Casso wat sort of PSH are you getting? Is it the 12' big wave gun?

OG SUP said...

As Rich found out today on a Dave Boyd Imperial 8'4 the custom board is a very different story to a production board he was amazed at how well they turn even in flat water.

The 8'4 x 26 today was too unstable for him in the surf but the quality of manufacture and design in Dave Boyds boards is unquestionable.






I have found the Fiberglass boards do damage far more easily than the epoxy boards though and that is my only concern.

$$$$ Wise

I dont see how a local shaper can ever compete with the cost of manufacture in China etc it is just a financial impossiblity! People who appreciate it will pay for quality! I never haggle with Dave I have seen how much time effort blood sweat and tears go into the product.

When you put one of his boards on the grass at main beach people just drool!

Phill



Phill

hi, i'm not against epoxy. my gerry lopez is an epoxy, but done in the traditional method. gerry and ron house have their boards made that way for the best feel.i've caned my board and had little damage i just have not been on too many sandwich/ epoxy type boards that give the feeling of a surfboard. i realise i might be out voted here, but its my opinion

Resale on your naish or PSH is pretty good and they are fairly easy to get rid of(at the moment this will change). Resale on a glass board not so good. Resale from a local shaper in most cases you will only be able to move in your local area.( surf shapes is proberly an execption in this case as Rod is working hard on design he was one of the first shapers and has already made LOTS of boards and travels with demos). As for me Naish take care of all my advertising needs so I can sell my 2nd hand board and It has not yet been supersceded so its still a current shape.
Just my 2cents worth.Rod

Hey Lacey,

I owned one of the Laird boards (Designed by ron house) and I have to say that the quality and durability of that board was nothing short of remarkable. I surfed it really hard and was a gumby and there was hardly a mark on it.

The quality of the product was far superior to the Southpoints of the time.

The smaller 11ft and 10fters were too narrow for me but I am a big lump of a guy and stability was an issue!

Regards

Phill

OG SUP said...

Hey Lacey,

I owned one of the Laird boards (Designed by ron house) and I have to say that the quality and durability of that board was nothing short of remarkable. I surfed it really hard and was a gumby and there was hardly a mark on it.

The quality of the product was far superior to the Southpoints of the time.

The smaller 11ft and 10fters were too narrow for me but I am a big lump of a guy and stability was an issue!

Regards

Phill

you should try one the ron house boards dave from greenline imports if you get a chance. daves said ron considers them his flagship boards.i started on the 11 footer moved on to shorter boards after 5 weeks. boy i would love to hop back on one just for a fang. these things motor. just a point,that board you had is a really old design and the edges at the back are lame so i've been told

OG SUP said...

Lacey,

It only had hard edges for about 18inches and it was hard to turn in small waves 3ftand under because it was desinged to be ridden in huge Hawaiian faces. In OH surf it came into its own and for me at 120kg was a weapon!

May have been an old designe but i would have it back for big days in a heartbeat just loved it!

Phill

im hearing you. one of my thoughts when starting this page was maybe the time is getting right for more aussie boards for aussie waves or imports made for aussie conditions, too many have come in too narrow in my opinion. however, just to be topical has starboard gone to far the the way?

The Few Aussie boards I have seen, Imperial Dave Boyd, Surfshapes Rod Hocker and LSD Dean Snow all totally rock!

I think volume and length of time to make them is the issue to make them viable

Phill

Lobes said...

Casso wat sort of PSH are you getting? Is it the 12' big wave gun?

Yeah the big wave gun - but mainly for flat water paddling and small point breaks, with the occasional big bombie session thrown in.

Casso , my god you have some boards you must have a good quiver happening now And that board In the pic looks sic.

I have a custom board and a pop out. They are both great, but I think for the hardcore, serious guy he Is gunna want a custom Aussie beast .

As Rod Hocker (surfshapes) who made my custom 8 6" said, the pop outs were desighned 12 months ago, a custom board is at the cutting edge, the latest desighn like a week old with the best of all the latest testing

great topic with good new involvement.yep i can appreciate the local shaper with a glasser and sander to pay plus rent and materials,but it is a lifestyle not a huge money making venture.i sanded, made fins and polished for a guy and i probably made more money than him.
rods construction methods at surfshapes allow him a profit because he can do it all himself,he still has rent and material but his goals these days is about 35-50 boards a year,look after his kids before and after school and get a surf each morning.i ask him if he would go to china,he said no way but he knows why the guys do it.
backyarders, now i would call them boutique shapers and they have a good following.a mate went to china for production because his overheads in burleigh were costing almost the wholesale price(to be competitive)when he went os the production cost halved for a landed board,and he made lots of boards ,more profit for everyone.
tupperware construction as opposed to hand laid glass jobs will always be tuff and lite,mind you when you get a bad one it really is bad and the sander in asia can cause a truckload of problems but they just bog it and paint it over.
there is still nothing like getting a custom

firstpoint said...


tupperware construction as opposed to hand laid glass jobs will always be tuff and lite,mind you when you get a bad one it really is bad and the sander in asia can cause a truckload of problems but they just bog it and paint it over.
there is still nothing like getting a custom

I hear ya'.


I'm in a quandary here-I am a long time surfer and have had custom Australian made boards for 30 years and railed vehemently against the Chinese popouts and the gutting of the Australian surf industry and it's heritage from the genuine to the generic - now I find myself about to push the button on a Hawaiian designed Chinese manufactured board.

Why? Because of the performance and, what I perceive to be, a solid manufacturing process and good customer support-goes against my recent experiences with a another brand.

My surfing mates are aghast at the price I'm looking to ante up for a Chinese popout and I'm totally conflicted about paying so much for such a board-for me about the same price as 4 custom shortboards.

It's a valid comment to say that buying an import supports local importers and retailers-however, surely buying locally made keeps even more of the precious dollars here in our economy instead of shipping them off to China and Hawaii.

As for the Chinese keyboard etc. comment-are they made in Australia?

As the sport evolves, the Aussie custom side, at least for elite racers and surf orientated stand up paddlers, may thrive and grow-for the rump of the market, I'd expect the imports to see the greatest volume.

loco4olas said...

Does that meant there's a used 903 PSH Ripper coming onto the market soon?

Nah, sorry, I can't bring myself to part with that just yet.

There will, however, be a Naish 9'3" (the famous Woody) and an Oxbow 11'0" (the famous Tiger) up for sale very soon!

firstpoint said...


rods construction methods at surfshapes

Funny, Rod made my first 2 custom surfboards 30 years ago.

goatman said...

Casso, I will be interested to hear how the new custom compares to the 9 3 ripper. You and I are the same weight also!!

Same board, same weight, same job - pretty much twins!

Lobes said...

A better analogy would be the car industry. Do you drive an Australian car?

Ford Territory - Australian made for Australian conditions. Love it.

oliver said...

lacey said...

i have been following forums about imported boards, reviews, what fins to use, problems etc.i,m a long time surfer and have only ever had boards with stringers, sups included, as i believe they give the best feel.recently i've noticed more custom sups being in topics. i think the imports might have had their peak and as the sport grows more discerning suppers will turn to locally made boards for local conditions!!!

Yep, I doubt I'd get another hawaiian/asian popout after getting a custom. I love it to bits. Comparing the two (hawaiian/asian popout and custom torquay built stonker), I'd say the popouts are probably more sturdy in their construction but we've seen a few of these snap, split etc. As for price custom are a bit cheaper and I think they are a better proposition for those of us who know what we are looking for in a board.

you have made a good point there,it does take a bit of time/hours on board/experience to get an idea about what you want in a board. i suppose that's were imports/popouts play a part