More control (shortboard advice)

General Discussion
1

Hi

I normally surf longboards, but when the surf becomes to scary for a longboard or when the car is to small, I use my shortboard:

6’6"x20 1/8"x2 1/2"

My problem with that shortboard, is that I have problems to control it. It is too skaty. I’m used to push hard with a slower reaction time, but that shortbard is too nervous.

 

Now I’m going to build a new board. I’m thinking of building a step-up board with a round-pin tail. I already hot-wired a blank to this dimensions (length 6’6"):

 

And I want to shape it to these dims: 6’5" x 19" x 2 3/4"

inspired by the black beauty:

 

 

 

I’m 6’3" and 186 lbs     (1m91 84kg)

 

My questions:

*Will this board give me more control? (longer turns not to skaty and bumpy)

*What about the rocker? Should it be changed, more nose??? (I’ll surf it in chest high waves to overhead)

2

“Nervous” is exactly what shortboarders like about those boards.  That sensitivity is where the sharper turns and deeper hacks come from.    One of your alternatives is to work on your own surfing style to take advantage of the strengths of the shape instead of trying to work against them.  

If you really prefer the way a longboard moves then perhaps going to a performance shape isn’t the better call for you.  Maybe an egg shape with the same fin setup you use on your longboard would be more comfortable.  You could keep the same length and width but push out the nose 3-4" and bump the tail 1" of so.  The bonus there is that you’d be increasing the float and paddle quite a bit.  It would also straighten out your rail line and get you a fair bit closer to the types of turns you’re accustomed to making.    

For an egg I’d actually reduce the rocker on both ends a little to match what you’re already doing with your longboard.   Unless your waves are fast/barreling a 4" nose rocker and 2" tail rocker are plenty for an overhead wave.  

If you’re going to keep the template you posted, another alternative would be to go with a different fin setup.  A 2+1 setup with a larger center fin (like 6"-7.5") in a box and two smaller sidebites would give you a lot of room for adjustment.    You can just keep moving the center fin back until you hit the sweet spot between drive and control.  If you keep the thruster layout you can do the same - spread the fin cluster out more.  

 

3

Thanks for your reply.

But the board is meant to be surfed in headhigh to overhead hollow waves.

I thought that the skatyness came from the wide tail and tail volume. I thought that a narrower tail could make the board carve better and keep more it’s line.

 

I’m not looking for a longboard like experience, but more for a more controlled type of surfing in bigger and faster waves. In smaller waves I like the nervousness but not when it gets bigger ;), and that’s when I mostly use my shortboard (I forgot to explain that)

 

Isn’t this shape suited for it?

4

Sorry,  I had read your post to mean that you found the smaller board to be too twitchy.  Going narrower will increase your control going down the line but it will also respond more quickly going rail to rail.  Maybe that’s what you’re looking for.  

 

Before you give up on the wider board, have you considered trying it as a quad?  Putting rear fins out on the rail can add a measure of control to a wide tail.   I’ve had a couple friends breath new life into boards they had previously been thinking about abandoning by converting them to quads.  Both say that they liked those boards a lot better as a quad than as a thruster.    Going quad usually moves the sweet spot for your rear foot a couple inches further forward and quads usually require less pumping to develop/maintain speed.  

Besides, it’s a fast/easy/cheap modification.  Much more so than rolling the dice on a new shape.  

 

 

5

I transition back and forth from long to shortboard,all of my shortboards are now quads,I like the extra fin area in the wave.My quads feel more controlled but looser than any thrusters I’ve owned,if that makes sense.

6

Quads rule if you can dial in the right fin templates. Faster than a thruster with similar amount of hold.

You might want to try a bigger set of fins with more rake, or if your center fin is too small the board will tend to be skatey and too loose. Also a more pulled in tail might help you out.

7

Hans,

The part of your post that jumped out at me is YOU are going to build a new board.  Any reason to build a new board is a good reason.  This is Swaylocks after all.  Build it.  See how it rides.  Refine and build another.  Mike

8

Thanks for the advice guys.

