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Gear Talk / Smik hipster and infinity RNB
« on: Today at 08:16:25 PM »
First step in having a problem is admitting you have a problem… 
hehehhehe
I am a board whore.
Ok, so I have been talking with another member about a comparison with the smik hipster and the infinity rnb. I told him I would get back with him after I went out and did some direct comparisons between the 2 boards.
These are both great boards but different animals. These are my opinions on the differences between these 2 boards. I do not consider any of them to be negatives, but differences. The results could probably even different for some one with a different surf style and / or different waves in comparison to the waves I am riding. So lets have some fun…
Me; about 5’10 and 193lbs (178cm and 87kg) surfing eastern central Florida. Beach break. Good waves but generally on the fatter side with a little mushy kinda aspect to them. I have times of steep longer waves but have not have those sandbars break while having these board.
Boards.
Infinity RNB “round nose blurr” 8’2” x 30 “ x 125L
Smik Hipster twin 8’3” x 31” x 123 L
For me these shorter wider board seem to work better for me in the waves I surf. I have longer narrower type board also, like a Jimmy Lewis stun gun, and I barely use them and am selling them for this reason. The wider boards give me the additional stability for digging hard to catch the waves when they are mushier. Also, I surf a lot next to an inlet and get some moving water bumpiness a lot of the time.
So, questions were :
How does it compare to your Infinity RNB? Is it good in small waves? I'm in South Carolina and about your size. Trying to figure out if the RNB or Smik Hipster Twin would be a better everyday board. I like a more traditional shape so the Smik appeals to me a bit more. I've been riding the JL SuperFrank 8' Lean which is another great board for our conditions but I want a size that is in between JL's 8' & 8'6" lean models. Your 8'3" custom Smik looks like it may be the perfect size. I like a lively board but need to make sure it goes well in our smaller conditions.
Can you give me an idea which board is more stable for you between the RNB & Smik? Also, does the tail of the RNB seem a little wide for our conditions? Is the Smik lighter?
We had some fun waves today in the waist to chest high sizes. A little mushy getting into them but once on most of them, some decent faces opened up. I took out the rnb first and it seemed like I was in the wrong place at the wrong time most of the time. I did get a few waves to get the feel for the board again. Got a few waves on the rnb and was able to get some turns though. In comparing it to the smik, it feels like it on a rail, but not in a bad way. It goes where ever I want. It makes me feel like I am power surfing. But I was still able to slide the tail a little in coming off a white water lip. On purpose, not accidental. This board gets very fast very quick. Getting back on the tail is crucial to make this board lively. The speed aspect I guess makes it feel like it is on a rail when turning.
Now when I switched to the smik, my wave picking luck increased a bit so I was able to get a few more waves with it. Nothing with the boards, just my dumb luck. When digging to get in to the mushy waves, the wider nose of the of the smik seemed to add a little more stability compared with the rnb. But I did take the 2 boards out on the river the day before for photos and in a flat water comparison, the rnb was slightly more stable and seemed like it paddled a little faster. In the flat water the smik seemed a tad twitchier and a little slower. This also seemed to be true out in the surf. But like I said, when digging after a mushy wave, I would step forward up on the wider nose of the smik and it seemed a little bit more stable compared to the rnb.
The smik was very fun in the waves today though. I had a blast on it. With the twin fins, hip, and small trailer fin, the board seems like it fits tight in the pocket. It did not develop the immediate speed the rnb did. Maybe not as fast either. The turns were sharp and in control with no out of control sliding. Just not as fast as the rnb.
For the small wave question, that could be a good conversation, but the location you are surfing has to be taken into account. My Florida mushy waves don’t have a lot of power where other places waist high waves have some good push to them. For me I would not take either of these boards out under waist high. I have other boards for that. I could. Yes. But I would want something with a little more float. It becomes a fun question.
In the smaller waves I want to just play around and have more fun and not worry too much about performance. I would surf my Foote board that is a like a big fish shape. It is 8’6” x 32” wide. Don’t know the volume but guessing mid to upper 130’s. I have ridden small swell waves in the knee to waist high range and had blast. Also overhead waves. This is why I have multiple boards. If I was going for a small wave board, my choice would be the smik over the rnb. But I would go a size or 2 up just to have the additional floatation and stability for trying to dig to get into the smaller waves. It is mentioned he is riding a Jimmy Lewis super frank lean in 8’0” but did not want to go to an 8’6”. For smaller surf I would so go with the 8’6” wide version. But that is just me and from my experience. Another type board would be the jimmy lewis destroyer which seems like a wider profile board with a pulled in tail. Looks like it could be fun. The thing about the smik is it is designed to be a twin fin board and have the characteristics of a twinny. I do not know if the just riding any of the jimmy lewis boards would have the same effect. Someone commented that he had ridden the superfrank as a twin and had fun with it so it is a possibility. The wider tail of the rnb works well for the stability but it develops speed fast and makes the turns a little more drawn out. It would also give a little more float for riding smaller surf compared to needing a little more speed for a smik type shape with the pulled in tail. Maybe a custom rnb with and asymmetrical tail could would work well too for smaller waves. But again in my opinion, a few inches bigger and slightly wider catering to smaller surf.
My smik is about 2 lbs lighter than the rnb, but the rnb is the pvc construction which is not as light as infinity’s carbon or custom boards.
Both of these boards are a blast, but just different.
I hope I answered everything, any other questions, let me know.
