Meshing elements of the über popular HS Hypto Krypto and Ando models, Creed McTaggart’s signature model, the Haydenshapes Love Buzz, is an exciting, well balanced all around performance shortboard that blends a wider outline, curvy tail rocker and modern bottom contours for a fast & flowing yet precise ride.
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Pluses
+ Takes a big, steep drop with ease & loves to fly or cruise down the line
+ Feels like it can twist and turn on a central axis, not just off the tail
+ Intricate bottom contours in combination with additional tail lift, help to turn this board hard and make it lively and responsive
+ Hayden pays attention to the fins used and understands the importance of fins to the performance of a board. Future fins HS1 are perfect for this board.
Minuses
– Struggles with big (well overhead) hollow, powerful swells due to the flatter rocker and wider outline. It’s not a step-up as I discovered first hand 🙂
Benny Rides
The Haydenshapes Love Buzz surfboard at 6’1 x 20 1/2 x 2 3/4 @ 36L’s of volume. This is on the small side for me, especially for a small wave board but I had no trouble catching waves and generating speed with the Love Buzz. Hayden Cox develops his signature fins in close collaboration with Futures Fins and, in my opinion, there is no point in riding HS boards with anything else! I rode the Futures Haydenshapes Signature 3-Fin Thrusters in this board and they were awesome. Standard Haydenshapes Love Buzz dimensions and volume at the bottom of this page.
Best Wave Type
Above waist high to overhead. Prefers clean, lined-up waves (don’t we all) but didn’t have trouble negotiating onshore conditions
Features
- Wide outline – flat rocker through the center, slight nose lift, more rocker through the tail
- Versatile, medium weight rails
- Intricate bottom contour – vee at the back, single concave from the nose to the back half of the board, deep double going through the single
- Hayden Cox recommends the standard 3-Fin thruster setup with his signature HS Futures Fins suggested
Compare To
- Stacey Surfboards Flathead Review: similar plan shape, also a solid all rounder
- Lost Weekend Warrior Review: performance oriented hybrid for bridging the gap between your all rounder shortboard and modern performance fish
- Eye Symmetry Rapture Review: like the Love Buzz, the Rapture takes off at a furious pace. Another great all around small to medium size wave all rounder
Haydenshapes Love Buzz Surfboard – Board, deck
Video Summary
Hey, welcome to Benny’s Boardroom. I hope you’re doing well. You are looking at a brand new model by the good foam and resin magicians at Haydenshapes Surfboards. This is called the Love Buzz.
When I first heard about this board, I remember talking to the awesome gentleman that I deal with at Haydenshapes, Alex. He was so excited about riding this board. He was like:
“Man, you’ve got to try this thing. It’s so crazy. It just does things that you’ve never experienced before.”
But I remember seeing the Love Buzz for the first time and my first thought was, “well, it doesn’t look all that different.”
The HS Love Buzz is meant to be a cross between the Haydenshapes Ando [See the Ando Review…], which is a fantastic good wave shortboard that I’ve ridden in solid double overhead swells. The Ando model loves a barrel, loves a big steep drop. And then, of course, the Hypto Krypto [See the Hypto Krypto Review…], which needs no introduction. It was surfboard of the year this year. It is one of the most popular, best-selling boards in the world right now.
When I looked at this, I was like, “Okay, it’s got the shorter, fatter, wider outline. Good for smaller to medium-sized waves. It looks like a squashed down version of the Ando.” But there is a lot more to this board than meets the eye. When I surfed this thing for the first time, I became a believer. It takes a steep drop. It loves flying down the line. The best surfs I’ve had on this board were when it was just above waist high to just overhead. Again, it will take a big steep drop with no problem at all, but it just loves to fly and cruise down the line.
Haydenshapes Love Buzz Surfboard – Deck
The combination of the design elements in this board that Hayden has constructed this with make it surf differently than a lot of boards I’ve tried in the past, even though, again, it looks like a similar version of a lot of other small to medium sized wave surfboards out there.
When I would be surfing down the line, I felt as though I could almost twist this board and turn it on an axis, not just turning off the tail or punching on the accelerator in the front nose to get it to pump down the face. I almost feel like if you turn it through the center of the board. You’ll see it has quite a lot of rocker through the tail here, as well as quite an intricate bottom contour, which vees at the back, has a single that runs all the way from the nose, all the way through to the back half of the board, where it actually has a deep double concave going through the single.
Haydenshapes Love Buzz Surfboard – Rocker
The intricate bottom contour, I think, in combination with that additional tail lift, help it to really be able to turn this board hard and to make it feel really lively and responsive. This has quite nice versatile medium rails, doesn’t feel catchy, but it can handle a few different conditions. I’ve surfed it when it’s been more onshore and mushy. It goes fine in those conditions, but, again, it also likes a cleaner, more lined-up face.
Haydenshapes Love Buzz Surfboard – Bottom
The one time I did struggle a little bit with this Love Buzz was when it really got quite big and punchy. There was a big, punchy, hollow, grunty swell that came through on the weekend and I took this board out not expecting it to be as big or as powerful as it was.
I think the flattish rocker, which is quite flat through the center here, with just that little bit of lift in the nose and in general wider outline. I struggled a little bit. I think I would have preferred to have a board like the Ando, something that’s more conducive to surfing those bigger, more powerful hollow waves.
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That aside, really, I had no complaints with this board. As soon as the word gets out of what this things does, this Hayden Shapes Love Buzz is going to sell like hot cakes. I’ve been surfing these Futures Fins. These are designed specifically with Hayden and the guys at Futures.
I think it’s really cool that Hayden pays attention to the fins that people put on their boards because fins, as I’ve learned more and more lately, are critically important to the performance of a board. Having the right fins in your board make a big difference. I think these are perfect for this board.
Haydenshapes Love Buzz Surfboard – Rocker, Fins
That is the Love Buzz, a brand new model by Haydenshapes. If you’ve been lucky enough to have a go on one of these already, please let me know what you think. If you have a chance to ride this board, pick one up. It is a fantastic little board.
That is the Haydenshapes Love Buzz review. Hope you enjoyed it. Thanks so much for watching the show. I’ll speak to you again soon.
OUTRO: Hello Love Buzz, you wily little wave machine, you little vixen, you beast.
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Stock Standard Dimensions & Volume
Haydenshapes Love Buzz Standard Dimensions and Volumes
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Picked it up a few months ago; first surf in waist to chest punchy beach break was incredible. Board stuck to my feet, paddles great, fast but lots of control. Best board under my feet since my New Flyer (felt very similar actually). Rode it a few weeks ago in large, hollow OBX and it was a bit too fast and light for the power and texture of the wave. It is my go to in anything from thigh to a bit overhead but I grab my Mini Driver when it gets beyond that. Great, great board that stays in the pocket better than the hypto and, frankly, seems a better all arounder.
Bought a Love Buzz after falling in love with my Hypto Krypto.
I ride it 2 inches longer than my Hypto.
Mine is in future flex technology and it really has a lively flex pattern.
Especially coming out of turns where a lot of boards tend to slow down.
The Love Buzz actually speeds up and throws me through the turn with tons of speed.
its like cheating makes me surf better than I do.