newguy said...

Hey guys, so I been progressing pretty well in my lessons and down to surfing decently on short boards and stuff. Very keen on getting my own and hitting the surf.
So which of these do you think is best?

-Get a new board with the surf school (get board (Ripcurl because they sponsor the school), cover, leg rope and everything for $650). The coaches advice on this on telling me to save up.

-Get secondhand from surf school = $550 or so since I'll still have to pay for leg rope, bag etc.

-Shop around other surf stores and see if I can find a cheaper board.Problem here is I'm not sure what is good and bad nor do I know a good budget and I would still need to buy a bag, leg rope and everything on top of it (hassle, I know I am lazy haha).

Have you got any mates that surf?...maybe borrow some different boards and see how they go first then u mite get an idea what u want before taking the plunge.

For value and durability you can't go past the NSP range. Proberly the toughest boards on the market, good value pricing and because they hold up so well an excellent resale.

Don't buy off the surf school. These boards will be cheap to begin with and have probably been nose-dived into the sand banks a million times...

If price is a main factor - check City Beach surf (clothing) stores... they do Jacks surfboards for some ridiculous prices for a new board - $385 - $495 etc. Look at a 6'8" - 7'2" mini-mal / funboard / semi fish shape. I'm sure that they will be made in Taiwan, but for a board that you may only have for 12 - 18 months, might be just the shot to start with...

I agree that you should look at the NSP range - and talk the surf shop into a leggie/cover deal.

Stay away from the second hand racks until you know what you are looking at - especially Cash Converters etc - they are way over priced for dinged up 10yo boards...

What's your height, weight, and age, and what are the dimensions of that board?

OK. NSP. Will check those out but the website says they only make fishes and I'm after a shortboard though =( but anyways cheers guys.

Simondo, I'm 5'7 (173cm), 75kg and 19. The board comes in
- 6'6 x 20 x 2 5/8
- 6'8 x 21 x 2 3/4
- 6'10 x 20 x 2 5/8
- 7'0 x 21 x 2 3/

Been surfing on a 7.0 funboard and it still feels too big and cant turn properly So I'm probably gonna try some more boards and get something smaller (6'6 or 6'8).

You are paying top dollar for a chinese import - no matter what they throw into the package to give you perceived value. If you are not too sure where you want to go with surfing yet and still finding your feet a bit then I also agree that the nsp range is pretty hard to beat and one of their 6'8s would be a possible option. Another upside to a second hand nsp is that they are so bloody tough - you can be pretty sure that what you see is what you get and someone would be hard pressed to cover up a major crease/break etc in an nsp. They will also be a relatively easy board to on-sell when you are ready for something smaller or maybe a custom board. Just keep in mind that when you are ready you will be able to get yourself a beautiful custom board from a quality shaper for a similar or lesser price than the ripcurl they are wanting you to buy. I know they are throwing in cover/leggy etc but they are worth nothing and you can pick up that stuff for buggerall second hand.
I am not saying the ripcurl board isn't any good - they are good boards - BUT this is your first board so start simple and second hand and make sure your first board has a bit of volume and width/length. when you are starting out the most important thing is being able to catch small waves and the more you catch the faster you will progress and the more fun you will have.
Just my 2cents worth. Good luck with it mate.

billboard said...


BUT this is your first board so start simple and second hand and make sure your first board has a bit of volume and width/length. when you are starting out the most important thing is being able to catch small waves and the more you catch the faster you will progress and the more fun you will have.
Just my 2cents worth. Good luck with it mate.

^^^^

Aight, definately will go searching for a 2nd hand NSP board. Cheers all. And yes, will not be tempted by deals and shiny new high tech looking surfboards no more!

newguy said...

OK. NSP. Will check those out but the website says they only make fishes and I'm after a shortboard though =( but anyways cheers guys.

Simondo, I'm 5'7 (173cm), 75kg and 19. The board comes in
- 6'6 x 20 x 2 5/8
- 6'8 x 21 x 2 3/4
- 6'10 x 20 x 2 5/8
- 7'0 x 21 x 2 3/

Been surfing on a 7.0 funboard and it still feels too big and cant turn properly So I'm probably gonna try some more boards and get something smaller (6'6 or 6'8).

You should be pretty right on the 6'6 at your height and weight. 6'8 would be more instant fun. Good board, and good deal !

Cheers Simondo and CMC. So are you guys saying so are you guys saying the two boards would be very similiar? Honestly I think I'll probly take more lessons and see where things go but Ripcurl deal is really good (also you missed out on the deckgrip which will be another 40 or so off the board). So board would be around $450 really...

newguy said...


