Been surfing for over a year now I've been exposed to a variety of waves like South WA, North WA, Goldie, Indo.

i've been riding a 5'10 firewire dominator the whole time. I really like it, have been surfing it with thruster setup. I'm 6'3 and 77kgs

It's 33ltrs in volume. Is this too much ? it's also 20 3/4 wide. Should i start looking at another board?


I also own a 6'2 firewire x pyzel Slab @32ltrs. It's more narrow and longer but still a fair bit of volume. Did i buy the wrong board?

thanks

They are fine. Volume is the last thing you should worry about. Worry more about what sort of rocker you want, bottom shape, rails, length and width, tail and nose width, rail shape.

To simply ask, "Do I have too much volume?" is simplistic and reductionist. No you don't. You could add some extra volume, or lose some, and it won't make bugger all difference to your surfing.

Go get a custom.

Plus you reckon you like it. Great. Keep it and surf it

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thedrip said..
Plus you reckon you like it. Great. Keep it and surf it

Thanks drip!

yeh you're right, I guess the worry is that i'm afraid I'm sticking to a board that may not let me progress as fast as I would like.

Kind of like choosing to drive a small car because it's easy to park and drive compared to a 4x4. Just because I like it doesn't necessarily mean I'll progress fast with it.


Do you think its worth trying out other boards to see what i'm missing out on?

Your boards are fine, stop overthinking it...
Go surfing more....

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PaulyOS said...

thedrip said..
Plus you reckon you like it. Great. Keep it and surf it

Thanks drip!

yeh you're right, I guess the worry is that i'm afraid I'm sticking to a board that may not let me progress as fast as I would like.

Kind of like choosing to drive a small car because it's easy to park and drive compared to a 4x4. Just because I like it doesn't necessarily mean I'll progress fast with it.


Do you think its worth trying out other boards to see what i'm missing out on?

Pretty much what Benny said.

However, you did just ask a board whore whether or not you should surf different boards...

So, will you make a giant progression by changing boards? Well, no.

Is it fun to surf different boards? Yes. They go different and require different skills. I love my twin fins, I love my single fins, channel bottoms rock, having a step up makes bigger waves easier and fun, having a step up from the step is good too, then having a "oh my god I'm going to die" gun makes huge waves possible, then it gets small and I pull my longboard, and I have two five fin boards with a single into flat into vee with a double concave bottom on the way...

BTW, it was trying different boards that I found out I really don't like single concaves. Loathe them. Lots of people like them though.

If you really want to try a different board, go get a board 6-8" longer than the Pyzel - you have small waves covered so you may as well start a quiver. Get a proper step up. Sure the rocker and bottom and tail will handle pipeline, but getting in early is good and a 2-4 inch increments ain't enough.

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thedrip said...

PaulyOS said...

thedrip said..
Plus you reckon you like it. Great. Keep it and surf it

Thanks drip!

yeh you're right, I guess the worry is that i'm afraid I'm sticking to a board that may not let me progress as fast as I would like.

Kind of like choosing to drive a small car because it's easy to park and drive compared to a 4x4. Just because I like it doesn't necessarily mean I'll progress fast with it.


Do you think its worth trying out other boards to see what i'm missing out on?

Pretty much what Benny said.

However, you did just ask a board whore whether or not you should surf different boards...

So, will you make a giant progression by changing boards? Well, no.

Is it fun to surf different boards? Yes. They go different and require different skills. I love my twin fins, I love my single fins, channel bottoms rock, having a step up makes bigger waves easier and fun, having a step up from the step is good too, then having a "oh my god I'm going to die" gun makes huge waves possible, then it gets small and I pull my longboard, and I have two five fin boards with a single into flat into vee with a double concave bottom on the way...

BTW, it was trying different boards that I found out I really don't like single concaves. Loathe them. Lots of people like them though.

If you really want to try a different board, go get a board 6-8" longer than the Pyzel - you have small waves covered so you may as well start a quiver. Get a proper step up. Sure the rocker and bottom and tail will handle pipeline, but getting in early is good and a 2-4 inch increments ain't enough.

Well written... made a fellow board whore froth for something different... all of the above will make your surfing experience richer... I've just finished a brief obsession with a 5'2 foamie that gave me the confidence to pigdog again and had heaps of fun surfing waves that I normally wouldn't have bothered in.. upped the stoke big time...
A few things that have stuck with me over my time is when you blow a wave, get over it because surfing is really hard, the best surfer is the surfer having the most fun and surfing is a puzzle and every now and then you get given a little piece....
have fun..

if its ok to duck dive, paddle and bottom turn on it should be fine.

