What is Super Stock?
After the washup, when all is said and done, stripped back to bare bones, the main reason we love making surfboards is to feed the beautiful and addictive yet pointless act of riding waves.
We are and will always be on the coal face of high-quality surfboard making, and all the details that go with it; impeccable cut laps, deep rich colour tints, wet looking high polish finish, any stringer combo you can dream of, glass on fins, resin pins, etc…..
However, after working with Dad for 35 years, and possibly 100's of board builders, I’ve noticed when it comes to us board builders making our own personal boards, it’s generally a no-frills affair. A well-shaped board that is waterproof and goes unreal and a lot of the time made in one day; basic, simple, brass tacks type deal. Just the essentials, a good engine, good rocker, good glassing, good fins, and go surfing!
Super Stock namesake derived from Dodge/ Plymouth early to late 60s drag race program. Stripped-back versions of the cars you could buy at the dealership, no paint, no rear seats, no heater, no a/c, fibreglass fenders, hoods and bumpers. Bare-bones, but still the essentials, huge engine, tough gearbox / diff, steering, and something you could call brakes. These cars slayed the drag strips for years. Built for one reason, to go racing.
Yeah, a bit of a stretch making a correlation to surfboards, but the principle is very similar, well thought and proven designs, defleshed, to the essentials for wave riding.
All sounds simple. Well yes and no, it’s one thing making a de-spec board for yourself, it’s another to make them for customers of all different tastes and abilities. We absolutely poured over these designs. Dozens of protos, shuffled and dealt to all in the factory and team, we have so many great surfers at our fingertips under this roof, some longboard specific like Reed, Masa and Gab, mid-length hustlers, Mick, Tim and Millie, Tom, Nico, Alonzo and dr Nick on the sub 6’, and of course Jos, Taj, Wisp and Chon, all giving, robust, honest and critical feedback. And the result: a triune of boards in specific length, width and thickness, that are made in-house at Mctavish in Byron, from high-quality materials, high-quality board builders. Built for one purpose: to go surfing!
- Ben McTavish
Design
A combo of our favourite shortboard models rolled into one. We borrowed the bottom shape from the Slip; single-to-double concave and vee out the tail, with a forgiving chine bottom rail which helps the wide nose feel narrower and accelerate under front foot motivation. The twin pin setup, a great combo in the El Rayo, provides the reliability and hold of a pin with the looseness of a twin when you want it. It has a fuller outline with a slight cut-away into a flyer to keep the rail line straight between your feet maximising that twinny speed. The beak nose stuffs volume under your chest, and gives it a very McTavish aesthetic. This board can easily be your performance board replacement in grovely to overhead waves but still has the volume to just glide and take a more relaxed approach.
