What fins for the new stick

that's as may be, but i can personally attest that i've learned a **** ton about how fins work & my own surfing from trying different fins in different materials w/ different foils. yes, both futures & fcs market a lot of "jewelry fins" to the masses, but if you cut through that, there's a lot to be gained by being able to change your fins up. i've had boards that absolutely SUCKED w/ the fins the shaper recommended for it or that it came w/ & then became magic for me w/ a different set. if those had been glassed on, i'd have sold or traded those boards inside of 6 months.
also, you can't be serious in asserting that the same fin is going to work for a kid who is 130lbs as a guy who is 200lbs, can you? do you really think rob machado & pancho sullivan had the same fins glassed on their boards in the early 90s?

 

Yes I'm serious serious.

Fins have very little to do with what your weight is. You guys up north throw on 50lbs of rubber suits, hoods and booties and then think the material your fins are made of are going to make a difference in your surfing ability?!

Whether a pro weighs 120lbs or 175lbs due to their years or experience and surfing abilities they know that a larger fin creates more drive and speed and also holds the board to the face of the wave better. Very rarely do they use anything different unless they are being paid to do so. As you can see in the articles you posted its so rare that they write articles about it when they do!

I've been in the surf industry for over 25 years and have shaped boards for over 20 of those years. I've been to the surf expos and have sat in sales meetings with futures,fcs and listened to sales pitches every year of every new fin they have ever come out with or invented.

This is what they hope for and market toward. Guys who think every fin they come out is going to make a difference in their surfing. They know that if they pay Dane Reynolds to use some hokey concoction of a fin and get a picture of him doing an aerial that they will sell thousands of them despite how they actually work!

If you think it makes a difference then go for it! That's all that counts...

 

an easy claim to make anonymously. put up or shut up...what do you ride?

also, re-read my post (or any on fins, really)...nowhere have i claimed that the "latest, greatest" is something to go for. i've been saying that the "jewelry fins" that most companies market are mostly bs. but the difference between injection molded plastic & solid fiberglass can't be ignored. THAT'S what i'm getting at.

 

I actually like glass flex. They're made really well...about as close to perfect molding as you're ever going to find. I still ride them in my FCS board because they fit more flush (less gaps) and don't have the inconsistencies I've found in the hand sanded performance core. They surf well - other than they weigh a little more, I can't find much fault in them. I agree that even future's new thermotech are plastic slop, but fcs glass flex are good sh*t.

 

damn...that board looks fun as ****! too bad it's 6'7"

 

I am not a pro surfer nor have ever been paid to ride a surfboard. I surf 3 days per week on average, in weak to decent surf, on longboards, fishes, and shortboards. Fins make a difference. Stiffer equals faster and more hold. Smaller equals less hold, easier to turn and less control. Flexible equals more snap off turns, but too flexible equals more drag equals going too slow to make sections. These basic truths are self evident, and not all fins are created equal. I guarantee any of you condescending know it alls that if you go out on a good day (Shoulder to head high plus, clean, with sets and waves that break pretty much the same) and try two different sets of fins on the same board you will feel the difference. Don't even try to argue because you will look stupid.

 

Do any of you old guys remember an article and pic in surfer/surfing mag where a guy(I think Hawaiian) glassed fins on the entire bottom of his board and started snapping them off one at a time until the board actually began to work?

I've searched and exhausted my google foo powers looking for it but I think it was sometime in the early-mid 80's when quads started hitting the scene.

 

I will admit that fin placement relative to the tail and each other is very important ( and tricky ). They should make boards with 9 different fin plugs/configurations with adjustable cant ( from 0 degrees to 9 degrees ) just to drive everyone totally nuts.

 

DUDE YOU THINK WAY TOO MUCH ABOUT THIS.. GO BUY A FEW TEMPLATES AND TRY THEM OUT AND GO FROM THERE, IF THERES ANYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ITS THAT EVERYONE SURFS A LITTLE DIFFERENT AND THEREFORE ARE GOING TO NEED DIFFERNT FINS AND TEMPLATES THAT SUIT THEM, IT ALL COMES DOWN TO PERSONAL PREFERENCE. THIS IS A JESUS/GNOME FORUM, KEEP YOUR DUMB FIN QUESTIONS IN THAT DUMB SKULL OF YOURS, FIN.

ps. sorry for yelling

 

it sucks that Future doesn't list fin sweep. Unless someone knows another (inexpensive) way, one would have to tediously overlay the stock fin shots in photoshop to get any sort of idea.

anyway, if it's an issue, the EA are slightly larger than the WCT and almost as upright/pivoty. They would be a good compromise between the AM and WCT. The EA came stock in my Rusty Piranha and I liked them.

 

Any reviews on those Edge Core fin knockoffs that are kicking around SD? Asian made and cheaply priced. Hearing they're ok.

Got a set of Shapers fins (someone mentioned them earlier) when I was out there in September and their lower priced thruster set suited me fine. Then again, I'm not likely at the point yet where fins matter much.

 

I'm just a run of the mill surfer guy, not an expert by any means. But i'll say this all boards and fins will work different for most all people. Surfing is an individualist sport, you gotta find what feels good to you.

If you are really looking for advice for your particular area try talkin with the local ripper guys and surf shops to see what they ride. Then make your decision from there.



my quiver: 9'7" single fin noserider shaped by my buddy, 5'7" quad fin Sean Ordonez Shapes Slushi (rasta quads set up), 5'3" twin fin (future T1 set up) shaped by myself, and 7' thruster semi gun shaped by my buddy (MB1 set up)

 

Now to really confuse you. Worried about flex patterns? How about the way removable fins are attached to the hull? FCS use those 2 fingers to bolt them in with. Take the fins out of a well used board and look at the burn marks under the fins. The keels are wiggling, twisting and flopping around like a flounder on the deck of a boat. Lets make a high tech composite fin with a finely tuned flex pattern then attach it by these tiny little tabs. Where do you think the fin flexes most? Now they are trying to sell the tool less fin removable system? Still only attached by those weak little tabs. But now they have the chance to use the ultimate technowank - titanium rods! A heavy and complicated system that gets boogered up with salt crust pronto. Sorry FCS, you guys need to do better than that. Future sytems is a much better design but they still wiggle around especially if they are taken in and out a lot. Nothing beats a glassed on fin for simplicity and slickness. I know it sucks to travel with glass ons but they way they "grow" out of the hull just reeks of biological mimicry. Just one part (the board!) and me on my path to nirvana. Bet if that Dane Peterson dude glassed all his fins on every hero worshipper would beating (pud) down the door to get glass ons. But who would sponser him? The fin guy who gets $8 to fix them on his hulls? Wank on all you fin posers!

 

has anyone tried the fin rental route? i forgot the name of the website but it was featured in an older surf magazine.

 

I know someone who swears by it. Once you dial in your board(s) you just buy the set that works. For me I just buy cheapo sets of different templates and try to buy em used and in bulk from surf shops.

 

I am building a 9'2" HPLB with a fin box and 2 FCS side bites. Any feedback on what side fins to use? I have a 8.0" True Ames Squirrel Cutaway for the center fin ( it keeps things loose ). Thanks.