Hi guys, just after a bit of advice here please, I have been looking at the south coast longboards “rincon stylemaster”, it seems to be all I want in a board right now, board for old school surfing. see pic below…
this is a "normal stylemaster with square tail.
I have found a 2nd hand one for sale, good condition and half the price of a new one, one decent depression on bottom but no other dings, the only thing is it has a pin tail, very unusual for this model, just wondering if a square tail is better for old school surfing, nose riding etc? I assume that a pin would turn easier though?
board will be surfed in small-medium surf.
thanking in advance for your experienced advice, this is my first longboard! still learning!
here is a pic of the one for sale…
depression can be seen here on bottom, 1/3rd up from fin on left.
pin tail is clear to see here, fin included and also the board bag.
Square tails are generally regarded as better for nose-riding but providing the tail widths are around the same (they look to be) i think the pintailled board would go just as supurbly. infact a lot of guys prefer pintails.
Sure I’ve always like square’s but if the pin was half the price i’d go for that board. i’m possitive it would go great anyway!
Hey Soulstice, so you’re saying that a square tail is better for old school style surfing?
I can do a tail block myself, thats no problem.
If I cut the pin off to make say a 5-6 inch pod, would the distance from the fin box still be ok? when they do a pin is the pointy bit EXTRA than a square tail or is it the same length but POINTED instead of square? this would affect the 1 foot tail width right? how would this affect the ride? or is there enough adjustment in a fin box that this wouldn’t matter? ooh man my head hurts now…
That pin tail looks crappy for noseriding in an old school-tight in the pocket manner. The square pod will give you the ability to pivot and stall better where the pin will be better out on the face gliding and fading etc.
For your preferences the Square would be much beter suited for you.
not wanting to quench your enthusiasm at all Rob …
just a question …
can you noseride ?
if not , perhaps you are putting the horse before the cart .
I’m sure learning things like trim , cross stepping , weighting and unweighting and yes maybe the occassional cheater5 would still be a LOT of fun on that e-bay rounded pin one .
If you don’t mind me asking , how much do they want for it ?
And yes , when you are confident in your abilities to noseride consistently , then by all means …Soulstice’s idea is a very GOOD one ! …So simple , yet practical .
the square tail is my preference. and yes, the consensus is that square is better for noseriding…just look around at all the great noseriders (bing, tyler, con, etc…) – they’re all square tails. they turn more pivoty…better for staying in the pocket. the extra foam that drops back to make the pin is more or less just an extension of the square tail. you may need to thin things out a bit where you cut the end off, but that just adds to the fun (maybe scoop the deck or something if you need to remove some thickness…that’s always classy on a noserider). anyhow, don’t worry so much about how it changes the measurements. do this – take some masking tape or something and cover up the portion of the tail you’re thinking about removing, then stand the board up against a wall and take a few steps back…does it look like a good noserider? unless something looks funky with the outline, i wouldn’t give it a second thought.
if you want to read up on noseriding and noseriders, there are some good threads on sways, and a REALLY great article on Tom Wegener’s site…check it out.
Robbo, to my eye that finbox looks installed too far forward anyway, so I’d go with Solstice’s plan.
As for square vs. pin, I think there are a variety of variables which have much more effect on how well a board will stay in the pocket. Rocker, fin, rail shape, surfer ability… I’ve certainly had noseriders with square tails that didn’t work well and others with round pins which did. And having the fin way back helps a lot…
Generally, on squares I’ll put the back end of the finbox at about 5.5" in, on round pins 6". So its not exactly an extension, or the box location would be more like 3 or 4" different. Maybe that’s what this shaper did?
Watch the rocker, especially. If the finbox is off, who knows what else isn’t right? You especially want low rocker in the first 7 feet, most of the tail rocker in the last 3 feet. And soft rails everywhere. If you have those, the board will probably noseride fine, regardless of tail shape.
Put a pivot fin in there too, once you hack the tail off & install a nice block
Robbo, first of all im a very inexperienced surfer, and dont know a hell of a lot about longboards. My mate has a 9 1 mal with a pintail, and it has a fairly raked fin, that is very narrow, probably no more than 3 inches wide all the way ( it’s a beau young o’neill fin if that helps ). It turns like a dream, and carving s’s on a wave is easy, but, also, you can get to about a foot from the nose fairly easy on a decent wave. The last foot i cant get there, but im sure that’s my skill level and also inexperience that’s stopping me getting there. Anyway, like i said, i dont really know that much, these are just my noob’s observations.
“UH UH UH,I know what you’re thinking…did he fire six shots or only five…but concidering that this is a forty four magnum… the most powerful handgun in the world… and would blow your head clean off… you got to ask yourself this question?”
Scott,might be interested in some Walkers,If there’s any left.
Personally, I think the square tail option is the way to go. A square tail will pivot better than a pintail. The pintail will make you draw out your turns more. The fin box in my log is a little to far foward. So I have cut the end off the base of the fin, where the pin goes, moved the pin foward. This allows the fin to slide further back in the box. See photo. Is this the board on Aussi ebay? And go with a pivot style fin. The one in the photo is 10" high with a 6.5" base. platty.
I have had a Rincon Stylemaster with the square tail so could probably give you an informed opinion on this board.
I found the square tail to have too much width in the tail & the manouverability was quite poor. Good in point surf such as crescent head or noosa, but struggled elsewhere.
I also have surfed the Rincon in a pin tail & found it manouvered much better, but still nose rode well. I don’t believe you would be disappointed with the Pin.
Fin box placement was fine. Dane Peterson, one of the most revered nose riders around was instrumental in the developement of the Rincon stylemaster & his own model.
I actually surf the Dane Peterson model now as it nose rides beautifully & turns like a three fin, due to the lightweight flex fin.
Weight & flatness of the rocker in the Rincon is what will make it noseride well for you.
Regards,
Matt
P.S At the price, that rincon is a bargain, being volane it is very durable & will last forever.
I’d buy it and SURF it as it is! to find out if you like it as a pintail. if not you can always do a square. and pintails DO work, ask Matt Johnson (heh)
well thanks very much for all the feedback advice and info guys, I have been following this intently, so maybe because all the breaks around here are beach breaks and not point breaks the pin tail would be a better option turning wise? and if I move the fin back as far as I can in the box also. i think instead of buying this and chopping and changing it I would rather get a square tail straight off, but maybe I will get this and surf it till I get better and learn to cross step well and then see what I can get then.
