Duck diving/Turtle rolling

So I've been working on getting past waves, and I think I'm doing something wrong.
Whenever I try to duck dive or turtle roll (Should I even be trying to turtle roll on a shortboard?), I seem to get pushed back even further than if I just try to slam through the break.
When you dive down, is it still supposed to feel like a ton of water is flowing past you and pushing you back? Maybe I'm just not going deep enough or something. It just doesn't feel quite as efficient as I thought it'd be
On the plus side, when I try now I'm able to hold onto the rails a little better. The first couple times I tried to duck dive, I lost my grip and slammed the board into my face

Hey! duckdiving is hard! im just getting the hang of it now
there is a post on here called the art of duckdiving, in the surf clinic. It is pretty detailed.
Also some wax on the side might help to stop your hands from slipping off.

Yeah, I've seen a ton of tutorials, but I just don't seem to get the same effect. Practice makes perfect, but I guess it'll take a while.
Is turtle rolling easier? And is it worth trying on a shortie? I don't think I've seen anyone on a shortboard do it.

Well, for now you can do turtle rolls, i find that when i do them i just stay in the same place, i dont go up and i usually dont go far back down. I use it when the waves are coming in wayy too much and im too tired to keep on duckdiving. haha
Yea, duckdiving takeas a while to get. Sooner or later you are going to need it, so you should try and work on it as you go out

The main reason to turtle is because your board is too big to push under. I would just keep practicing duck diving. As with most everything in surfing, it takes a while to get the hang of. Are you learning on a shorty, Ghost? How big? You should consider a longboard.

Yeah, I've taken longboards into consideration. In fact, I'm probably going to buy one when I can afford it. Scratch that probably, I'm DEFINITELY going to.
But the best board I could find in my budget was my 7' Doc Lausch board. I'm 5'7" 170#, so it seems like it's just big enough for me. I also have a 6'6" Flyer that I picked up on the cheap, but it's in the shop right now. It seems just as buoyant, if not more, than my Doc board. Only problem with it is that as I picked it up cheap, it needed a bit of work. But when all is said and done, I'll have a decent board that's water tight for $150 (Including initial cost and repair cost.). Can't say I've seen too many Flyer's going for that price, even with problems.
Though honestly, I'm the kind of guy that just jumps straight into things instead of easing into them. Yeah, I get frustrated sometimes, but once I get the hang of it, it's much more satisfying. And heck, my dad started on a 6'6" back in the day, and he was about my height/weight. It's going to be hard, I know, but it should be possible :)

Honestly though, I'm not getting as frustrated as I thought. Yes, the progress is a bit slow. No, I can't really stand up for more than a couple seconds yet. Yes, I'm getting my ass kicked by the water. But I've honestly never had this much fun failing at anything :)

its definitley possible. I learned on a 6'7'' around your height but lighter, it took a while, but all taht is required is effort, and you seem to be giving it :)

A key I found is in the timing.. You might be starting too late. You have to be under the water right as the white wash is hitting where you were. So paddle straight at the oncoming wave.. shortly before it reaches you, grab up high on the rails (more towards the nose) and slide all your weight up front and push down. Push your face down towards the nose of the board too as it applies more weight forward. Plant a back foot on the tail so that when you feel the white water rush over you (should feel it as if its rolling across your back.. not necessarily pushing you anywhere though), then you push down on the tail with the foot, slide your body back to the center of the board, and point up wards with your body so you begin to resurface.. as soon as you pop out on the other side, start paddling forward towards your next approaching wave.

Not sure if that makes any sense.. as its hard for me to explain.. but hopefully you can pick up a couple tips from it. Keep searching for How-To videos and tutorials on it as well.. I read like 10 different ones and watched like 4 videos.. Finally... I went out to San Onofre and got caught on the inside of an ONSLAUGHT of big waves crashing on my head.. Nothing like fearing for your life to make SURE you get under those waves everytime. haha

Hmm, that's a better explanation than I usually see. I think I'm diving too early. I'll try that :)

Yeah, you are either diving too early and coming up too soon into the white wash which is draggin you back.. or you are doing it too late and not getting under the wave before it hits you and pushes you back. Either way.. when you do it, always get under before it hits you.. and push down to get as deep as you can before you surface.