What size longboard for me d'ya reckon???

[johnnyboy]

Hi! So I'm 6'3" and 81kg surfing on the East Coast of Scotland and I'm getting a performance longboard made. I've been surfing a 9'6 log for a few years now and fancy a change. Been doing a lot of research, and here's the dimensions I'm thinking:

Height: 9’0”
Width: 22 1/2”
Depth: 2 3/4”

Nose: 18 1/2” (Round spoon nose for nose riding)

Tail: 16' 1/5” (Squash tail)

Rails: 50/50 round rails at nose leading to slightly sharper rails near the tail.

Concave: Single at nose - to double - to Vee tail.

Fins: 5 fin set up including Fin Box for main single fin.


Example model: BING Trimulux, good for both nose riding and carving: https://www.bingsurf.com/product-catego ... /trimulux/



What do you think, sound like the right dimensions for me?!

Thanks

[jaffa1949]

Sounds good to me, if it was the Bing, seen a few and they are good! it will be a little less loggish but still very capable for you! Instinctively on track!
Not sure why you are considering the 5 fin option though? but that is my opinion only!

[waikikikichan]

Bing says the Trimulux " if you’re looking for an introductory NOSERIDER but still want to turn on a dime without all the weight of a traditional board, this is it." So in other words its just a thinner/lighter Noserider with sharper edges on the back rails. The outline is pure noserider. Putting a 4+1 set up ( center box with 4 side plugs/boxes ) is going to be like putting a spoiler wing on your family station wagon. Notice Bing has the Trimulux as a Single.

You said " I'm getting a performance longboard made." Did you mean a performance Noserider ? The nose dimension is too much in my opinion. That Trash Can lid is going to limit your off the lip/thru the lip carves. If you want to noseride, than take out your 9'6". If you want to carve, then order a true Progressive Longboard. ( with a round pin, swallow, or diamond tail to take full advantage of the 4+1 )

[oldmansurfer]

I guess we all like to get new boards. But perhaps to make some sense of it all what your wave riding skills are on the old board and what you want to learn to do on the new board might help others decipher a guess at what would be good for you. I rode a 9'6" longboard for three years and I could carve some turns with it but it was a little heavy to throw around as I wanted to.

[dtc]

At that length, size etc, you arent worrying about volume or whether it will float you. So in some ways you can ignore that and focus on the more detailed issues, like the others have said eg nose width, rocker, - 2 3/4 thickness is pretty good but... if you want a performance board you need to thin that out fairly rapidly at the nose/tail.

Stuff like that

As a general fun longboard for surfing it looks great; but as old man says, what is it exactly you want out of it. If just something more fun and lively than your existing board, no issues; if something that is 'performance' then maybe some refinment as waikikichan says.

boards are too complicated!

[johnnyboy]

Ahhh thanks so much for your replies, love this forum!

Yeah, I should have said that I rode short boards for years in West Australia and now I'm a bit older and only get to surf one a week (max) in weaker Scottish waves I fully converted to the mighty longboard about 4 years ago. I'm just looking to get more out of my board, the log is great for straight-lining but I struggle to carve really nicely as it's a bit of a beast.

I'd like to be able to noseride if poss (haven't properly mastered Hanging 10...yet) but I guess carving along a wave and being able to move up and down the board is what I'm really after. I did a couple of longboard comps a few years ago but now it's just for fun!

Oh, and the 5 fin set up is just because I thought it would be fun to have options, might just be silly. I'd probably mainly stick to a single fin or 3 fins like I have at the moment.

Again, thanks so much for your words of wisdom, it's awesome to chat to longboarders from all over the globe and any more ideas would be greatly appreciated. It's the first board I have ever had made for me and I'm relatively naive to longboard dimensions, so I'd love to get it spot on!

Cheers,
Johnnyboy

[jaffa1949]

I particularly like either diamond tails or rounded pins for enhanced performance around that size.
I run either a single fin 9'1" single to double and add FCS Bonzer fins the smaller pair as side bites if the surf gets serious or hollower. I am also enjoying a Roy Stewart BLEF fin as a single
All these are in my Fin Primer so you can see what I'm thinking.
Now the most important question where in Scotland do you freeze your wee bitties off to surf.
I had a look around Inverness and across to the east. When I come to Scotland I'm based in Forres.
Another couple of years before Imight come again though.
Bruichladdigh to you! and

[johnnyboy]

Thanks Jaffa, I'll look into those fins

Well I live in Edinburgh so mainly surf the East Coast of Scotland here; Pease Bay, Coldingham Bay etc...although I occasionally take the long trip up North to Thurso (which is INSANE!). The surf is fairly consistent(ish) here but rarely epic. If you're ever over here give me a shout and I'd love to take you out for a chilly wave.

Here's a pic of me on my current log in the dark depths of Winter in full 7mm gear... http://im-3.msw.ms/photoLab/fullWidth/253267.jpg

Looking at artwork for the board as well, and I love this: http://deuscustoms.com/wp-content/uploa ... ng0004.jpg


Again, thanks!

[waikikikichan]

"It's the first board I have ever had made for me and I'm relatively naive to longboard dimensions, so I'd love to get it spot on!" - Highly unlikely to be "spot on" on your first custom. What you envisioned and how it performs will be different. On your 2nd ( maybe 3rd ) board order from the same shaper, you'll make some adjustments to make it close as possible to what you wanted. Even if you ride a demo board from the shaper, it won't come out the same. There are over 70 steps in making a surf board. If he uses a different blank, stringer. If its a different Glasser. And most important the Sander, can really change the rail and contours.

You haven't said anything about nose and tail rockers yet. Those make a huge difference. A lot of shapers spin the blank around and shape the tail where the nose usually is to get the high tail rocker. Have you figured out those dimensions ?

[johnnyboy]

Thanks Waikiki, guess i'll have to keep saving up and getting new boards to get the perfect longboard!

As for nose and tail rockers...no i havent and i don't really have a clue to be honest. Any ideas??

[dtc]

http://www.tidalpush.com/surfboard/surf ... gn-rocker/

Are you surfing fat waves or steep waves? If pretty fat waves then get a flat nose rocker, if steep then perhaps go a little bit more. If the shaper is local, s/he should have an idea what is suitable.

For me, for a longboard, having a lot of nose rocker seems to defeat the purpose of a longboard, but having some tail rocker helps the performance levels (you lose a bit of speed but that doesnt matter too much at that length). However, if you want to nose ride then I suspect too much rocker at either nose or tail might be an issue (not across nose riding design - waikikichan might be able to help).

Everything in board design is a tradeoff - more turning performance vs less speed and paddling ease. Or flatter rocker (easier to paddle) but less turning and less competent in steep waves (although I surf a pretty flat rockered board in Aussie beach breaks, which can be fairly steep - although they arent tropical reef steep).

At the end of the day my philosophy is to detail what you want the board to do and where you want it to work, and the shaper should know what to do to achieve that. Its just a matter of you sitting down and thinking more about what you want, rather than necessarily how to achieve it - the shaper is an expert on 'how', you are the expert on 'what'.

[johnnyboy]

Usually fattish 2-3 foot ... some place get steep in Winter but I'm only surfing once a week maximum so maybe a flatter nose rocker is best. Been chatting to my shaper and he's got some good words,, but just really wanted to speak to some other and get opinions. You've all been very helpful, thanks!

[johnnyboy]

Hi guys,

Just thought I'd keep you in the loop. My board has started to get shaped! My shaper has been sending my updates...here's where it's at...

[jaffa1949]

Looking good ,are you excited?

[johnnyboy]

Yep! That's the first coat of paint just gone on...can't wait to see the final thing!