New board shopping

[Lee Murian]

Looking for a new shortboard. Since this is a skiers forum, thought there might be some good advice for the travelling surfer who lives in the mountains and doesn't paddle every day.
I live in NorCal and closest surf (Del Norte) is close out beach break, potentially punchy reef, and a fun but mushy point. I travel as much as possible to warm water quality waves and looking for replacement of current deck which I damaged in Nica a couple weeks ago. Currently have a decent LB and 7' speed egg and a 6' hybrid pin tail with a lot of volume for it's size that I'm looking to update.
Last 2 boards were from a local shaper in Baja where we spend a lot of time. Don't have that option now so looking for something off the rack. I like the idea of a multi function short board and not wanting a HPSB since this will be my quiver of one for travel. Probably for waves waist high to OH+, not really charging in DOH so something for fun size surf.
I'm looking at boards like the Lost V3, Firewire Dominator, JS Monsta Box, HyptoKrypto, etc. Volume calculators put me around 27-28L but I'm thinking to add a little extra for my age and ability. 45y.o. intermediate. Anyone have an all around short board they love? Looking like 5'10-6' around 30L. Thinking about heading down to Santa Cruz, figure best selection is there, any shop recommendations? Also any board repair recommendations?
Thanks for any help, October can get really fun around here, swell is turning on next week in NorCal and we head back to Baja in November. Looking forward to surf season with a new board!

[hop]

After borrowing one from a friend I traded in my old SurfRX and bought a 5'7" Lib Tech/...Lost Puddlejumper last month. As a terminal intermediate that's generally in mediocre waves it's by far the best shortboard I've ever used. The Lib boards are apparently super durable so they should survive traveling better than a normal foam+glass board.

The best/only ding repair guy I know is Pat Judah who works out of Proof Lab in Mill Valley. Fair prices and fast. Proof Lab and Wise in SF have pretty big selections. You could also go north to Cleanline in Seaside OR.

[BS720]

Sorry, I have no expertise in the 27-28L board market. Just bought a Hypto Krypto V, running as a quad, and I'm not impressed so far. I'm sure that will change with time and swell. Just wanted to say, if you find something on Craigslist in the area, I'd be happy to snap it up for you.

[jackstraw]

Ott should check in with the SC info, but the best shops seem to be out at pleasure point.

[whitekingsalmon]

Just go buy a board n ride it.... simplify you shitty life.

[Ottime]

If you come to SC Arrow on Mission (Rt 1) has a large consignment rack. Freeline on 41st did as well a decade ago. Been about that long since I was there. I'd check Haut on Swift for repairs. There is also a guy on Almar, in the same complex as Strive, who does good inexpensive repair. Hit me up if you get down here.

If you are looking to buy new, there are a shit ton of boards on racks in this town. I work with Buck Noe to get my boards. I give him rave reviews on shapes. Although he tends to have a lead time of 4-8 weeks, and some times longer this time of year. What I like about Buck, is that we chatted and checked out boards I was getting rid of, and discussed what I wanted in a board. We surf some of the same waves, and have had a few sessions together - so that helps. But I got exactly what I was looking for. Super happy with that. Personally, I prefer to work with a shaper when buying new. Unless you know exactly what you want. And most of the guys in shops don't know how to cater to others needs.

Fun surf west of town yesterday. Next week has plenty of promise.

[Lee Murian]

^^^^Thanks a ton man, I'll shoot you a message if/when next time I'm down there. It's mostly about timing now and only have about 3-4 weeks before our next trip so to come down and buy one of the rack works for my schedule.

hop, I was looking hard at that puddle jumper but I have something similar already, it's kinda old and yellowed but a super fun quasi fish that was my first shortboard. But if the PJ works in overhead surf it looks sweet! Yup, another terminal intermediate here so something a little more user friendly and best for the type of waves I mostly surf is probably best.

bs720, thanks dude. I'll probably head down if I get really serious and check some shops. Interesting comment on the HK, I thought everyone loved them...be curious what you think after a little more time.

Just did a solarez fix on my current board to get me through the weekend if the waves pick up like the fx says for Sunday...otherwise maybe a trip to bay area south next week.

