Rocket Scientists and Surfboards

Same thing with fake booobies. The buoyancy is always a concern in heavy surf.

 

longevity depends on use yes? surfing 250x year will shorten the lifespan of any board

and while these boards might be less likely to pressure ding, they will snap if a sizeable lip connects

 

GREAT POST.!
sorta stuff i like to hear.
kinda red meat for a surfer-carnivor type....

 

One main problem is flex. With no stringer, do they flex and return properly, and for how long? Epoxy is stronger, but lacks the flex and responsiveness of PU/fiberglass (recent epoxy technology and EPS blanks have gotten better). I was hoping the Varial blanks would be twice as strong for all the hype. At least 50% stronger for the expense. But if they flex and return and don't go dead like an old yellowed board after a year, then it is worth the extra $.

 

Some people talk a lot of s@#t about tuff lite. Mainly, while surfing crappy, mediocre waist high waves and going super high science custom into their board choice. Not my thing. I have one tuff lite and the thing is a tank, as in durable. It works in waves..maybe little strange to get used to at times, but it's very light and I hardly see a reason to repair anything on it and I am generally hard on stuff. It even got 'touched' leaned on the heater and not much damage. Durable stuff.

 

Yeah man, if you're on the fence about one look no further, it's the best board I have ever owned and it appears i'll have it for a looooong time unless I somehow snap it, which I don't see happening unless I get mad and decide to run it over with a bulldozer.

Sick dude, it's badd a$$ isn't it? When I ordered mine they weren't out yet, midway through the shaping process I started to talk to MD about what color I wanted and he told me to hold off on any color because they were releasing something "new", I apparently got one of the very first in this technology so I was naturally skeptical but I trusted them due to all of the positive feedback from everybody who owns the other models and sure enough it worked out. I wonder how many total have been made this way at this point. I never ever see anybody with one and anybody who sees mine freaks and says how awesome it looks but had never seen one till then.

I can't speak to other no stringer epoxies but mine doesn't lack any. Ask other Coil owners, one of the main things they'll tell you is how much flex it has and how it slingshots out of bottom turns. It's really unique what they've been able to accomplish.

 

I've got nothing against new tech, but building a surfboard that will last many years of normal to above normal use does not require "rocket science" or high tech. Materials that have been around for a half century will do the trick if durability is what you need. Try a 6+4 oz. deck / 6 oz. bottom on your next board with epoxy resin (EPS foam if light weight is critical, vacuum bagged if you want it incredibly light and strong) and a capable glasser. That board should last for many years and can be repaired with materials that are cheap and easily available.

 

I have three Coils. Two without kick, and one with. The oldest is probably pushing 5 years. Durability was my main reason to going with them. They've held up great. The only damage I have done, if you can call it that, is a slight depression under my rear foot on the two older ones. Very slight, and I'm a big guy with a heavy rear foot. I've been surfing a long time, and I know what an off the rack poly looks like after I've used it for several years, and it looks like $hit compared to these. I don't expect them to last forever, but there is no doubt they are significantly tougher, and take punishment better than traditional construction, with largely the same ride and weight characteristics, at least in my opinion. The price is also comparable, so to me it's a no brainer. Drawback is you have to wait 1.5-2 months for one. Also, you have to like what they are putting out, because there are only two shapers doing them. Mine are both shaped by Mike Daniel, and lucky for me I mesh well with his boards, and his process etc..

As for flex, the oldest one is the most foiled, and it feels a touch more lively than a traditional off the rack poly to me. I remember the spring effect out of a bottom turn took me by surprise the first time I rode it. The other two aren't as foiled, and to me they basically feel pretty much like a normal poly board. If you're average sized, or smaller, and your boards get more foiled in the tail than mine, you may find them a touch flexier than traditional.

Weight on the older two is comparable to a standard shortboard. The one in kick feels lighter to me. I surf all year, and they don't feel like they have lost any of the lively feel they have. Granted, I don't surf as much as a lot of you, but they've still gotten a fair amount of use and abuse and feel great.

I've wondered what their long term plans are for their "alient technology" as they put it. The surf industry is such a strange business, I don'tknow if they can patent protect and license it in a traditional fashion....or if they would ever even consider that, but it would be great if the technology went mainstream.

I would also love to try a Firewire for comparison, because guys seem to hook on to them for a lot of the exact same reasons, but no one I surf with has one....and no one I surf with is 220lbs either for that matter so even if they did I couldn't do a true comparison.

They also yellow at an alarmingly slow pace. At 5 years old my first one is still white as can be. Looks ultra bright white, unless it's next to the newest one,then you can see a slight difference.

I was so happy with the first two, I asked Mike to do the newest one without the "kick" technology, but all their boards come in this new dimpled tech now. I was leary of it, but the new one rides great.

 

check out 3d glass, it's incredibly tough.

Shaping aluminium is a recipe for illness, the foam sounds interesting though.

 

The material called 3d glass,or the hydroflex "3d glass process". Saw a vid on each. Both pretty interesting.

 

Do you climb trad?

 

That's weird, since epoxy resin is more flexible than polyester resin, and it's the skins which determine the flex not the foam.

 

Tha material called 3D glass, I have a 50 metre roll of it.

 

Gaff, I looked on CL for Coils when I was just out your way this week. Only a couple 5'8s that were nice and also a 7-fotter that was a semigun type. If there was something in the low 6's I'd've likely got it. Usually see more out there in the classifieds but not this time.

Can't wait to see/ride one with kick as my existing Coil is great but doesn't have it.

 

I could see walking into your local shop with your aluminum honeycomb core board and needing a ding fixed that required filler. "Uhhhhhh....." I cant even imagine how you would go about professionally fixing that thing. Maybe mail it to nasa.

 

Not exactly rocket scientists conducting this test, but interesting

[video=youtube_share;_RxxQauuhz4]http://youtu.be/_RxxQauuhz4[/video]

 

Ding repair with a TIG Welder

 

Just go straight through Mike Daniel, he'll work with you through email or phone and you'll get EXACTLY what you want and then some. Worth every penny and the wait. You'll have the board for a very long time, it's an investment dude. One worth making. Be honest with him about your skill level and what type of surf you plan on riding it in, and he'll do the rest.

 

I just did the same thing on our test panel. with an engineer's hammer amd made no impression.

It's a fair anout of glass about 24oz in one layer but I calculate that with 1.5 pound eps our 8 footers will have weights in the range which 70's singles had. There's also quite a pronounced weave texture and because the stuff is hollow with two skins and stands 3mm high lapping will be interesting ( it can be rollered down to about half the height if necessary though). The test panel feels light however and it is easy to wet out etc.