***The Official Mid-Length Thread***

[92122]

Plenty of action on this topic already gentlemen. While we have to accept that fatty fun boards and soft tops aren't true mid-lengths, lets try to keep an open mind here as the discussion seems to be raging in the community, and should include whatever keeps it interesting .

CI Mid

Impulse purchase from Varial coming in hotttt. Should I get the matching fins from CI? Kind of on a weird mid-length kick this year. Liking them for those small weekend sessions when I still want to get in the water but can't justify riding a shortboard bc it's too damn crowded. They're also...

forum.surfer.com

Is it possible to rip on a mid-length?

I've been drinking some mid-length cool-aid lately and ran across this video. I'm amazed!

forum.surfer.com

I guess I've been enjoying my 7' 6" 'funboard' (Lib Tech Pick Up Stick) so much, and think back to 2019 on Maui when I rented a 7' 0" Firewire Submoon (now discontinued) and had some good sessions at various spots, that it just got the ~7' 0" and ~43 - ~46 liters mid length boards on the brain.

Ankles to knees, occasional threes? Dumpy beachbreak? I don't prefer a longboard. And while I’ve learned most midlengths aren’t grovelers at all, they can still work well in certain small conditions.

Softer / Reef waves 3-4+, a groveler can be okay, but extra length will help you catch waves and works on a more open face. Prefer = Midlength.

Any condition around head high + or - that's not too gnarly, a bigger board that can still turn when you get on a good one. Prefer = Midlength.


First on the docket is the ...Lost Smooth Operator. While the similar Crowd Killer is more of a big guy shortboard / pump and rip stick, the Smooth Operator is more of a glider. Into it.

 

[oeste858]

Don’t think it’s a matter of right/wrong. Just personal preference of how you want to surf and what you want to do on a wave. I fall into the camp that a midlength is more jack of all trades, but master of none. IMO they are generally more suited from knee to head high in lined up point surf. But honestly, if it’s above waist high, I’ve got other boards I’d much rather ride. I’ve also got a couple excellent small wave boards rn that are a blast in the conditions you mentioned, so I rarely ever ride my 7’2.

 

[retodd]

I like them for lazy high tide days or spots that require lots of distance paddling.

Parmenter is probably the best at all around ml. Lots of other guys do neat ones , Ryan Lovelace and SK have some spicy versions .

Best part of a ml is they can still be duck dove

 

[JDJ]

This thread needs to clarify the difference, if any, between a mid length and an egg. It seems retodd is talking about a Parmenter stub vector (a longer, wider, but still relatively thin squash thruster) and other folks are taking about egg type designs like the CI mid.

 

[doc_flavonoid]

This thread needs to clarify the difference, if any, between a mid length and an egg. It seems retodd is talking about a Parmenter stub vector (a longer, wider, but still relatively thin squash thruster) and other folks are taking about egg type designs like the CI mid.

mpegg

 

[92122]

Id like to see anything clarified, but as I mentioned, let’s keep an open mind to the topic and try not to get in a pissing match.

Chas Grit liking the CI Mid At the link below. Is this considered an egg more than the Lost Smooth Op I originally posted!? Where is the line drawn specifically, and does it matter!?

Revealed: "I'm in love with a mid-length surfboard and I don't care if the whole world knows it!"

A grey pall hangs in the air this morning. The sort of grey that rudely threatens to malinger all day. Thick. Monochromatic. Lazy. One lonely crow squawks a miserable song in the backyard. A vehicle is backing up somewhere on the street making that horrendous beeping sound. Beep. Beep. Beep...

beachgrit.com

 

[doc_flavonoid]

few years back i had to put my 7-0 cc og squaretail flat tracker up in the rafters. fn thing was like crack. so bladed out. felt so bitchen laying over on rail. worked waist to 3-4' overhead.

hollow. mush. didnt matter. was such a crutch.

thousand dollar single fin that made every wave fun

 

