Surftech AIPA Dark Twin Surfboard Review and the NVS AIPA Ahi Twin Fins

The AIPA Dark Twin surfboard, built in Surftech's Dual Core Construction, is a high-performance board that blends modern design with cutting-edge technology. This review delves into the features, performance, and overall experience of riding the AIPA Dark Twin, highlighting its strengths and suitability for different wave conditions.
Personal notes: board paddles and catches waves better than other 28L boards, it is fast through the flat sections, very drivey with Ahi fins, quick off the bottom, super user friendly and comfortable. Nothing weird about it.
Surfer: 5'8" 145lbs
Surfboard: 5'6" x 19.375" x 2.625" @ 28.86L
Fins: NVS AIPA Ahi Twin w/Stabilizer (Apex Series)
Traction: none :(
Leash: FCS 6' Helix
Wetsuit: Volcom 4/3 Modulator
#surfer #surf #surfing #surfboard #surfboards #surfboardreview #surfboardreviews #firewire #harelyingleby #firewiremoe #moe #surfermag #stab #surflesson #surflessons #surfergirl #asiansurfer #beginnersurflessons #beginnersurfer #learningtosurf #wavestorm #softopening #firewiresurfboards #twinfin #surftwinfin
‪@surfnvs‬ ‪@SurftechUSA‬

[@thestow35]

Thank you Thomye. I always appreciate your approach to reviews, detailed analysis and footage

[@danwoodfill6563]

Go bigger than you think. I recently purchased this board, and some friends had mentioned upsizing it in volume, I did, but not enough. I went with the 5'8" 31L surftech version and it's a very high-performance feeling board, it feels more like 27L IMO. I'm 175lbs, mid-40 years old, and my other boards are 30L in firewire helium and dark arts construction; if this helps anyone considering one of these.

[@ThomyeSurfs]

I've heard that about the Flat Earth version but not this one. But as an fyi, I rode it bigger than my normal performance type board but got it in the same liters as my groveler, specifically the seaside. My performance boards are about 25.5 and my seaside was 28.2. I think the Dark Twin I rode was 28.8L. that was perfect for me.

[@rodneyevans4876]

Good review, I like how you compared it to other boards very helpful.

[@TravisVarga]

Another banger - thanks for your hard work.

[@WindsurfingTV]

Looks like it works super well for you.. 🔥

[@fox.709]

Looking sharp, tempting!

[@chrisathan4293]

Wow ! Thank you so much for sharing this great vid ! Your surfing really is dialled in ! Great job Tom ! 🙌🏽

[@chrisathan4293]

Ps most of us are average surfers in average - crappy conditions.

[@ThomyeSurfs]

appreciate the support. Wish I had the time and funds to get more vids out. Good news is, one of my buddies is about to loan me a series of Lost boards so hoping i'll get through those over the summer. 🤗

[@chrisathan4293]

@@ThomyeSurfs wow !! That’s gonna be epic ! You are already supporting the surfing community massively! 🙌🏽😀 thank so much again ! Aloha from Greece 🇬🇷

[@Angelino13]

Ripping on this board. Great review thanks!

[@Dicko301]

great review the board looks super fast

[@mingye3893]

I try a CI M23 those days.super fun mid-length.the movement just like a shortborad.

[@michaelrivera6545]

I love your channel because your a normal guy just like all of us, not saying your a bad surfer hahah but its nice to have a real review from someone who isnt a pro who could rip on a piece of plywood, but does know what they are doing and wants to still have fun and get better. I gotta say you on this board looks freaking solid! Your turns look really clean and high performance in the crappy surf or I should say good surf for Cliffs. Just picked up my own Dark twin same construction so im hoping I get the same great result. Curious if you have tried any other fins in the board or just as a pure twin with maybe some high performance keels in it. Seems like this thing has alot of options to it. Thanks for a great review!

[@ThomyeSurfs]

I haven't tried any other fins. I had such limited time on this board I only stuck with the NVS Ahi's w/ stabilizer. I think a raked back fin would have gone good too for better hold and longer carves but the Ahi's seemed to pivot nicely. Anyways, I am still considering getting one. But hoping to test out the dark horse before committing. :) And thanks for the kind words.

