how wide is too wide before a 9’4" longboard just doesn’t work anymore?
At around 30", I just can’t paddle with any effectiveness, and duckdiving seems hard.
There’s also the diminishing return thing…what’s to gain?
Stability vs. ease of banking.
LeeDD,
Have you surfed a 30" board before?
Tim
that seems really ridiculous 30 inches wide. do they even make blanks that make big. i think any wider then like 25 and your getting really wide. unless your building it for a bigger guy. but then it woldnt be 9’4
i thought that at first, but LeeDD does not strike me as a jokester, so I must take what he says as factual. Thanks LeeDD.
I’ve paddled both 30" wide boards, and 40" wide boards.
Widest I ever surfed was 28", one of my windsurf boards for light winds, and it surfed 18" Bolinas just fine.
Being kinda shortarmed at 5’11", those widths require kneepaddling, as only my hands hit the water when prone.
Anyone can just stand on one rail and bank the board over to turn, so that’s not a problem.
Thought the subject was paddling, not surfing per se…
24" and with that you may need to shape in a “slot” for your hand to carry the board(unless you have arms as long as MP)
over 24"
over 23"
I’d keep it at or just under 23", unless you have arms like a gorilla. Just one opinion, your mileage may vary.
9’4"x 30" I don’t think so.
I have a 9’10" with 23.5" width. At 6’1" I can barely get my fingers around the rail. Of course, that also has to do with the shape of the rails as well. This is strictly a small wave board and works great for it’s intended use. Heavy, stable, easy to paddle. Tried the width with a 9’3" and it just didn’t work. Too stiff and clunky!
Sr Pato
What are you after? too wide to carry/paddle vs too wide to perform…
Both questions to some point have to with surfer size.
Paddle/carry will have to do with arm length, while perform have to do with surfer weight.
Another important issue to consider while considering width impact on ability to carry the board is the board thickness and foil shape. Boxy rails vs pinched and deck dome vs flat and bottom belly vs flat will all make a difference if you are pushing the limits of carrying width.
My 9er: 9’ x 18.5" x 23.25" x 14.375" x 3.25" which feels like a short board compared to my 10’6" x 17.5" x 24.5" x 14" x 4". The 9er is flat bottom with average rail (not boxy, not pinched), were the 10’6" is boxier 50/50 rail with a bellied bottom with matched deck dome. If it weren’t domed, bellied, and 50/50ed I would not be able to carry it and I have long arms.
The last thing to consider is are you going to carry the width through the whole length or have the width add a lot of curve to the outline?
All that said I would think 23-24" is about it for a 9’4". If you feel you need more width then I’d also go longer at the same time.
just my babble
My 9’x23.25" worked nicely in DOH.
I’m 6’2" and this board is easy to carry/paddle for me.
Like SrPato said it will have to do with rail shape, thickness, deck/bottom foil.
24" is as wide as you’d ever want or need I would think. 23"-23.5" is classic noserider spec.
At 5’11" with a slightly shorter wingspan, my old 9’ Blue Hawaii made for MOK board at 23" was fine in width.
I bought it in like '97, thinking I was getting too old for shortboards. Lotsa guys at OB SF will attest I could snap it around like a 7’er.
A few month later, traded my Morgan gun for a tri fin 9’2" Island from Malibu. At 22", it was quicker rail to rail and needed less precise foot placement.
Sold both in ‘02 for rent money, replaced with 6’8" x 20, 7’3" x 21, and 8’ x 19.6.
That’s for conventional thinkers.