TP Displacement Hull Board

[Daryl D]

Thomas has mentioned his hull board, once that I've seen on this forum. I'm the guy who wanted a displacement hull board and I felt Thomas was the guy to do it. I think Thomas has done four boards for me and I believe his understanding of surfboard design, theory, and function is extensive. I also think his willingness to look at different things and try them is a positive as well. I like to look at different designs and learn to utilize what is good about them. The design criteria with Thomas was displacement hull, single fin, and have fun doing it. I expected, from other experience a more progressive drop in, bottom turn, up the face, and down the line board as opposed to a "point and shoot" style. Thomas pretty much had design freedom. What we ended up with is a work of art. Don't know how to do photos here, but its beautiful, pointed narrow nose, lots of front rocker, convex on the nose back to a more flat wide tail. Thomas, I know you're gonna read this so put the drawing up! We initially started with a 9 1/2" Greenough speed fin. My first outs were in pretty good surf, shoulder to overhead decent waves. To say it worked beyond expectation would be accurate. That was spring a year ago. As spring turned into summer and the waves went to knee to stomach high, the board just wouldn't get on the waves. So I basically set the board aside and rode my G 4, bringing the hull board out when things were better. Over the last couple of months, I decided to really work with the hull board. On take off, I felt the long fin was holding it back, so I went to a 7 1/2 Greenough fin. It was a different board on take off on small waves. Didn't need the long fin because of the waves. It does everything I ask it to do including turning pretty darn good. It doesn't like being held at the top, but if you just let it drop a bit it just takes off. These same characteristics are there with the long fin in larger, head high surf, where it is really fun. It's also very smooth going down the face as compared to my G 4. I'm looking forward to our fall and winter surf now. Oh, I forgot to mention the board is pretty fast as well. I'm not going to tell you the board is perfect, but for me it's darn good. So why am I putting this up, to brag about my cool board? No, just to present a little different design than what's normally talked about and give some props to Thomas Patrick for the great job of utilizing the displacement hull design with great results.

[krusher74]

I have belly/displacement in the front 1/3 of my boards. I find it nice to paddle into waves on as it work front 0mph, where as a planing hull your basically dragging through the water till 4/5mph when it starts to plane.
I however prefer most of the board to be a planing hull as i don't like the way a full planning hull cuts through and then jump out of the water (watch greenough riding a spoon)

[GeoffreyLevens]

I however prefer most of the board to be a planing hull as i don't like the way a full planning hull cuts through and then jump out of the water (watch greenough riding a spoon)

I've never ridden a full displacement hull prone but I suspect the feeling and maybe even the actual effect, does not translate very well from standup. I got addicted to the feel of riding those in standing version. It made me think of film clips of fighter jets launching off carrier deck, thrown by slingshot, then immediately followed by smooth pelican glide "like buttah". Legs in the water, even barely touching I think would block a lot of that from happening.

[Daryl D]

The ride description is accurate. That's exactly why I wanted to do the project and got more than expected.

[GeoffreyLevens]

The ride description is accurate. That's exactly why I wanted to do the project and got more than expected.

That is great to hear. I never went that direction w/ prone craft due to my skepticism. My loss.

[belly rider]

Oh, I forgot to mention the board is pretty fast as well. I'm not going to tell you the board is perfect, but for me it's darn good. So why am I putting this up, to brag about my cool board? No, just to present a little different design than what's normally talked about and give some props to Thomas Patrick for the great job of utilizing the displacement hull design with great results.

Hi there good to read your posting-- I live on the other side of the pond and also have sponsored 5 boards from Thomas -- I am both a kneeboarder and a paipo rider. We worked on the MPH application for my kneeboards for the past 3/4 years and dropped in length from a 6'2" down to a 5'11" and making them thinner and thinner in order to understand where my paddling skills at 60 and my increased weight would end up
I have asked him for my next board to be a hybrid board for both prone and kneeriding a good idea for a guy that travels a lot and wants the best of both worlds but that blank never came in at the right time while >I was visiting in the US so he decided to go ahead and keep the blank for himself and pay for it-- even though I had placed a down payment for it. This says a lot for the kind of guy Thomas is. I am looking forward to having him built me that hybrid board but we still would have to review and set the volume and measurements.

