I have a 10' mctavish and love the surfing part but at 104kg I am 10kg too heavy and i spend my time keeping my balance so am exhausted after 45m. Sadly sees it gathering dust while I use my 10'6" log which is stable and great fun.

I will buy a new board - looking at the 10' carrier which is 2" wider than the mctavish but designed with a surf focus which is where I spend all my time.

The mctavish is in perfect order - I am happy to sell to a happy home as the funds would be useful to help me fund the new board. From my experience I would definately recommend sub 100kg for this board.

Andrew

I think the 2011 McTavish 9'6 is a perfect all round board for a medium build guy. It has good glide to get on to the waves early and once on the wave you can really chuck it around. My only problem with it is actually me, not the board. At 73 kg I'm a bit too light for it. It's great on the small stuff but on a bigger wave it goes like a bullet (I have it set up as a quad so nice and loose) and I just haven't got the weight to control it as much as I'd like too. I'm looking to get something with a little less volume so if any one has any suggestions that would be great. I'm thinking the JL striker 8'11 would be a goer or maybe starboard 9'1 pro.

caltrano said...

I have a 10' mctavish and love the surfing part but at 104kg I am 10kg too heavy and i spend my time keeping my balance so am exhausted after 45m. Sadly sees it gathering dust while I use my 10'6" log which is stable and great fun.

I will buy a new board - looking at the 10' carrier which is 2" wider than the mctavish but designed with a surf focus which is where I spend all my time.

The mctavish is in perfect order - I am happy to sell to a happy home as the funds would be useful to help me fund the new board. From my experience I would definately recommend sub 100kg for this board.

Andrew

Try surfing it as a thruster with a bigger centre fin than the supplied McTavish one. I put a 10" Glide fin in and it completely changed the way the board handled. Much more stable, tracks better but not as easy to turn. I rode my 9'6 like that for a while and it was a whole lot easier. After about a month I went to the quad setup when I'd worked out the balance. It's all a big trade off but well worth the experiment. The McTavish boards are surfing machines once you get it right.

In reply I would like to add video of the board in use,



I hope the link works!!

Stay In Trim

Nash

caltrano said...

Thx guys I have wondered about a larger central fin- I have it set up as a thruster but keep wishing I had 10kg less weight and it would be perfect 15kg even better.
I will get a big fin and give it a go
Thx for the advice - all much appreciated. My wife has raised a sudden love of the board at the same time someone emailed their interest in buying it. Given I still have as my main surfboard a trigger bros 8' stubby that is 15 years old I am surprised that she has any issue with me selling anything.
Where is the best place to buy a 10" glide fin? 10" is a lota fin.
Thx Andrew

I bought mine from rip curl in Torquay. They're made by a local fin shaper who is supposedly one of the best.

caltrano said...

Mick

Can you take a photo of the fin and I will give it a go over Easter - I now have SA carrier and my wife will have the mctavish out so it will be great to get on the same waves and try them out.
I would love to make the mctavish a bit more stable to paddle.

The swell and surf have been great lately - getting in the water every chance I can

Cheers Andrew

Hey Andrew,
A mate of mine has borrowed my fin to make his sup more stable and paddle straighter. He's moved from an 11 footer down to a 9'6" sup .... but I've found it on the web where you can buy one
www.zaksurfboards.com/category/fins/
It looks like this



If you've got a mate with a spare big fin see if you can borrow one first just to try it out. I seriously reckon you'll only need it for a couple of months and then you can go with a smaller, looser set up. That being said though, if you want to do some distance paddling on a calm day the big fin makes the board track beautifully. Shove it right up the back of the fin box for a straighter glide, move it forward for a looser feel. Don't sweat too much about getting a glide fin. Any big fin in that traditional mal nose rider fin shape will do the trick. I'd go to your local surf shop and see what they've got.
Cheers
Mick