Hey guys

I'm just looking for any info when choosing a step up board.

I'm currently riding a 5'10 to about head and a half high waves and am looking for something a bit bigger for when it gets pumping.

I'm 6'3 and 77kgs

Depends where you are surfing and what you mean by a step up.

Lots of people don't get a true step up and just get a different type of board - add two inches, pull in the tail, but more rocker.

My problem with those sort of step ups is they don't paddle that much better. A real step up should get you in a lot earlier too. Lots of people down here have quivers in six inch increments. So a 6'4" for you. That's still a pretty small board.

Small boards with the right design can absolutely surf solid waves. The bigger you go the more waves you will get, and the earlier you will get in. Getting in early helps eliminate the fear factor in solid surf. If you are pushing your limits I certainly don't want to feel caught in the lip and looking down vertically.

You've said before south point in a 2.5m is fairly solid for you. You could certainly get by with a different type of 5'10 if you want to stay small and feel comfortable with later drops.

Personally I would say go to a shaper, take in your present board, say what you like/dislike and what you want the next board to do. Then follow their recommendations. Generally they have more idea of what you need (as against what you think you want). Trust your shaper and don't have too much input. I have wrecked boards by having shapers give me what I want rather than listening to them.

I agree go to a shaper, my partner got herself a new board and the shaper we used was on the east coast. He spent 2hrs on skype with her discussing how she surfed and the waves she rides. He also wanted to see video of her surfing.

Now she is getting more waves than me

Agree with Drip

Be clear about if you want a step-up ( your current stick scaled up ) or a big wave board, shaper will listen and lead you in the right direction.

Is it an all rounder that you are looking for or are you most likely to surf the bigger stuff at a specific spot or area? All variables that need to be considered to get it right. You'll be rewarded with a great outcome talking it through with a good shaper As long as you are are of the things that work for you.

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Ctngoodvibes said...
I have one of these in 6'10 and rate it highly
https://au.rusty.com/traveler

Looks sweet. I like the outline. The 6'10" isn't listed though. Was it the blackbird?

A shaper can also whack more glass on than the cellophane that a lot or rack boards call a glass job.

^^^^Never underestimate the substandard glassing of a Rustee.

Nah it's a traveller....they can do whatever length / volume you want. Mines 36 litres

I like to keep the same width and thickness ( give or take up to 1/4 inch) for my boards. that way the feel doesn't change change to much, just the ability to get in earlier does.....unless its for big waves where I don't intend to turn to much and just aim and hold on for dear life....then I increase length, decrease width, pull in the tail but leave the thickness more or less the same.

Unless you surf big waves sometimes a good combo is a smaller wave board plus the good wave variant from the same shaper.

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damogc said...
I like to keep the same width and thickness ( give or take up to 1/4 inch) for my boards. that way the feel doesn't change change to much, just the ability to get in earlier does.....unless its for big waves where I don't intend to turn to much and just aim and hold on for dear life....then I increase length, decrease width, pull in the tail but leave the thickness more or less the same.

My guns are an inch to an inch and half wider and the same or up to 3/4 of an inch thicker. I also have the same tail and nose width in the first step up as lengthening the board tapers it anyway. The second step up is pulled in by 1/2 an inch both ends.

I guess I should have defined big waves...... I don't have a gun, just a a couple of step ups and a semi gun ( if you can call it that 6'10 X 19/12X 2 5/8) and for me big waves where I am shooting for the shoulder are about triple overhead......no turns there.....

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damogc said...
I guess I should have defined big waves...... I don't have a gun, just a a couple of step ups and a semi gun ( if you can call it that 6'10 X 19/12X 2 5/8) and for me big waves where I am shooting for the shoulder are about triple overhead......no turns there.....

Our reefs - for most part - break slower but with more power than the Queensland beachies. The boards I surf over there are very different to here. More rockered. Over here I surf a much flatter rocker, thicker and wider. It's also easier to turn on our reefs. I think most people out on a triple overhead wave would be fairly comfortable throwing turns as the waves don't run as fast.

You do get floggerated if you stuff the turn though.

Triple overhead Snapper is a playful pussycat compared to the SW reefs.

The board I will next take over east for when it's solid and a longboard shape (6'10" or 9'6") won't work is this in the 7' version:

www.yahoosurfboards.com.au/wahoo.html

The size of the OP also matters. I am 6'2" and 93 kgs. I need different boards to a whippet. That traveller posted earlier would go good over east too I reckon.