I am very very happy with all the work Thomas has done on a total of 5 boards (one pin tail--+ 3 MPH kneeboards over the years) and one still in the development fully paid for: I entrust Thomas as a shaper as an innovator and as a good personal friend. I also own 4 Paipo's he has built.

I am not bragging either but would like to put my story in there too-- I actually had to bug him for a year to convince him to start building kneeboards.
Voila le jeue son fe

Ciao Thomas ci vediamo in Italia presto-- o forse prima se torno a Febbraio a trovare il mio papa
davide RdR

[nomastomas]

Aesthetically, I think the T-Belly Hull is one of the most elegant looking shapes I've done. Functionally, Daryl's ride reports have be frothing for a similar shape. Great winter board for California right points. Ride is similar to the ride characteristics of the tri-hull "Manta" I did a couple of years ago.

[GeoffreyLevens]

That is beautiful! In my stand-up experience, many hulls are built too "deep" and tend to bog unless there's tons of power in the wave. Yours appears to be subtle enough to just do the job which is perfect I think. In all shapes, but maybe even more so when dealing w/ convex bottom contours, a little bit can make a big difference.

[Daryl D]

Without a doubt this board is a beautiful piece of work that does what it's intended to do. I've told Thomas since the fist out it's a viable product. Like every board, it has it's quirks, but really suits my desires.

[krusher74]

That is beautiful! In my stand-up experience, many hulls are built too "deep" and tend to bog unless there's tons of power in the wave. Yours appears to be subtle enough to just do the job which is perfect I think. In all shapes, but maybe even more so when dealing w/ convex bottom contours, a little bit can make a big difference.

I love the subtle belly in the front 3rd of my board for 0-5mph paddling, but on my wood board I thought oh yeah lets have some more of that and then it just pushed water. (probably just my design fail) but from surfing weak waves I feel slight design flaws suffer more. I mean in strong waves you can bodysurf, and that hulls all wrong and still works

[nomastomas]

"Plowing" is almost always a nose rocker problem. Entry rocker has to be smooth, continuous (parabolic) curve, with no abrupt changes. Smooth transitions can be can be hard to achieve in a shape with such short length. "Belly" or convex rail-to-rail curve doesn't cause plowing.

[krusher74]

"Plowing" is almost always a nose rocker problem. Entry rocker has to be smooth, continuous (parabolic) curve, with no abrupt changes. Smooth transitions can be can be hard to achieve in a shape with such short length. "Belly" or convex rail-to-rail curve doesn't cause plowing.

yeah I just did it far to much.

[GeoffreyLevens]

I once had a Greg Liddle hull that was very deep. At least to my eye the rocker looked perfect. I wouldn't say that it "plowed" but it was difficult to get it started, to drop in on waves that weren't super powerful, and it just was not fast unless really in the pocket of a solid wave. Mush burgers were not my friend for awhile there.

[nomastomas]

All surfcraft have "form" drag, some more than others. Drag is not always "bad" and is required to achieve control. Question becomes "At what point, and under what (wave) conditions does that form drag become more of an impediment than an enhancement to performance?"
One of the advantages of using Aku to design/shape surfcraft is the ability easily quantify attributes such as "belly" or "V". Another is the ability to easily replicate those attributes. Displacement hulls are technically difficult to hand shape despite their simple appearance. It requires much more skill with a planer than I possess....

[GeoffreyLevens]

ADisplacement hulls are technically difficult to hand shape despite their simple appearance.

After shaping a fairly traditional fish shape and a Greenough style edge board (kneelo) I tried shaping a full on displacement hull board. Went to Mollusk surf shop and fondled several and once I really started to feel/look at them, nearly gave up right there and then. There is a LOT going on with those boards. Got a lot of help over the phone from Dale Solomonson who was a wealth of into and tips. My one and only attempt was rideable but I wouldn't give it any more than that.