LAIRD EPS Surfers

Select to expand quote

rockmagnet said..

Funnsurfn said..
Sorry, correction on fins, 9' Benda centre fin by Shappers and it is 3/4 forward in the box which means the leading edge is around 10mm past trailing edge of Solus sides. Just had another super fun session surfing part of the beach nobody else would bother with, stoked on this board

Funnsurfn said..
Fins for 10 foot surfer.
At the moment still got Laird Thruster set in which works well on bigger days. I think I can get board much looser. After getting some long clean point waves the other week I think the nose riding, pilot dependent..... can get much better with another set up. Looking to try a larger single around nine and a half with plenty of flex and 2+1 setup with same fin small side bites. Then same 2+1 with flex centre around seven and a half. Have not tried quad or five fin as yet.

I've mentioned this before but has anyone tried a cutaway fin about 8" or 9". I used to use them on my McTavish mal and it really loosened the board up but kept it solidly in the wave. In fact it totally changed the board. You know when a board feels just right under foot and that's exactly what I think would work well on the Laird.

Still only new to this big board, mal style stuff so I don't know if my input is very helpful. However, I am really loving learning about it and the freshness of a different approach.
I would definitely suggest well worth a try, very different beast to McTavish mal. Are you thinking 2+1 Rockmagnet?
I tried a similar to cut away but only 6'5". Was not for me. Certainly less hold on the nose and I like to get my back foot right back and it just did not have the feel I am after.

Select to expand quote

graffitisup said..



I have a Bob Pearson custom 10'. This is the fin I'm running at the moment. It turns & noserides as good as I could expect.

As far as using as a single I loved it but do not have a fin like this to try. One thing I noticed which was interesting on small clean days was a kind of buttery slip feeling between rails. Usually on fade bottom turns or wrap around cut backs. Super fun On bigger days or with chop I found it a little dangerous. I wonder if this is due to the width of these Laird puppies???? I guess also a lot less area, potentially more flex than Graffitisups big fin has.

So many different theories on noseriding fins and noseriding in general. Just from observation, neglecting rocker, rail, dedicated noseriders etc I think the Sups I have seen are possibly a little too wide and Buoyant to noseride as well as prone noseriders
Then again you watch Laird with a tiny 4'5" centre only killing it and guys like Guts Griffiths making it look too easy.

The testing process always fun

Select to expand quote

rockmagnet said..


I've mentioned this before but has anyone tried a cutaway fin about 8" or 9". I used to use them on my McTavish mal and it really loosened the board up but kept it solidly in the wave. In fact it totally changed the board. You know when a board feels just right under foot and that's exactly what I think would work well on the Laird.

I've got the original Pearson Laird Surftech 10'6" with three boxes.

I've used a 10" Wingnut Cutaway in it - works fine as do most fins if the surf isn't too big, in which case I like a more swept fin for when I get way back on the tail when I make a steep drop...in that case, gotta get way back because it doesn't have much rocker, and you want the fin as far back as it can be in order to still control the board.

I've used lots of different fins and combinations. On small and medium size waves pretty much anything works as far as turning and walking around. I've run it as a twin (very low drag!) using 5" side bites (and no middle fin) - lots of fun sliding around doing top turns - sometimes I add a 2 1/4" nubster keel and it slides a bit less and is more predictable. I get the same effect using a single 7.5" Fins Unlimited Swept Fin...slidy slidy for smaller days.

But, ...for going way up on the nose you need a big fin, otherwise when you get way up there, the tail pulls out.

I like to ride as far up on the nose as possible so most of the time I use a big pivot fin like an 11" Pearson Arrow CJ Nelson or if there is lots of kelp, I'll put in a big fin with more rake. If its not too big, I like the 9.5" El Gato but if it is big I want something that gets the fin tip closer to the back of the board as detailed above.

I've got a 9.5" Sparky I like a lot - I think that 10" red and white striped Island Fin Design fin would work really well in all conditions for this board (well, for my board) - even better than the Sparky as it is a rear pin and you can place it a bit further back on the board....I think it is the same as the 'PAU HANA' they make...I might get one!

Select to expand quote

Brenno said..
Didn't have much time to put my new 10' surfer through its paces when it showed up, had to go back to work and pay for it It's been blowing onshore for what seems like weeks, but it's my first day off so the rules say i had to give it a crack. Set it up with the standard quad fins and headed down to attack the mushy slop (with the occasional 2 -3 footer sneaking through).I love this board. Surfs like a lively longboard and makes the sections easily. Turns up out of the hole really nicely and suprisingly stable for a lower volume board. Hanging out for better conditions, because as i found out by mistake it doesn't seem to mind being dropped over the lip too much either. AA started this thread by saying what a fun board this is. Ditto.

Totally agree. AA lent me the 10' for a day and it surprised me too. Put a very big smile on my face. I'd love to try the 11'

WTF? Anyways took my JL 8'9" worldwide out early for a couple of clean ones before the inevitable onshore, returning home for my laird 10'. The more i surf it the more i love it......

