I'll check these out also- thanks

how much are you willing to spend

Maybe about $700 max. So that leaves out a Mandala or a Hess rodent

Once its white, fun and easy to repair- its good

I enjoy my bear wombat 6'4". Its easy to paddle and quite fast and loose. I'm still not fully able to surf it (or even close for that matter) but I got it for the same reason you are talking about. I think it might be a good option for what you are looking for. I read that fish are quite technical boards in comparision.

700 can still get you alot especially if your going to be picking it up in the nyc area. mollusk usually has the high end big name fish makers. If 700 cant get you a big name their a few really good local fish makers that you can. Also, with the Us economy not doing well and guys having to pay the bills their alot of guys who are unloading some really nice used boards out there. Good luck with your search

Mollusk

Worth giving them a shout to see what boards their getting in

Could get a Pavel fish for €480 or a Mandala quad for €560 if they have any boards in stock...

Also with trans Atlantic flights, if you only have one light bag and a surfboard you should get the surf board on for free.

if i was getting anything from mollusk it would probably be a board from josh hall closest thing to a skip fry without the price tag!!

I really like the idea of the Bear Wombat, I suppose its either that or a fish that i'd go for.

I'll definately check out Mollusk in Brooklyn, Jerseymike- are there any other shops you can recommend in the NYC area?

Anybody ever surf a Hess Pacheco Quad? It looks it'll last as well as surf like the b'jaysus

How are you getting on with the Mandala Quad Rodent? Do you think a sub 6 footer would a bit too much to handle as a second board or would a twin fish be a better bet?

Jesus, Getting married in a couple of weeks-i'm wrecking my head even more with all this

I have a 5'11" Mandala quad and a 5'10" twin keel fish and I find the quad much more forgiving to surf, particularly on the backhand. The quad doesn't have as much volume as the fish but its still pretty stable.

One thing I have noticed about the quad is that you have to work very hard to get it into smaller waves. Dunno if this is due to the bat-tail or not.

My first stop would be Craigslist

I have a 5'11" twin fish, and a 6'2" quad fish (double bump tail). The fish probably has more overall volume. I find the quad slightly easier to get into waves with, but I think a lot of that is to do with the shape, it is very much based on release.

My twin is more stable, my quad is easier to turn. I would say that my quad has the edge on speed as well.

If your going to be surfing a lot of backhand waves then a quad is definitley easier (presuming it has less tail width).

Both boards are great fun.

This is good timing for this thread. It has tempted me out of lurking in the corner.....
I'm heading to California in a month or so and was thinking along similar lines. I also surf a 9'2 mostly and was looking at the quad fish.
Does anyone have any experience of the Gary Hanel boards? They look nice on the Mollusk site.
Any shops along the coast with a good range of second hand boards?
Good luck with your search seamunki.

You will have a huge selection to choose from!.

Iconsofsurf normally have a few. I'm sure others will let you know all of the other shops to check. You might even be able to try before you buy.

The only quad that I have experience of is my Chris Christension and to me it is the best fish I have seen in the flesh.

Guess you spoiled for choice

Icons

Mollucks

Moonlight

Happy Hunting

Thanks mpb and rodent! I'm new to quads and shorter boards in general so I was hoping for something with a bit of float for easy paddling.
I'm 5'11 (and about 80kg) - would I be looking for something around 6'0 with good thickness?
If I could pick up a couple second hand I suppose it would give me a chance to experiment.......
Can't wait to get out there and start the search!