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Ctngoodvibes said..
Nah it's a traveller....they can do whatever length / volume you want. Mines 36 litres

I purchased a 6'4 traveller last month as a step up for myself. 29 litres. Great board but already noticing average glass job. If I were to buy again I would look at a firewire "The next step" model , or even better get one hand crafted ;)

As Drip mentioned a few extra inches on length is a good thing and traditionally what a step up is . I would only go fractionally wider and thicker but not by much at all.
For a step up its all about having more rail so you can draw wider arcs through your turns and hold more speed for longer on bigger waves. We all know what its like riding a board that is too small and not being able to get around sections and sliding all over the place. The step up may feel a bit "stiff" at the start but once you get it in its desired style of waves and wind it up to top velocity it will come into its own and your style of surfing will change from pumping , racing and sliding to more flow , power and nice lines!

Pauly , at 6'3 your pretty tall to be riding a 5'10 as your short board bro - even at 77kgs. Owen Wright rides a 6'1/6'2 and he's your height but with a couple of extra kgs.

I tend to consider height and board length like a pendulum (to some extent) . If you have longer legs and torso then you should be able to draw wider turns with more power and inertia through turns HOWEVER not if your on a small board .

Get fit and bring ur weight up to 85kgs and get on a 6'4 - 6'6 and I reckon you will be loving life in 6-8ft waves

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thedrip said..

damogc said...
I guess I should have defined big waves...... I don't have a gun, just a a couple of step ups and a semi gun ( if you can call it that 6'10 X 19/12X 2 5/8) and for me big waves where I am shooting for the shoulder are about triple overhead......no turns there.....

Our reefs - for most part - break slower but with more power than the Queensland beachies. The boards I surf over there are very different to here. More rockered. Over here I surf a much flatter rocker, thicker and wider. It's also easier to turn on our reefs. I think most people out on a triple overhead wave would be fairly comfortable throwing turns as the waves don't run as fast.

You do get floggerated if you stuff the turn though.

Triple overhead Snapper is a playful pussycat compared to the SW reefs.

The board I will next take over east for when it's solid and a longboard shape (6'10" or 9'6") won't work is this in the 7' version:

www.yahoosurfboards.com.au/wahoo.html

The size of the OP also matters. I am 6'2" and 93 kgs. I need different boards to a whippet. That traveller posted earlier would go good over east too I reckon.

Interesting to hear how your bigger boards perform to your height and weight.
I'm 6'0 and 88kgs

Mentawi's in 2 weeks tomorrow yeoooow

Kearnsy, I bought the Wahoo as an all rounder for up north. 4-6 foot Tombies. My 6'6""s go better - feel better, probably don't turn much different - but I blow more waves because of the later drop. 6'"6 x19x2 5/8. The wahoo is pretty much for waves like your profile pic.

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KEARNSY said...

Ctngoodvibes said..
Nah it's a traveller....they can do whatever length / volume you want. Mines 36 litres

I purchased a 6'4 traveller last month as a step up for myself. 29 litres. Great board but already noticing average glass job. If I were to buy again I would look at a firewire "The next step" model , or even better get one hand crafted ;)

As Drip mentioned a few extra inches on length is a good thing and traditionally what a step up is . I would only go fractionally wider and thicker but not by much at all.
For a step up its all about having more rail so you can draw wider arcs through your turns and hold more speed for longer on bigger waves. We all know what its like riding a board that is too small and not being able to get around sections and sliding all over the place. The step up may feel a bit "stiff" at the start but once you get it in its desired style of waves and wind it up to top velocity it will come into its own and your style of surfing will change from pumping , racing and sliding to more flow , power and nice lines!

Pauly , at 6'3 your pretty tall to be riding a 5'10 as your short board bro - even at 77kgs. Owen Wright rides a 6'1/6'2 and he's your height but with a couple of extra kgs.

I tend to consider height and board length like a pendulum (to some extent) . If you have longer legs and torso then you should be able to draw wider turns with more power and inertia through turns HOWEVER not if your on a small board .

Get fit and bring ur weight up to 85kgs and get on a 6'4 - 6'6 and I reckon you will be loving life in 6-8ft waves

And I agree with all that about height and pendulums. I think that too.

I'm 10 years older than you too, Kearnsy, so need a bit more help these days. The 6'6"s were my all rounders for 17 years. 24-41.

for what it's worth I am a similar weight and height at 6'3 and about 78kg

my main two boards are a 6'6 McCoy nugget and a 6'0 is blakbox2. i find the black box an inch or two too small, mainly because of feet placement being my height. I find I get too far foward. other boards I typically ride are 6'3 6'4s.

but the McCoy has been a dream since I picked it up last year and can handle such a range of waves, it's been my go to for everything now.

