Hey,
I’m not sure if anyones mentioned this, and i know a few people out there aren’t the biggest fan of FCS, but has anyone actually tried the new H2s??? I know theyre a bit expensive (over here in Aus anyway, $150) and im wondering whether or not to get and try a set for Xmas. Any feedback?
Thanks.
Why don’t you try them out at a F.C.S test drive center… If you live in sydney, Dripping wet and Surfer HQ + More at Manly let you test them for free… all they do is take a credit card photo copy…
Josh.
Thats probably not a bad idea! 
Thanks. I was just wondering what other people thought. Around here though (newcastle) theyve only just come out, and these h2s, being FCS ‘headline’ fin, arent available for a test drive yet. Maybe ill wait for a rich friend to buy a set!!
Howzit nicco, FCS sent me a promo set of the H2s with my last order and they are now being test ridden by a friend of mine. $150, that must be Austrailia money since I was quoted around $50 for the set with plugs included from my FCS rep. In fact over here they are only available to manufacturers, The retail ones aren't ready yet because they are going to package them in a a metal container that looks like the material the fins are made of. These are the same fins they show on their Drive DVD in the test tank. They also have a new trailer fin with a curved wing on the top that goes for $35 that they sent me. They are also in the process of making stronger plugs for their systems. FCS has some new blood running the company and they are going all out to improve the system. If you are friends with any manufacturers you might be able to get the H2s fins a lot cheaper. Aloha,Kokua
Kia-Ora,
I recieved my H2’s this week, they (according to our New Zealand distributors) were retail available in Aus first week in Dec, here in NZ they arrived early this week. Slapped them in a 6’4" performance board in Thursday. Can’t give an objective opinion yet but after two rides they do feel quite different… Havn’t paid for mine yet, but I believe they’ll be about $160 NZ dollars with ties up with about $150 Aussie.
Try em, variety & new ideas are the spice of life…
Howzit brent, Let me know how they work for you, the guy i loaned my set to says he’s been jinxed since I gave them to him since the surf has not been very good lately. Just make sure that there’s no bead on the trailing edge since they’ve had a few that were hummers due to the bead. If there is a bead just use some 400 or 600 grit to take it off.Aloha,Kokua
Hey kokua, you should know, I noticed that in FCS’s new ad the H2’s appear to be mounted in a lokbox. Or is it the hold down mechanism for the wind tunnel that looks like a lokbox? Either way it ain’t 2 plugs that’s for sure. Is it their new and improved system? Just wondering.
Thankyou Kokua, Mine are finished perfectly. I don’t know if they hum yet as the waves I’ve had available in the last two day aren’t capable of making even me hum…
Hi Nicco,
I will be reading all your upcoming reveiws on the
H2S’S as this will tell me if they will be good enough to
reproduce for the shop’s on the Gold Coast in translucent
core filled copy’s. Did it to the MRX Twin fins and the shop’s can’t get enough.
Regards Finfektion
Howzit Lokbox, Haven't seen the add so I can't say, but from what I hear from my rep the new system is not out yet. The H2's got 2 tabs just like all of their fins so what's in the ad may be the test tank. In the FCS Drive video the tank doesn't show the plugs, just the fins in the rotating mechinism which might resemble a lokbox set up. Have you seen the Drive video?Aloha,Kokua
In the video and in some advertisements the fins have been mounted in the test jig that is inserted into the hydrodynamic test tank.
It was necessary to build a stainless steel version of FCS plug setup to attach the various measurement telemetry devices.
We measure lift,drag and vertical lift and the turning moments about these axes.
We will be stocking the test drive centres asap with the H-2 fins so everybody can give them a go.
We are buiding a critical mass of stock fins to be able to do this. You would be surprised how many Test Drive Centres there are world wide. Stocking them puts a dent in production.
Current feedback on the H-2 from pro surfers are that they are very fast (possibly the quickest fin on the market to date)and feel bigger than they look.
Hey Finfektion
Since we believe we have made some breakthroughs (we will leave that to you to decide if we have or not) in appropriate foil, thickness to chord ratio, planshape and correctly setting the fins with respect to the correct zero lift line we have also arranged for legal protection.
Hey,
I go to pick up my new H2’s tommorrow, hopefully get good surf to try them in decent surf before i OFFICIALY get them for christmas. The shops had them in for a while, but theyre pretty expensive ($150 Australian). Ive spoken to the guys in my local shop, and they dont think that theyll have any test drives in for a while yet. They still havent sold any of the fins, but are expecting them to leap off the shelves leading up to christmas. We’ve all been sussing them out, they look the goods and all the design features and reviews are sounding really positive as well.
Im no master shaper and have limited experience with fins, but i got that FCS drive demo on a DVD i recently bought and it gives great insight into the history and development of fins. Im sure it would help some of you guys out there to understand fins, and help you generate your own.
The action that FCS is undertaking in legal terms sounds pretty tight. But im sure thered be ‘work arounds’ for this sort of stuff, I mean how many variations of this fin could there be.
Im the guinney pig in my area, everyones going to want to suss them out, but im cool with that. I really want to get feedback as well to see how they perform.
Anyway, if theres any development I’ll keeps y’all posted.
Nicco.
Oh,
By the way FCSrep im not one to try and steal these ideas anyway but I’m just curious to know what sort of legal action/protection can FCS actually take out on such a project? Say we simply came up with exactly the same fin, or extreemely similar, I dont see how FCS can actually take such precautions. I understand wholley why they want to, being the leading fin manufacturer in the world I’m just interested in how far legalaties can play a part in surfboard design and construction when theres so many variations and designers working on their own projects.
I understand totally if this would breach any FCS contract your under, and all the reasons you may not be able to help me answer these. I truly do not have the capability/resources/skills to undertake reconstruction of these fins so its no use to me. Please post what you can but I do understand that there are people out there with the skills etc to recreate these fins and such information could give them ideads to the ‘work arounds’ i mentioned in my previous post.
Thanks heaps,
Nicco
Hey Nikko,
Get out there and enjoy the fins! They help you generate speed like no other fin I have ever ridden. (Im trying to be objective here!)
More speed equals more options, simple
Had a decent ride on mine today, Yep fast, no hum, look cool & turn different. don’t know how much different yet…but different for sure. For all you knock-off bottom feeders who’ve flipped your 2 cents worth on this topic- if FCS are the guys who come up with clever new ideas, created registerable intellectual property (and they actually have here) don’t rip em…come up with something equally innovative. That way we all win in the long run…
Question FCS guy…with the new red-tip center fin…what happens to your fin plugs structurally when you’re flying along a wave face, we know boards bounce & skip abit with normal fins, especially on rough faces, so with that wing thing securing the board within the water, there must be alot more stress on those plugs as the board is being held in the wave by that fin as you skip along. Kind of being held-down if you know what I mean.
Is this something I need to heed when I try one of these odd looking beasts?
Hey FCSRep, What about this?
Hey kokua, you should know, I noticed that in FCS’s new ad the H2’s appear to be mounted in a lokbox. Or is it the hold down mechanism for the wind tunnel that looks like a lokbox? Either way it ain’t 2 plugs that’s for sure. Is it their new and improved system? Just wondering.
Saw this on ebay: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=2916&item=5148112090&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW
-Carl
Howzit Brent, Feedback on the wing tip fin is use it with the H2’s as rail fins. They are getting really good results with this set up especially when used on fun gun type boards. But since it’s so new we will find that the longer it’s out, the better it will work on other shapes. Aloha,Kokua