Transferring From Foam Fish to Shortboard

[Fed]

Greetings,

My name is Federico and I have been surfing for two summers. I consider myself a Beginner-Intermediate. My first summer, I rode a Wavestorm (8ft soft) and this summer I transferred down to the California Board Company Fish (5'8 Soft). I rode the Wavestorm last summer, approximately 2-3 times a week and I have been riding my Fish 3-4 times a week this summer.

I love the board I have right now and it is the best $60 I have ever spent, however I want something that can turn better and go faster. While this board maneuvers very well (for a foamboard) and catches waves very easily, it is hard to do snaps (frontside or backside) which is what I am focusing on right now.

I weight 155 lbs (70.3 kilos) and am 5'11 (180 cm). I have been into my local board shop in Hermosa Beach called ET Surf and while the guy seemed to know his stuff, he was not very convincing, thus I wish to get a second opinion from you fellas! I mainly at El Porto in Manhattan Beach, CA.

Thanks!

[Jimi]

Greetings Fed. Welcome to Surfing-waves.

What did the guy in your surf shop recommend? Hard to say if it's good or bad advice without knowing that

[Fed]

Hi Jimi,

The guy at the shop originally wanted me to transfer from my 8ft to a 6'10 that had a lot of volume but I wanted to go shorter and thinner. He didn't recommend that I go shorter and while he was friendly, I didn't get very good vibes (the board was also used and $400+). I told him my weight / height and while the shop had easily over 100 used boards, he only gave me one option. I ended up buying what I ride now (5'8 Fish) from Costco and it took me a few days to transition (surfing every day for 2 hours). The reason I bought this foam fish is because it was cheap and returnable, thus if I couldn't handle the less volume / shortness of it, I could return it. Luckily however, I have had the most fun on this board that I have ever had surfing.

My main questions are:

1) Should I stick with 5'8, go longer, or go shorter.
2) Even more important, what volume should the board that I buy have. I want something for surfing 3-6 foot waves (if there is such a board). I do not plan on surfing anything more than 6 feet, at least not this winter.

Keep in mind that I am switching from a soft board to a hard board (epoxy or fiberglass), and have never used anything other than soft boards.

Thanks again!

[dtc]

5'8 is very short - you cant go much shorter and at your weight you dont want to. The costco board is very floaty; I suspect as much volume as a standard shaped 6ft6 or so PU board but its hard to tell.

Have a look on the Firewire website and they have a 'volume' calculator that you can use as a starting point.

It actually sounds like the surfshop guy was giving good advice for most people.

2nd hand shortboards are all over the place. I reckon get one around 6ft4- 6ft6 and fairly wide (19 1/2) and see how you go. You aren't going to reach the performance limitations of that kind of board anytime soon. You may hate the board or find it too hard or whatever, that is just part of board buying.

[pandarturo]

Don't ever pay more than 200 for a used board please...ever.

[Fed]

What dimensions would you recommend I get? According to the Firewire volume calculator, I should be riding a board between 26 and 28 liters (volume). Length-wise, should I be riding 5'8, 5'9, or 5'10? What about the width? Thanks!

[pandarturo]

I'd say get a hybrid grovler shortboard. If you can muster the money go custom and get something around 6 foot 20 2 3/4. Ask the shaper to keep the rocker to three inches and leave meat around the most for extra easy paddling. As for the glassing schedule I'm a big fan of carbon fiber patching right now, you can check the forums for my posts and see what it looks like. Good luck on your search and have fun!

[dtc]

What dimensions would you recommend I get? According to the Firewire volume calculator, I should be riding a board between 26 and 28 liters (volume). Length-wise, should I be riding 5'8, 5'9, or 5'10? What about the width? Thanks!

What did you put in the calculator? At your weight and skill level, you should be around 40l and even that might be too low. 26L is not a beginner/intermediate board for someone at 70kg who has only surfed foam boards.

You could go the grovellor as suggested, I was going to write that but thought it might be a bit skatey for your skill level. But its definitely another option.

All I can say is that there is no reason to go too short. And you wont be buying the perfect board - you have only ever surfed foam boards so you wont know the perfect board. You just have to buy one and see how it goes then refine your needs and get another one. There is a reason why most surfers own 20 boards+ over their life (or over a year, for some).

My suggestion is not too small or too short so something around mid 6ft (or a fat grovellor) that is 35-45l and preferably at the upper end. Even this might be too ambitious but you seem determined and surf often enough so eventually it will sort itself out.

[Jimi]

Yep, all good advice so far. I agree the surf-shop guy was giving reasonable advice too. For someone new to surfing, and around 70kg, a 6'10 with volume (NOT a gun) would be a good board to get away from longboards.
$400 is a lot though, so it would want to look like new!

[IB_Surfer]

You where able to ride the costco fish? Wow, you are actually better than you think. However, a shortboard is a different beast altogether. I will give you the next size you should try for transition, based on your weight and the current board. I would go with 6'2 x 19 x 2 3/8 but eventually you will be riding 5'10 boards that are thinner and narrower, but for now go with a transition size. Plus, this will be your "step-up" for when there are big waves.

However, if you think that maybe I am not right, or still not sure, go rent or borrow one. Where abouts are you at? Maybe someone can recommend a place to check out boards?

[Fed]

Thanks a lot for the responses guys,

Once I get my next paycheck I'll be going into my local surf store (ET Surf) to check out some used shortboards or some grovelers if they have any. I'll also be checking craigslist since I feel I will probably get them cheaper there.

I went back out on my Fish a couple of times since I've posted this and it is definitely time for me to move up. I've caught pretty much every wave I go for but I want to go faster and be more agile! Definitely feel like the board is limiting me from progressing because I can catch waves and turn just fine, but every time I shift my body to go in for a frontside carve my board just feels unstable. I've read that you pretty much can't carve well on a foam board because the structure can't support the pressure.... not sure if that's true or not though.

[dtc]

if you are catching waves on the foamie easily and want something agile, then go for a short fat board - like the Firewire Sweet Potato. You can actually get a 40l one thats only 5ft8. I have never surfed them and they will have their limitations on big waves, but I gather they are basically like skateboards on the wave, you scoot all over the place. Others make similar boards (grovellers).