Rnb vs smik
Water rnb
Water smik
rocker comparison
Rail comparison
Tail comparison
my Foote
Bill foote
Top
Bottom
hehehheheI am a board whore.
Ok, so I have been talking with another member about a comparison with the smik hipster and the infinity rnb. I told him I would get back with him after I went out and did some direct comparisons between the 2 boards.
These are both great boards but different animals. These are my opinions on the differences between these 2 boards. I do not consider any of them to be negatives, but differences. The results could probably even different for some one with a different surf style and / or different waves in comparison to the waves I am riding. So lets have some fun…
Me; about 5’10 and 193lbs (178cm and 87kg) surfing eastern central Florida. Beach break. Good waves but generally on the fatter side with a little mushy kinda aspect to them. I have times of steep longer waves but have not have those sandbars break while having these board.
Boards.
Infinity RNB “round nose blurr” 8’2” x 30 “ x 125L
Smik Hipster twin 8’3” x 31” x 123 L
For me these shorter wider board seem to work better for me in the waves I surf. I have longer narrower type board also, like a Jimmy Lewis stun gun, and I barely use them and am selling them for this reason. The wider boards give me the additional stability for digging hard to catch the waves when they are mushier. Also, I surf a lot next to an inlet and get some moving water bumpiness a lot of the time.
So, questions were :
How does it compare to your Infinity RNB? Is it good in small waves? I'm in South Carolina and about your size. Trying to figure out if the RNB or Smik Hipster Twin would be a better everyday board. I like a more traditional shape so the Smik appeals to me a bit more. I've been riding the JL SuperFrank 8' Lean which is another great board for our conditions but I want a size that is in between JL's 8' & 8'6" lean models. Your 8'3" custom Smik looks like it may be the perfect size. I like a lively board but need to make sure it goes well in our smaller conditions.
Can you give me an idea which board is more stable for you between the RNB & Smik? Also, does the tail of the RNB seem a little wide for our conditions? Is the Smik lighter?
We had some fun waves today in the waist to chest high sizes. A little mushy getting into them but once on most of them, some decent faces opened up. I took out the rnb first and it seemed like I was in the wrong place at the wrong time most of the time. I did get a few waves to get the feel for the board again. Got a few waves on the rnb and was able to get some turns though. In comparing it to the smik, it feels like it on a rail, but not in a bad way. It goes where ever I want. It makes me feel like I am power surfing. But I was still able to slide the tail a little in coming off a white water lip. On purpose, not accidental. This board gets very fast very quick. Getting back on the tail is crucial to make this board lively. The speed aspect I guess makes it feel like it is on a rail when turning.
Now when I switched to the smik, my wave picking luck increased a bit so I was able to get a few more waves with it. Nothing with the boards, just my dumb luck. When digging to get in to the mushy waves, the wider nose of the of the smik seemed to add a little more stability compared with the rnb. But I did take the 2 boards out on the river the day before for photos and in a flat water comparison, the rnb was slightly more stable and seemed like it paddled a little faster. In the flat water the smik seemed a tad twitchier and a little slower. This also seemed to be true out in the surf. But like I said, when digging after a mushy wave, I would step forward up on the wider nose of the smik and it seemed a little bit more stable compared to the rnb.
The smik was very fun in the waves today though. I had a blast on it. With the twin fins, hip, and small trailer fin, the board seems like it fits tight in the pocket. It did not develop the immediate speed the rnb did. Maybe not as fast either. The turns were sharp and in control with no out of control sliding. Just not as fast as the rnb.
For the small wave question, that could be a good conversation, but the location you are surfing has to be taken into account. My Florida mushy waves don’t have a lot of power where other places waist high waves have some good push to them. For me I would not take either of these boards out under waist high. I have other boards for that. I could. Yes. But I would want something with a little more float. It becomes a fun question.
In the smaller waves I want to just play around and have more fun and not worry too much about performance. I would surf my Foote board that is a like a big fish shape. It is 8’6” x 32” wide. Don’t know the volume but guessing mid to upper 130’s. I have ridden small swell waves in the knee to waist high range and had blast. Also overhead waves. This is why I have multiple boards. If I was going for a small wave board, my choice would be the smik over the rnb. But I would go a size or 2 up just to have the additional floatation and stability for trying to dig to get into the smaller waves. It is mentioned he is riding a Jimmy Lewis super frank lean in 8’0” but did not want to go to an 8’6”. For smaller surf I would so go with the 8’6” wide version. But that is just me and from my experience. Another type board would be the jimmy lewis destroyer which seems like a wider profile board with a pulled in tail. Looks like it could be fun. The thing about the smik is it is designed to be a twin fin board and have the characteristics of a twinny. I do not know if the just riding any of the jimmy lewis boards would have the same effect. Someone commented that he had ridden the superfrank as a twin and had fun with it so it is a possibility. The wider tail of the rnb works well for the stability but it develops speed fast and makes the turns a little more drawn out. It would also give a little more float for riding smaller surf compared to needing a little more speed for a smik type shape with the pulled in tail. Maybe a custom rnb with and asymmetrical tail could would work well too for smaller waves. But again in my opinion, a few inches bigger and slightly wider catering to smaller surf.
My smik is about 2 lbs lighter than the rnb, but the rnb is the pvc construction which is not as light as infinity’s carbon or custom boards.
Both of these boards are a blast, but just different.
I hope I answered everything, any other questions, let me know.
Rnb vs smik
Water rnb
Water smik
rocker comparison
Rail comparison
Tail comparison
my Foote
Bill foote
Top
Bottom
