nice job pridmore, did tommy p have any input to the design or shaping ? the triple flyer pa bendall fangtail would be a wild ride, love it. can you post up the dimensions of both boards and there rail shapes.

I remember being on the beach when MP turned up with that board, people just freaked. I also once had a surf with Pa himself. I had been camped in the weather shed at Crescent and he turned up one morning. It was actually seriously good running down into the creek mouth with probably half a dozen out, that would have been 68 or 69.

pulling that spaceship out to wax it up in 1975 ...what a spinout, did MP surf that board in any other comps ?

Not that I know of, I would be pretty sure he didn't ride it at Bells or in The Coke. Wikipedia says he gave it to Peter Harris, in lieu of wages. I think that would be the same Peter Harris who won The Stubbies in 1980 but there was at least one other Peter Harris around then so I could be wrong. I wonder where it is now?

very dangerous piece of machinery. Seriously, you could lose an eye on those flyers .

Drouyn had one a few years later, laminated pink .

PS. nice work Mark .

tommpy p also made a replica in 1995 , according to Wikipedia the original had finger deep channels ? blindboy is that correct ?

From memory they were more like a series of large bevels.

Here's a photo

http://www.google.com.au/search?hl=en&site=imghp&tbm=isch&source=hp&oq=M...

honoured to get the chance to replicate these for a few reasons, ...coz MP is a legend and an icon of Aussie surfing ( world surfing too ), I have always been an MP fan and have made a few of my own versions of his shapes in the past...the day I heard he passed away I actually shaped an EPS -Epoxy fangtail, very different blend of old and new but its kinda a FUNctional memorial for MP...to talk with his Mum one on one about Michael was a highlight, such a great lady and ya can see where MP got some of his strength from...also this charity, the Board Meeting does amazing work for handicapped kids that are struggling with the finances to get the help and equipment they need to make life a little more enjoyable....
Tommy never had anything to do with these ones but that woulda been cool too...just stoked , frothing but mostly honoured...oh yeah, whenever I write my initials these days, I do em in small letters, coz there's only one MP.....R.I.P
thanx for the positive comments...

www.MOREsurfboards.com

as for the dims, apparently MP was pretty secretive about the specifics of his boards , so I just might carry that on for him....especially after all the research and time spent chasing up the dims for the replicas...haha......

So Mark no idea where the original might have gone? Is Peter Harris still around Burleigh? He would be the logical one to ask. I came in from a surf a couple of years ago and saw this guy who usually bodyboards carrying what looked like a seventies replica. Turned out it was a mint condition MP that his father, who didn't surf, had won in a Coca Cola competition. It had been sitting under his house ever since. I asked him what he intended to do with it and he said he would put it back under the house and surf it from time to time. I haven't seen it re-emerge.

gotta wonder if Michael was still with us and shaping what designs he would come up with using a computer cut machine.

yep, heard one of the Hariss brothers had it but that's a long time ago...Carl Tanner has one or maybe more, but I have been told there was only ever 6 made...there's one ( Carls' ) in the Currumbin Surf World...

MORE surfboards is now making the Michael Peterson surfboards too, very stoked...orders can be made thru my sitte if interested....yewwwwww
www.MOREsurfboards.com

$15000 ...and it comes with a legrope plug which is not from that era, fitted crooked and is in a strange position on the deck

the ones I am doing will have legrope loops made from rovings and can have redwood stringers, volan , polished, glass on fins etc...that's if ya want it to be true to the era they were originally made in.....
but am offering a MORE budget version too, wet rub, standard stringer, normal cloth...coz not everyone has got the coin for all the bells and whistles but still want an MP...think the bells and whistles look awesome and prob best suited to a collector whereas the wet rub version is good for those who wanna ride them more......

http://www.moresurfboards.com/MP_Boardpage.html

Wow great craftsmanship,and they look like the originals.

Before easter 1979.Tommy and Mick arrived at Watercooled s/bds with a couple that needed sanding..Iremeber calling em upside down Christmas Trees.....our sander potty nearly had a break down sanding em....

legropes had started by then..so its possible that they had them..memories not so great these days....but MP was one of the best surfers to ever surf Bells...weird equipment and all..