Fin Choice

Hi all. First posting. Just had a 6’2" fish made, very nice, but I wanted it to be a bit special, so had the tail pulled in a little, a bit of V thru the tail and a centre slot added to ride it single fin.

Never thought to ask for loxbox for the twins, but going with a pair of FCS Mark Richards carbons.

Just unsure what to use as a single. Was thinking a 7" rake…

Anyone had any experience? Any adice will be brilliant,

Cheers all, Happy waves.

Depends what you like in loosness and holding power…

Me, I’d use something bigger on the sides, forgo the center in small waves.

Most tri optioned twins use 5" sides and 4" centers, so don’t get a 7" center…maybe a 3.5 or 4 is better.

If you’re riding faster moving waves, you could use almost any combination that gives you the holding power you need.

Without knowing your size, skill, what you’re used to, and the waves, it’s impossible to recommend.

Someone will recommend, but they’re just taking a stab in the dark.

Quote:
Just unsure what to use as a single. Was thinking a 7" rake...

Lee, he was asking about use as a single, not for a center in a 2+1.

Nfotb, 7" rake is a good place to start. The bigger you are, the more tip area & less flex you might want.

Cheers Benny.

Really can’t see any point using it as a tri-fin…

I’m 5’8" and 175lbs, I think I will go with the the 7" rake.

Cheers for the advice.

Check tail width. A 7 inch rake might go ok for me if the tail were 13.5 inches or narrower. A wider tail, for me, works better with a deeper fin. I’d prefer

Tail width Fin depth

13 inches 7.5"

14" 8"

15" 8.5-9"

A fish usually has a tail on the wider side, you may want an 8.5-9 inch fin in there. If the fin is too small it will tend to slide sideways through turns when the waves get a little pitchier.

aah… nice one. I hadn’t really considered that. The tails 16".

So nice and wide. Fine for the fish. I just wanted to see what would happen as a single, so we think we’ve got it right. But I hink the right fin will make the difference between it working or being a waste of time.

I may try the 9" cutaway off my 8’6" pintail and see how that works.

Cheers Blakestah, I had only really considered the length when thinking about the fin length…

Eyes opened again…

I have a very similar board to the one you are talking about and chose to go with regular Twins vs Keels as the keels seem to make the board want to surf parallel and dont allow you to go up and down vertically…

Instead of the MR Carbons I would use the new FCS MRTFX panelled glass twin. Changing from Carbon to glass was like taking off the handbrake for me. TWANG TWANG!

They hold fine and the board goes off! Just don’t ride your groovy retro too much as it will destroy your surfing. Even guys like Rasta etc change their boards every few surfs or your body starts to surf in a kind of way that does not work on other boards.

Cheers Gumby. All taken on board.

I don’t surf that often, I live 3hrs from the beach, so it’s not going to be a problem. Also sat waiting for the birth of my first child, so surf time will be even less!!!

I also love my nineplus mal and I have a mayhem thruster. A man shouldn’t be restricted to one board or style of surfing… Best to have something for every condition imo.

I’m really hoping that the single fin will bring this board to life…

16" tail as a single shorty, I’d use 9.5 or bigger, but very narrow chord.

But if you surf sloppy small waves as rule, you could go as small as 7" if you don’t bank the board and don’t try to turn hard.

I worked with RalphEhni on sabre shaped 9-13" fins for our widetailed singles in overhead waves.

Soo…anything works, just your experience, size, skill, and steepness of the waves, and whether you need to compromise with angling off instead of big powerful bottom turns and board vertical off the tops…

BTW, Lost RNF’s use both sides AND the trailer fins! Take note! As are the new MR’s semi twins!

very narrow chord? please explain Lee…

previous to your post i saw a 9" stewart on ebay, so I’ve bought it. only £15 uk. about $28 I GUESS.

Cheers

right, Just checked on the genius of the swaylopedia.

The stewart fin I’ve bought may be a bit on the large side, but still, worth buying for the price… Will no doubt find a home for it in future.

I’ll have a look around and see what I can find, but have now come round to the idea of a larger fin working better than the 7" I was thinking of.

Thanks guys, I can see me using this site a lot in future.

…cutaway…long for hold so rails stay attached, shortchord for quick turning and ease of initiation…