Like rooster says, I’m certainly going to build a board + an 8footer form my girlfriend (These will be number 3 and 4). This post is for me to better know what I want :wink:

 

While building the boards I’ll put in some extra finboxes in my 6’6"

 

So, you think that the rocker is OK? Or should it be tweaked?

9

I don’t think you’ll have any problems with the rocker.   

 

Getting back to the 6-6 I think you’ll find the comparison between thruster and quad to be quite interesting, regardless of which you end up liking.  The trick with quads is to pick the right fins.  Right now most quad riders have moved away from running all four fins of the same size and are staggering the sizes, using larger fins in front and smaller fins in the rear.  

Given your height/weight and assuming you’re using FCS you could go with a PG-7  or Sunny Garcia front and a G-L of even G-X rear and end up with a nice balance between drive and control.  I have a friend who is your size and he uses the Future equivalent of an LM-T (which is bigger than the PG-7) for the front and a G-X for the rear.  He swears by it, although at the same weight I think it’s a little much.  

10

Hoi Hans

Just my 2cts…

If your board looks anything like the black beauty you win is my guess, so feel one up in a shop somewhere.

What does your present shortboard look like, you have a picture?

If you want drawn out turns, the suggestion of a Quad is good.Make sure you get proboxes or 4wfs. Dont go fcs or futurs route. You want all the adjustability u can get.McKee Set up is good for bigger waves, very solid feel.

Where do your hollower waves get surfed, not Belgium eh?

Also, your tail should match your foot size, what is that size? Narrower tails give you more control.

Somebody mentioned straighter rail line, i think that is a good idea too.

And keep the rail volume lower, so you can put your weight into turns, bury rails, like on a longboard.

is it going to be a build thread?

wouter

 

11

Might I suggest a 5 fin bonzer? Works well in large waves and the increased fin area will give you that more solid feel you’re looking for. They’re a little more tracky and less twitchy and I think that will work well for you. When I started switching from my longboard to shorter boards like my 5’10" twin fin fish it was like riding a bar of soap! I hated it for a while and it took me forever to get used to but after a few months I feel less twitchy and like making snappier turns. I have a 6’4" single fin that I love but would get nervous with it in the waves you’re talking about (next to no nose rocker). I’m more apt to surf my longboard when it gets bigger because I’m just more comfortable with it.

12

The board is for my surftrips, we mostly go to france and spain.

Maybe it’s better to explain my surfing history a little more.

When I was 14 I started on a minimalibu, on vacation in quiberon because there was no wind (windsurfing since my 7th). I was always interested in boardbuilding (windsurfboards) but when I was 16 I decided to finally give it a shot on regular surfboards. I build myself a 8’ and  a 6’6" xps/epoxy. The 8ft still lives and the 6’6" broke after 4 years.

So I actually surfed a shortboard untill I was 20.

I looked for a new board and came across a 9’1" pu/pe longboard for only 300 euro! It stood in the shop for 3 year already, and here in belgium almost nobody buys longboards (don’t ask me why). I felt in love with longboarding. And bought me a 6’6" NSP shortboard (the one I have now) as a backup, because it is cheap and you can give it to anybody without worrying that he will break it.

 

Since my first two boards I had 2 compsand attemps, one longboard: after bagging the skins I didn’t liked the shape, threw it away. And one still in progress but here it went wrong with the rails, not too serious but I first want to make some boards the way I already know.

 

Since I longboard, I feel that I control my shortboard more than I did before, especially backside. But the big backside drops I can only make them on my longboard. And in sometimes I really die when trying to paddle outside with my longboard. So I’m actually looking for a complementairy shortboard for the bigger days.

In summer I’m working at a surfcamp in spain and sometimes we can’t get the van to do morning/eveningsessions so we all have to get into a small car (the beach in front of the camp is for beginners), and then a shortboard comes in handy too. On smaller days the NSP is just fine.

 

I want to make a board myself, not just copy one. But I want to raise my chances to get a board I like and need. You have to inspire somewhere and since the channelislands site has nice vids I like to inspire myself there.

 

My shoe size is 46-47(european) I think it is 12 in US.