I have some questions regarding board dimensions and I hope someone can give me a hint on this. I’m 5’7" and 145lbs, 25 years old and I’ve been surfing for about 10 years now.
Basically my current all around board is a 5’10" which is 18 1/4 wide and 2 3/16 thick, rounded square tail, medium rails, it’s a DHD D2 a board with low rocker.
I’m getting a new one now (Mick Fanning Pro model) which has more tail curve and seem to have about the same volume as my current board so I’m thinking of going down a bit in width because the board feels kinda stiff, at least this D2 model. It paddles fine, catches waves easy, holds speed but on bottom turns I can’t go as vertical as I wish. I also wish it was a bit more sensitive, quicker going rail to rail and that I could turn tighter in the pocket.
FYI I have another surfboard which is a Chilli A2 (5’11" x 18 1/4 x 2 3/16 squash) and this one turns waaaay easier, probably because of the VERY low rails (and more tail rocker than the DHD) but those low rails are something I want to avoid on my everyday board because I lose too much paddling and it just doesn’t work in mushy waves. On the other hand this Chilli works very well in steep, punchy waves but if the rails weren’t so low I bet I’d want this board straighter too.
What do you guys think about it? Should I order this new surfboard with less width or keep the same 18 1/4 I’ve been riding? I really don’t think I need all that foam under me so I was thinking about 5’10" x 18 1/8 x 2 3/16 or 5’10" x 18 3/16 x 2 3/16. I didn’t want to lose too much paddling though…
Email Base and ask them? Down the bottom of the Base Contact page you can ask questions.
I've got a copy of his (Mick's) 2007 board which has an average foil, but the new one has changed (shorter and thicker - although I haven't seen one in person) and they might recommend going an inch shorter.
I’ve already asked BASE and what they said was I should keep the width but go with Mick’s board because it has more tail rocker than the D2 but still I don’t think I need all that width!
Compared to the other boards I have this one has plenty of volume. I’m willing to experiment and see how it feels, I just don’t know if I should go down to 18 3/16 or 18 1/8. That’s why I came here to ask what you guys think.
I believe that 1/16 of an inch would make a big difference already? I don’t know a lot about shaping, I just understand the basic stuff.
Thank you for your replies. I’m going to try and measure the fin placements and wide points.
It really depends what type of waves youre surfing the new board in. also, foil will play a huge role in how well it paddles, along with wide point (as someone already said), nosewidth and rail volume. keep in mind that a little more tail kick will also be slower, so keeping the width of your old board will probably not be a bad idea.