I’ve been lurking here forever, but this is my first post.
I’m just about to order a couple of boards from Mr Griffin to be sent to Australia. I’m thinking about a 6’2" Twin (or maybe 5 fin) for a HPSB and about a 5’6"Modfish 5 fin.
I have a few questions, and i will ask Greg himself, but i would love some advice from his customers, past and present. I know there are numerous reviews of his boards throughout the various forums, but I was hoping to extract some newer ones, especially for the twin.
my stats. 5’8.5" , 165-175lbs, 37 , 25 years surfing (currently in the middle of a heinous dry spell in Perth). Decent ability up to 8’. Decent fitness. Shortboard would be about 6’2" 19 1/4" 2 3/8"
First up. The Twin… What are Greg’s like to ride, in comparison to a normal performance type thruster or quad? I’m expecting faster, but would they fly as a daily driver in decent surf and for the odd foray to Indo? I have never surfed a Twinny, but something about his just scream " pick me, pick me!".
Next, anyone had a 5 fin shortboard (non-fish)? Once again they look epic, and i think they would go very nicely. But how do they feel in comparison to a comparible thruster? Daily driver potential in the above mentioned conditions?
Finally, the Modfish. It seems from the photos I’ve seen, lots of bigger guys get them in normal shortboard sizes. They look like they would be an amazing point board in the 6’ plus lengths. I’m steering toward 5’6" give or take. Anyone ridden this short? How do they go, and what sort of upper limit do they have size/power wise?
I think you need to be heavy on the back foot. The fins were way back. It just seemed stiff and less drivy to me compared to the 5 fin.
The twin was not a fish style board, but a regular short board. I have GG longboard, but I never used it. One of these days, I’ll get around to trying it. I have about 10 boards I made from 5’10" through 10’2" and I rotate throught those right now.
Definitely get a 5 fin modfish in your quiver. I got a chance to ride one a few years ago and it’s one of the best all-round boards I’ve ever ridden. Take GG’s advice on sizing it.
6’2" 5-fin fish or modfish would be a HPSB. If you normally don’t ride really short boards don’t go less than 6’.
If you don’t ride boards with a lot of crowning on the deck, you’ll need to get used to his boards. You also need to keep your back foot planted near the butt-crack to feel the magic. Don’t be surprised if you fall off the back on your first really hard turn.
My 5-fin fish works well in the smallest waves to the biggest I can catch.
My JD twin keel has a similar feel shark country, you don’t have to surf it with back foot over the crack, but in hollower waves, if you do, you can crank some pretty hard,fast and tight magic turns on it. Though it also surfs more swoopy from up front, which I like too. When my back comes good, I plan to spend lots of time on it.
Griffin’s 5 fin design creates lift. When you have your back foot in the right place it allows you to put more pressure against the lift generated by the fins. It creates a spring like effect that propels you out of turns better than most boards I’ve ridden, if not all. Another thing that I like is the way the board runs through turns without slowing down. Your cutbacks will go further and allow you to bounce back off the lip with less effort. I’ve seen other designers doing other things to get similar results.
With all that fin, the board is rock solid, you can push it really hard and that equals lots of speed. My fish and my brother’s fish seem to carry through flat sections of smaller weaker waves really well. Mine is 6’ his is 6’2". We also have 6’5" modfish, I have one, and he has two. My brother has been selling off his boards, so I don’t know what he has left, but he once had about 8 Griffin boards. I have two 5-fin boards, a 6’8" thruster Greg made for my brother, and a 9’ longboard. The set I have should cover everything I’ll ever need.
When I first got the 5-fin fish I rode it a lot in all kinds of waves. Then I started making my boards, so I rode those more. My first boards were 8’ eggs so I could catch waves easier. Where I surf that’s more important than being on a high performance board and not catching waves because there’s so many people on longboards. I’m still in a ride my own creations mode, but I’ve made boards from 5’8" to 10’2".
The Griffins are not going anywhere. One day, I’m going to get tired of riding my bizarre designs and back on the Griffins. I’ll probably not want to ride my boards after that.
Picked up the board this afternoon on the way back from Bali. Didn’t quite make it in time for some fun Ulu’s and dark sand beaches, but I’ve got her now and I’m stoked.
6’2 x 19 1/2’ x 2 3/8’ twin/thruster combo.
Feels so good in the hand, such a nice foil.by the numbers It’s pretty close to my reg HPSB but is slightly on the fishier side. I’m loving that
I haven’t ridden it yet, but I’ll give an account when I do.
