Lookin' for a new board..Need help!

you gotta tell us your level of surfing, but that board might work on like 5 days out of the year in oc.
theres a reason hes on the east coast and its in great condition-its not a type of board that gets used here.

 

Sandbar's right - that's a gun and won't work except on the largest of hurricane swells. The rocker and volume is wrong for you.

I would recommend either a mid-range funshape (7'2" - 7'8") or a modern fish in the (6'5" - 6'10") range depending on the amount of time you are going to get to ride. If you're going to have lots of time to surf then you should pick it up pretty quickly and the fish would be better. Otherwise go with the funshape.

I started on a funshape and have a Lost RNF now with 5 FCS plugs. Its a more modern fish which means the rocker and foil are different than the original templates. The 5 fin setup lets you ride the board as a quad when the surf is weaker. When it gets a little better, I set it up as a twin with 2 MR fins and its a lot of fun. And then you can use the
5th FCS plug for a small center fin when the waves get a little steeper.

I wish I had started on a fish, they're the most versatile in my opinion. And everybody makes one now.

Good Luck!

 

hey bro get nothing short of a funboard. (7 foot plus round nose) or a longboard even better. Longboards and funboards develop style and you will be able to surf more days out of the year which means more practice. you are considered a large sized surfer(anything over 180lbs) so volume will certainly help you learn the basics. guys/girls who start on longboards learn faster. when you do get a short board you will actually be able to ride the thing the way it is intended to be ridden. people who stat on shortboards(except those who start really young) rarely develope good style and their progression is always prolonged no matter what they claim. they dont see what we see. in thier mind they rip. longboarding is a magnified approach to surfing and it enables the surfer to learn all the basics( trim, weight shift, pivoting,, the x-axis ect) some people fall in love and never leave the longboard and thats fine too

 

Oh, and if you can swing it, buy a custom from a local shaper. I bought the Lost on a whim and it works for me, but its the only board I have that's not custom. A good custom from a good shaper will beat anything off the rack and make learning much easier. Plus, it will be cheaper.

 

i have to agree with everybody else either buy a funboard 7" or a longboard those will help you learn the basics and get you into the waves sooner and that helps with a beginner plus with a funboard or a log you can basically ride it year round unless a hurricane comes.

but with the board your looking at on that craigslist post if youve been surfing for years and are going to charge pipeline then that would be the board you would want. but dont buy that board for east coast surf.

 

Ditto on what 420 posted; also consider a longer stick.,advantage of a longer board 8'6" to 9'4", 2 3/4" - 3 1/8" thick with 21.5 - 23" center width, 2 + 1 fin set up for your weight and experience level with less rocker for ease of paddling and catching waves. I saw quite a few used mini and long boards come in shops in DE & OC end of last fall that were in super shape and cheap by good makers. I would be more concern of getting the right board now to learn on at the right price than would it serve my needs at the next level.

 

Don't overlook the often overlooked "hybrid."

True, shorter longboards and bigger "funboards" are easier to learn on. Longer longboards and under volumed "shortboards" are harder to learn on. (I have to say I hate funboards, and know for a fact that anything a funboard can do a hybrid can do better. It's just that not many people know what a hybrid is. I think of them as the forgotten genera.) That being said, what are your ultimate goals? If you want to catch waves easily, go out in just about any conditions, and think you'll like the glide and trim of a longboard, get a longboard.

However,if you want to ultimately ride a shortboard, get an overiszed "hybrid" type board. If you already have the wave knowledge, are relatively young, and if you're 200lbs and fit, you could learn to surf on a high volumed, hybrid that will allow you to transition into a shortboard faster and accelerate the learning curve. Here's what I'm talking about...

http://www.surfboardbuilders.com/BrowseBoard.aspx?ShapeID=5

These will give you an idea. But like it's been said here already, talk to a local shaper and get some ideas and recommendations from him. If he doesn't know what a hybrid is, talk to another shaper.

