Kneeboard Shapers South Africa

[Terence H]

Hello all , i have been riding again after a break. (long story ,hurt back ,fatherhood etc)
But my thruster fish made by Lonnie Buhn (Durban ) about 10 years ago is getting old full of water cracking etc . Been a great board though. I do not know if Lonnie is shaping anymore.
Are there any other Kneeboard shapers in South Africa today that have kept up with developments i especially like some of the smaller boards on David Parkes website ,i think importing would be far to expensive though.

I saw Adam Shapiro riding a Gigs board which he said was made in the East , a pop out i suppose , i must try it out and see how it goes but ideally would like a custom board.
All the other Kneeboards i have seen in Durban have been shaped by stand up shapers and they just do not look right to me.

Any feedback would be great.

Regards
Terence Hogben

[Andy]

Howzit Terence

Being a "Capie", all I can suggest is head on down to Gigs shop on the beachfront - I think he still rides Lost boards shaped right there in dbn...probly some of his ex boards in the shop, you might even catch him there, otherwise here in Ctn Dean Geraghty does the odd kneeboard...

cheers

Andy

PS Couple a guys here also swear by Hugh Thompson(?),
PPs Personally I rather do my own... no-one else to blame

[Andy]

Howzit Terence

Being a "Capie", all I can suggest is head on down to Gigs shop on the beachfront - I think he still rides Lost boards shaped right there in dbn...probly some of his ex boards in the shop, you might even catch him there, otherwise here in Ctn Dean Geraghty does the odd kneeboard...

cheers

Andy

PS Couple a guys here also swear by Hugh Thompson(?),
PPs Personally I rather do my own... no-one else to blame

[Andy]

Jeez, had a mental block there Hugh Thompson, Natural Curve Surfboards, right there in Dbn...

[Terence H]

Thanks Andy.
I think Gigs shop has closed ,he operates out of Cape Town now ,not sure about the details.
Maybe i can get Lonnie shaping again ? Never liked any of the other kneeboards being shaped here.

Cheers
Terence

[Andy]

The thing is, if you been outta the game for some time, what board are you looking for...what waves are you going to be surfing, whats your surfing style, how heavy are you, fins/no fins,do you want a quad, aussie-style tri etc etc.

So many variables, so little time

Maybe not a bad idea to try out a few loaner boards (if possible) or buy a cheapie or two,try and get your head around what youre aiming for.....taken me about 25 years and still trying

[Terence H]

Hey Andy not trying to go one better but just realized that i have been Kneeboarding for 36 years !
Starting off with a Wedge hallow board single fin ,very sharp rails where the seams were joined and you had to be careful to take the plug out in the sun otherwise it would swell up and split.A lot like the Greenough board now that i think about it
This was followed by a Safari pin tail ,then a fish based on photos i saw in Surfer of the Steve Lis fish.
Most boards i have had have had a large swallow tail sometimes two fins and sometimes three.
Think i am leaning towards yet another swallow tail probably three fin , not sure about the rails do not think i will go too hard ,shallow concave bottom.
about 23.5 in 5ft 10 ,mostly surfing smallish Durban surf but will be hitting the South Coast in Winter ,where i grew up.
Rocker i will keep the same as my present board.
At least i now am formulating the basic idea.

Thanks
Terence Hogben

[southpeakbrad]

Hey Terence,

Try to reach Andrew Lewis. He was down in the Southbroom area in 2006 when I visited. Here's a pic of two of his boards. He is an excellent surfer who ripped in the small surf that day.

album_showpage.php?pic_id=6156&user_id=325

I think his boards were made in Durban so you may be closer than you think to a newy

[analbirth]

Hey Terence, AB here from oz [1/2 hour's drive from DP's factory] why don't you send Dave an email and ask, he ships to america all the time. He has plenty of 2nd hand in stock too. Failing that my bro in law is sth african and lives here and i'm pretty sure he's going back to africa early next year, if you like i could ask him if he could take a board over for you and you could pick it up from him at the airport can't promise anything but would be worth a go. I think his family are from Robertson AB

[Mike Fernandez]

I thought Safari, (Spider Murphy) shaped kneeboards? Right out of Durban.

[Terence H]

Hello Guys ,thanks Brad, AB and Mike.
Yes i know Windy Lewis i think he rides Hugh Thompson boards , will have a look at what he is producing lately.
AB thanks for that suggestion.


The reason i started asking was that South African kneeboarding is actually going backwards at present ,and as far as board design developments i feel nothing much new is happening, although not paying much attention for a while i might be wrong so will have a good look around ,before deciding.
Contests help drive design and we do not have any anymore.

Thanks a lot.
Terence

[Terence H]

OK when i first started asking questions here i had been out of the loop for a long time.
I must just say there are lot of good shapers here in Durban , i chose a shaper that had not made a lot of Kneeboards and together with all the info i have gathered here managed to get a bloody nice board.
And thanks to Red TWS and some other guys here on KSUSA who would rather not be mentioned and plenty of others who share info freely. (so if the board does not go i am coming after you)
And also a a joint effort with Ryan Marco in Durban who had to interpret pages of notes and photos and quotes from many others.
I could have easily got a computer shaped kneeboard here and most other kneeboards bought here are computer created ,and they just all look the same.
And did a price comparison you guys are paying a fortune for boards , not that the shapers do not deserve it , i just think boards in South Africa are so reasonably priced.

Anyway have a look at my board in the Album.

Now it better fly.

Thanks all
Terence

[analbirth]

T, looks like you've won lotto with that, nice shape & set up with the extra plugs, i noticed the rear fins have got the tabs way forward too, i've got 2 sets 1 set with the tabs forward & 1 set std. gives you so much more flexibility in setting up for different waves long walls or short punchy peaks. But with 3 sets of plugs the options are unreal, try keeping a diary in your car & note after each surf what type of surf it was & how it went with each set up, sometimes it's hard to remember [ the 70's ] you'll find with quad's even if the waves are say 6-8' but short walls you might still go for the fins closer together [depending on how clean the face is ] as your not trying to race the lip and you don't need that extra down the line drive, let us know how it goes, i'll post some pic's of my board & fins with their tab set up AB

[Terence H]

Mr AB thanks for the comments , yes the rear tabs are probably a bit more forward than i would have liked but have been used to a Quad that is more of a twin with large side fins way forward and a tiny centre fin.
I kinda get to my knees off my elbows comes from learning to kneeboard with no influences at all (did not see another kneeboarder for the first 5 years i rode)
so i tend to be kneeling more forward than i would like sometimes and the fins forward help.
Your thinking regards the different types of waves and fin placement is how i am thinking.
Good idea to keep notes ,because with a few different sets of fins the permatations become huge.
Look forward to seeing your set up.
Ryan Marco the shaper also gave me 3 sets of fins with the board ,he makes them himself and they are much like the Shapers fins in Aus.
Regards
T

[Andy]

Hi Terence,

Nice looking board....hit the waves and give us some feedback !

cheers

Andy