Potatonator...A little help please

[huckledannyflynn]

Hi
I am 50...ish, 83kg, 5'10",reasonably fit and looking for a PN.
Average 2 3 surfs a week but in the pool if the surf is crap.
I'm thinking 6'2"?
Currently surfing an MC 6'8" x 21" x 3". and a Wayne Lynch 6'9" Tufflite rounded pin. Great boards but Im looking for more speed and manouverability.
The tufflite has me kind of hooked on the "less weight" thing.
Paddle power is very important in my decission.
Would still like to be able to surf 4-5' Snapper if this is the only board I have in the car.

Thanks in advance for your help.

[pmorgan]

hi I have a 508 pn and love the board for how easy it is to surf. I am 5,7 38 and 70 to 72 kgs. I feel that I could have gone for a 506 but the waves I ride it in are junk with no real power say wast to shoulder. The 6,0 could also work for you as you sound fit. The length drop might be the biggest issue as you every day boards are a bit longer.
The 602 could be a real riper. Cheers P.

[iggy]

Agreed there with pmorgan but I will aim for the 6'0", mainly because you are dropping qiute a bit in length. Flotation wise you could get away with the 5'8" easily. 6'2" will be too corky

[Piha Local]

I am the same weight as you, an inch or so shorter and have the 6/0. It is over-volumed for me as I deliberately went several litres bigger to make a real distinction btw my daily driver [6/4 HF] and my groveller. At first I thought I had made a mistake because it felt so corky but I realised I was just treating it wrongly. Having learn't on single fins my deep-seated instincts were to compensate for the skitteryness by standing further forward to bury more rail in turns. However it made it worse and only when I stepped right back and planted my foot over the fins did the board light up. Don't go any bigger than 6/0 tho, it's heaps of float.

[custom]

I am 177lbs and ride 5.8 because i have a SP to cover low end. If paddle power is very important and you like a little more volume go 6.0 but also 5.10 is an option.How many litres are the boards you ride?

[huckledannyflynn]

Thanks Guys.
Sounds like the 6.0 is the go.
Just got some nice 4' Snapper. I noticed the wind really effected getting down the face on my tufflite. I'm assuming the PN will be similar?
Also got dome nice hollow sections through Cooly, how does the PN go in a bit of juice?
Thanks in advance
D

[Piha Local]

FST has a much nicer feel in the water than Tufflite. It's weird but even tho both are Styro/epoxy, the Tufflites seem to fight the water while Firewire FST seems to love it. I noticed the difference when paddling and duckdiving and dropping into waves on late takeoffs. Nice 'organic' feel that I think has a lot to do with the vibration absorbing abilities of wood. Wood has proven itself in the windsurf world over carbonfibre, even when it's technically weaker and heavier, with the wood absorbing stresses that result in failure of carbonfibre and also offering a more controllable ride at speed. I have not had my P/N in any juice yet so can't comment but a few others have been surprised at how well it went in bigger stuff.

[hawaii_boi]

huckledannyflynn, I always knew PU boards were better performing boards than epoxy boards but because they don't last i stuck with epoxy. I have a 5'3 CI Biscuit and 9'0 In The Pink...both Tuflite. I thought both were great UNTIL I rode a Firewire. The response and performance is so much better than Tuflite. Anyways, if you can get a Firewire with FST do it.

ALOHA!!

[huckledannyflynn]

Cheers
Will see what Demo's are at Currumbin tommorrow.....hopefully the surf is still pumping.

[surferireland]

I also had 6'8 Lynch tufflite rounded pin, I ride the 5'10 potatonator, the potatonator is totally different, will suit much smaller waves I would estimate it'll max out its effectiveness at head high and a half, I surfed it last week in head high heavy break and it performed excellent, it handled late take off's and heavy closing out shore breaks with ease. Its a board you cant help but like. I would say dont rule out the 6'2 if you want an easier time of it or if you want to shred go the 6'0.