I rode this today …this is the stubbie I made , back in july 2004. (It was good to get it back out there …Pascal [‘Popeye’] also had a couple of waves on it, so I had a go on his twinny, as well).
My stubbie is…
15" n x 5’7 x 20" x 3 1/8" [?!] x 15 1/2" , with an 8" pod [tailblock , measured corner to corner]
nose rocker 3 3/4"
tail rocker 7/8"
chunky [blocky] rails and tail block . Hard edge on tail starts from 16" up from the tail .
vee bottom .
At the moment it is still , as you can see, a finboxed single . finbox 2" up from tail . 12" fin box
I have not discounted the possibility of installing 2 fcs side plugs [each side] , and making the bonzer3 option available .
And I would like to make a 6’ version of this , slightly narrower , and thinner , and more rockered. Still with a fin box , and possibly side plugs.
Much better foil , a flatter [or even maybe double concaved ] bottom , and thinner , more refined rails and it would be sweeet , I reckon .
This one as it is , though …
cheers ,
ben
and …did I mention this board is HEAVY ???
Due to 2 layers of 6oz on the deck , and 2 layers of 6oz on the bottom .
And a filler [“hot”] coat , that I didn’t sand , and a gloss coat .
I had a new neighbour threatening to get me evicted while I was glassing this board , a telephone I stupidly answered , and …bingo …gelled [before lapped] rails .
Sand it back , put on MORE glass and resin …grrrr …
I think there is , from memory , SIX layers of cloth on the rails ???
hmmmm… I wonder why this board is so heavy ? …
I am one of those people who needs peace and quiet [or at least no disruptions / distractions for a while ] , when I am working on a board …any others out there ??]
So, I learnt a few things while working on this board…
cheers ,
ben
oh , yeah , forgot to mention …the wide point is 1/2" forward of centre .
Hey Ben.
How heavy is “heavy”? I would be interested to see how it compares to my homemade stubbie. I’m not sure how much mine weighes but I know it’s not light.
Cheers
Rohan
hi Rohan !
I’m pretty bad at guessing weights , mate …
I should get a pair of scales one day , I guess .
but as a rough idea , it feels around the same weight as my 9’ epoxy laminated mal , and my 2 7/8" thick 7’ single fin …those sort of designs must be what , [guessing] 10lbs , or so ?? not sure …
what size did you make YOUR stubbie , Rohan ?
do you have photos of it please ?
cheers mate ,
ben
thats an awesome board chipper! how did it go?
paddles well [considering its small size !]
duckdives well
didn’t snap in 1’ deep water
takes off well
did a couple of turns on it [non closeout waves]
pascal liked the ‘glide’ feeling . I put that down to the heavier weight of this board , compared to the twinnie he rides.
I’m hoping , if I get it in some good waves at some stage during the coming months , to get a good feel for how it REALLY goes , and how it handles head high waves at least …
ben
If I may interject…
… although the waves were VERY limiting, so I wasn’t expecting to be able to really notice much, I could sense and liked the glide immediately. A markedly different sensation to my twin fin and tri fin.
It felt so good that it has really made me consider acquiring a single fin for my quiver (at some point in the future).
Ben has been looking after my 6’8" thruster for awhile, and I think I’ve just been convinced to put a single fin box into it 
thats the way popeye! yew
“Ben has been looking after my 6’8” thruster for awhile, and I think I’ve just been convinced to put a single fin box into it :)"
so… WHEN does the operation begin ??
bwahahahahhhhh
Ben,
I’m sure you’ve seen it before, but here it is again. 6’4" x 20 1/2" x 3" x 16"T x 16"N
Cheers
Rohan
i’m thinking to ask ross at the longboard shop to do it. i don’t have a workshop to do it in, you can’t do it at your place, so may as well give ross some work.
unless i add a couple more fcs plugs to the back fin, but I’m just not convinced that a single fin can be safely fixed by 2 fcs plugs, are you? it would be easier to do it myself, but it doesn’t feel right. naahteyemean?
ah right !
thanks Rohan !
I was telling someone about that blue foam , multi-stringered board the other day . I couldn’t remember WHO made it .
