Fin Box Turbulence

has anyone else ever wondered abiut the empty fin boxes on a longboard wheen you use only the center one? Does it cause any friction (turbulence

It does and we make plugs to close up the empty boxes in boards with Red X.

How can you tell? It seems the affect would be very minimal to not noticible. Curious on this one as I surf my 2+1 without the side fins most of the time and do not notice. I have only been surfing for 7 years so maybe I don’t have the expertise to tell.

If one is concerned about turbulence created by empty side boxes for the future system you can just get some ploy propylene or lexan stock and fashion a plug fairly easily, just use a fin base as a pattern. I have don’t this and frankly cannot tell any difference. I’ve even seen cavities cut into boards to help glue them to the water. I don’t know if they work or not. I wonder how much affect these openings have on things. A scientist might know. off to the fin shop, Rich

Actually the openings don’t have that much effect. There is quite a lot of turbulence under the board by the time the water reaches the tail. This was a concern back at the beginning of fin boxes in the 60’s and it wasn’t long before it was all forgotten because no one could feel it. I’m sure there is a percentage lost but it is so small… There are other things that matter more.

Thanks Greg … Your the man … Did you get to talk with Steve Seebold about your new blanks yet? Still wanting a copy of one of mine made he made the board . And is real busy now with some non surfing things but sez he wants to talk with you about the blanks and maybe start using them… Thanks Aloha D.J.

Nah, those fin box openings don’t have that much effect. Neither do leashes dragging and flopping along behind… or the dings that havent been fixed yet. Duct tape is super for instant repairs, even if it gets wrinkled and frayed. Sorta like those old stick-on decals... I should probably just remove them, theyre already torn about half off. The other day somebody down at the beach said I should probably clean off those globs of dirty wax smeared on the bottom, too. I said thanks but I really cant feel the difference. Besides, Im thinking about getting a new board. This one`s too slow!

You know those rolls of clear packing tape…the ones with the plastic applicator/cutter thingy. A couple of bucks at the grocery store. Rip off a piece long enough to cover the slot and stick it on. Nearly invisible, very thin, you can fine shape it with a razor blade if you like. I’ve had pieces last 6 months of heavy use…and yes it does make a difference…you can feel it especially when you turn on glassy, slower waves.

Now Taats a GOOD idea … Thank you very much…