Hi everyone,

I've been a member of the forum for a while but haven't posted before so I thought I would jump in with a few pics of my quiver.

My current go to board is a 7'4 Kazuma Fugu. I've had it for about 2 years but only started to use it consistently this winter. It's absolutely great in clean, offshore conditions with a bit of size but it also works in the smaller, mushier stuff if you get your position perfect. On cross shore days it is very hard work to balance and generally not worth the effort. I added my own deck grip (Luna surf) and modified short board tail pad. You might notice the gaffer tape on the leash. This was my solution to the leash regularly getting nicked on the fins and snapping. It's not pretty but it works!







Second is my 7'8 Gong Alley carbon pro.

This is about 3 years old and is a great board in most conditions. It's so so light and easier to balance than the fugu but just doesn't seem to have the same turning ability (probably because the rails are fatter). Weird considering it is narrower.

you can probably see the large repair underneath. About 2 years ago I almost snapped it in half. Managed to trap my paddle between me and the board whilst diving under whitewater. There was an almighty bang and I thought I had really hurt myself. When I surfaced the board was snapped. I also ripped the leash plug clean out on a bigger day so got an extra plug put in for confidence (it was a horrible swim home ha ha). I found the gong deck grips to be poor so I changed it to a Luna one and it is much better!





Finally my Gong Karmen 8'4. This is great when it's lumpy and cross shore or small, weak and mushy. I also use it on the flat during summer when I fancy a bit of swimming/ paddling as it has a decent amount of float and glide. I have had it out on bigger days too but it can get a bit unwieldy. This was my second proper surf sup after a Naish Hokua which I had for a couple of years.


Anyway thanks for looking. I live on the north coast of Northern Ireland and tend to stay to the quieter spots although everywhere seems to be getting busier these days.

C

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Cp500n said..
It's so so light and easier to balance than the fugu but just doesn't seem to have the same turning ability

Hi Cp500n, nice review!

I think it is also due to the flatter tail rocker. The shape changed in 2022 for a more traditional rocker, you can see the quite obvious difference between my Alleys 8'1": 2022 model (top) and my 2019 (bottom):


The flatter rocker makes its stabler, faster in weak conditions, but less loose in the pocket. Basically the 2019 shape come alive when you have your rear foot well on the arch/kickpad, where the 2022 can tolerate a wider range of placement.

This made me keep the 2019 model. With also its extra lightness (1.5 kg difference) it is a better board for the mellow conditions where you want to generate speed. Nothing beats the "turbo" of a flatter tail rocker when you put your back foot "to the metal" to pinch that extra juice in small waves. The 2022 shines however in more hollow or powerful conditions. Also, as you found out, there is no free lunch, less weight means generally a bit less strength (the 2020 and later have full PVC sandwich also on the bottom and rails). These 2019 are the only Gong carbon boards I had to use rails savers on... but they were the lightest ever produced by them... compromises, compromises.

The 2019 pad had too wide slots, making the pad bits between them too narrow to resist foot movements in the long term. I fixed it by adding some bits of pad in the middle of the slots to reduce their length. Note how on your DK pad on your Karmen, the slots are wider apart... It is a good thing that Gong corrected this afterwards (no issue on my 2022, but I had to re-glue bits of the 2019 pad often), but I must say that I found that round holes are the better solution, like on your Luna.

The Karmen has a wider tail, that can provide too much lift in the size, I suggest you try it as a quad for these conditions, it helps to control the tail then.

Hi Colas,

Thanks for the reply. The difference in tail rocker is really clear in your picture. The new shape Alley looks like a nice board. I completely agree with you in relation to surfing from the tail on the older shape Alley, it comes alive when you are right on the tail pad. I must have a look at the rocker on the Fugu as a comparison. Here is me on the Karmen on a chunky day a while ago. I have never tried it as a quad but I might give it a go.

Nice quiver! Do you mind sharing the widths/volumes and your weight?

Do you find it hard to go back to your Karuma after being on the more stable Gong? Asking cause I went back to surfing 29.5" wide, fuller outline board my last two sessions and now gonna return to my 28" pulled-in shape and I'm a little scared to see how it feels.

cheers

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Kisutch said..
Nice quiver! Do you mind sharing the widths/volumes and your weight?

Do you find it hard to go back to your Karuma after being on the more stable Gong? Asking cause I went back to surfing 29.5" wide, fuller outline board my last two sessions and now gonna return to my 28" pulled-in shape and I'm a little scared to see how it feels.

cheers

Hi,

No problem at all. The Fugu is 29" and 97L the Alley is 27 1/2 and 105L and the Karmen is 30 and 120L. I'm about 82kg.
The Fugu has a really small balance point and I find that switching between boards it can take half an our or so to get dialled back into it but generally it's not too bad. C

Nice boards Cp. Just watched a surf vid with at least one sup in the corner of their frame, a right reef. Maybe you.
Emerald Tap with Cain Kilcullen.

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surfinJ said..
Nice boards Cp. Just watched a surf vid with at least one sup in the corner of their frame, a right reef. Maybe you.
Emerald Tap with Cain Kilcullen.

Thanks surfinJ. They seem to tick all the boxes for me at the minute. Not me In the video I'm afraid.

That gong 7'8 alley pro looks nice man. @colas, how do they get 105l in it when it's only 27.5" wide? Must be thick or really domed?? What's the rationale on going quite narrow on it be having the same volume but 28.5" wideish?

Note that all dims are on the Gong site. You have them summarized by clicking on "size charts", and also the last picture give a graph of all widths and areas. But I cannot post links to the Gong site as they are banned here. Here are some screenshots:

The size chart of the 2022 Alleys: (sorry I have not saved the ones for the 2019)


The graph of the 2022 Alley 7'8":


The graph of the 2021 Alley 7'8" in comparison (it was the same for the 2019):

Alas, the info for the 2019 Alleys is not available anymore. I remember them as:
Gong Alley 8'1" Pro 120l 8'1"x29"1/4x4"3/4, in cm: 246.4x74.3x12.1 ofo 43.7x46.6 rocker 26.4
Gong Alley 7'8" Pro 105l 7'8"x27"3/4x4"1/2, in cm: 233.7x70.5x11.5 ofo 42.8x45.3 rocker 25

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thegreatsup said..
That gong 7'8 alley pro looks nice man. @colas, how do they get 105l in it when it's only 27.5" wide? Must be thick or really domed?? What's the rationale on going quite narrow on it be having the same volume but 28.5" wideish?

The rationale is that, if you are heavy, you want volume to match, but not more length or width if you are not taller or have wider feet.

The Gong shaper have a knack to "hide" volume away from the rails, especially the rear section.

This said, the Alley shape is quite specific: the rails have a high volume in the center but a low volume in the tail and nose. This way, when the board gets on the rail in turns, the midsection acts as a fulcrum, keeping the nose high and loose and preventing catching in hollow waves, with the board pivoting tightly at will for vertical surfing. The Karmen is the opposite, the volume is spread on the whole of the board with a flatter deck, so in turns it keeps the nose down and engages the whole rail for maximum carving.
But this mean you should not oversize the Alley if you are looking for stability, as it will become too thick, unlike the Karmen it is a shape designed to be ridden with just the right volume for your weight. I'd say guild factor 1.2 max.

So you have the Karmen as a "wideish" alternative.