Longboard fin question

I ride a 9'6" also with a single 10" cutaway fin. I usually position it all the back since it has the cutaway.

 

That 12'' fin is too big. On my 10' heavy volan glassed noderider I have a 9.75" True Ames Heritage. It all depends on fin shape but I wouldn't go bigger than 10" and at 9'6 you could easily go with a 9.5" fin. As far as fin selection goes check out the Velzy Noserider, Farberow Flex, or KD Miss Lucy to name a couple.

 

The Greenough 4a, 9.75" is a solid noseriding fin. That's what I've been using on my Takayama noserider.

~utah

 

I ride a 9'1" and swapped out the 10" fin for a 6" cutaway and it turned it into a new board. Turns crazy fast now with much less effort.

 

I would check out the Hatchet by FCS, it comes in a 9 or 10, would definitely work well with a board that size.

 

x2 on this fin.

I put it on my Bing Silver Spoon (when I had it). It was a noticeable improvement in surfing the board from the tail over the noserider fin (#1001) that the board came with. I can't speak to the noseriding capability.

The cool thing about fins (especially in a longboard) is the experimentation they allow. Your board calls for a 9.5" to 10" fin. That Greenough is a great start.

 

as many have already said, the greenough 4A is my favorite longboard fin...i've used it in 2 totally different boards, a 9'2" robert august WIR, & my current log, a 9'6" wynn si si slider...used a 9" in the august & a 10" in the wynn. i LOVE that fin!! i've tried a couple other fins in my wynn & the 4A is the fin i keep coming back to.


FWIW, the reason your '66 hobie had such a small fin is b/c it was likely an old-skool "D" fin...lots of base, not a whole lot of foil, & a relatively low profile. most i've seen are around 8".

 

On my 10.0 nose rider I switch off between a 9.75 pivot and 10" hatchet. On my 9'6" LB I trade off between a 9" cut away and a 9.5 rake. I guess it depends on what you want to do that day. What type of board you have, rocker, nose & tail kick, etc all play into what type of fin will work best. And of course your style will also dictate what you use. Also, its hard to believe what a half inch or less of fin placement will do.

 

any thing from 10 inch to 11 would be fine. Depending on what you wanna do you fin choice is vast. Can get a 10.5 pivot fin or a greenough 4a. Fins that are Wider are best for noseriding cause the have alot of surface area to hold you in the wave when on the nose but are not as sesnitve to turing as a Long rake or cutaway fin would be. I you go to surfshop with a Future Fin Tree you can try a cpl diffent longboard fins that go in the standard fin box

Here's a cpl sites I buy fins from

http://www.trueames.com/

http://www.bingsurf.com/merch-fins.html

http://captainfincompany.com/

 

You didn't give a lot of detail about the board, but the glass job sounds like it's a more of an old school log type board... big and heavy at least.

Just to add to the conversation... you really don't need to worry about drag on single fins. A well foiled center fin is very efficient. Bigger fins do have increased drag, but also increased drive and directional stability. So drag typically is not the issue with an over finned board. Responsiveness is. It's a trade-off... drive/trim speed and hold vs. responsiveness and quick turns. I'm not a fin guru, but at least that's been my experience. Others might be able to give you better feedback.

That being said, everybody has their preferences.... but I'd say, regarding size, 9.5 is the absolute minimum... as Matt and others have said, 10" might be better. I wouldn't go getting a flex fin to start with on that beast. I'd advise sticking to a California Classic type fin. I think the Greenough fin will be too flexy. If you really wanted to go with a flex fin, go with the Ferberow... a bit more width, and a bit more even flex pattern from base to tip.

 

If you go to the Captain Fin Co. they have D fins on there site