This morning i gave the Hellfire a run. For 1" Shorter and 1" thiner it still paddled very well, but it was a real pleasure having less buoyancy..Duck diving and just general paddling into waves i found i sat in the wave a bit more than up on top. Responsive to turn and still stable/solid under foot..
Its amazing what an 1" can do

Lots of second hand boards I've bought the owner has offered a free trial ride. I've yet to do that as i prefer to knock them on price instead and take the consequences