G-Mat 40 (AKA "Richard")

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My new ride and I'm pretty pleased with her. 

G-Mat 40 (AKA "Richard")

Richard is a 70/70, free-breathing Ute and is likely to be the last mat I'm going to be making for myself for some time. I really fancied a clean look and am pleased with the results, with the giant G logo not looking too OTT. 

I personally love the responsiveness and speed achieved through 70/70 construction, combined with easy air transfer. I've had a go out in small, sectioning waves so far and she's got into waves early and displaces very little water. Richard made sections well, holding a high line but releasing well when asked. 

Fins out and off... A thoroughly pleasant afternoon.

The 70/70 Ute is a different creature to the 200/70 set up (well, 70/70 mats are completely different to their heavier counterparts full-stop) and aren't for everyone, being very sensitive. But for me, nothing really comes close to the feeling.  

Got some more waves about at the mo and I've got time off after Tuesday so should get plenty on my new go to mat. 

G

G-Mat 39 (AKA "Grace Cajones")

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This is Grace Cajones, a G-Mat Ubercat built for Dan Lawrence.

G-Mat 39 (AKA "Grace Cajones")

One of Dan's local breaks

Dan lives in Mid-Cornwall in the UK and has to wedges and shallow breaking beach breaks close to home so spends a lot of his time having to get his act together and find a line pretty sharpish! Given that, the obvious choice was an Ubercat. Dan has opted for a 200/70 set up and Sikaflex grip. The is a free-breather.  

As you can see, he's gone for the sleek and subtle approach being the suave man of style that he is.  This is a very small mat because... well... she's a custom surfmat so you work it out!

Anyway, it looks like a reasonable run of swell over the next week or so, so I'll be interested to hear (and see) how Dan and Grace Cajones get on.

Cheers

G

G-Mat 38 (AKA "Matilda")

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G-Mat 38 (AKA "Matilda")

G-Mat 38 (AKA "Matilda")

Something of an experiment here...

Meet Matilda, a 200/70 G-Mat Ute:

Matilda features some beyond the norm features. First off, coloured grip, which has been done before by my friend and mentor Dale Solomonson using Vulkem, but I have tried using the stink-free Sikaflex. 

Next, some people have asked about designs on the bottom of mats... Tricky...

Dye can't do this in the right way because it bleeds. Also, the sealants used for the lettering on decks aren't suitable because they would seriously affect pliability and would feel like an anchor.

So, a foray into the world of spray paint. I wasn't entirely into the idea of this initially and time will tell whether this has worked or not. Right now, it isn't something I would really want to do again but it has given an interesting effect on the bottom of the mat one way or another.

So, we'll have to await feedback from whoever ends up with this mat but it'll certainly catch a few eyes, that's for sure!

Matilda is currently up for sale and being something of an experiment is available for:

£200 GBP plus shipping.

Please email me if you would like to be the one to break her in.

Cheers

G

G-Mat 38 (AKA "Matilda") - Spray Paint!


The Bullet is Dead... LONG LIVE THE UTE!

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G-Mat Ute - 200/70

As people will be aware, I was keen to work towards an all-round mat that would be an option in almost any conditions. Following that train I recently developed the G-Mat Ute which certainly seemed to hit that spot. 

A few went out to various experienced mat riders and the feedback has been really positive.

For example:

I went faster yesterday on two different waves then I have ever gone before. On the blue mat [below]. I rode two waves almost a quarter mile each. Super winter spot I know of. Local knowledge in Southern California is worth gold.
 
No shit! Those that saw it commented and there were only five of us out. I can't tell you how fast that little fucker went but I was hauling ass. Two career waves in one session. Both about six feet, or double overhead to stand up surfers. Total strangers paddled up afterwards and commented.

G-Mat Ute 70/70

My personal experience has been the same, that the Ute really likes solid, sizable surf and making long drawn out turns. Oh, and it goes like a greased turd!

The thing is, that's the G-Mat Bullet''s job. But my experience is that the Ute actually does the Bullet's job for it, and better. It also beats the Bullet at the bottom end of it's range.

RIP the G-Mat Bullet

So where does that leave the Bullet?

Well... Redundant! 

It's not to say that anyone with a Bullet has a bad mat because the Bullet has performed well in all sorts of conditions and is a good mat, but it has been superseded.

The Bullet's slightly rounded corner is certainly something that could be looked at on the Ute, I have a Standard corner template called the "Tweener" (used on the Glider, Ute and Ubercat) and then the rounder Bullet corners...  

A little more maneuverable and a touch more hold at the expense of a little speed might be someone's bag. Custom is as it says!

G 

PS Of course, any Bullet lovers can still have one for old time's sake. 

PPS COMING UP... The does the Ute leave the Flying Carpet?!

Non-Stick Problems

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I mentioned in a previous post that I was going to use some new fabric samples and I said that I noticed that this 200d Oxford weave appeared to have seen treated... It has... And as feared, grip can't stick to it as I discovered on a South Devon reef yesterday. Even the logo is touch and go.

So it's back up plan time. I've had some Non-Stick mesh kicking a round so have made strips for the deck and fixed them with strong glue (Stormsrure). This is the glue used on the valve which has held up fine. I could have left a bigger gap at the tail. That's a weak point for sure.

Now, I don't think this is a grip I would want to do as a rule but it will be interesting to see how it goes. I could have just applied more Sikaflex to the glue but it's nice to experiment now and then. Will this be robust enough? Probably not but there's only one way to find out.

Suffice it to say, I won't be buying any of this fabric any time soon.

G

Trouble with treated nylon.

Trouble with treated nylon.

Sikaflex periods straight off!

