new board? go or no go?

[sebastiansurfer]

helloooo
ive racked up around 200 dollars reffing and i am cosidering dropping the possibility of shaping a board to just buy one

i currently have a 6'4 epoxy thruster thats a tad wide.bout 19 3/4 wide and 2 5/16 thick

there are a multitude of boards out there
but since i only really get to ride during waist high min.(not able to get a ride to beach otherwise) i was thinking of downsizing a tad for some more manueverability since im only 5'8 and 125 pounds

heres two boards that caught my eye

the lost is 6'0 by 19 3/4 and 2 1/4 thick


the orion is 5'10 by 18 3/4 and 2 1/4 thick


would this be a huge jump?
im looking for mor manueverability mostly and just to have a spare around
what would you guys reccomend?

[pkbum]

I would keep sticking with the 6'4. However if you were to buy it I would recommend the 6'0. 5'10 is too small

[sebastiansurfer]

yeah i was looking more at the 6'0

[TReMoR]

I would keep sticking with the 6'4. However if you were to buy it I would recommend the 6'0. 5'10 is too small

i went down from a 6'7'' to a 5'11'' :/
and im 135 and 5'8'' ( im not advising you to do anything.. just saying its possible)

[jon.biarritz]

It's definitely possible if you're fit, out there & keen. Did 7'4 to 6'9 to 6'4 fat to 6'4 thin to 6'0 to 5'11 potato chip since getting back into it this summer, surfing 12 to 15 times a month (5'11 and 145).

[sebastiansurfer]

yeah but i only get to paddle out 1ce a week if im really lucky
im def fit and keen.i was just wondering about the float difference.
i mainly want more control and a board for those months i get to go to the east coast where the 6'4 might be kind of bulky
plus for 125 its a steal eh?

[Sillysausage]

the length won't help paddling speed but might be ok. as for the price, thats totally down to the condition of the board.

[sebastiansurfer]

the length won't help paddling speed but might be ok. as for the price, thats totally down to the condition of the board.

hmm?i thought the length was the greatest contributor to float?

[IB_Surfer]

Get both boards, sell the one you don't like.

Easy, everyone needs a quiver, if not you are missing on one of the funnest parts of surfing: discovery!!

[The Fafenator]

I'd get the second bored

The fist one has a bit missing from the tailpad so you could slip

[sebastiansurfer]

i definately find the first board more attractive
im just scared itl be worthless to me as i might not be able to catch anything at all with it

[jon.biarritz]

19 3/4 is pretty wide for a 6'0 shortboard and at 125 lbs you're light for that board size, you ought to be okay. In the worse case, you can resell the board, since it's used you should be able to resell it for about the same price if you clean it up and don't add too many bungs & dings. With your height and weight you could go with the 5'10 Orion too. They're different; the Orion with it's narrower dimensions & roundtail looks like a medium wave board, say chest to overhead and a half, the Lost with its wide wide dims & squashtail more a smaller wave board.

Faf, pads can be reglued, fixed or replaced... not a problem.

[sebastiansurfer]

i see your point
but since these arent my only choices as i get to take a trip to the east coast on the 21st.what size board shoud i be looking at?
i was thinking 5'10 but 19 wide or just under and round 2.3 for thickness? im guessing a squash would be better as well?

[jon.biarritz]

It's really hard to say, even for myself.

Never thought I'd be feeling good on a 5'11 x 17 7/8 x 2 1/8 roundtail potato chip until I tried one, and honestly, I bought it because it was one of Jeremy Flores' competition boards this year on the WCT'08 and I reckoned I could resell it easily enough because he's Top 10 and from this region, so I took a chance on it even though I was sure it was too small & thin for me.

I assumed I'd be better on a 6'0 x 18 1/4 x 2 5/16 that I already had, also a team board from a WCT competitor around here, Miky Picon. I was so sure it was too small for me that I didn't even try the Jeremy board for a few weeks. And in retrospect I think I was wrong. That 5'11 feels really good under my feet right now.

Your dimensions and the squashtail sound good to me. But if you're anything like me, you'll really never know until you try. Theory is fine, but nothing beats just trying and seeing for real.

[sebastiansurfer]

true that,
even if a board like that is too thin i could always resell and get the cash back.
im just not sure whether or not to go for a 6'0 or 5'10
i cant really try one out because the person id be buying from is either a shop owner or guy i dont know.

but since id still have my 6'4 that works great for chest and under it might be smart to invest in a better board?

[jon.biarritz]

The 6'0 squashtail you showed seems like more a small wave board, the 5'10 roundtail more for medium conditions. But you didn't tell us about the rocker or concaves or anything, and anyway every board is different even with the same dimensions. I think dimension-wise the 5'10 looks more polyvalent or typical to me, cos they're both pretty wide, but that's just my opinion.

In the worse case flip a coin, it's probably not any worse than internet forum advice

[sebastiansurfer]

hhahhahahaah good one
i cant really tell cause that guy is just looking to get rid of his boards.so if i meet with him hes gonna want the sale.
i will most likely find my match on my trip
hopefully
i most likely wont be able to test it out because it seems to be only waist/chest high
but oh well!
so im looking for just a tad bigger than that 5'10 i guess?

[jon.biarritz]

You're not gonna know until you get in the water with it anyway

Actually some of the cooler shops I know (not Quiksilver, Billabong & Rip Curl but the indie ones) have let me try used boards for an hour or two with the condition that if I add any dings or bungs to it, I buy it. Never was a problem.

[sebastiansurfer]

true
i just figure as long as can catch the wave im pretty much good
if not it makes me look better for the babes

[jon.biarritz]

Yup that's a great thang about surfing, no matter what, even just paddling around, you get better-built doing it.