Firewire Seaside Volcanic 6'1 review: a wide fish that never felt right
Updated 2026-09-19
| Length | 6'1" |
|---|---|
| Width | 22 15/16 in |
| Thickness | 3 in |
| Volume | 46.5 L |
| Fin config | Quad |
| Top speed | 22.7 km/h |
| Wave range | 1 to 7 ft |
The Firewire Seaside Volcanic is a 6'1 EPS quad fish, one of the most recognised fish-style shapes on the market. It is a genuinely well-made, well-regarded board, and it still ended up sold because it simply never felt right underfoot.
What it is and why I bought it
I bought this Seaside stock in April 2023, an EPS board just under 23 inches wide and 3 inches thick, coming in at 46.5 litres over 6'1, with a modern fish bottom running single to double concave into vee, finished with a swallow tail and a quad fin setup.
How it surfed
Its best wave came at Sunrise, at a top speed of 22.7 km/h (about 14.1 mph) over a 101 metre ride, using its own Firewire fins. It moved on despite the board's reputation and build quality. The plain truth was that its unusually wide outline felt wrong every time it came off the rack, and a Channel Islands Feb's Fish of a similar length and volume, with a straighter, less bulbous outline, ended up doing the same job better as a twin than the Seaside managed as a quad.
Who it suits and who it does not
A wide, quad-fin fish like this suits someone who prefers extra width underfoot and does not mind a bulkier outline; plenty of surfers get on well with this exact shape. It simply did not suit this particular rider's preference for a straighter, narrower outline, which is the entire reason it moved on rather than any fault in the build or design itself.
What happened to it
It sold on 14 May 2026 for $970, including fins, matching its logged asking price, against an $890 purchase cost.
Questions people ask
Why was the Firewire Seaside sold despite being a well-regarded board?
Its unusually wide outline never felt right, session after session, and a straighter, less bulbous board of similar size and volume ended up doing the same job better.
What replaced the Firewire Seaside in the rack?
A Channel Islands Feb's Fish of similar length and volume, which paddled better as a twin than the Seaside did as a quad.
What fins worked on the Seaside?
Its own Firewire-branded fins are the setup logged against this board.
For the full spec sheet, see the sold boards list. For the board that replaced it, see the Channel Islands Feb's Fish. For the wider story of boards it helped push out, see the purge.