. As far as climbing and dropping I don’t see that happening on a hull. A hull is NOT a longboard with pinched rails!!
Struggling sure looks fun, ride what you like
The Santa Anna’s are blowing in the Santa Monica’s…Zuma calling!
No - the board trims in the slot just fine, with no tendency either way. The waves I ride are typically point break so.cal., this year I spent a lot of time at Gamboa’s spot, riding the same wave he is, but backside for me. When the surf picks up a bit, I can really feel how solid the board locks in, its a different feel, but I like it. I assume that feeling is somewhat similar to the feel of a hull, although I have never ridden a true hull. I like the fact I can turn down off the top and not dig a rail, which I sometimes do when I borrow my friend’s board with thick down rails.
Mark Andreini's response to McTavish Hull comments from Liquid Salt Article................
First of all, let me say that McTavish rules!! Far be it from me to argue his points. But I will make some observations that he will probably agree with.
For one, the idea of copying George’s board to stand on did not work well. We all did it with the same mistakes. Longer and thicker with the same negative tail rocker actually slows the board down and makes them sticky. We made the rails too soft in the tail so it did not release quickly. Also, Kirk (Putnam) and I know the shapes that Jimmy Gamboa rides are not getting out of 3rd gear due to design flaws. A Liddle that may look the same has 2 more gears.
Next, Bob would agree with my hulls because they have modern rails in the back (40%) and a modernized natural and gentle lift through the tail. The hull blends to either flat or flat panel vee on the longer ones and the designs were sorted out over close to 40 years (‘74 to 2014) so they go down the line with great effortless speed at Raglan, Tea Tree, Cloudbreak, Ocean Beach, etc.
We share the same influences in Cabell, Dora, Edwards, Greenough, but I add Nat, Wayne, and McT to my list! He is correct about multiple fins for reaching quick bursts of speed beyond the natural fall line or power line of a wave. Yes, the single holds you back to the natural speed of the wave because the depth of the single fin holds onto the water longer before it releases. This creates a more harmonic and beautiful flow to the surfing. And yes, with multiple short fins quick bursts of speed are possible. This is caused largely by the shallow draft of the fins and the gathering of water between them that directs the water out the back of the board instead of off the side rail.
I would like to add that I wish I could help more young shapers understand the basic design principles they need to incorporate into their reinvention of older designs. My view is that the raw surfing talent that most of the ones Bob mentions overshadow the somewhat crude versions they shape that will be difficult for the person of average skill to make work.
In conclusion (for now), modernized single fin hulls are rare and not the same as the original slugs Bob refers to in this interview. Only a few of us stayed on this particular path to bring modernization to this particular concept of hulls. It is ballet v.s. tap dancing, both require different shoes.
By the way, my personal favorite boards are single fin pintail hulls with vee in the tail. Grace, speed, and flow. A nod to Quigg, George, Bob, Cabell, (Brewer?), Midget, and more. I would still be bellyboarding on a styrofoam ice chest top if not for them.
Recently saw Wayne Lynch’s new movie Uncharted waters and he did a Q and A afterward and mentioned his lack of love for the hull. Said he rode 3 and delibrately tried to destroy them on the rocks so he wouldn’t have to keep riding them. The major thing is the difference in waves between Califonia and Australia. We have very different conditions so develop boards along the lines of local conditions , with the internationalising of design we are taking thing out of there rightful territory and away from what there were designed for. The hull is a Cali design that suits those long mellow points which don’t break the same as our points. Gamboa looks like he is really struggling to cut that thing back IMO. Cheyne Horan rode a hull to success in the Bells final of 84, the hull loved the small lined up waves of Bells Beach.
The “Hull” types shapes I posted from the late 60’s had rear-ward mounted fins and down rails in the tail.
Very capable of Cutting back , Big off the tops and big bottom turns .
The forward placed ones make that much harder.
Especially for the regular guy .
Surfboard design evolution was to make the boards more capable in what they did .
Enabling all to surf better on them .
haaa’’ stop the tram’’ opinions are like a holes’’ we all got one
this thread has been lost to the parallel universe
is there any one here that can define what the hell there on about?
cheers huie
Well then lets take it here :
Hyper convex shapes may have been first .
But low downrails won within 1 year .
Not pionered by you guys 
What about McCoy? Is his ‘Loaded Dome’ classified as a hull? Excuse me for my ignorance…
He’s definitely confident about his designs??
Thats awesome
How did you know I was at Palm Beach then ?
Actually I was there in December , very nice place .
Like I said before I think Midget surfed the best of them all .
I don’t think you could classify them in the same category, however I’m curious if there was influences one way or the other.
Geoff learned a lot in his trips to Hawaii .
Would you make one of these again?
By this summer I will , I need to try a few fins for it in the next few months of surf.
I want to ride one
I think what is getting lost in all of this is that, regardless of who did what, when, Liddle’s and other modern hull shapers’ boards are light years from the 60’s, 70’s and even 80’s boards. There has been an ongoing refinement of the design every bit as much as changes in the “high performance” shortboard. To compare the modern hull to stuff built and ridden in the last century is ill-informed at best.
While not knocking Gamboa’s surfing ability, there are so many video clips of people that DO know how to cutback and climb and drop on a hull that it is ridiculous to base one’s opinion on how a hull performs on his one movie clip.
Finally, as I’ve said so many times and other hullers know…it’s not how it looks, it’s how it feels. If you spend the time to learn how to ride one, you will know the feeling. If you don’t, fine. Ride something else.
I keep reading how you have to learn to make it do what you want .
I don’t want that for myself or give that to my customers .
I want boards that enable you to do more with less effort .
More Fun .
Thats what the whole shortboard revolution was based on .
**"the early liddles are strikingly close to the platt board some 10 yrs. earlier though i am sure the foil and contours will not be the same for later that yr. it had all gone another way"**
**"i am saying that the keith paul bing is a rip off off the platt design about a year behind ."**
#1. Understand that when this "Yank" began surfing (63) Bernard was a legend already. Moreover he transitioned from longboards to short very well, something i wonder about a certain East coaster doing!
#2. There is absolutely no intention of pissing you off, i'll take it you have a wealth of firsthand knowledge.
#3. The two quotes above, like i said before i did ride both the early Liddles and Bing foils. Burned thru several Liddles at Malibu, then started surfing Northern SB county and moved over to Bing to be specific the Maui foil and I don't really know if Keith Paul had anything to do with them, the “(Ha) Karma yeah. It was a giant step for my surfing and the template still makes me salivate! Really started a trend in the towards gunny boards.
#4 is there a difference between a "Hull" and a "Foil"? i realize that in parallel universes perhaps time warps exist. How can Liddle be 10 years behind and Bing 1 ?
i'm only asking! You obviously know the truth, i kinda understand the turf down there Gordon Woods, Keyo/McCoy and Midget. Being a history kook (SammyA #1) followed "SAM" and crap another total separate fact from fiction drama. To quote Sargent Friday (dragnet) "just the facts" So don’t be pissed cuz i "needs to know" (Dirty harry).
Side note here i find humor in all this, gotta customer who collects boards and dig this one! I love the old Vee's (someday) i plan on making' a replication of Neil Purchase' "Virgin" (Huie PM me if you have info on this GD drama) So any way in for repairs and as always i research the maker. Dick Mobley (not Tom) South bay shaper shop owner, i'm not sure but may have shaped of the South bay guys Noll, Jacobs and i really suspect Bing look at the Bing and what he is holding. So with that said this Olpart will say thanks Platt progressive
Photos
Mobley Vee copy looks more like Midgets
Bing Maui foil
Mobley with his.
Aloha.
