*** Official Fin Thread ***

Swallow Tail

Billy Hamilton status
Oct 6, 2017
1,679
2,938
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Your Mom’s House
I'd recommend pull ups to help propel yourself faster onto the wave, should be the remedy. If that doesn't work maybe push ups to help you get the nose of the board angled down correctly for a swift drop in :roflmao:

Tech weenies ruined surfing

Your 1/16" too thin, thick, wide or narrow surfbort isn't stopping you from surfing like Mick Fanning

I've never felt a fin holding me back on a take off, a pencil neck weak biotch might fare differently

D81ED940-D24C-455C-803B-835BDAA908AA.jpeg
 

LifeOnMars

Michael Peterson status
Jan 14, 2020
3,164
2,106
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I just find it comical that average surfers focus on the minutia of board design. Once you've been surfing a while you should know what are your preferences and what feels good.

Fins holding you back on takeoff? :roflmao:

A strong offshore breeze will be more of an impediment than whatever you think is holding you back inside your head

Heard dumb stuff like this IRL too, selling a used board with dents on the bottom guy said "you think they'll slow me down" :monkey:
 

Uberkuque

Gerry Lopez status
Nov 19, 2014
1,104
492
83
I just find it comical that average surfers focus on the minutia of board design. Once you've been surfing a while you should know what are your preferences and what feels good.

Fins holding you back on takeoff? :roflmao:

A strong offshore breeze will be more of an impediment than whatever you think is holding you back inside your head

Heard dumb stuff like this IRL too, selling a used board with dents on the bottom guy said "you think they'll slow me down" :monkey:
Not "holding you back on takeoff" in general but holding you back relative to other fins, jackass.

That's the whole point of this entire fin thread in the first place -- how does fin configuration A compare to fin configuration B?

 

jkb

Tom Curren status
Feb 22, 2005
10,042
8,981
113
Central California
it's all in your head lightweight, try adding a little forward pressure when you stand up next time
It's not common, but I've definitely had a fin set-up affect paddling and/or wave catchability.

It was those old AM carbon FCS fins. I've heard multiple people complain about that specific fin set too. Night and day once I switched them out.

Come at me bro :nana:
 
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Swallow Tail

Billy Hamilton status
Oct 6, 2017
1,679
2,938
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Your Mom’s House
I just find it comical that average surfers focus on the minutia of board design. Once you've been surfing a while you should know what are your preferences and what feels good.

Fins holding you back on takeoff? :roflmao:

A strong offshore breeze will be more of an impediment than whatever you think is holding you back inside your head

Heard dumb stuff like this IRL too, selling a used board with dents on the bottom guy said "you think they'll slow me down" :monkey:
I get it and am in agreement with you.

Here are some observations on the subject of fins & takeoffs anyway:
surfing over 35 yrs
My preferred conditions are powerful & hollow / you’ll usually find me where the boogie boarders are.
Ride/shape my own boards.

Fin design is at the very bottom of the list, in the bilge so to speak regarding take offs.

Proper board foil, proper board size, entry rocker and entry bottom contours are the main contributors.



Developing the skills to use and/or overcome shortcomings of a board-all boards have quirk/watts is the key.
Also knowing when to cut a board loose if its a dog/not working for you.

Thruster setups - there really isn’t going to be an observable difference between sets - unless going frm a very large set to a small set, or you’re pairing large fronts with a small rear fin - which I like with raked templates.
The rear fin is a fckn anchor - thats the way it is. Smaller the rear Fin, less of the anchor effect- the good and the bad aspects of that.

Quads dont have this issue, unless you over fin - than can get hung up, like if you’re trying to fade on takeoff of a slabby wave- it will fight you.

Same with keels on a trad small fish. Big a$$ keels can get you hung up in these type of waves- I do ride them occasionally in barreling waves and use keel template w a narrower tip- similar to Tyler Warren keels w the wide base but refined tip.

YMMV
 

TheEl

Billy Hamilton status
Oct 31, 2010
1,378
1,354
113
As someone whos been riding twinzers exclusively for a few years now Im back to playing around with my normal HPSB. Right now I have a roberts thruster set in them which feel fine but boring. Whats a good quad or dare I say thruster set that will give me that same or similar "squirt" of a twinzer while still allowing me to get my wiggle on? Futures base.
 

urchined

Nep status
Jul 20, 2019
763
1,386
93
NCSD, CA
As someone whos been riding twinzers exclusively for a few years now Im back to playing around with my normal HPSB. Right now I have a roberts thruster set in them which feel fine but boring. Whats a good quad or dare I say thruster set that will give me that same or similar "squirt" of a twinzer while still allowing me to get my wiggle on? Futures base.
Tried and true AMs for thruster
 
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Bob Dobbalina

Miki Dora status
Feb 23, 2016
4,261
4,656
113
My Greenough 4A tried to gut me yesterday.

It was hot, parking was terrible, I was rushing. I was trying to yank my board out of the bag and I raked the tip of the fin across my stomach.

You know that moment when you are injured, but you're not sure if the bleeding has started yet?
In that moment I thought I was going to look down and see my belly button turned into the Demagorgon from Stranger things, but I couldn't find any damage. I was totally freaked out that there was going to be a flapping piece of flesh inside my belly button. But there was no damage there

Once I stopped fixating on that, I saw the 3 inch scratch across my stomach on either side. Luckily I was able to surf.
 

estreet

Miki Dora status
Feb 19, 2021
4,853
4,218
113
Southern Cali
Fin design is at the very bottom of the list, in the bilge so to speak regarding take offs.

Proper board foil, proper board size, entry rocker and entry bottom contours are the main contributors.
As far as ease of catching waves, I would assume that outline/volume forward would be the most significant aspect.
 
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GromsDad

Duke status
Jan 21, 2014
54,153
16,173
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West of the Atlantic. East of the ICW.
Picked up a Sharpeye Disco and I've been riding it with Large FCS Performer fins. In the chest high and smaller grovelling conditions we've had since I got it the board has been fantastic. Yesterday we had our first real swell since I got this board. The board was sliding all over the place. No bite, no drive. At the speeds the waves were generating I was getting a sensation off of the bottom that the board was riding on a cushion of air......like it wasn't connected to the wave. When I'd go to dig in for a back side bottom turn the board would start to slide out rather than hook up and go where I wanted to go. Could this be fixed with a fin change? Could a smaller fin size be the answer? Is the board too much of a groveller to work when the waves are head high or bigger?
 
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Swallow Tail

Billy Hamilton status
Oct 6, 2017
1,679
2,938
113
Your Mom’s House
As far as ease of catching waves, I would assume that outline/volume forward would be the most significant aspect.
… nose width can help or hinder - depending on the type of waves, same w parallel vs curvy outline.

Foil is very overlooked. - there needs to be balance - too much volume up front is a problem - you end up pushing water and actually going slower. may paddle around great, but dig in to catch/take off on a wave and water is being plowed/pushed.

everything has an effect, no design aspect acts in a vaccum.
 

Waterlogged05

Michael Peterson status
May 14, 2005
1,923
1,822
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Gromsdad, Disco OG or Disco cheater. The OG is fairly solid in decent surf not slidey at all.
I'm riding it with the glass ons from sharpeye no idea what fin they are but the template is magic