Rod's "Checkered RPM" Paipo-12D

The Sunset and Sea Checkered RPM is a basic repeat of the S&S RPM (which has been relocated to Costa Rica because luggage fees have been getting out of control). This Checkered RPM will become my new travel board until the day a bisect paipo can be engineered and built. It is very similar to the other Checkered RPMs except that the S&S versions are not as thick and the top and bottom each have a layer of 8oz and 6oz glass (previously the bottom was single layered). The extra layer of glass should increase the board's resistence to travel dings and the marginal extra weight help through the cross chop/micro swell encountered on larger waves.

The forward third are soft egg rails slightly turned under and the rear two-thirds are increasingly hard turned under rails. The board has a 3-fin box set-up. These sidebites have little angle (toe-in), if any, more like a traditional fish. To borrow another person's words, "Faster, more lined up and bigger waves requiring longer turns and high speed trims tend to desire more parallel side fin positions." My small sidebites (~2") are used in tandem with a single center fin (4.0" to 5.0" range normally; Update: 4.0" to 4.5") that can be adjusted forward or aft depending upon wave conditions.

The S&S worked like a charm in Costa Rica this past March. Felt more like it was skimming across the wave so I now think of my S&S series as skimmer paipos! She is called the Sunset & Sea because of her bright orange checkers.

The pigment work by Austin Saunders continues to be incredible. One inch pigment squares were achieved by laying out strips of masking tape back and forth and applying one color then pulling the tape and then reapplying the tape and then laying the other color down. A great example of old school resin work that is similar to what was done in the 1960s.