Talk to me about Paipo boards!

halcyon · April 9, 2004, 11:46pm

I hear they rip in all conditions.

http://www.paipo.com/

No fins no resistance no drag, easy to deal with in heavy conditions, indistructable, Hey man ~ I guess everybody wants to stand up. Me included. They sound pretty safe and an answere to being in the critical part of the wave like few have ever experienced. Anyway it’s all good, right?

Anybody got and stories?

Mahalo, Rich

Custom finmaker

J.Troy · April 9, 2004, 11:54pm

Used to ride those when i was a kid in waikiki. lots of people had one, i mean all you need is some plywood. there very fast down the line and work well in smooth conditions. Long sweeping turns, gets under waves easily since it doesnt have much bouyancy.

scgary · April 10, 2004, 12:29am

When I was a kid I used to ride one out at the point at the Lane. It was just a piece of marine ply cut-out in the shape of a pointy boogie board. I had actually cut a slot in the front as a handhold. That thing would plane acrossed a wall like nothing else. Literally hanging into steep wave faces like it was on a rail. Amazingly functional for what it was. Really fun on those big days where you got cleaned-up alot since it was easy to dive under the white water with. Later on I glassed a fin to it which eventually lead to me buying an “EL Paipo” ($70.00 new) from Joe at the old California Surfer surf shop in Campbell. This evolved into kneeboarding at the Lane at a time when there would be 10-15 kneeboards out. Alot of guys like the Manns brothers, myself and others regularly surf the point on kneeboards and Paipos.

doc · April 10, 2004, 12:50am

Not necessarily without fins, quite tough, they do indeed get way back and where it’s up and down, and that’s their natural habitat. What don’t they do well? Small, cheezy days. 'Course, nothing does those well.

Couple of stories from around the campfire - being lazy, I’m not gonna rewrite 'em.

http://www.rodndtube.com/paipo/MyPaipoBoards.html

(look well down the page for my bit of blather )

And then there’s http://www.vorticity.org/alt.surfing/giddy.txt

I futzed around with the round railed longboard $%& for a couple of years, got me a Newport Paipo Concave Vector twin finned pointy nosed bellyboard ( see http://vagabondsurf.com/PaipoAdsNewport.html - thanks, Nels) and eventually moved to kneeboards ( the other way back there vehicle)

It’s been all uphill from there…

doc…

dubstar · April 10, 2004, 3:10am

I want to make one…both a foamy and one of plywood. Have searched a bit, but would like more info on the wood, do you bevel the rails up, etc.

thanks

rwayland · April 10, 2004, 4:37am

If you are going to make a Paipo out of wood, try Baltic Birch. It shapes and sands a lot easier than marine plywood. Seal it with polyurethane and you are set. As far as rails, I use turned down for rails for the back portion and turned up for the front , and then blend them around the mid portion of the board. I generally add fins to assist in tracking. I usually add as much flex as I can in the Paipos. They seem to respond better and adapt to most any wave condition. Good luck.