with the “newest” trend towards shortboards (recalling our stripped down longboards in the later 60’s turning into 5’10’s and smaller…), curious as to why some designs incorporporating squared off noses, ala Fletcher longboard, isn’t showing up in some test projects. Would think this would produce increased frontal area/lift and paddling support, and properly curved and kicked, shouldn’t create “push” or not fit into a steep wave face (note big wave hellions riding beasts on squared off kite boards)…anybody working down this path and is just under the radar?
I think you can keep the rail line of your original design but go shorter overall. I think the kick or rocker isn’t needed as much so why not just hack it off. Depends on the wave you surf I guess. I think Rusty mentioned it but I witnessed the same thing he did. I saw a dude in Hatteras riding a short board with about 5" of his nose that had snapped off (where all the flip would be) and he was killing it. I asked him and he said it rode the same as before, just lighter.
yep, makes sense depending on board design I think..some ( me included ) move forward on the board to increase speed and planing often so not always that suitable but in theory, its a good idea...alot of surfers wont like the look of it either, not that the look should be a consideration over FUNction ever, but to alot , it is.....
Thanks Ace for the dims. I’ve got a belly board similar but the bottom at the nose is a pronounced hull to concave in the tail. Fast for drive with a forward position and loose when riding towards the tail.
I posted that board on one of the finless threads recently, but I can't find it, lol.
It's 4'8'' x about 22'', ~2.5'' thick. I was playing around with minimizing fins and that one was an attempt to do away with them altogether. It's a little bit more ''directional'' than most finless boards.
Ace has a good thing going with his design, finless is a fun diversion but it's not going to replace finned boards.
Back OT,the OP was talking about ''cutting off'' the nose of a hpsb (like JD did for his customer). Jim Phillips should jump in here as he was squaring off the tips on chambered blank (Clark foam) 5'10'' twin fins for his #1 pro rider back in the late 70s-early 80s.
try the 'less fins' thread , think I saw it there....definitely an interesting little board, would be fun to try....I rode alot of mini-sims and finless and semi finless, this is a mix of em all...
Jeff Alexander’s Gemini board took a longer rail line and chopped off the front. But in his boards he add a deep concave right at the nose, so he cut back what would have been the flat nose and added 2 pointed tips.
I’ve always wondered how his boards would have been if they were just flat at the nose. I don’t think you need to have all that curve running into a blunt nose, I think you can have a slightly straighter line.
I’m planning on making a 6’-5" that has the outline of a 7’ round pin and just cut off the nose and tail. I also plan to use really low rocker up front to help it paddle. I’m using as little as 2 inches of nose rocker and like the way it rides. So maybe 2" nose rocker and 2" tail rocker.
I tried this recently on a 6’ board with a wide planshape and low rocker…entry rocker 1", tip rocker 2 7/8. I have only rode the board once for a couple hrs so far, last monday during some sloppy storm swell i took it out in a more sheltered spot where only waist high and mostly closeouts. I pearled on the first wave but adapted quickly by making sure i got up further back, which forced me to put my back foot over the fins where it should be on that board anyways. All other things considered i was pleased with how it felt and rode in crappy conditions, and on the few waves that actually held a face i had enough tme to begin to catch a glimpse of the boards potential in better surf. The blunt tip is more than 12" across, and although the nose wieght might be a drive factor contributing to the sort of longboard feel it has, for me i want to pull in the tip to more like six inches, and or raise the rocker to four at the tip if i try this kind of shape again. Aside from the initial wipeout, the corners kinda snagged the face a couple times, but this was a non issue once planeing speed was attained. I know there is more to this than being a fad or just something other than a flipped point to incorporate, and it seemed to me also as a viable way to end a good line rather than curving a wide surface rapidly into a bulletheaded saxon motherson. But the one i did…pointier or more rocker on the next