[@roofiz2357]

Thank for this video

[@ThomyeSurfs]

Funny you ask, I just saw it. I heard about it some time ago but kept it hush hush. not that it is here, man, does it look sexy. I am not sure I'll get to surf/review it but if I was lucky enough to, I would consider either the 5'2 or 5'3. My original gofish was a 5'3. I think the liters were 27+. I i wanted the same liters, I'd go 5'2 in the new model. but, i'm thinking i want it for more grovel so I might try the 5'3 and more liters. it's only 1 liter more than the old on paper but the new TooFish is helium so the buoyancy is likely better. I'd say the new 5'2 will float just a tad better than the old 5'3. and the new 5'3 will float much better than the old 5'3. hope that makes sense. haha Anyways, I'll keep everyone posted. I really do want to try it but funds are super low and most of my recent reviews have been of other people's boards on loan to me. I don't get much of a say in size, i just take what I can get. :)

[@a.lame.username.]

Yeeewww.

[@medphysio3746]

Hi there 😁 amazing review you really should definitely try the FE I think it will your go to board for slightly better waves than the DT 😁

[@ThomyeSurfs]

lot of people say that about it. I have not been able to find one in my size. but i'll keep looking for sure.

[@medphysio3746]

@@ThomyeSurfs remember to choose the FE with 2 or 3 L more than your usually shortboard

[@JA-dz8iv]

Thank you! what days were these clips taken? just wondering because i surfed wed, thurs, and fri this week in the state beach between HB pier and Seal Beach pier haha

[@ThomyeSurfs]

this was 3 weeks ago. I usually take a while to download, clip, and edit photos/videos just to start the review process. I really suck at post processing so it takes me about 8 hours. LOL :(

[@cornwallguide]

I bought a 5'5 Mashup off the back of your review and absolutely love it. Just seen this exact model of Dark Twin on sale and am pretty close to pulling the trigger. Basically I have a spare set of twins + trailer that I need a board for 😄

[@ThomyeSurfs]

we think alike. :) "I have extra wax, not sure what to do with it, I better buy a new board." LOL

[@jaekim7395]

looks fun I like easy paddle boards and it still looks like it performance type board,

[@ThomyeSurfs]

I missing this board so much right now. Waves have been dismal.

[@josesnowsneves5132]

nice surf, the board is fast !!! it really works in the weak conditions you got on that second day...

[@ThomyeSurfs]

way better than expected. I traded with a friend and as soon as we traded, he was getting all the waves and I wasn't. LOL I took my board back needless to say. :) it grovels so well. I'm now rethinking my darn quiver. :(

[@gilliamm.5732]

Nice

[@surfnvs]

🙌

[@jagsanz]

What do you think between this and the Revo?, i had ask you on the Wb on another video but definitely your surfing looks much better on this.

[@ThomyeSurfs]

Dark Twin over the Revo. I started on a 5'3 Revo and didn't like it, but i was able to trade with a friend for a 5'4 and it surfs much better. However, it still has an awkward rocker that makes it feel funny. The dark twin took no time to get used to. I'm contemplating buying a Dark Twin now but I know more and more boards will come out and I want to try them all. :) or as many as i can. Anyways, for sure this board worked way better for me than the revo.

[@jagsanz]

@@ThomyeSurfs thanks for the advice, the DT looks very fun, not sure about the durability of that construction though. Have You ever tried a Cymatic?, if so what do you think of it vs Revo or DT?

[@ThomyeSurfs]

@@jagsanz I've not tried a Cymatic yet. Finding them in the right size has been difficult. I should say finding one to borrow in the right size. As for the durability of the Dual Core, yeah, i'm not sure either. My fear with it is that as your pressure the board over time, that glued seams will be raised like a stringer. It is definitely tougher to pressure than a traditional PU but I've not seen any old ones to know for sure. I was thinking to try and get one in carbon if I ever do get one though. :)

[@filipevicente774]

Hi. What's the main differences between the Aipa Dark Twinn and the Inferno FT? What's your favorite for ride in 3-5ft waves? Thanks.