Sikaflex periods straight off!

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G-Mat 36 (AKA "te Ika-a-Maui")

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I'm really stoked to be sending my first mat to New Zealand. Lee Morgan has named his Ute "te Ika-a-Maui", the Maori word for the North Island.

G-Mat 36 (AKA "te Ika-a-Maui")

G-Mat 36 (AKA "te Ika-a-Maui")

As you can see, this 200/70 free-breather is set up for an optional leash. The leash is attached to the middle part of the bungee, under the extended edgelap at the nose. This provides an even distribution of stress across the mat, maximising the shock absorbing affects of the bungee and the mat itself. 

The grip is Sikaflex 11FC. I've given this a really light grip with plenty of space at the tail to help Lee to get up on to the mat on take-off. He is a practical fella who is more than able to top up his grip later if need be.

I'm looking forward to hearing how Lee gets on with his new ride. This has been a really fun project to work on.

G

"The Count": Trying out some new material.

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I've just finished working on an Ubercat for Matt Derwent. Matt was game enough to try out some new material si the bottom skin of this mat is made with a coated 70 denier Oxford Weave fabric.

G-Mat 35 (AKA "The Count")

G-Mat 35 (AKA "The Count")

This is a super light and pliable fabric so it's really exciting to see how this goes. "The Count" has a 200d Taffeta weave deck and 70d I-beams. She's configured as a free breather.

Matt is currently surfing spots requiring a late take off and maneuverability in tight nooks and crannies so this gal should hit that spot.

Cheers

G

Samples

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My material supplier has hooked me up with some different materials. These are an Oxford weave rather than the usual Taffeta. 

Each of these samples are a metre wide so enough for one skin each and a couple of I-beams or a bag.. They are:

1 x 70d navy blue. This is really nice, very pliable stuff which should make lovely bottom skins. 

1 x 70 burgundy. This has a weatherproof coating which prevents the material from absorbing water. Were this smooth it would increase hold but slow the mat. In this instance though, it has a rough texture which, in theory, should lead to less hold but a quicker mat. Perhaps it'll balance out and be exactly the same! Time will tell.

1 x 200d gold. That's right, gold! This is a 200d material although it feels notably lighter than most 200d material. It'll be a crime if the person who has a mat made from this doesn't call it "Bling Crosby"! 

1 x 200d airforce blue. This is the same as the gold.

1 x 200d grey. A heavier material more like the usual 200d material I've been using. This looks like it might have a weatherproofing so might not be suitable so will need some testing.

I'll need to do some tests but will be making mats with these over coming orders for people who are interested assuming these work out. Certainly nice to have some colour options without having to dye.

Cheers

G

The Ute

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Right then, after some successful tests I'm please to unveil the complete all-rounder - The Ute.

G-Mat 33 (AKA "Blue Thunder")

G-Mat 33 (AKA "Blue Thunder")

I've built three of these to date in various weights of material with some subtle alterations length-wise and these have performed really well. The latest (above) is a 70/70 construction and is a more skittish and quicker ride than the two previous 200/70 incarnations, as you'd expect.

G-Mat 30 (AKA "Piping OTT")

G-Mat 27 (AKA "Jus d'Orange")

Both of those mats have had very good feedback.

So... The primary design points are that the Ute has a very subtle rail hook and a slight concave, giving it a fuller, flatter feel. In practice, this means that it has some of the down-the-line drive of the Bullet and the glide of the Glider. 

Of course, the top end/bottom end of more specialised designs will perform better but the Ute is the perfect mat for the one-mat-quiver,

Cheers

G

Non-Identical Twins

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Andrew Stephen Buck's latest mats are about to wing their way to Rincon.

G-Mats 31 and 32

G-Mats 31 and 32

These girls are built to the same dimensions with G-Mat 31 (AKA "Accept Join Mr Torn 1") being a 200/70 construction and G-Mat 32 (AKA "Accept Join Mr Torn 2") being 70/70.

Both are gripped with stippled Vulkem and are, as you would expect, free-breathers.  This is a bit of a development of the Ubercat design made to make the most of many aspects of that design but enhancing the glide.

Reports to follow...

G

Ongoing Project Goes On...

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A little while ago I made a mat called "Jus d'Orange" which went to Ian Wraith. Ian has given some great feedback on the design and I've personally witnessed him flying in both weak waves and cracking barrels.

All is going to plan so far then! The thing is, Jus d'Orange is made to fit Ian and Ian is considerably smaller than me so I've scaled up to fit my more weighty needs!

G-Mat 30 (AKA "Piping OTT")

This is a complete free-breather with a 200 denier top skin and 70d I-beams and bottom skin. The grip is stippled Sikaflex.  I've left a little space around the grip at the tail incase I need to rework the corners.

Given the ridiculously huge logo I've called her "Piping OTT". I'm really looking forward to giving this mat a go out. 

Cheers

G

More Valve Developments

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The new Boston Valves have been working very well indeed with entirely positive feedback to date. The one observation that I have made is that deflation can be a bit slow when loosening the base out in the surf. The temptation can then be to loosen too much meaning the valve comes out. Not a huge problem but an irritation.

I've come up with a solution though and have had my drill out.

Drilled Boston Valve

That shot is a super close-up. The residue doesn't affect the thread at all and quickly cleans itself up. Both sides are drilled giving just the right amount of ventilation. The rubber seal of the valve stops any leaks once the valve has been tightened.  

All future G-Mats will come with this set-up. Anyone who has Boston Valves which haven't been drilled, feel free to have a go yourselves. If there are any problems then I am more than happy to send over a replacement drilled valve to screw into your mat so give me a shout.

Cheers

G