Been surfing on a 7.0 funboard and it still feels too big and cant turn properly So I'm probably gonna try some more boards and get something smaller (6'6 or 6'8).

CMC and others have good advice. But this is the part which is confusing...
It would help a great deal if we could see you surf !!

CMC is right in saying that once you know how to bottom turn, trim, pump for speed, you can actually turn anything.... for example, an old 9'6 heavy log with rounded rails...

But if you are getting speed out of your bottom turns, then you are probably ready to step down in size...

Out of 1-10, how do you rate the following?;
- paddle fitness
- wave knowledges, wave reading
- ease and grace at getting to your feet
(do you climb to your feet, or snap up to your feet?)...

My 2 cents, definately get the NSP. Don't listen to the surf coach trying to rope you into a nice new fancy board, you'll smash it in less than 3 months. The NSP is stronger and will last. Secondly, you won't have the paddle power to paddle these short things into waves, unless you have good wave knowledge and know where to position the board in terms of paddling into it. The NSP style and shape are unresponsive pigs of things, but they're strong and you might get a wave or two on them at this stage. I learnt on the 6'8 NSP.

P.S. about 3 or 4 months ago I was at scarb in small onshore slop on a mal, and this guy who was learning kind of dropped in on his brand spanking new webber fish. Well my mal absolutely destroyed it. I felt sorry for him, and he was nearly crying, but then I thought he was a loser to be learning on such an extravagent and expensive board.

Hi New Guy,

Since you're 19, and 75kg's and 5'7 tall, with reasonably good paddle fitness and wave knowledge, and by the sounds of it, reasonable flexibility....
I would lean towards either of these;
NSP 6'8 Fun Board (7'2 might be OK too, but at your height, the 6'8 should be OK)
NSP 6'4 Fish has some potential
NSP 6'6 Shortboard could be OK.
Maurice Cole in 6'6 or 6'8 - these boards are glassed reasonably well, mid weight (not ultra light, light thin, and ultra weak). I'll duck into Rip Curl Torquay tomorrow to take a closer look if I remember. But it appears to have a slightly fuller nose template, and those little hips at the rear fins. Both of these features are good for learning.

Obviously fuller templates, and bigger board areas, and flatter rockers help your paddle in speed, and overall paddle speeds.

Also, watch plenty of surfing videos/dvd's/movies/youtube clips. Also watch some of the older school stuff from the 70's, for clean "no frills" surfing, for just getting the basics right. Watch closely how they perform the bottom turns, and cutbacks, and when they do the leg extensions and compressions, which is powering for speed (as opposed to 'pumping' for speed / bunny hops). And watch and think how the ankles and hips are working with the knees.... it all comes fairly naturally though...

Are you goofy or natural ? WA is the goofy footers playground ! So is Indo. If I was goofy I would marry an Indonesian girl, and live there !! But I'm a natural footer, and have the Torquay Points as the playground! But I should do more work on my backhand!

Even try body boarding, or surf mat riding. When there is swell, but if conditions are ugly, a surf mat will still help you feel the power of the waves, and help you timing... Even just when dropping in on a mat, think about when you would get to your feet, etc. It's all fun !! You don't have to surf a 5'11 pro model to have a blast !!

Yeah well done! Trust me, so many people with flash looking boards can't surf them anyway. Get the bigger board and get waves, and progress slowly. You'll enjoy surfing more. You're right, the light weight short boards require a solid knowledge of placing the board in the right spot at the right time.

Don't get me wrong, they're incredible to ride and my 6'1 feels like a formula one car under my feet; you definately want to progressively work your way up to riding those boards. Once you get better and better, never use the paddle speed of the big board to get more than your share of the waves, the short boarders will get angry (I do!).

Hey guys, ok this should be my last post but I've narrowed it down to this:

-The NSP 6'6 shortboard @ $575 we have been talking about

or

2009 Wilkes (local shaper) epoxy shortboard $450 - 6'6"x20"x2.5 thick & FCS fins although it has some slight discoloration due to UV stabilizer not being mixed in properly...
(found on the buy and sell forum here very tempted to just head down to Singleton to check it out).

www.seabreeze.com.au/Classifieds/Surfing/~rd6w8/2009-Wilkes-Epoxy-Shortboard-6-6.aspx?search=ciPx8HCDtYJIusIJ02cZQDx3d5bnQPSt

Any good? After this I definitely think I have enough info to go out on my own and take a look. Cheers guys