Which size Dominator / spitfire?

[lurkerrob]

Im 87-89kg 5'&" and have been surfing for a while. I would Say Im intermediate.

I have a shortboard 6'4" x 19 1/4 x 2 3/4 (No idea of what the volume is!) Safari Sunni pro model (South african board). Recently in Maldives I found the board to be a bit slow in the paddle ins, not quick enough down the line in the 2-4 ft range. Any bigger and it goes fine.

I borrowed a 6'2" Fish with a pulled in swallow tail which was very buoyant, fast, and paddled great, but wasnt quick enough off the top for me.

Now Im thinking I want a hybrid of some sort and was thinking Dominator or Spitfire, but cant get my head around the dimensions, floatiness, volume etc and there are many conflicting reviews.......is the 6'o" too small, or should I go for the 6'2"?

How would my existing 6'4" compare in volume to the Dom and Spitfire? is the spitfire really that much more performance orientated than the dominator?

Added to this, I want to kitesurf on it with a small kite.

Any advice would be appreciated.

[Chris]

hey lukerrob,
i think based on your weight and ability, you would prefer the added volume of the 602 Dominator. It will make things a bit easier for you when it comes to getting into the waves, but it also has a nice pulled in round tail that makes surfing it aggressively a bit more easy.

What is the dominant wave size that you want the board to address.
Cheers!

[prjwebb]

Answered in your other thread but to add, the Dominator is going to deliver smoother rail to rail transitions than the Spitfire, but the Spitfire will have a slight edge in snappier turns and punchier waves. I think the Dominator will be super fun for kiting in lighter wind conditions too.

[lurkerrob]

Ok great! Thanks guys. I'm sold.

Now....fins......does the board come with fins? What is recommended for both a quad and a thruster set up?

My normal board uses GAM fcs.

[Chris]

you prefer quads or thrusters??

I think the SF4 are the best for a quad. But the K2.1 5 fin set would be insane because you get a great quad and thruster set in one purchase.

Cheers and hope this helps!

[prjwebb]

I'd give your GAMs a run too, maybe with a smaller rear to liven things up if it feels sticky with all that fin area.

[lurkerrob]

Thanks guys. Fiinal question
Looking at the sf4 and k2.1 they both mention weight values. Im over 85kg. I've never ridden a quad before, so would you still stick to the FCC guide on fin size vs weight (so I need a L in my case) or do you go smaller as there are more fins on the board?

[buzzy]

I use the GAM in the Dom and love them. Thruster set up.

[Chris]

good question lukerrob,
i don't have a lot of science to back this up, but if you are talking average conditions, i would encourage you NOT to get a L template quad set. They tend to make the board sticky and not quite as free. I work with a 100kg guy who loves the SF4s on his potato... Since the dom is a hybrid and you aren't all that heavy, i think you would be better off on a M template quad.

I think thrusters are a different story because typically you will be using the in better conditions, which means for force on each fin, which means better performance with a little extra fin area...

Hope this helps

[prjwebb]

Yeah I think you have to be a pretty big guy or a pretty specific board to need a L quad set, especially some of the ones that have rears almost are large as the fronts.