I have tried the board twice at Ocean Beach, which it was built for. First time was waist high but well shaped, the second time wobbly head high surf. Impressions so far: The volume is slightly lower than I expected, so it may not be good for the bigger days. But the volume seems very well distributed. I had deliberately moved it forward with respect my main shortboard, making this one more comfortable to paddle. Overall the board duckdives, paddles, and catches waves well. It feels fast, somehow "slick" on the bottom. I haven't gotten in many turns yet, so I will write more after I get to try it in better surf.
I built this board to replace my T&C shortboard that I just love, but that broke twice, and is completely dented in on the deck after a few years of use. It's pretty silly - shortboards are normally glassed so lightly that they only last a few seasons. So I tried to build a board that will last longer, and used double 6 ounce S-glass and epoxy resin. The board weighs exactly 8 pounds including fins, wax, everything. It feels light for the glass job. It's lighter than my OB semi gun, and a bit heavier than the good old T&C. There are no heal dents after the first two sessions, so far so good... It feels different than the typical 4 oz-glass-job polyester board, but it's a hard to say exactly what the difference is. It's not too stiff, and it's not bad, just different somehow. More testing is needed - I'll report back after more surfing!
Below are a few more pics from the construction.
My low tech backyard cleanroom, where I did the the hotcoating.
Detail of the leash plug - color matched!
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