[@ThomyeSurfs]

there are actually quite a few "big" differences. if I had to pick one, it would be the fins. Dark Twin is a 2+1 setup and the FT is a quad only setup. With the DT (Dark Twin), the 2+1 is specific to twin plus trailer. Although you can set it up as a thruster, the issue is that the front fins are set further back and the back fin making the fins more clustered. Also, note that the FT is a much more high performance board. To give you some idea, the FT at 5'8 is 25.5L while the DT at 5'6 is almost 29L. Think of teh DT as a groveler and FT as a performance board that can grovel a bit.

[@mjstatic77]

Hey Thomye…did you ever find the DT unstable on take off? Especially on flatter, slower waves….I find it likes a wave with some steepness to get going off the mark and can feel unstable without a good amount of forward momentum…

[@ThomyeSurfs]

no I don't recall it being unstable. I did ride the 5'6 which has a bit more volume than I usually ride. What fins were you riding?

[@mjstatic77]

@@ThomyeSurfs I’ve ridden it with the MF hatchet 2+1s and the FcS modern keels….. i actually rode it yesterday in some bigger surf with more push and the board felt solid and way more stable. I think it just struggles at slower speed. It’s such a good board when it’s up and going…I’m actually considering getting it in Dark Arts as well. Duke has stopped working with DA but there’s one left in stock at my local shop. How did you find the Dark Arts construction? How does it compare to the Dual Core?

[@ThomyeSurfs]

@@mjstatic77 I'm super curious if DA construction is better with all boards or just some designs. In my Sharpeye FT, I love my DA. My buddy who has tried the FT in both DA and PU side by side, said it was night and day. My thought based on my experience is that DA works and works better for those that like springy boards, and surf with a lot of pop. I have not ridden the Dark Twin in DA but I'd imagine it would have to be better than PU but likely similar to the Dual Core. The DC was interesting to me. Anyways, take it for what it is worth, in my opinion, DA is my favorite construction for performance. For grovel, I like my Mashup but if they made a mashup in DA, that would be an interesting comparison.

[@royalangoo1860]

How did the Ahi fins work with your mashup? I just got a mashup and trying to decide if i should get the Taylor knox, the Ahi or the endorfins

[@ThomyeSurfs]

The Ahi twins belonged to a friend so I never got to try them in my Mashup. I had to give them back after the demo. They did go really well on the DT but the DT fin placement is further back since it is a true twin setup. So if I had to guess, the Mashup being a normal thruster/quad setup, the fins being likely about 1" further forward, the Ahi's would be very loose. Cuz of the wider base, you might have good drive and hard to say. Anyways, for now, the Knox are still my favorite fast fins and I've never tried the endorfins.

[@royalangoo1860]

@@ThomyeSurfs thanks!!!

[@ThomyeSurfs]

really quick, I forgot, I did try the Endorfin Twins, it was in the Great White Twin demo. I only had a short clip of it. It felt good but I felt the little nub/shark fin stabilizer was a tad too small for the conditions I surfed. When I got a punchier wave, it went well but not sure how much was the board and how much was the fin. Nothing bad to say about it though, seems like a good fin.

[@mjstatic77]

Hi, did you ride it as a full twin….without the stabiliser? I loved the Flat Earth like that…

[@ThomyeSurfs]

no, I surfed it with the stabilizer. I find that without it, maneuvers are much harder for me to hold onto.

[@surfininmy40s]

Would this be comparable to the flat earth? Excellent surfing as always. 360’s for days 🤙🏾

[@ThomyeSurfs]

although i've never surfed the Flat Earth, from what I've read, what I've seen and heard in reviews, at the same volume, the FE is more for HI waves and the DT is more for CA waves. The FE has more refined rails so meant for more push. with the FE, you need to size up. With the DT, you get your regular grovel volume.

[@ETYSURF]

Damn that looks good under your feet

[@neilyoung611]

Hey Thomye, you ride better than me but i notice that your volume range is high for your weight. Wondering if you crept up over the years or have you always ridden high volume and stuck with it?

