Sunova Surfboards - Hybrids Review - Magic Carpet by Frank McDowell

Custom Sunova Magic Carpet Review –by Frank McDowell Double Veneer Skin Magic Carpet
Board Construction: I am a bellyboarder and through John Boom, the rep for Sunova in Sydney, I was able to test ride 2 different demo boards out of the Sunova range. Neither suited my style but John got a Magic Carpet for me to try. The shape worked really well so I asked for a 6 foot 8 but with a different finish. I had the dark walnut veneer put in the middle with the lighter maple on the outside. I also wanted matching veneers on the bottom deck. Whilst the double veneering was not available at the time, I discussed the consequences of the change with Greg and Bert and they were happy to do it for me.
Fins: I first tried the FCS H2 fins – I got the Large but whilst they had plenty of bite there was some vibration in them. FCS took them back and fixed that for me. As I had to drop the H2's in, and there being excellent 4-6 foot swell, I purchased a new centre fin – an FCS PG-7 – and to this added 2 FCS Occi side fins from a previous board. The result was sensational. The board went faster than previously. (and that includes the lighter demo board from John that had a PG7 with L5 sides) Performance: As well as the increase in speed, my Magic Carpet held a much better high line on steep faces. That was on the 4-6 ft day. The next day the wave quality continued but the size increased to 6-8 ft. The performance was every bit as good in the big stuff. Overall - highly recommend that Bert try this set-up and see what he thinks from a stand up point of view. Grip: I now have grip on my board and it has made a big improvement for me over the wax. Much more stable on take-off but still able to move back and forward to trim etc.
	Overall: I am even happier now than when I first got my board. The new fin set up was like getting an extra 40 KW on a car that already had 200. The board has attracted a lot of attention. It looks retro but has the advantage of being really light with the latest epoxy/parabolic rail technology. It has had a couple of bumps but so far has passed the strength test (no dings). In summary, it looks great, but goes even better. Best Regards,Frank McDowell