A couple of weeks ago I stumbled apon an old twin fin. After a short barter I picked it up for twenty dollars. It's missing a fin which is a bit of a bummer but other wise it's in very good nick for a thirty five or so year old board. I've managed to find out a little bit about Peter Mercer but was wondering if anyone knew the history and recent knowledge about the brand. He made boards out of Capel I believe.
photos to follow.
I'm not sure how long hes been in the West,but he worked with Alf Jeffries at one stage.Maybe on the east coast at Nirvana?Possibly at Cordingly?
I bought a Mercer from Peter at his house/shed near Capel in 1979. Bunbury and surrounds surfers loved his boards. Surfed it up and down Yallingup - Margaret River for years as did a number of my friends with their Mercer. They really were well liked as a south west surf craft. I eventually stashed mine in the bush at a certain well known bush break. He made a lot of twinnies but not just those. Also did repairs. I left that area in 1980, so don't know much beyond that
Sorry for the delay in getting some photos up. Unfortunately the board was missing a fin. I've been working on a replacement.
Thanks for the feed back gents. I'm stoked to have saved this board. It has a nice spray and all things considered is in okay condition. I should have it back in the water soon
Boy the photo's brought back some memories. Peter Mercer was a great surfer and shaper. Alf Jeffries introduced the stinger with a step twin fin while working with Peter when the Twin Fin revolution happened. Alf I think shifted back to the central coast of NSW around Cresent Head. Peter operated from a shed behind his house in Capel. It was bloody hard to score a wave as a grommet at the Capel Cut when it was on, with Peter and Alf in the water, add Steve and Gary Rice ( who did fins and glassing for Peter and Alf) to the mix it was near impossible. I owned about 15 Mercer boards in my early years and the stinger twins were my favourite. Unfortunately Peter suffered a rather debilitating hip injury that kept him out of the water and restricted his time in the shaping bay. He went back to his original trade as a electrical contractor and worked on construction before starting his own business in Bunbury. Great bloke, surfer and shaper.
Good thread, I have nothing to offer other than I knew that they were the rice bubble brothers, I was a kid and would see them out at yals.
The older crew regarded their glassing as the best in the buisiness, I'd surf the inside of yals and the cove as a kid and dart over for the scraps.
Aye grommet don't drop in that's the rice bubble brothers.........
Apparently I was quite a petulant young grommet
The old board looks better with two fins. The photo makes the new fins angle look a bit out but I'm sure it's okay. There's more work than I thought in making fins.
OK, just to add some history.
Ive never met Peter Mercer,but know Alf very well.When I arrived in the Crescent Head area mid 1982 I met Alf for the second time.First time was at a shop he had in Cronulla around 71,his boards were still called AGE.Which signified Alf and Gary enterprise.Gary Willer(windensea surf products) came later.In 72 Alf changed the name to Nirvana and later moved the factory from Lakemba to the road to Mcmasters beach,near Kincumber..Willer stayed in Sydney.
Alf at one stage went to WA for a holiday,after he came back he sold Nirvana to Possum.
Initially he ended up at Cordingly,he asked em for a job.They said make a board,which he did.After a while he moved down south and was fond of 3 bears,set of reefs.He moved back East to crescent head,Steve Rice moved as well.Steve stay a while but missed the West Coast grunt(he was a Cronulla Point surfer late 60s/early 70s.)he went back in 83 sometime( from memory).
So in 1982,Alfs factory made Seaduece surfboards.
In late 82 Alf shaped a few blanks I had,a 6/2(13 nose/14 tail 21wide,looks very similar to the photos of the Mercer) and a 6/8x20and a half...12.5 nose 13 tail.
We went on to have a business agreement were he and his first son made my designs and Seadeuce became Gremlin.My brand was INFINITY.
So back to the Mercer,the 6/2 Alf shaped me got glassed in my 15X10 shed,sanded under a gumtree.I used Alfs designed twin fins for a while.i tried a small stabiliser fin on the stringer during an early 83 cyclone swell....one wave and I came in got a claw hammer and busted it back to a twin.TOO much drag,the board had a deep V bottom.
Later in 83 I made another small fin( same template as the fin I busted off) and the stinger quad was born.The twin design was nice and loose but during a cutback I didn't like that drift/weightless sensation.First turn on a quad and the extra drive was nice compared to the twin,BUT,in a cutback the quad set up didn't drift...I loved it.
The Mercer could be a template that Alf and peter shared???...could you measure the nose and tail widths 12 inches up?
Oh yeah, Alfs placement of the Sting was 30% of the length of the board.Perhaps you could measure that as well.
Another thing, that fin template on the Mercer isn't the same as Alf template that we used late 82.it was a bigger narrower fin with less base and more rake.
Great history there bud. It amazes me how many memories and stories that come from boards.
The stinger is close to exactly 30 percent up the board nose width is 17 inches tail is 16 inches.
I put the rovings around the fin today I'd take a photo but it would show my misgivings as a glasses. Bloody messy but it's on. Few more layers of glass , sand , tidy up maybe a bit of spray can lacker and it should be right to go by the next swell.
Select to expand quoteDtrainDrail said..
Loved my Mercer Twinny, late 70s down south
Love that Tshirt as well
Midland Dog
Good looking boards that for sure.
im planning on riding my one shortly. I've been stepping down from longer boards recently
do you still have yours
