Since the fear campaign on quads has finally evaporated, now it is time to tweak some of my earlier models. The Skin B was the first quad I tested in Indo at Lances Rights as a step up on a decent day and with the lift of the cathedral hull I was totally sold particularly at the base of the wave. Now with the confidence with front foot pressure into a bottom turn the scope to either head vertical or elect for massive reach is now available. I have two other Bullet models in the range but this one will handle whatever gets served up to it with ease. It is my best quad step up to date.
PLAN SHAPE
As we know all quads enjoy more area forward since they are firmly in the twin fin camp from a planshape perspective, albeit the added trailers in the rear give them even more drive and grip. The absence of a centre fin allows a more forward foot positioning in order to counter the wider nose and keep the hull lifting and planning.
The Skin B is tapered in the tail to allow it to sit down at Mach speed, but still wider than a thruster could tolerate before it would slide out. The choice of a round pin over a swallow is to give an already clingy fin set more rotation at speed. A swallow would grip better and would be more suitable for breaks like G Land where the front foot has to be down 100% of the time to make the long walls.
BOTTOM SHAPE
There is indeed a lot going on with the bottom of this model and first and foremost the inclusion of the cathedral hull that encourages an easy paddle in, but more importantly encourages a more forward surfing position without the fear of rail catching up front. The benefits described in the intro allows the front half to be risk free when entering into decisive turns off the bottom which will give you a head start c/f with conventional bottoms.
The hull transforms into a subtle 2 mm concave through the centre of the board which continues until a point close to the front fins where it dives into a medium vee out the tail. The purpose of this vee is to allow the steering mechanism i.e. the fin sets to sit down in the water and do their job more effectively than they would trying to fight extra lift if the concave was allowed to run through and out the tail. Remember quads are fast off the mark as it is, so the cost benefits of the vee give credence to control over extra speed.
ROCKER
As with the normal approach when designing quads the principal thought is since they are looser than a thruster in to the commencement of a turn, no more rocker is needed to add more vert since they do not prescribe to the pivot and thrust formula anyways.
Since the turn is no longer a pivot the action is now a driving turn. The round tail of the Skin B adds some pivot back so all is not lost in this department. Thrusters pivot better, but lack the reach unless you stiffen them up with flatter tail rockers. Of course, the nose lift on the Skin B is less as well since the lifting of the hull keeps it above water and there is also more surface area up there dampening penetration. Of the three models in the Bullet series the Skin B, I might add has more tail lift than the others since it is aimed at
reef power.
FIN SETS
Many board designers have been lost with the position of the quad rears over the years. So it has been a slow learn, however since I embraced them way earlier in the peace, I now know all the do’s and don’ts...! .
Having said that the S Skin B is having a bet each way in that it is a five finner that can be surfed either or. Since the tail is pulled in somewhat and the board is not obesely wide it can be surfed in thruster mode albeit a tad front heavy, but this actually comes as an advantage in bigger waves coz this increases drive since superior pivot is not needed in the waves this is designed for anyways. And as a quad it can tackle any
length of wall no matter how hollow it is. Just ask yourself why Kelly choses quad mode off the wall at Pipe.
RAILS
Since this design is basically wider than most step ups I have been careful to keep the rails on the lower side with the tucked edge creeping slightly more forward than convention.
DIMENSIONS
6.2 x 19 ¼ x 2 7/16 = 30.76 lts
6.4 x 19 ½ x 2 ½ = 32.9 lts
6.6 x 19 5/8 x 2 5/8 = 35.7 lts
6.8 x 19 7/8 x 2 ¾ = 39 lts
LONGER MODELS AVAILABLE ON REQUEST.