I'm a79kg 6'4" and my everyday board is around 31L at 6'5" x 19" x 2 1/2", but I'm old and need the extra paddling power. Rocker, tail, concave and fins and also important for paddling and performance.

If your paddling into waves ok maybe go for something with more performance and see how you go. Most people always come back to ease of paddling into waves but with performance.

Thanks for the replies dudes!

Quick question. Does board length help getting onto waves earlier alot?

Like if i was to get a step up which was longer than my dominator but had less volume would it get me in earlier?

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PaulyOS said...
Thanks for the replies dudes!

Quick question. Does board length help getting onto waves earlier alot?

Like if i was to get a step up which was longer than my dominator but had less volume would it get me in earlier?

That'd be a dumb thing to do. Keep at least the same volume.

To answer your question, yes a longer board of similar volume will get in earlier than the shorter board, but losing volume begins to negate the benefit of extra length.

Generally, if you are getting a proper step up rather than just a shorty that can handle solid waves, you should scale up width and thickness a little. You can keep the tail and nose widths the same. I have a 6'6" that'll easily handle 8' waves, but there is no way I paddling that out as I don't like missing waves, like being able to paddle quickly around a line up, and like getting in early. I'm not Kelly Slater and it's something many less than awesome surfers should realise when they say "My 6'2" does it no worries." Really? How many waves do they miss each session?

For example, my 7', 8', and 9'6" semi-gun and guns all have identical tail width and nose width. Adding length draws the lines out anyway. The 8' and 9'6" are an inch and half wider. The 9'6" is 1/4 inch thicker.

You should take your boards into a shaper and tell them what you like, dislike and want your next board to do.

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thedrip said..

PaulyOS said...
Thanks for the replies dudes!

Quick question. Does board length help getting onto waves earlier alot?

Like if i was to get a step up which was longer than my dominator but had less volume would it get me in earlier?

That'd be a dumb thing to do. Keep at least the same volume.

To answer your question, yes a longer board of similar volume will get in earlier than the shorter board, but losing volume begins to negate the benefit of extra length.

Generally, if you are getting a proper step up rather than just a shorty that can handle solid waves, you should scale up width and thickness a little. You can keep the tail and nose widths the same. I have a 6'6" that'll easily handle 8' waves, but there is no way I paddling that out as I don't like missing waves, like being able to paddle quickly around a line up, and like getting in early. I'm not Kelly Slater and it's something many less than awesome surfers should realise when they say "My 6'2" does it no worries." Really? How many waves do they miss each session?

For example, my 7', 8', and 9'6" semi-gun and guns all have identical tail width and nose width. Adding length draws the lines out anyway. The 8' and 9'6" are an inch and half wider. The 9'6" is 1/4 inch thicker.

You should take your boards into a shaper and tell them what you like, dislike and want your next board to do.

What he said....if you want to catch more big waves you need more board...I usually keep my width and thickness pretty consistent and then just adjust rockers and plane shape to suit the waves it meant for. Unlike Drip I love single concaves...mostly because their easy to shape...I like lower volume rails as well...

seen a guy try to duck dive a wave this morning...board was so thick he couldn't push it under the wave and it popped out backwards and took out the guy on the wave (ambulance trip)...big thick boards are ok as long as the waves are very small

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curlzbean said...
seen a guy try to duck dive a wave this morning...board was so thick he couldn't push it under the wave and it popped out backwards and took out the guy on the wave (ambulance trip)...big thick boards are ok as long as the waves are very small

I guess you don't surf solid waves then? Big thick boards become more and more of a necessity as the waves get bigger and bigger. Even the professionals move off 6'2"s eventually.

Small technical adjustment required and you are sorted with a larger volumed nose - just pressure one side more than the other for a Millie second and you push the board down on a slight angle. Easy. Use your foot instead of your knee for added leverage if required as well.

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curlzbean said..
seen a guy try to duck dive a wave this morning...board was so thick he couldn't push it under the wave and it popped out backwards and took out the guy on the wave (ambulance trip)...big thick boards are ok as long as the waves are very small

Hahahahahhahahahaha....sounds like operator error....I can duck dive my 9'2

yes...comment was in reference to newbies to surfing..ie Pauly