23 or 24

[JACKSON]

whats the advantage or disadvantage of going to the wider board 24"

[surfhorn]

Small aircraft can land on it.

[Bill F]

steep takeoffs and rail to rail movement

[K-man]

My thoughts:If you have a wide stance[knees apart]The closer your knees are to your rails,the more stable you are.which makes rail transfer easier..So...maybe thats a consideration for board width.
If your a big guy,extra width equates to more float,without having to go to extreme lengths.
Surfhorn is right..But you may need a windsock for takeoff/landings,and that will definately slow you down...... :lol: Comedic relief due to a lack of surfable waves..... :lol:


cheers

[ScottMac]

My new board is 22 1/2" wide which seems to work just fine for me.

[KEL]

I have a 24" 5-10 flashpoint...........fricking thing is wide............(hard to carry down to Trestles)( i got a surf rack on my bike now) BillF is right on, late takeoffs work well with this board(maybe the volume(width))...Im not sure but the takeoff is definetly different and better with this board, but puts me in a different position on the wave than my romo used to....with the romo, late takeoff would put me right in the pocket for a nice barrel but with the wider board the late takeoff seems to get out in front of the wave and through sections I would not normally make.

[budgie]

Have experimented with fin placements and styles of fins extensively.

Have experimented with short and long versions of kneeboards.

Have experimented with 6ft rockers and 6ft 8in rockers.

Have experimented with chimed rails which is one of the best I have ever had, softer rails which cant turn on a rail and square edged rails like good footboards and they rip.

Have experimented with straight, hexagonal styled and curved rail outlines.

Have experimented with other peoples designs and the inherent problems of their dogmaticly flawed ideas.

FACT: THE MORE I KNOW THE LESS I KNOW

What works for me right now is :

24in wide
Classical footboard outline eg: rounded squaretail
Standard 6ft footboard rocker
5ft 8in long
Thin - 2 5/16th which the width compensates the volume
FCS - AM2 Al Merrick fins (best thing I have done in a while)
Boxy square rails like a pro footboard

The width is important TO ME and enables a board to go well in small 1 - 2ft surf or big 8ft plus, speed isnt an issue because the rocker and rails work together for drive and speed, of course when used correctly.

Experiment, borrow boards, get one custom built with your ideas, if it
does'nt work after exhaustive testing get rid of it and try again, ask other kneelo's for advise, listen and try their ideas and if it DOESN'T WORK FOR YOU try another shaper whatever it takes,

With experimenting you need to verify what works and what doesnt and always go back to what does and get all the good bits that work and put them together

Have Fun

[quadfin]

I guess I need to return your call Jackson. There has been surf...sorry. Call you later

Are you thinking about another board? Getting the new board fever myself and have someone else interested. May be able to bring the shipping costs down with a group order.

[Terence H]

Budgie hello very interesting comments regards your current board , do you have any photos please , starting to plan my 50th Birthday present to myself in Jan 2010.

Thanks
Terence

[red]

Funny - I've been workin to get my boards narrower (22-22.5")
Why?
Well fat boards paddle like pigs. That's why kneeboarders ride 30% more volume than they need - they have to overcome the resistance of the ball they are pushing through the water.

Some numerical specifics:
A standup of 80kgs will ride a board around 30 liters (depending on ability - pros go 21-25 liters) - that's 2 1/4-1/2 thick
Typical kneeboarders at 80kg prefer 35-40+liters - around 2 1/2-2 7/8" thick - they probably would go thicker if they could get more thickness out of stock blanks!

You can approximate your volume. Here's a formula I got off Swaylocks:
1/2 Length (inches) * width (inches) * thickness + (10* every inch over 6')
Divide by 61.02 to get liters:
So we get:
1/2*(6'*12") * 24 * 2.5 +(0) = 2160 in/61.02 -> 35.4 liters (fat bastard!)
(34 liters for the 23" wide one)

Every time I standup surf I'm amazed how easy shortboards are to paddle - even when they are only 2 1/4 thick. I know it's not rocker (my rockers are similar to standup boards) and it's definitely not volume so it's width (maybe only the width in the nose, but I think overall curve plays a big part).

Will a 24" wide board paddle noticably harder than 23" wide? I dunno.

[kidrock]

hard to argue the reasoning...especially when backed by the math.

I'll say it again...surfing and surfboard styles are cyclical. What is popular now will probably not be popular 10 years from now. But will rise from the ashes approximately 15-20 years from now. It's plausible to think that we could very well see a return of narrower boards with less rocker.

In about 30-40 years, people will laugh and wonder in amazement how we could ever surf the craft we currently believe is so "cutting edge".

[surfhorn]

I've gone through a lot of boards over the past decades, from 19" wide up to over 24". Here in Santa Cruz County, I've settled on 6' 0" x 22 1/2".

For smaller waves, I run wider nose and tail; for big waves- more narrow nose and tail. Works really well... for me.

[surfhorn]

I've gone through a lot of boards over the past decades, from 19" width to over 24". Here in Santa Cruz County, I've settled on 6' 0" x 22 1/2".

For smaller waves, I run wider nose and tail; for big waves- more narrow nose and tail. Works really well... for me.

[budgie]

Thats what I love we are all on different things and they all go.

Bit like that Kelly Slater riding a door.

As long as we are having fun.

And yes Red I think the time is soon for you and I to design a board for me.

[JACKSON]

Have experimented with fin placements and styles of fins extensively.

Have experimented with short and long versions of kneeboards.

Have experimented with 6ft rockers and 6ft 8in rockers.

Have experimented with chimed rails which is one of the best I have ever had, softer rails which cant turn on a rail and square edged rails like good footboards and they rip.

Have experimented with straight, hexagonal styled and curved rail outlines.

Have experimented with other peoples designs and the inherent problems of their dogmaticly flawed ideas.

FACT: THE MORE I KNOW THE LESS I KNOW

What works for me right now is :

24in wide
Classical footboard outline eg: rounded squaretail
Standard 6ft footboard rocker
5ft 8in long
Thin - 2 5/16th which the width compensates the volume
FCS - AM2 Al Merrick fins (best thing I have done in a while)
Boxy square rails like a pro footboard

The width is important TO ME and enables a board to go well in small 1 - 2ft surf or big 8ft plus, speed isnt an issue because the rocker and rails work together for drive and speed, of course when used correctly.

Experiment, borrow boards, get one custom built with your ideas, if it
does'nt work after exhaustive testing get rid of it and try again, ask other kneelo's for advise, listen and try their ideas and if it DOESN'T WORK FOR YOU try another shaper whatever it takes,

With experimenting you need to verify what works and what doesnt and always go back to what does and get all the good bits that work and put them together

Have Fun

what are the nose and tail widths?