Need some information on getting a twin fin shaped, I'm after the same template shape as a zippifish. Going to have a go at making one. Thinking about 5' 10" - 21" - 3" lokbox fin setup, can anyone with one of these fish post sizes, dimensions ,picture of the foil and bottom contours of these boards?
I actually surfed one about 6 years ago at Crotan VB and had a blast even though it was small, so if anyone can give me any advise on this shape , I would be most grateful.I know its abit on the "naughty side" knocking off a shape , but having a Hobie Circa 71 twin I want a fish with a more modern base shape for better hold. Well at least thats my main aim.
Hey mate
I been keeping one eye on your post because i’m very interested in Zippi’s concepts too.I had a feeling you wouldn’t get many answers - Zippi had trouble a few years ago with imported knockoffs doing the rounds in CA , duplicate decals , everything.
You’ve looked at his website , right ? There’re lots of pics of boards for inspiration in the blog archives.
His most obvious point of difference is the amount of curve he puts in the plan shape.
Icons of Surf have a few for sale on their website with dims listed.
And if you do an’ advanced search’ on Google at ’ surfermag.com/forum’ (zippi fish) some old threads come up with some quite good bottom picts.
I was at a Fish Fry and had a real close look at about 6 speeddiallers , Pavels - they were all different - same theme , but noticeable variation too.It taught me ya don’t have to be too slavish about nailing a concept , especially for average waves and average surfers. Hope this helps , for what it’s worth, other opinions may vary.
Thanks for the advice Nuclear, actually just finished shaping my first fish thang. Its 5' 11" - 20 3/4"- by "fat". Loads of foam under the chest area,low tail rocker,boxy rails,shaped the tail abit differently! Template shape is from a Rusty Dwart, nose shaped around a Anderson Mollusc, flat in the nose to slight single concave to vee out the rear end. Actually looks alright seeing its my first attempt. Getting a pair of Lokbox Zippi keel fins of a nice gent in Torpoint UK, so fingers crossed hopefully it goes like sh#t off a shovel.Will post picks after I get two tons of foam dust from my body.
Here it is all shaped 5' 11" - 20 1/2"-2 3/4" ( found it quite easy to lose a 1/4" on tweaking the rails...oops!) Lokbox Zippi keels. 6+4 on deck and 6 oz on deck. Actually surfs really well for my first attempt, was trying to shape the template shape for a Zippi fish but the nearest I got was the keels.
That came out really nice for a first board, butthole. I can see why it surfs well. Pretty good job foiling out the nose and tail,too. You can usually tell a newbie shaper by how poorly those areas are foiled. Me included. What's the deal with the tips sawed off at an angle? It gives it kind of a fighter jet look. What does it do for performance? Mike
Cheers Rooster, tail design was something I made up. Each side of the swallow is equal in length across the flats ( if that makes sense). I pulled the tail in abit more and put a huge vee in the design that runs 1/3 of the way up the board from the swallow into a very slight single concave into flat into the nose.I actually thought id left too much belly in the centre of the board,but on riding it obviously I must of done something right.
Performance wise ,it paddles into a wave really easy and surfs loose but not to skatey. Holds a highline and doesnt flush out through the fins on bigger drops. You can actually pump the thing down the line and it flies! Down side is I think is with all keels its not too keen on tight turns and they need to be drawn out....but I am surfing it more and more each day to see how far I can push it.
Last thing is there is something very rewarding about surfing your own designed and shaped board.....viva la power planer and sand paper!