[@ThomyeSurfs]

Hey Neil, I'm a product of the 80's so when I started, all my boards were 6' and I although I don't know the exact volume since they didn't measure that back in the days, I'd suspect it was around 30L. Then came Kelly and all my boards went from 30L to 23L and I spend years missing waves and struggling. Although I had my foundation, I built up a lot of bad muscle memory and technique with the Kelly style boards. Then I discovered the firewire Dominator at 5'8 which was 31L. I thought it was going to be too big but in head high and smaller conditions, it doubled my wave count, and that board surfed better than most of the toothpicks I was riding at the time. I started retraining and relearning on the 31L board. I also gained weight during that time. After losing the weight, although the board still worked for me, I wanted something a bit smaller for more performance so recently in the last 3 years, I actually went from 31 to 28 to 25. This particular board is 28.9L but the reason I chose it was because it is the smallest they make in this construction. Having said that, i'm glad this was the smallest because if they had a 5'4 @ 26L, I may have gone with that instead and maybe I wouldn't have liked the shorter rail line. my ideal vol is 25'5 for eps and maybe 26.5 for PU. I'm not a pro so going any less would be counter productive. Anyways, I know that catching a good wave on a small board feels good but what I have found is that it doesn't always look good. having video'd myself for years, I 100% know this about myself. I see a lot of intermediates surfing smaller waves and their style is erratic and technique gets lost. Again it feels better but over time, progress is actually stunted and slowed.

[@ThomyeSurfs]

almost forgot to mention. I feel i'm in better paddling shape now than I was in my early 20's. My best paddle shape was likely in my early 30's. Then I gained weight and it went to s#*% in my late 30s. Since I have lost weight, I am now in better paddling shape and staying on slightly bigger volume boards (small size but better volume), I tend to catch more waves and get more exercise while I'm surfing. Less sitting around.

[@neilyoung611]

@@ThomyeSurfs thanks for the reply! I've kind of gone a similar route but never made it back up the volume range. I know I need to as I am getting old and slow, mainly as I'm plagued with injuries putting me out of the water. Tried a larger phantom and hated it but I think I need to try again with different shapes and expectations. I get what you are saying re bad technique with small boards, that could be part of my problem.

[@ThomyeSurfs]

@@neilyoung611 I also noticed with me, boards like the phantom, boards with normal or more rocker tend to scale poorly. Sizing them tends to have negative affects. Dan moons boards, ones with flatter stays trackers tend to scale better. This dark twin, I imagine scale as well. It isn’t too curved. I think the phantom is supposed to be somewhat of a grappler for John John but for regular humans it probably has too much rocker. Or puts the rocker in the wrong place when oversized.

[@stevenyao8660]

Nice review (But Aipa would say it’s sting not stinger😂) I found this board very user friendly but not groveling super well in 1-2 mushy, compare to Seaside or Mashup. Would like to know your thoughts, thanks.

[@michaelono7335]

Do u think it would work in windy, choppy days?? 15-25mph

[@ThomyeSurfs]

dang, that is windy. I'm not sure, to be honest, I'm not sure if I have ever surfed in 25mph winds before. LOL Off shore once or twice but any other direction at that speed is rough seas. I can't say I know that answer. Sorry brotha.

[@clearthejunk]

I'm 54 very athletic. You speak of weight I'm 5.8. 175lb and boy do i feel it paddling after 1hr or so. I'm i the only one? Currently surfing aipa wrecking ball 6.0 ..37 liters

[@ThomyeSurfs]

Aging sucks but it happens to all of us. 54 this year for me and I'm noticing that two things have helped me, one is keeping my body weight low, I think as i get older, I just need to lose body fat. The second is, I just started lifting weights again, but instead 6 days a week like I used to when I was young, I only work on once on Wednesday. This way, i'm recovered from surfing on the previous weekend and recover for the next weekend. To keep weight off, i have given up any and all sweet sugary drinks like coke and or sweet coffee type drinks. Black coffee and I intermittent fast. I try not to eat from 8pm to 12pm. it has helped tremendously with my stamina for surfing longer. People always tell me I need calories and energy to surf but I found for me at least that I feel sluggish and sick with a full stomach or anything in my stomach.

