Rusty Muffin Top

Agreed, on the round/square tail thing... and I'll add that my mini simmons works best in waves with some punch, not as good in soft waves, where a LB or fish works better for me.

DP... I think you need a shorter fish. A 6'4 fish and a 6'0 shortboart is kinda opposite, IMO. In fact, that's what I have... a 6'4 SB and a 6'0 fish. I also have a 6'2 fish, and it doesn't feel like a true fish... but it does float me better in the thick winter suite.

 

Great find, I would drop the side fins and ride it with a 9” single fin.

 

I appreciate the advice, you’re probably right, a smaller more traditional Fish would be a great addition and would make sense.

I got my 6’4” Coil Flashback Fish as a transition board to get down to a true HPSB. It did it’s job and I found it has a pretty high top end itself but it’s got a lot of volume.

I got the 6’ M-80 after a couple years on the FBF when I felt ready to drop down to a true HPSB. It’s still a little stubby but then againe, so am I lol

So now I want a SB that goes well in small waves, so a short fat fish could be the call.

 

awesome find Z, I'd pick that up in a heartbeat

 

LBCrew, what about something like this? This one is 5'4". I'm 5'9" 183lbs, soon to be 170lbs, think it's big enough or would I need to go bigger?

Also, I usually surf a thruster, does it make more sense to go with the quad for this shape? I have the quad converter box on both my SB's but I never use them lol Just haven't found the magic on a quad yet.

 

There is a reason that board has no trailer fin....that kind of shape is going to work out better as a twinnie or quad. Even more so in smaller/softer waves. As far as sizing goes, 5'4" seems undersized for you. For a Mini Simmons 5'4" would be fine but that is basically a round nose fish, and IMO not a shape that needs to be really short to work.

 

Yeah DP, take this with a grain of salt because like i said, i never owned a fish. Ridden a few, all quads.

I'm just like you. Thruster guy. All my boards got the convertible set up. Tried them as quads and just never liked it. Keep in mind this is on more HPSB type shapes. So when i got my mini i got the convertible set up also. Worried I'd hate quads so just in case. Never tried it as s thruster. Don't want to. As a quad it is awesome. And i hate quads on all normal boards. I feel the same deal would apply with a fish.

 

It's almost like the feeling i get with a quad on a normal board, and hate, just meshes with the mini so well. So those feelings i hate on one board i love on another

 

Right on guys, that all makes sense to me. Thanks for the feed back!

 

split the difference and just ride it as a twinnie lol

 

I think the 5'4 is too small for you, even at 170. Something in the 5'8 range would be my recommendation... 4-6" smaller than your SB is about right, depending upon volume.

Unless your name is Asher...

 

Sweet video! So 5’8” sounds good to me, that would be the smallest boart in my quiver if I got one of those. Looks fun, but it helps to have good waves like that too.

I’m trying to decide if I want another Coil by Mike Daniel for the Fish or maybe go with Orion / Greg Geiselman, which is who shaped my HPLB.

With Coil I wouldn’t be able to do much customizing on the color and look of it, with Greg I could get basically whatever I want. He can do a resin swirl or w/e. I want more color in my life!

 

Fishes (true fishes... aka: "retro fishes") lend themselves to color. I even do color on my EPS/Epoxy fishes. Some people don't like the look of tinted epoxy, but like everything else on my fishes, it's a nod to tradition... along with the traditional deep fish swallow tail, down rails, beaked nose, glassed on marine plywood keels, fiberglass leash loop... the modernized tweaks are subtle.

 

Thanks, good points. Orion it is!

 

This one looks sexy.

 

Sexy....and useless.

 

Why do you say that? Serious question. I’ve never ridden anything like it so I don’t know.

 

Yea... those are Gephart keels. Best you can buy, IMO. I've made my share of fins, and it's pretty hard to get 'em right. It takes a kind of patience I don't have enough of.

And, of course, that's polyester resin... nothing comes close to that Jolly Rancher candy color and brilliant shine.

 

Yeah I think I will go Poly if I get one of these, I take good care of my boarts so no problem there. I want that shine! Those keels look nice too, I’m intrigued on how it rides.

 

If I had to describe the ride, compared to a HPSB, I'd say it's faster down the line, and suited to more open, carving turns at speed. At lower speeds, you can still put a lot of snap into your turns, but at higher speeds you have to use a lot of rail compared to a shortboard. You can really take advantage of the short length and compact volume and keep your surfing really responsive. You can also move your feet around a lot on it and make all sorts of adjustments to trim and power. Sometimes I hang half my back foot of the inside rail... toes dragging in the water on late takeoff...

Some people say they slide out too much... or they don't surf well backside... or don't tuberide well. I disagree with all of that. That's only true if you're trying to ride it like a shortboard. If you're really connecting with your board, and surfing it as an extension of your body, with a different mindset in how you approach the wave, it's a whole other kind of experience.