i got me thinking this week..freaky weather cyclones passing thru one by one and winds in the upper 20's..sea state is turbulent washing maching machine type, waves from all directions and am left with a 95ltr. freeride board that's just too big to plough thru the mush and ramps too floaty for 4.5 to 5.5mtr. sails..i have a friend who has an old but mint condition f2 sputnik 85ltr. slalom board(my guess 100$) and he wants to sell it, on the other hand a 50$ axxis 268 85ltr.wave board red old model too..i haven't tried the slalom 85 on rough water and tumble water..if i put a wave fin on this slalom board you mates think this should suffice
and at least when the season arrives i can use it as a highwind speed board
in addition the slalom board has such a flat nose and could easily trip over steep ramps
the sputnik has no rocker so i'd leave it be for the conditions you are talking about.
the axis though are pretty fast wave boards. lots of guys i know use them for bump and jump.
I've never sailed either JP, so don't put too much weight on my comment, but I'd forget the slalom board in that poop.
As Gestalt said, the Axis had a good rep as a fast board, and should be fun
for bump and jump and 6m sail i'd use a 28-30 cm fin up to 20 knots. but i am a fatty. 
it helps to have some extra size to get upwind.
for the stronger winds and 5.5 and smaller sails i'd use a 25cm or even 24cm.
by the time you get on the 4.5 you could even be on a 21cm wave fin.
man that's really short wow but i guess the width compensates for the length on wave fins and thicker
guys,
i am in a similar boat to jp. only sounds like we are at different levels of progression.
i have a 144L Go and am ready to move down a few litres. the only other board i have is a 86L naish wave. too big a jump i found out last weekend.
i tried a 115L kinetic gladiator, this felt much more managable. i think between 105-115L would be good, so i have the volume in mind, i just need some help to choose the right shape.
i am aiming to try to get out in the sea more, so the board must be able to cope with chop, but still be fairly user friendly and i need to use this board to learn to gybe / tack properly. does this board exist?
suggestions so far are kinetic gladiator 115, jp supercross 104, i dont know enough about pros n cons of these boards though. any other advice would be greatly appreciated.
thanks in advance for your help.
)
)but once in a while there'd be a flat spot to gain momentum and do bump and jump..since the board is an oldie any fin he throws in for free i'll accept as long as the length is what you had mentioned earlier..
