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I'm beginning to dabble in quad set-ups more these days - hip me to what differences I should expect in feel trying out different quad trailers

bird.LA

bird.LA

Rabbitt Bartholomew status
Jul 14, 2002
8,124
1,806
113
LA
I've been a thruster only surfer for a while, but recently I've become a bit quad-curious and started ordering boards with 5 fin boxes. Think I've got a pretty good handle on what to expect from different front fin options as far as the feel of the board goes, but in your opinion, what's the difference in feel going to be from switching out the rear fins? For instance, between the following set ups?

- Fanning fronts, Performer quad rears (this has been my go-to quad set-up for a long time now, but I haven't tried different rears)
- Fanning fronts, Reactor quad rears (grabbed a set of these to try)

Obviously, I should just try them both out and feel for myself, but I'll be sitting in an office all day today, so what the hell. What say the erBB?
 
R

retodd

Duke status
Feb 23, 2009
16,757
2,177
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The rears are the control
Fronts are drive
The more the front and rear are similar in foil in template they start to act as "1"

For dissection sake I will stick to what you have mentioned

The reactors are a bit bigger and upright . That will have them pivot tighter in turns when your back foot is all the way back
They might not be as forgiving with foot placement. Like if you pop up and are a bit forward . Might feel sluggish, especially with the fanning fronts .

 
jkb

jkb

Tom Curren status
Feb 22, 2005
10,132
9,237
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Central California
Upright rears will give it more of a thruster-like pivot.

If you can find them, try some upright rears with a flat foil. For me, it was the closest to offering the best of both worlds.......speed of a quad, pivot of a thruster. To get a flat foiled rear fin, you'll probably have to search for some old two-tabbed fins or maybe use small reactor fronts.
 
bird.LA

bird.LA

Rabbitt Bartholomew status
Jul 14, 2002
8,124
1,806
113
LA
retodd said:
The rears are the control
Fronts are drive
The more the front and rear are similar in foil in template they start to act as "1"

For dissection sake I will stick to what you have mentioned

The reactors are a bit bigger and upright . That will have them pivot tighter in turns when your back foot is all the way back
They might not be as forgiving with foot placement. Like if you pop up and are a bit forward . Might feel sluggish, especially with the fanning fronts .
Click to expand...
That's really good info, thanks.

I did a first run on a new board last night with the Fannings + Reactor rears and it felt not quite right. Super drivey - maybe too drivey even, but maybe too responsive to changes in direction too. Could be a case of way too different front and rears not working as one it sounds like.

Debating whether the next step is to swap out the reactor rear for the performer or to do a full fin swap and go with the AM quad set for a bit less drive and fins that be more complimentary...

Or just throw in AM thruster set and call it a day :grin:
 
R

retodd

Duke status
Feb 23, 2009
16,757
2,177
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I have found that upright fronts and upright rears are good

Upright front and more rake rears are good to

Rake front and upright rears not so much .... and I know lots of folks like controllers and those setups but not me
 
S

Sharkbiscuit

Duke status
Aug 6, 2003
26,766
19,710
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Jacksonville Beach
I'm surprised if you are saying the same size reactors had more drive than the same size performers, given the sweep difference: https://www.surffcs.com/pages/fcs-fin-data

I hate 50/50 rears (slow) thanks to 000 for this info. All things being equal, 70/30 foil will feel more thruster like to me than flat, and flat the fastest, which I ride the most by far. Love quads but that's mostly due to spending so much time in small, soft surf.

Not a specific fin setup thing but personally, I like quads more, in a wider range of condition, if I'm mostly/entirely going frontside. Southerlies where the lefts against the grain don't quite setup happen, and NE'er in the broad lee of the jetty, where the lefts bend away and mush out but the rights against the grain are steeper with a better line, I prefer the thruster for backside and I swear I have better discipline not crack fiending hoax lefts vs. when I'm on a quad.