So, how is it holding up in the Vicco waves …have you had [m]any good surfs on it so far ?
I can see that the shorter length “nuggets” of Geoff McCoy’s are a kind of “modern day” stubbie / mini longboard type cross . One day I should borrow one of those boards , for a comparison .
That fin …how do you like it , Rohan … what do you find it does well ?
are any shortcomings that you have noticed with it ?
and what would you change about the board , if you made another similar ?
cheers
ben
i’m thinking to ask ross at the longboard shop to do it. i don’t have a workshop to do it in, you can’t do it at your place, so may as well give ross some work.
your back garden ??
or my balcony . We only need enough area to lay the board down in…
unless i add a couple more fcs plugs to the back fin,
yes , that’s what I’d prefer to do , looking at the thinness of the tail , and where your legrope plug is …
but I’m just not convinced that a single fin can be safely fixed by 2 fcs plugs, are you?
yes, I’ve not pulled a plug out yet…
it would be easier to do it myself, but it doesn’t feel right. naahteyemean?
I can do it here …
we only need a holesaw , small quantity of resin , milled fibre , 2 fcs back plugs , and a bit of masking tape …
Anyway , it’s your board , it’s up to you , Paz !
…Let me know what you decide …I’d like to see it as a single / widowmaker / thruster option board …it might give it a new lease of life , hopefully .
[and , I must confess to an ulterior motive , too…I would be lying if I didn’t say that I’d like to try out a thruster as a single fin again .]
cheers !
ben
I’ll reply via PM, Chip. Didn’t mean to hijack the thread.
Ben,
the board is holding up well so far. No delamination after one fairly hot summer or any dings yet despite having been dropped a couple of times, no board bag being used with it and being washed in over a nasty rockshelf after my legrope broke. So it certainly has proven to be durable so far.
It has been surfed in Vicco and south coast NSW waves from knee high to almost double overhead (reefs, points and beachbreaks) without displaying any really nasty habits or failings - I am probably blind to its shortcomings with it being the first board I ever made though. I have used it almost exclusively every surf since I made it last year (apart from my trip to the North Shore - I wasn’t game to try it there).
The fin seems to work really well. Loose and yet really drivey at the same time. Great in hollow conditions, but with a bit of a tendency to “bind” if you try to turn it in the wrong part of the wave when the wave face is a bit flat. But that may just be me still trying to do thruster turns on a single fin - old habits die hard.
If I made the board again I would probably put slightly harder rails on it to improve its small wave performance as I sort of have too many boards now that are allrounders.
Cheers
Rohan
…great that you’ve been getting so much use out of it , Rohan !
cheers for sharing that !
ben
keep us updated with anything else you discover about its performance , how you adapt to surf it , eh ?
Really like your red stubbie, Ben! I just finished shaping a similar board, except it’s set up as a Bonzer 3 with the concaves and a wide tail. I’ll post some photos as soon as it’s finished, I have to wait until some special fabric comes in the mail to make a deck inlay. I can’t wait to see how it goes! If it wasn’t a Bonzer 3 I’d have made the runner fins removable to compare between the Bonzer setup and a single-fin with Bonzer bottom contours…all the more reason for you to add some fin plugs! Come on, you can’t have a Chipfish board with only one fin option!
hi Cody !
I would seriously think of doing this shape again , but more “pulled in” …6-6’2 and narrower tailed . With the option of two removeable side runners . And the double concave inside vee [‘spiral vee’] thing , to have a comparison …
I think the extra length , narrower width overall , and rail fin options “should” provide me with more control , and help it perform better in a wider range of conditions , hopefully …
So , these are just some numbers , off the top of my head …
14" x 6’2 [max !!] x 19 -19 1/2" [max!!] x 2 1/4 - 2 3/8 [max!!] x 13 1/2" - 14" x 4-5" pod [max!!] [tailblock measurement , corner to corner]
nose rocker 4"
tail rocker 1 1/2 -2 " , maybe .
thinner railed , tucked under edge …hard edge in tail .
… LeeV , remember the template for the 6’4 you sent me a while ago ?
I’m thinking a narrowed , shorter version of that could be just the ticket !!
cheers ,
ben