Hellfire or Spitfire (215lb, oahu east side)

ha no longer a greyhound. i like my heavily malted brews with a brush of hops as much as the next guy...

i'm off the turps these days but 1 dollar cheeseburgers and coffee McFrappe's are doing me in...!!.... any joy on a couple of MB pics yet???...rail volume particularly to compare against alt and my thicker flexy..and is it the taj rocker??...sorry to hassle mate...!!

i actually don't have access to retail models of the Michel board.

rail volume is a bit thicker than the flexfire and Taj, but by no means are they super full, comparable to the Alternator. The extra volume gets tucked under your feet and is also partially accounted for by the increased widths (middle, nose, tai) when compared to a FFE, FTJ. Rails are everything you would want in a high performance board.

The board is based on the Taj centerline rocker, but the added width/volume makes the board paddle a little bit more easily. perfect daily driver....

thanks chris, that's how i was thinking of it...good to confirm...last 2 questions, is the rail-line rocker the same too, or lower??..probably just looks lower to me in the vid with the fuller foil....and have you got the nose/tail dims??...thats all..i promise..!!....gambling on the thicker 602 as i want it NOW..and dont want to wait for the thinner version...i'm worse than my kids..!!

another thread hijack brought to you by the good people at core industries.... :O)

Hammer, If you surf Goat Island alot. the 6-4HF is a good choice, enough foam under you yet easy to duck dive. I felt the same way looking at the 6-6 HF, I felt it would be trouble duck diving it.
You weigh 15 pounds more than I, So I cannot say your going to paddle it easier. Comparitively the Dominator is a cruise to paddle into anything, the Hell Fire paddles well, but just a slight more effort due to a slight more rocker.
the 6-4 HF flies and after having it out 4 times I am just learning to experiment on which fins to use with it. so far tri fin all around and on my backside and any tight bowl barrels. Quad fin for front side fast down the line points.
I go from 4.4" fins to 4.79" fins depending on the size of the face and steepness.

I judge my boards on how predictable and stable they are in doing any manuver I am capable of doing without falling off or digging a rail.

Thanks Fritzkat. I've decided to hold off on another firewire purchase. I'm sticking with my 6'10" Rusty Piranha and my 6'6" Alternator (which doesn't get much use) for now. I was hoping that a new board could make me a better surfer but I've come back to earth and realize that it's 95% surfer and 5% board, as I've been seeing amazing performances on boards such as Costco's Wave Storm, Hand Made Alaia's, and didn't Kelly Slater surf a wooden door from Home Depot once...?? Hahahhaha. I have to lay off the malasadas at work too, maybe when I hit a lower target weight, then I'll be ready to buy!!!

True enough. An extra two sessions a week will do far more for our surfing than new fins or a different board.

I'm trying yoga for the first time - did my first session yesterday. I'm hoping it'll help me develop extra flexibility and core strength, and I think it will. I had a sad realisation on how bad my core strength was in yesterday's session - that's what comes from only doing surfing and lifting and carrying a two year old for exercise.

This time of the year (in Oz) my surfing drops down to 2 surfs a week with an occasional mid-week jaunt. It's impossible to get an after work surf in at this time of year and really hard to get in a before work early as well. Basically a mid week surf comes from skiving off work by arriving late or leaving early.

Hammer, Sell the 6-10 Rusty Pirahna and get the 6-3 or 6-5 Activator. Youll thank me later... see if they have them downtown yet at alamoana

Hammer, I felt the same way until I rode a 604 spitfire. Im 510 200 lbs and the SF totally changed my surfing. I used to always be middle of the pack but on the SF I am typically one of the top guys in the water. Previously, I had stopped surfing for a number of years due to frustration with my lack of progression but now that I'm riding the SF I am having a blast. Very fast paddler, super easy to get into waves and very stable down the line. Very crisp turns. I keep looking around for a hellfire but then I have these sick sessions where I'm stoked out of my mind and I think, "why would I ever wanna ride something else?" I know I'm riding my SF with a little more volume that most would recommend but I wanted a board I would never have to think "dang, if I had a little more volume I would have caught that!"