 
S

Sharkbiscuit

Duke status
Aug 6, 2003
26,766
19,710
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Jacksonville Beach
retodd said:
and I know lots of folks like controllers and those setups but not me
Click to expand...
Ran a new acquisition through the paces with controllers (the wood-looking futures). Good-great at scooting down the line in a sort of highline/trim mode. Can't make heads or tails of them trying to go on rail/do turns. The board feels like it pivots nervously, and trying to carve like a normal quad, slide/releases and/or goes flat-based. Feels like it needs more fin farther back.

Do you recommend controller fronts + a thuster rear next, get some different quad rears, or throw the Jordys in straight thruster?
 
bird.LA

bird.LA

Rabbitt Bartholomew status
Jul 14, 2002
8,124
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LA
Sharkbiscuit said:
I'm surprised if you are saying the same size reactors had more drive than the same size performers, given the sweep difference: https://www.surffcs.com/pages/fcs-fin-data
Click to expand...
I've not yet tried my "regular" quad set up in this board, so that was a description of the feel of the Fannings + Reactors, not a comparison.

I'll be mostly test piloting in right hand point surf (backside), but haven't found a preference for one fin set up or another frontside vs backside, just a different flavor both ways.
 
R

retodd

Duke status
Feb 23, 2009
16,757
2,177
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Sharkbiscuit said:
retodd said:
and I know lots of folks like controllers and those setups but not me
Click to expand...
Ran a new acquisition through the paces with controllers (the wood-looking futures). Good-great at scooting down the line in a sort of highline/trim mode. Can't make heads or tails of them trying to go on rail/do turns. The board feels like it pivots nervously, and trying to carve like a normal quad, slide/releases and/or goes flat-based. Feels like it needs more fin farther back.

Do you recommend controller fronts + a thuster rear next, get some different quad rears, or throw the Jordys in straight thruster?
Click to expand...
The front fins hang back and are pretty big so that is the main reason they go fast but are crap in turns . They might go great in boards with the boxes set for those fins.

If you want super drive and some normal feel true Ames makes a baby twin that looks epic for fat tail boards and big guy fronts

https://www.trueames.com/products/ta-twin-5-1-futures-compatible

 
R

retodd

Duke status
Feb 23, 2009
16,757
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113
Try the controller front and your favorite thruster center fin
Can't be much worse right lololol
 
Aruka

Aruka

Tom Curren status
Feb 23, 2010
12,198
23,253
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PNW
Havoc4k said:
slippery slope. stick with trusty
Click to expand...
Damnit dude, get outta my head :roflmao:

For real though, a good quad is amazing and versatile.

I think todd's pretty right on. Raked fronts with upright rears mostly feel terrible for me. End up having funky feelings like they are stiff through the first half of a turn and then they just suddenly wash out. I think flex is a factor too, I never like fronts that are more flexy than rears. My favorite sets are usually fairly upright front and rear with 80/20 or flat foils in the back.
 
bird.LA

bird.LA

Rabbitt Bartholomew status
Jul 14, 2002
8,124
1,806
113
LA
Aruka said:
Raked fronts with upright rears mostly feel terrible for me. End up having funky feelings like they are stiff through the first half of a turn and then they just suddenly wash out.
Click to expand...
This is pretty much exactly what I felt yesterday. Time to experiment... but the sheer number of different templates you're currently using in that photo is unsettling.

I have 2 thruster templates that I use in all of my boards.
 
Aruka

Aruka

Tom Curren status
Feb 23, 2010
12,198
23,253
113
PNW
I mostly use the AM2 techflex in shorter/wider boards and the Christenson upright quads in the longer/narrower boards. The rest of those sets just chill in my big box of fins until I feel like experimenting or staging a photo.
 
A

ajmojave

OTF status
Aug 26, 2018
237
253
63
Aruka, how do you like the Lovelace quad set?

Aruka said:
Havoc4k said:
slippery slope. stick with trusty
Click to expand...
Damnit dude, get outta my head :roflmao:

For real though, a good quad is amazing and versatile.

I think todd's pretty right on. Raked fronts with upright rears mostly feel terrible for me. End up having funky feelings like they are stiff through the first half of a turn and then they just suddenly wash out. I think flex is a factor too, I never like fronts that are more flexy than rears. My favorite sets are usually fairly upright front and rear with 80/20 or flat foils in the back.
Click to expand...
 
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