Hi,

I have read this entire thread with great interest. It is good to hear that the (relatively) new Laird EPS's SUP's from Laird Stand Up / Nidecker are lighter, faster, and surf better, even if they are a little more fragile than the prior ones. I am about to pick up an older Laird Pearson Arrow SUP from Surftech on clearance (but still new or nearly new). I need help deciding between the 10.6 versus 11.0 model. If you have any experience comparing these (or even the same lengths in the new EPS ones) I'd be curiour for your comments in this new thread:

www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Stand-Up-Paddle/Review/2013-Surftech-Laird-110-vs-106-vs-Lopez-106/

So I can only get the 11.0" or 10.6" in Surftech - and even those - barely. The 10.0" Surftech Laird is completely sold out/gone. The guys at Surftech were saying the 10"0 is very small and only 28"0 wide - might have been a REAL challenge.

Try an 11.0 before a 10.6. I am 100 kg and lately I am liking the 11.0 much better.

Caveat: I am comparing the Surftech versions. Also I compared them in small to medium surf.

The 11'6" surfer is around 19" about 1 foot from the tail.The 11ft that marvinhecht is talking about is Surftech Laird which I think are overall narrower boards anyway.Try playing around with different fin set ups,go 10" single and see how that changes things.My experience on this board was in small conditions 2ft ,but with the 3 fin set it turned well ,and certainlly was stable when up the front.I am not used to a 3 fin set up as I run my boards as singles but had no complaints,although not having used a board with this set up in about 10 years it felt very different.Next step for me ,try a single fin and see how that goes.I measured my Simon Anderson 12ft sup at about a foot from the tail it certainly is narrower by a couple of inches,but in my opinion does not surf as well as the Laird.The shorter Lairds are certainly going to be looser,but you can't beat a big board for glide and wave catching ability

Thanks Waxer.

I use an 11" Farrelly cutaway single fin, but cant comment as yet.

Perhaps I need more time on in the water.


Had I seen it first, I may well have bought the Tom Carroll Long Leaf. The bottom shape has a lot in common with my mals, which go like buggery, and don't seem to catch the nose or rails.

Greetings all.

I'm relatively new to seabreeze & I recently bought (Nov14) a Laird Surfer 10'6x32"x150l (matte finish, which is pretty cool) as my 1st SUP & I absolutely love the board! I only spotted this thread today which fortunately backs up my decision so thanks for all the useful info!

I've been using Laird Thruster fins which seem to work well however I'm now at the stage where I want to mix things up a bit. If I ride quad (I guess this will give me a bit more speed?) do you think a set of S5 (4.52") fins will work as the rear side bites if I continue to use my existing Laird Thruster front side bites (4.78") or should I go for something a bit smaller?

I also bought a Gerry Lopez 8.5" box fin which I planned to use for flat water paddling however, I tend to spend the majority of my time in the surf (even if there's only a small ripple) so I've yet to use this fin. I see a few of you recommended using a large (10") box fin for nose riding days so do you think my Gerry Lopez will cut the mustard or am I better off selling this to invest in a larger box fin, which can double up for flat water paddling days?

Obviously, I will experiment where possible however waiting for the right conditions is a challenge so any useful pointers would be much appreciated.

Cheers

Just gonna say thank you to all on this thread. I now have one of these boards and the thing is a blast.

I was looking for a tad bigger board and saw some of the videos and reviews on this board it looked like it was too much fun. I decided to PM a few people that had this board regardless of what size they had to try and ask a few more questions. I ended up with the board, a 10’00” hybrid surfer in the surtech type technology construction with the 5 fin options.

I received it the day before I had to go out on a job so I could not ride it for a while. The reason while it has taken me so long to write this. When I finally had a chance to take it out it was like chest high and kinda choppy. Being 3 inches narrower than my 8’6 it was tippy at first especially in the conditions I was using. But man, this takes off when it gets on a wave and turns amazingly well. Not the greatest conditions for a first go but it looked like a keeper.

The second time I took it out was a good swell. I happened upon a spot in the afternoon with this board after surfing all morning on my Foote fish. Found a nice overhead A framing beach break peak type wave with about 2 hours before dark. First wave was a nice left maybe a foot overhead and this thing took off. I stayed high on the wave and when I got far enough out made my turn back to the curl. Board turned like it knew what I was thinking. I was able to get back in the curl and cutback continuing left and off the lip with plenty of speed. Yeah, it is a keeper. Had lots more like that til dark.

I know people have been having fun with different fin configurations on these. So far for me I have just been riding this thing a quad with the stock fins and loving it. I need to try it with a big single and see how it goes. I am also waiting to try this on a smaller day. Hoping to try on a glassy like thigh to waist high day to see how it goes.

weight without fins

Thanks Funnsurfn - really appreciate the feedback & agreed - I will hang onto the Gerry Lopez & continue to experiment

Thats 1 cool looking fin - thanks Linter

Select to expand quote

Rossall said..
What's the General thoughts on the old Surftech Laird 10'6" I have the chance to pick one up cheap secondhand :-) or is it best to wait and save up $$$$$

phil

Seen and heard good things, have not ridden one in the surf. Seem to retain value ok so if you don't like it your probably still on a winner if it is cheap and in good nick.

Select to expand quote

Rossall said..
Are they a similar shape to the new Laird eps ones, as same classic Arrow shaper from Santa Cruz I see

Check out the entire thread. First page has a mention. I thought my 10' was a bit more refined than older models I've seen.