Calling Maxb......regarding wide tails!

[crox]

Just looked at your new board...I'm guessing its made for weaker waves but how wide a tail would you ride in sucky tubes?
I was having problems in some tubey waves in France...just getting flipped in some deep barrels...so I changed to a narrower tail board & it sorted the problem out. .
But!....thinking back to the width of a spoon tail & some of the tubes they were ridden in....is this always the case?....or is the shorter length helping to resolve this issue?
My latest split flextail board is heading back to the way of the spoon....I'm now down to lower volume 5' 5" and the tail is 18 1/2" & tail rocker 7/8" but I hope to ride it in some good tubes...love to know your thoughts.

[maxb]

Crox, I am just getting back to wider tails.
I had been on 16-16.5" baby swallows for a long time,and they work very well in barrels, but my last 2 have been 18.5" , 1 a fish and now a square tail.
The fish ,what can I say, barrels not an issue whatsoever, and still very loose ( fin placement ) the square tail is the latest from Romo ,and yes, it was meant for softer waves, but took it out for the first time today, and I was very shocked and pleased at how loose it is and how it rode the tube.
It was 2-3' A-frames some hollow some not. I was fast ,loose ,and drove in the pocket, many comments from my stand up buddies about this board.
Old school shape with new school fin placement and Damn!
I have been happy going back and refinig some old ideas.
To get back on topic, I really think it isn't so much the width of the tail, but the fin placement and where YOU are positioned on the board.
I don't know if this helped ,but I really do like talking board design, and hearing others thoughts and opinions.
I will keep my fins back and narrower tails on my Wedge boards though, it helps when I get in a bit late on those nasty ones.
Max

[MikeS]

As of the last few years , the "Round Pin" has done me well in large beach break barrels.Before that it was swallows and square tails...placement of the fins and positioning on the board def. come into play as well.

[crox]

Thanks for that Max.
My last three boards have been wide square tails.....but when the waves get sucky I tend to ride a narrower tailed "old faithful"....but I must give them a try. It might well have been that my wider tailed boards were slightly over finned & got sucked up the face which caused the problem.

[Smokin Rock]

for me thin is also important. less volume equals more bite when you need it. thick blocky tails are great for small waves to plane over flat spots but I like the opposite for hollow stuff. my 6'4" go to board is a F2K with an insane, long thin tail.

[maxb]

Very true Rock, Thin tails do worh best in the barrel.
Max

[Smokin Rock]

Chet Atkins would have rode a thin tailed board

[Headwax.]

Hi Chris

I know you didn't ask me but you know I like to blah

one thing to consider is tail vee for sitting in the right spot in the barrel.
only time I've ridden foam balls was with a tail veed board
I gave it away though because I prefer to go over the falls inside the barrel

no because it wasn't really my style as a vee in the tail gives too much away in other places (for me at least)

interestingly baden /sparrow I have seen grab their front rail and pull it in to drift out the tail in barrels and stop from being sucked up and over (as well as stalling the board)

with my present boards - big concaves still - I don't get sucked over the falls musch on my forehand because I have a lot of weight on the back inside rail which gives good control for small adjustments for pointing the board

my backhand is crappy in the barrel for the opposite reason - because my incremental movements makea lot less difference because my weight on that knee/leg is slightly further forward