keels vs fins

General Discussion
1

Just wondering why the twin keels on the fish …was it something Steve Lis , as the fishman and kneeboarder needed for kneeboarding ?

How do people here find a deep , fairly long based twin fin compares on a fish , for those who have ridden both ?

I’m intrigued , as I’ve made a few keels for my fish , and a few twinnies [FINS] too , and , truth be told , I prefer the feel of the twin fins.

It may just be me , but I feel the twin fins release off the lip better , and during cutbacks …

With , say, a 6" base , 5 1/2- 6" deep twin fin , compared to , say, a 7- 8" base by 4 1/2 -5" depth wood keel …

People who ride both …in , say , up to head high surf , on fat , and also, hollow days …I would be interested to hear your findings and feedback on how they compare in those waves and / or the waves you surf most of the time [if different to the conditions mentioned].

I am intrigued to try a deeper twin fin like you advocate from time to time , LeeDD . Say a 6 1/2 - maybe even 7" deep [?] set of twin fins …what base length would you use on those normally , LeeDD ? …would it be in the region of a 5 1/2 - as much as a 7" base , I wonder ?

I would be putting them [if I make them one day] on a 5’11 x 20" fish .

“Oahusurfer” , please tell me how your very nice looking wood keels on that green bottomed fish of yours felt / went ! …cheers mate !

ben

p.s. - I like to try both keels and twin fins on my fish . The “fish like” boards we got here in Australia in the 1970s were all single fins …at least , the ones I had and saw were !! [So really , it’s only in the last few years , through dvds, magazines , and websites like sways and surfer , that I have even be able to "see’ these designs in action , and so, design my own take on things for the waves here … and for my …er…“style” … ]

2

I’ve been wondering this myself. I think big twin fins would work just fine. Maybe throw in a tiny center fin(or 2 center fins to make a quad) for stability.

3

thanks Josh …

I was beginning to wonder if I was the only one …

Me, grovelling on the “prawn” fish as a kneelo…

four fin options…



4
Quote:

Me, grovelling on the “prawn” fish as a kneelo…

Yeew! Thats the way!

5

[thanks Josh]

okay…not being one to let an idea rest [didn’t sleep much last night] , I drew up some LARGE twinny / keel hybrid designs late…

I then compared them this morning with a single keel we took off an old abandoned board delivered to hicksy . Similar !

And "Rooster’'s Gephart twinny template [thanks Mike !!] …extended a bit I guess , would be similar .

I would like to make these three templates out of wood , and box base them …

Luke , are you interested ? I’d love to hear how these twin FINS would go , compared to the keels in your new fish .

Anyway , without further ado , here’s three cardboard templates I’ve drawn and cut out , so far …



6

Hey guys,

I finished a 6-4x17x22x16.5x12 fish last week with keels on it.

Surfed it 3-4 times and couldn,t get on with it.Spinning out,not turning. no vertical turns etc.

Could it be me ? the shape ? the fins?

can change the fins easy so did to standard thruster but due to but crack the grouping is a bit up from tail

The outcome aof allthis?

IT NOW RIPS !!!

I might try twins with a stabiliser next but for now will enjoy the thruter set up

7

"the single keel " template , from an extremely beat up 1970s “Blaxell” board , donated to Hicksy.

Hopefully, this keel I will replicate two of in wood , and use as big twin fins in a boxed fish [Luke??]

ben

p.s. - sorry , Pete …I can’t really answer your question …it could have been the board or you or the waves , hard to tell without being there. But I DO know I had the same problem the first time I got on a twin keel deep butt-cracked fish . The thing was heavy , thick , wide …

8

not to disclose too much , but…

today I got a pm from a swaylockian with a shot of a twinzer , using a keel AND a twin fin (COMBINED) setup ! The best of both worlds ? I was just today thinking …“I wonder how my fish would / will go , if I combine my keels , and my twin FINS …”

ben

p.s. - I can’t wait to hear how YOURS goes , “…” [not real name] …we can compare notes !!

9

I bought a 6’6" fish which came with FCS carbon twins TF1. I really didn’t like the board too much, a bit loose in the tail and not much drive. I put in a set of keels and wow what a difference, changes it into a really sweet board really drivey…

Now I was looking for a board that would work well in onshore slop. I had a 6’7" thruster and I put the FCS TF1 in that with a center fin I cut down to 3" again wow, loose and drivey in sloppy conditions.

It seems to me the more options you have for configuring your fins the better.

10 
 Howzit Chip, Are those stress cracks in the fin? Aloha,Kokua
11

Yes, Kokua …they were already there when I rescued the board from the dump. Any tips on getting them out ?

cheers !

ben

pirahna…

12

Howzit Chip, One word comes to mind " Sandpaper". I’m sure you can sand them out.Aloha,Kokua

13

G’day Ben, this is pretty much the exact reason that I stuck boxes in the fish instead of glass-ons. I’ve heard a couple of people say that a fish has more zing/snap with regular twin fins…I reckon that’d be right on the money. Best of both worlds I guess.

I’ve got a set of FCS MRX twins to stick in the board but no waves to try them out at the moment. Dims of this fin are 5 1/4" base, 5 5/8 depth and the board looks a little underfinned. Will hopefully be able to let you know for sure in the next few days. If they don’t work then I’ve still got that piece of fin panel floating around at home. I’ll see if I can squeeze one of your larger twinny templates out of it.

14

hi Luke !

…did you get to do the "# 25’’ [small] keels , or is that the panel you mentioned , unmarked out as yet ?

Did you end up laying the panel up clear , in the end ?

ben

15

Hey Ben - not sure if this has any relevance but porpoises (not known for their acrobatics) have a radically different fin profile than dolphins (who are).

Dolphin fin - slicing through…

16

Templates 5 , 6, and 7 [combined] …

17

Chipper,

I have double foiled keels on my fish and have no problem with them. They have been toed it about 1/8" and canted 3 degrees as opposed to the straightforward upright traditional fish configuration. They seem to have enough drive and squirt to my liking. I’ve never felt like I was making a lot of turns and stuff and not getting anywhere like I did on a twin I shaped a while back. The fins were purchased at Fiberglass Hawaii and seem rather thick, about 1/2" or more, but the board works just fine. I can get as vertical as I want (which is’nt saying much) and the board feels a lot snappier than I thought it would be. I’m so glad the board worked out, as when they don’t there are so many variables that effect the way a board rides.

18

thanks foamy for that info and photo !

What size are those keels please ? [base , depth , rake ?]

and how far up from the tail tips ?

what size is the fish ?

… cheers mate !

ben

19

My experience is with Futures twin fins in some of my earlier tries at making a fish. I found them a bit too slidey. They worked good in knee high waves, but tended to slip when it got a bit bigger. I get more drive and speed from my keels and can surf them in bigger surf( a couple of feet overhead). Of course, my boards are a little better, too. mike

20

hi Mike !

…welcome back from Alaska !

What depth and base would the futures twinnies have been ?

Did / would you make some bigger twin fins to try out in bigger surf , for those boards with futures systems ? [if not , why not ? ]

I’d love to have feedback from other people / test pilots on this …

cheers !

ben

768×576 60.6 KB


768×576 60.6 KB