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lfc said...
for what it's worth I am a similar weight and height at 6'3 and about 78kg

my main two boards are a 6'6 McCoy nugget and a 6'0 is blakbox2. i find the black box an inch or two too small, mainly because of feet placement being my height. I find I get too far foward. other boards I typically ride are 6'3 6'4s.

but the McCoy has been a dream since I picked it up last year and can handle such a range of waves, it's been my go to for everything now.

I've ridden a mates 6'6" nugget - awesome board. He has 7' nugget too, but I haven't ridden that.

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thedrip said..

damogc said...
I guess I should have defined big waves...... I don't have a gun, just a a couple of step ups and a semi gun ( if you can call it that 6'10 X 19/12X 2 5/8) and for me big waves where I am shooting for the shoulder are about triple overhead......no turns there.....

Our reefs - for most part - break slower but with more power than the Queensland beachies. The boards I surf over there are very different to here. More rockered. Over here I surf a much flatter rocker, thicker and wider. It's also easier to turn on our reefs. I think most people out on a triple overhead wave would be fairly comfortable throwing turns as the waves don't run as fast.

You do get floggerated if you stuff the turn though.

Triple overhead Snapper is a playful pussycat compared to the SW reefs.

The board I will next take over east for when it's solid and a longboard shape (6'10" or 9'6") won't work is this in the 7' version:

www.yahoosurfboards.com.au/wahoo.html

The size of the OP also matters. I am 6'2" and 93 kgs. I need different boards to a whippet. That traveller posted earlier would go good over east too I reckon.

No such thing as triple OH Snapper. I have only really had that size in Indo and Mexico.

I never have to ride anything above 6'4 over here.

I rode a 6'6 wahoo when I was over your way at christmas and thought it was really comfortable to ride, really responsive with plenty of volume to get in early. Was about 6 foot yallingup and it handled it really well. maybe even a little too much volume for that size......I am 93kg and 6'0

Well it certainly looked three times the height of all the guys at the bottom after dropping into it. October 2014. I could probably find an exact date. But I understand it isn't that frequent. I surfed it as big, but breaking wider in 2007 too. The sets weren't really barrelling that day. That was July.

I think we need clarification on what the 5'10 is. I am guessing a hybrid. Pauly might just need something more traditional like the Wahoo.

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bene313 said..
I think we need clarification on what the 5'10 is. I am guessing a hybrid. Pauly might just need something more traditional like the Wahoo.

5'10 Firewire dominator

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thedrip said..
Well it certainly looked three times the height of all the guys at the bottom after dropping into it. October 2014. I could probably find an exact date. But I understand it isn't that frequent. I surfed it as big, but breaking wider in 2007 too. The sets weren't really barrelling that day. That was July.

I have seen snapper triple over head quite a few times . I spent my grommet hood and teens over there and before the super bank it would hold it no problems out wide. Not sure about these days? I gave up hassling for waves in that place years ago and don't pay much attention any more to be honest.

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PaulyOS said...

bene313 said..
I think we need clarification on what the 5'10 is. I am guessing a hybrid. Pauly might just need something more traditional like the Wahoo.

5'10 Firewire dominator

5'10 * 20 1/4 * 2 1/2 - 33.5L

That is a huge board for 77kg. Have you tried anything smaller? How did it go?

That Wahoo 6'6 was around the same volume if you're happy with the litres.

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bene313 said...

PaulyOS said...

bene313 said..
I think we need clarification on what the 5'10 is. I am guessing a hybrid. Pauly might just need something more traditional like the Wahoo.

5'10 Firewire dominator

5'10 * 20 1/4 * 2 1/2 - 33.5L

That is a huge board for 77kg. Have you tried anything smaller? How did it go?

That Wahoo 6'6 was around the same volume if you're happy with the litres.

I don't think he is hugely over volumed as such, but that much foam could certainly be distributed into a much longer board.

