Hey all,
Im looking to move from the twin tip to a surf board but ...
Im having real trouble finding a review of the features of the various boards.
Does anyone have experience with various free ride/small wave boards?
From Tassie its difficult to get to a demo day
Also im a heavy rider very over 100 kgs,
Ive been looking at the cabrina secret weapon and the North nugget, but open to suggestion
Thanks in advance
Stay with something short. Perhaps even just buy a local surfboard. If you are happy to go unstrapped, a local surf board you may find to be designed better than a factory Chinese board. Stay under 6 foot too. Its not like paddling a board, so short is good. If it's glassed lightly it'll feel great but not last too long, in saying that I've met guys who only ride boards glassed like a normal surfboard because they feel so good. If you want to get a custom then you'll have to glass it stronger.
very good advice from above post. i have several boards from 4.9 to 8 feet. for small waves the smaller the board is better for turning. . i just got a Duke and is amazing board for bay waves. Good at light wind conditios , easy on the knee when is choopy and turns quick and it feels it can last a long time. it is a bit heavy if you compare it to naish skater .
Just buy a secondhand surfboard around 6 ft, get the basics down pat then look for a kite specific surfboard. You should have more of an idea what to look for once you've been up and riding, but a north nugget should work well for you, I found them to be very bouncy in the chop though.
I am 100kg so here are my thoughts.....
At 100kg, you will damage a normal surfboard. So if you are happy with heal dents etc, go for it. But it won't last long. Upside is you can get three second hand surfboards for the price of a new kite specific board.
Kiting designed boards can usually take a bigger pounding. The nugget is certainly in that category. And you can jump them.
Go for something at least 21 inches wide with at least 30 litres in volume .
Boards to consider... Nugget (either model), Firewire Evo, Firewire Timbertek Fish (Lost boards)
^^^^ yep, + 1 on what Bigtone667 says.
Normal surfboards do not last at all under the likes of us. Either the deck will cave or you'll damage the fins/fin boxes because being heavy, you need to ride powered just to get around and this puts lots of pressure on the boards bits.
I can highly recommend the Nugget for a heavier guy as an every day board, not just for light winds. It's my main board and has many hours on it. I'm usually powered as much as I can and only a few heel dents so far (touch wood).
The Nugget is not just for light winds as it can be ridden beyond the design brief when your heavy enough to hold it down. The outline shape lets it go upwind well, track in a straight line at full speed and its short length lets it be nimble in waves. The quad fins help give it grip in fast carve gybes or nice and tight if you want. Combined with it's width and volume, its a great easy first board that you will not outgrow.
Good luck.
Robbie 
The only thing I would say against the nugget as an everyday board is that you wouldn't want to take it on an decent size wave. Could just be my height but my 5'7" nugget has a tendency to nose dive on anything over 4-5'. I only use it on small days and its great for that.
I'd hunt around for an unused 6'-6'2" kiteboard that might be a few seasons old and cheap. Get something with plenty of volume, like 32l+ and possibly a five fin box or a quad.
Select to expand quoteDl33ta said..
The only thing I would say against the nugget as an everyday board is that you wouldn't want to take it on an decent size wave. Could just be my height but my 5'7" nugget has a tendency to nose dive on anything over 4-5'. I only use it on small days and its great for that.
I'd hunt around for an unused 6'-6'2" kiteboard that might be a few seasons old and cheap. Get something with plenty of volume, like 32l+ and possibly a five fin box or a quad.
... the old Nugget is definitely an every day board for me but then again, I'm different to the usual suspects because I'm 6'4" and a super heavy weight so I guess I get to push the board differently. I figured FoS would have similar success to me being similar size person.
I don't know how to measure wave heights except by how much they are relative to me when I'm at the bottom of them but I rode my 5'5" Nugget in well over my head to twice over my head in Sumbawa and no nose diving. The secret for me was to ride it fast and well powered.
Not sure how the newer Nuggets go but the 2014 to 2015's can definitely go well in lots of conditions.
Cheers,
Robbie :)
