Bob Mctavish interview While vee itself is a design feature, the “vee-bottom board” refers to a design McTavish came up with in 1967: a wide-backed, thick-tailed “plastic machine” that opened up the late-'60s shortboard revolution. “Spiral vee,” popular in the '70s, is a slightly cone-shaped version of vee, with the point built into the area just below the surfer’s back foot. Bob created this term to describe his bottom .
Hi Greg. I clicked on the link.,And watched the flick…I know you are good with photos. I know you know how to post a photo…So post some photos of this “Spiral Vee” thing…I have asked about spiral vee in the past and got photos of Bonzers… Do your boards use Spiral Vee? Do you have any photos ?
I’m still beginning so I’m not always sure to understang all the differencies and definitions but I found that the greenlight page abount bottom countours give interesting definitions:
Do you mean keeping the same “height” of the Vee (relative to the rail line in side view) and varying the angle of the Vee as it transitions toward the tail and the outline of the board narrows?
As opposed to varying the “height” and keeping the same angle.
The early Brewer and Hynson downrail boards were like you describe .
The first article was inaccurate in that this bottom lasted only til around 1972 when tri planes were built into this convex bottom instead of roll with concave sections added later .
Hi Greg. You post awesome photos of your surfboards all the time. Please post a photo of this Spiral Vee…I’m not interested in some diagram from a beginer. I want photos from an expert so I can cross mutate your design and plug it into a half finished undereducated machine shape… Just kidding. I’ve been fixing boards for 15 years… I think I know what it is…You’re not the first person to not post a photo of Spiral Vee.
Im riding a spiral vee in my hp shorty and never will I ride something different in a short board. I don’t have to pump it for speed at all. It just glides from section to section flat chat and I ride it off my ankles sorta and when I want to give it some and put her heavily on the rail I can. Im a full on believer in them.
Im riding a spiral vee in my hp shorty and never will I ride something different in a short board. I don’t have to pump it for speed at all. It just glides from section to section flat chat and I ride it off my ankles sorta and when I want to give it some and put her heavily on the rail I can. Im a full on believer in them.
Spiral Vee was a term created and used by Bob Mctavish describing his Vee bottoms . The transition from a wide roll in the bottom to the narrow center of the Vee , like a Spiral , wide curve spiralling to a narrow curve . No concaves Brewer adapted a version this to his early downrail shapes . The term was used later by those in the spotlight for double concaves in the tail . And this has stuck till today . 1969 - 1971 all Channin Diff boards had double barrel concaves in the tail . I borrowed Brian Livingston’s Brewer inter island which had a spiral Vee and Gary Cook’s Diff which had the concaves in the tail for a day for back to back testing Pretty sure that was in 1969 Great times - See more at: http://www.swaylocks.com/forums/spiral-vee-please-can-some-one-explain-idiot-guide?page=1#sthash.OwwXrslH.dpuf
I was taught that a Spiral Vee was a standard flat panel Vee with the center of the Vee taller than the rails, with a double concave coming off the tail.
The double concave radius tightening as it flows off the tail.
Deep double concave.
So much that it actually distorts the rail line as it flows off the tail.
Looks like the rail rocker in the tail has a dip in it.
Seems like the term has morphed into meaning different things to different people over the course of time.
If we use McTavish’s description of the design that he termed as “Spiral Vee” (slightly cone-shaped version of vee, with the point built into the area just below the surfer’s back foot), can anyone expand and explain this a little more to make it easier to visualise and understand? I have my own idea on what this might mean (as I posted above), but would love to be corrected if I am mistaken.
