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[Poobah]

Slicer Dicer is Paipo Jim's 54" Freeline Design twin fin. A John Mel classic. Are those fin boxes or glassed on fins? How did you arrive at that length? Did you ride an El Paipo 54 back in the daze?

http://www.lamaroos.org/slicerdicer.html

[PaipoJim]

Fin boxes. Those El Paipo's were all over the place in Corona del Mar when I lived there in the late sixties but I was a real bodysurfing "purist" at that point in time (at least at the local breaks) and regarded such vehicles in much the same manner as shortboarders regard kayakers in the lineup today. This was before you ever saw regular surfboards at places like L****e C****a or other secret spots (which if I mentioned their name or location I would have to kill you) that had been traditional bodysurfing venues. In certain circles, paipos were considered a dangerous menace piloted by out-of-control kooks who didn't know how to swim. Newport peninsula day-trippers go home! (Not that *we* didn't consider the Wedge a local break.) Mats were OK since they pre-dated everyone and they didn't hurt all that much when your little brother ran into you. But I digress...

I had two of John Mel's Freeline "Flyers" in the 1970's. One was a made to order 5' 4" diamond tail tri-fin kneeboard that I can honestly say I caught more waves on than any other board I've ever owned. It was wide and 3"+ thick with really full rails through the center tapering to downturned at the tail. The outer fins were really just vestigial little bumps parallel to the adjustable main center fin where I used to run long 9" to 12" high aspect ratio flex fins. I absolutely wore that board out surfing all sorts of spots between Davenport and Ft. Bragg. It started out clear white and when I finally gave it to my cousin 5 or 6 years later it was a dirty yellowish brown with lots of ugly blackish repaired rail dings, knee dents and bottom compression dimples. And heavier, with all that extra glass and, no doubt, some added water. That board was great. Take a look at the old 70's pictures on the Freeline web site of some of his kneeboards, in trim, way up in the pocket of hollow waves. Mine would ride like that too.

The other board was actually quite a bit different; a full round tail bright yellow 48" tri - fin that he maintains was a kneeboard(?) that was sitting in the front window of his shop around 1971. Much harder down turned rails and a smaller glassed on center skeg with the little side fins. I bought it to ride prone as a paipo and it was pretty much fun as it was long enough to bend my knees up and get my legs and fins out of the water but I traded it in on the kneeboard I described above.

Which leads me finally (anybody still reading?) to Slicer which John built (intentionally as a paipo this time) a couple of years ago for me. The theory here being I wanted it long enough to be able to bend my knees up and get the old legs and fins mostly up out of the water again ala the old yellow 48" board but still be in trim and also able to turn. That's why you see the thickest part of the board so far back, right about where the side starts to break towards the swallow tail and about where where my hips/center of gravity is when I'm lying on the board. Relatively flat tail rocker but with the final curve in the plan shape plus the canted twin fins it still combines into a pretty lively turner. So given all that, John came up with Slicer and it ended up being 54" long.

[rodndtube]

I'll take a Slicer! But make mine only 50" long... the other dimensions holding constant. My OB Fish has been on order for nearly a year now.... shapers, shapers, shapers @&#^$%
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