Wondering what shapers thoughts are on the 5 fin setups that we becoming popular for tri to quad. Seems like everyone from Bing to Rusty has something available. With probox fins we can change forward to back and cant but obviously we cannot change toe in or hull shape. I’m assuming most tri’s are the single to concave deal, but generally what is best for a quad? What is the difference in toe in for quad vs tri? Like wise for a thruster to a two+one/single but those setups seem more in line with eachothers.
I’m ordering some custom boards and not sure what to do. I like both quads and tri’s (and singles and 2+1 blah blah) depending on the wave and my mood. Would love the versatility and just would like to know at what expense that might come at?
Thanks for the input. I have a great shaper to do the work so I’ll leave it to his discretion as ultimately it must pass his own personal QA QC. Playing with fins does sound like plenty fun, honestly I can’t say it’s something in my two decades of surfing but might as well start now, especially with the options available compared to “back then”
dont try and get too much from one board, work out what you want and need from the one board and work with your shaper to achieve that, and if you need a board to do something different and suit different conditions, then work with a shaper to get that also, better to have 2 well thought out and designed boards that really perform than 1 so-called versatile one that goes 'ok' , I'd sit down and chat with the shaper and tell him all what you'd like to get from these boards, take in your current boards and have a good chat, he should be able to suggest plenty of design ideas and work with you to create something very functional and suitable for your needs....
Pardon my lingo, I should have said “a five fin convertible set up”, not the true one. Anyways, so then why are big name shapers putting their names behind a designs that will only work half ass in one set up or the other? Customer demand? False hopes? Or is there a way to make it work?
as a shaper myself, i have done a lot of 5 fin set-ups to ride both as a quad or thruster...
it's not guess work, except it gives the surfer the option to ride as a thruster (which is what most know) as well as too "experiment" with riding a quad without investing in another "strictly" quad setup board...
there's no doubt in my mind at least, that quads are faster and more responsive.
having an adjustable fin system allows u to maximize the potential from each board and help u find the "sweetspot" quicker, talk to your shaper and ask him if he has any experience putting in lokbox/probox/4 ways, either way, having the option to adjust in someway gives u WAY more fun from your board...
i just wouldn't limit myself with a static set-up like fcs/futures , what a waste!