[urchined]

few years back i had to put my 7-0 cc og squaretail flat tracker up in rafters. fn thing was like crack. so bladed out. felt so bitchen laying over on rail. worked waist to 3-4 overhead.

hollow. mush. didnt matter. was such a crutch.

thousand dollar single fin that made every wave fun

Same experience with that boar

 

[92122]

few years back i had to put my 7-0 cc og squaretail flat tracker up in the rafters. fn thing was like crack. so bladed out. felt so bitchen laying over on rail. worked waist to 3-4' overhead.

hollow. mush. didnt matter. was such a crutch.

thousand dollar single fin that made every wave fun

Same experience with that boar

"cc og"..??.. Post a pic.


And remember, the new Surfer Mag, Mens Journal, says that you need to get a mid-length surfboard.

Why You Need to Get a Mid-Length Surfboard in Your Quiver

Exhibit A.

www.mensjournal.com

 

[doc_flavonoid]

"cc og"..??.. Post a pic.

7-0 x 21 x 2.75

 

[ZZ Soft Top]

Extra points for the wall ride marks in your pics.

 

[tedshred5]

"cc og"..??.. Post a pic.


And remember, the new Surfer Mag, Mens Journal, says that you need to get a mid-length surfboard.

Why You Need to Get a Mid-Length Surfboard in Your Quiver

Exhibit A.

www.mensjournal.com

nothing against midlengths but that article needs to go away and die

 

[92122]

7-0 x 21 x 2.75

View attachment 104991View attachment 104992

Ah, its a Chris Christenson.... should've assumed at the "cc" you posted first.

 

[tedshred5]

took a trip to Punta Mita a few months ago and borrowed a 7'0 Bing Omega at a fun reef point. it took a little bit to get used to during the session, but once I did, the glide and trim was addicting. I think it had a 8.0" Greenough fin IIRC

Omega

The model name derives from the last letter of the Greek alphabet, OMEGA, because it's the counterpart to the ALPHA PIN. Giving a nod to the late '60s when pintail shortboards first appeared on the scene, marking the very beginning of the shortboard revolution. This board features a wide-point...

bingsurf.com

 

[Sam_K]

I've got a Sea Gypsy by Joel something or other, which goes great. But the damn thing has zero rocker, like none. Flat as paper. So easy to dig the tip in on takeoff and go over the handlebars.

What is the rocker like on something like the C Bucket or the Smooth Operator?

 

[CutnSnip]

i take mine out when its chest high,crowded and highish tide. super fun but if the waves are good or small and bad i have other boards im going to reach for. stocked i have one in th e quiver tho, pure fun.

 

[92122]

What is the rocker like on something like the ... Smooth Operator?

Found a rocker shot on Lost AU... This board is getting on the brain lately... I think a 7'0" would be so fun for softer reef breaks in Hawaii... Digging the pale blue one they have up on the Lost US site.

 

[Sam_K]

Found a rocker shot on Lost AU... This board is getting on the brain lately... I think a 7'0" would be so fun for softer reef breaks in Hawaii... Digging the pale blue one they have up on the Lost US site.

That top board looks soooooo nice. Looks like it has a fair bit of rocker too. I don't think you need a lot of rocker, but my board has zero fucking rocker and that's no good

 

[Duffy LaCoronilla]

Here’s mine...6’8 and 7’2 Vaqueros. I pretty much only ride them when it’s small. Put it this way, I got 7’2 a couples years ago and I haven’t ridden a Wavestorm since.

Got the 6’8 last year (because I saw it and couldn’t help it). I ride in small sh!t surf. One time I was surprised by a swell that came out of nowhere (wasn’t on any forecast) and rode it in some high tide point break at about head high and it was certainly fun but I was wishing I had my fish.

 

[92122]

...and I haven’t ridden a Wavestorm since.

Thats good to hear.

And I'm glad this is turning into an images thread.


How much have you experimented sliding those single fins fore vs. aft?