 

Nsp 7'2''

I rode this from beginner to immediate and the thing works in inch waves up to overhead death waves. I love this thing and they will never ding or break. Really teaches you how to bottom turn and get on rail. Id say ride this for 3 years or so. I switched after 2.

 

Don't buy a funboard if you're gonna be surfing a lot. I started off surfing in August of 08 on my friends foam board 3-4 days, then I borrowed his shortboard which had a good amount of volume on it. As the summer ended I bought a standard shortboard and didn't feel confortable on it. I bought a 7S fish (crappy board but cheap) for Christmas and definitely surfed better on that thing. It wasn't until maybe the next spring I wanted to develop my shortboarding again. This time I felt much more confortable on my shortboard. If I were you I would get somewhere between a 6"2-6"4 fish or hybrid with a good amount of volume (width and thickness; at least 19 inches wide and 2 3/8 inches thick.

 

i've got a 7'0 WRV funfish and it's the best board i have(all around). It's ridable in any conditions and can catch a wave like a longboard, while being able to do turns and carves. grant your not going to blow the tail on a 2 ft. day with it, but you'll be able to cruise and get mass amounts of stoke from a very small wave up to head high days. I've got my share of shortboards, but i try not to bring them out unless the day undoubtedly calls for a shredplank.

if you love just being in the water and catching some fun waves, then it's def. a good choice

 

Due to your size and ability (just getting started) I would recommend a board in the 8' range 22" to 23" wide and no thinner than 3". The extra float will pay off. If you get comfortable on that board you can always get a shorter stick but building solid basic skills will be easier on the longer board. The problem is finding a good used board this size. IMO 8' boards are in sort of no mans land. Their not short boards and not true long boards. An 8.0 fish would also work.

 

What he said above.
I was about your size when I started on a 8'2" funboard.
After 1 year got a 7' then worked my way down.
Save some loot though for wetsuit and paraphenalia.

 

i got a 7'4" WRV funboard ill sell you for 300 its in good condition

 

I best thing you can do before you jump the gun and buy a board that may not be to you skill level is to go to the Local surfshop and talk to someone in there staff. Be honest on your skill level and what you wanna do and they will set you in the right direction

 

You are just about my size. The only advice I can give is don't get a fish longer than 6'2". A full outlined fish at 6'2" is a big board and will float and catch any wave there is. It won't be the best in Ocean City when it's giant or a super low tide, but at a mid to high tide and a fun waist to chest high day it will be great. In the summer it will catch every wave a longboard will (just about a second later) and it will give you a chance to improve your turns. I ride mostly fish (twin keel) and a full outlined fishy shortboard tri fin and it's all I need to surf 99 % of the days around here. When It's too big for either of these 2 styled boards I don't want to surf anyhow.

 

Go to your local shop and be honest about what you want and your skill level. I would get a used board first just to make sure it is something you like and that your going to stick with. I am not suggesting these boards, but these will give you an idea of what to look for based on what you stated in your first post. Based on your size I would get a board with some beef. A rough estimate for you would be 7'6 -22- 3 ish. The boards I listed below are beginner to intermediate boards that imo would be good starters, but go to the shops and talk to the guys there. They could help you better than anyone on the internet can, but I would google those boards below just to give you an idea at what to look for.

kechele pug performer
wrv soap bar
wrv fun fish

 

There's a 7'5" Kechle funshape on craigslist in the same area as that gun you were looking at. It would be a much better choice as a starter board than the one you're looking at.

Whatever style you choose, as many have mentioned err on the side of "extra" volume and you'll have a lot more fun.

The thing I remember the most about when I first learned how to surf, is how difficult it was to actually catch waves. The more waves you can catch, the faster you'll learn the basics. A bigger board will make it easier to catch waves.

 

you nvr said if u ultimately want to longboard or shortboard.. dont buy a log or even a funshape if you want to ride potato chips in a year. oversized shortboard if thats your ultimate goal, wide nose, low rocker all around, wide swallow tail, fish design if you want, but if you want to shortboard in the future DONT get a log not only will you have to sell it but you will ahve to re-learn how to surf