[BS720]

I left negative feedback for the HK, but forgot my two cents on quiver killers. You didn't mention a budget. If you're on one, I'd highly recommend a used Santa Cruz Pumpkin Seed. Board really is solid, works in knee high to double, maybe more if you have the skills. Easy to find used on Craigslist in CA. Some will Debbie Downer the epoxy sandwich construction, but that's money on a travel board. You can seal any dings abroad with ding dough. I've gotta say, if you gave me $325 and said I had to buy a board to surf for the rest of my life in California, or for a travel board, I'd buy a used Pumpkin Seed in the current 5-fin model and run it as a quad. If money is not a problem, I've owned the Dominator as well as the Rusty Slayer. Two Slayers in play right now, surf best as quads, no problem as a thruster either. Dominator is not so high performance. Maybe a retard hpsb? Got one of the best waves of my life on that board, so I'm not downing it. Not the best choice for a travel board, because FST can be a bitch to repair. In order of fat pig to hpsb, I'd go Dom, HK, Pumpkin Seed, then Slayer. Keep in mind I haven't run the Pumpkin as a quad(mine was pre-5 fin era), and haven't yet run the HK as a thruster. I may be wrong, but I think they put the trailer fins too far back on the Hypto. When paddling into a wave, I'm positioned correctly, and the second I pop up its like someone slams on the emergency brake. Look at a picture of the fin placement on any Stretch board, then look at the Hypto.

[SnowMoJo]

Probably for waves waist high to OH+, not really charging in DOH so something for fun size surf.

Weight.

I'd need your weight to properly recommend volume of a board but the C.I. site has a great little sliding scale calculator for all its boards. I've used this one in the past - the Utility, not the Groveller, for a decent all-round board. 5-fin Futures setup. I typically opt for Epoxy Resin, over high-grade EPS blank, or solid PU blank. The epoxy shell with a 4+4 decent, or 6+4 top layup is good for durability, and with an EPS core the weight difference is negligible. But that's only if you've got a shaper who can handle the strict timelines and curing window of working with epoxy. Channel Islands have great designs, unfortunately their QC - IMHO - sucks ass. But their designs are awesome. JS make some great boards too.

But ya, let us know your height and weight and from there, happy to offer up some ideas as to design.

Base contour(s), box setup, rails, volume, foil, rocker, tail design, materials, etc. They all have to work synergistically to make the board magic for "you".

Matt Kinoshita (Kazuma) on Maui makes incredible boards - browse his site and even pick up the phone to talk with Stefano about what you're looking for. They make lifer boards out of that shop. Just seriously top-shelf high-quality "lifers".

Peace

[SnowMoJo]

GF scale, keep it in mind - it's fairly generalized give or take a few litres here or there... (and PU vs EPS for floatation and buoyancy as well).

Guild Factor, check it:

http://lostsurfboards.net/volume-calculator/

[media310]

no clue on the volume calculator,. we used to just get high and surf on whatever was available. However the Lib Tech Waterboards are sure fun especially on point breaks... And for traveling they are "essentially" unbreakable

[Lee Murian]

Good input, thanks y'all! Leave Monday for about 3 weeks in Baja but California has been going off, not that I've had much opportunity to get after it...

cheers SnoMoJo, I've looked at volume calcs before and it shows around 27L for my height, weight, ability (5.8, 160, int) i'm curious to hear more... When I was in Popoyo, I actually tried the Pumpkin Seed, it was called the precursor to the H/K by the shop guy, fun sessions on a couple beach break days, would consider but not limited by budget

I'm going to keep looking and see what's available in Todos/Cabo next week. Liking the HK, puddle jumper, dominator...or maybe order up a local shape and stay in MX!

[SnowMoJo]

Good input, thanks y'all! Leave Monday for about 3 weeks in Baja but California has been going off, not that I've had much opportunity to get after it...

cheers SnoMoJo, I've looked at volume calcs before and it shows around 27L for my height, weight, ability (5.8, 160, int) i'm curious to hear more... When I was in Popoyo, I actually tried the Pumpkin Seed, it was called the precursor to the H/K by the shop guy, fun sessions on a couple beach break days, would consider but not limited by budget

I'm going to keep looking and see what's available in Todos/Cabo next week. Liking the HK, puddle jumper, dominator...or maybe order up a local shape and stay in MX!

Keep it real... No matter what, just froth hard and hit it. Moar. Always always MOAR!!! >.<

5.8 and a buck-sixty man, I'd be all over the C.I. #4 Groveller with 5 box setup at 5'8" bang on, or the 5'9" Utility. And honestly - foam is yer friend - if you stick an extra litre or two of it under ya, just makes for more smiles on most days and waves.

if you do go custom - look at the benefits of an epoxy resin shell over the old-school polyester - just saying - it's come a LONG way... You can still use a PU blank for that damp ride feel, but the resin is superior (IMHO) to polyesters. Pricier, but better. YMMV.

GOOD LUCK!!!!!! GET SOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[BS720]

When I was in Popoyo, I actually tried the Pumpkin Seed, it was called the precursor to the H/K by the shop guy

Uh, sure, the outline is almost the same. The H/K has an insane amount of volume in the deck, making it chunkier and less responsive. My size of the PS has half an inch less thickness than the HK. Also, the PS is slightly domed, where the PS is chunky like a fish. FWIW.