6'6 - 6'8
Pull the tail in
Push the wide point forward
keep the width between 19 and 20
Keep the thickness under 2 3/4
Keep the 1st 3rd of the rails soft and forgiving
Keep the tail thin for control
Fin cluster should be pretty normal
Get some vee in the front and right at the back don't go to crazy anywhere else

All of the above will get you in nice and early and give you control which is the key to making waves and slowly pushing your maximum size north

Talk to your shaper and tell them where you surf and where you want to surf

I prefer length and width and control when the surf gets solid...cutbacks, tubes and bottoms turns are where its at for me....anyone hitting the lip when its over 6 foot is a better man than I

im 6'4" and 78 kg and my all round everyday board is 6'5"x 19" x 2 5/8" D tail, double concave
handles overhead waves. not so good in knee high summer. waist to chest high waves it turns real well. I find anything under a 6 foot board like riding a popsicle.

the point is the extra length might suit your height for the everyday surf also
the step up for say double overhead may be a different tail width etc to suit, plus i reckon some extra volume never hurts when trying to paddle into a bigger wave.

I have a 6'2 JS forget me not squash tail that I rarely use as it doesn't really suit for Scarborough waves. It also has 26.2L of volume which I find to be almost on the too little side as paddling into waves is pretty tough going compared to the dominator. I think I'll keep my dominantor for anything between waist and head and half high waves and then maybe a 6'6 for when it gets bigger and hollower? It would be nice to get in early on these bigger days as I'm bloody sick of free falling off the lip maybe I'm just not paddling hard enough

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PaulyOS said...
I have a 6'2 JS forget me not squash tail that I rarely use as it doesn't really suit for Scarborough waves. It also has 26.2L of volume which I find to be almost on the too little side as paddling into waves is pretty tough going compared to the dominator. I think I'll keep my dominantor for anything between waist and head and half high waves and then maybe a 6'6 for when it gets bigger and hollower? It would be nice to get in early on these bigger days as I'm bloody sick of free falling off the lip maybe I'm just not paddling hard enough

No. You need a bigger board. My 6'6"s were for head to double head. Then I moved to 7'2".

A couple of shapers I have spoken to have recommended 6-8" increments between boards to avoid too much overlap. It worked for me for years. Let us all know what you get.

Your last sentence is most likely one of the things to look at Pauly.

Firstly I do totally agree with extra length for bigger waves .

Having the right board in bigger waves is only a small piece of the puzzle . The volume distribution as discussed already in this thread will definitely help with paddling however in bigger surf the, biggest obstacle 90% of surfers deal with the most is CONFIDENCE and FITNESS .

I am BIG into my fitness , and train specifically for surfing . I also eat well and one thing I can be sure of is that if your body is fit , and you are eating well then your brain is also fit and functioning your muscles at a higher performance. Your brain rapid fires responses to your muscles and body so fast surfing becomes automatic and you dont even have to think about it - It just happens
This then transforms into confidence and CHARGING.


Here's my point of view . Once Im on my feet I want the best piece of performance equipment under me . I don't want to be having to "nurse" a board through turns because I need that extra volume for paddling. Some people will disagree with me on this and share a different perspective.
While my body is still young enough to be fully mobile , I want to make the most of these years and rip for as hard and long as I can. My fitness is the key to making this happen.

Plenty of time for me to cruise on a Mal later on in life

I think you should be riding a 6'3 with around 30 litres of volume for your shortboard , then a 6'5-6'7 with about 32 litres for your step up.

Im 36 and have an extra 10 kgs on you mate and ride similar dimensions without an issue .

Let me know when we are going board shopping

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PaulyOS said..
I have a 6'2 JS forget me not squash tail that I rarely use as it doesn't really suit for Scarborough waves. It also has 26.2L of volume which I find to be almost on the too little side

Right style of board just too small for you. 26.2L / 77kg = .34GF which is what the pros ride their FMNs at.

The problem with these off-the-rack boards is that they aren't geared towards WA conditions. I'm sure FMN goes great at pumping snapper though. We see this every year when the pros themselves struggle on toothpicks out at Margs.

Did you see Courtney Conlogue this year at Margs? She won last year - check out what she rode, consider her stats also:

COURTNEY CONLOGUE
HEIGHT: 5'7"
WEIGHT: 140 lbs.

MODEL: The Apex
SHAPER: Tim Stamps
TAIL: Rounded Pin
LENGTH: 6'5"
WIDTH: 18 3/8"
THICKNESS: 2 5/16"
VOLUME: 26.1L
TAIL WIDTH: 13 ?"
NOSE WIDTH: 11.5"


Read more at http://www.surfermag.com/blogs/design-forum/what-she-rode-courtney-conlogue/#w4v32F7MWm14mOmf.99

But you need to be true about what you're going to ride. When the swells up are you heading to the big open ocean spots? If so you need a real step up. However if you go to the smaller/protected spots you probably just need more of an all-rounder than your small wave board.