[@clearthejunk]

@@ThomyeSurfs Thank you, Thomye! I appreciate the response and your time. I'm having trouble with all the above and with no one my age to compare stamina or fitness with is frustrating. The young bucks say keep surfing and wonder why I'm out back not taking any set waves. Well I'm a waiting a sec. LOL. Weightlifting/recovery and surfing has to be longer. Even with days of recovery, my body feels tight even with stretching. And God forbid my wife offers a bite to eat in the morning before surfing. So now i surf on a empty stomach. Thanks again for your insight.

[@user-kr5wc2ee4q]

Great review!! Where is this spot??

[@ThomyeSurfs]

I'll just say it is a state beach located between HB pier and Seal Beach pier. :) too many angry surfers out there. haha

[@user-kr5wc2ee4q]

@@ThomyeSurfs haha thanks!

[@FrankTankFlinns]

Is that a Seaside behind you.....if so Great color ..

[@ThomyeSurfs]

good eye. LOL do you have a colored one too?

[@FrankTankFlinns]

@@ThomyeSurfs i finally scored a grey 5'5..

[@ThomyeSurfs]

@@FrankTankFlinns nice. that color is pretty sick. don't have to worry about any yellowing either. :)

[@Meh-fv8vn]

@@ThomyeSurfs it can still yellow

[@ThomyeSurfs]

@@Meh-fv8vn true, but not as noticeable I would think.

[@sneaxclan5909]

I’m 5,6 should I get the 5,6 one or the 5,8 I will use it as performance and groveller as a daily board

[@ThomyeSurfs]

what do you weigh? I'm barely 5'8, 5'7 3/4". I weigh145 and thought the 5'6 felt perfect.

[@sneaxclan5909]

@@ThomyeSurfs I weigh 60kg so around 135lb

[@sneaxclan5909]

@@ThomyeSurfs also another question can I ride this as a thruster will it ride fine as I don’t want to spend more on twins

[@sneaxclan5909]

@@ThomyeSurfs also I usually ride a 5,6 dominator and I am worried if I grow and get a 5,6 it will be too small

[@ThomyeSurfs]

@@sneaxclan5909 thrusters will work fine but since the fins are slightly more clustered together, it won't exactly feel like a normal thruster, it will be a tad more swively. I don't want to say loose cuz the clustering could make it nice and drivey but when you go to turn it, it will have slightly less drag on and draw a tighter radius. How old are you and do you expect to grow much in short time? I guess the only risk is if you are in your teens, then you could grow for sure and that could be an issue especially if your family is taller and bigger.

[@jose2x784]

what is faster dark twin or seaside?

[@ThomyeSurfs]

down the line, DT. The seaside is more flowy. The DT rail lines are more parallel especially more towards the back half. The Seaside tapers in and has more curve. The DT is more like the Mashup but I think the ceiling for bigger hollower waves is a tad higher cuz of the rocker. Or maybe the volume to length ratio. Hard to say if the one Ziek was riding was custom dims or stock.

[@jose2x784]

@@ThomyeSurfs Thanks for the replay, great vid, and the DT looked awesome, you caught small waves easily and went really fast!

[@ThePokersurfer]

True story: Pre Covid I inquired about his original hit the *Winged Twin" with trailer aka Flat Earth aka Dark Twin and in summer of 2020 I had a phone textfrom their PR guys about the board being ready and I was shocked because I needed a summer fish and I told him there was a mistake and he understood and gave me a discount to $650 poly with an epic airbrush just before his global success when prices rose $100 more with Covid ramifications and I said SOLD! Anyway it was an amazing feeling like no other (bursts of energy in and out of turns) unfortunately it was too small @ 5'4 x 19 1/4 x 2 3/8 for me so I sold it ........ I wish I bought one with more cubic liters maybe one day with these three models.

[@ThePokersurfer]

@@andrewchoi1637 same EXACT concept .......

[@Meh-fv8vn]

@@ThePokersurfer Akila did not create the Dark Twin. Duke did.