I recently received one of Pete’s ‘Fin Marker’ jigs and decided to post a review.
It is made from a sheet of clear acrylic and includes a smooth threaded 2-piece plastic ‘plug’ that fits against each rail. A minor assembly step involves screwing one side of the plug to the other through a predrilled hole in the corner of the acrylic sheet. The two sides of the plastic plug appear to be at perfect 90 degree angles to the sheet itself.
Inboard from the plug is a series of side-fin holes that allow the user to make shaper’s fin marks for 3 different toe-in variables: 1/8", 3/16", and 1/4". There are also a series of holes for a standard 1/8" toe-in quad-fin placement at 2", 2 1/4", 2 1/2" and 2 3/4" from the rail.
“All toe angles are based on 4” fin base from rear dot." (It says so right on the jig.)
There are a series of parallel lines that allow the user to align the jig with the stringer so the toe-in marks are accurate. Note: this does not mean that the fin marks will be exactly the same distance from the stringer if the outline is wonky (see below.)
On a diagonal line from the plug is a series of dimensions from 2" - 13" (every 1/2") that allows the shaper to mark the distance from the tail for each trailing edge.
If there is any sort of bugaboo that I can find, it would be that when the jig is flipped over to mark the left side fin placement, the writing on the guide is backwards… can’t have everything, eh? Seriously - this is a minor nit-picking issue. For those of us that are dyslexia prone, maybe place a little ‘arrow’ of tape on the marks actually used before flipping the jig over(?)
Another issue (not with the jig) that I have encountered using a similar device is that the distances of the marks are referenced to the plug which is placed against the rail. If, as in the case of some of my own shapes, there is any sort of unintentional discrepancy in the tail outline, the fin marks will appear ‘off’ if measured from the stringer. The jig holes are designed to position the fin marks off the rail, not the stringer, so take the time to get your outline symmetrical if the board is of a symmetrical design.
The quality and accuracy is top notch. Pete’s background as an engineer is clearly demonstrated with this product which is made in the USA. I believe he will be distributing to retailers in the very near future.
All in all I’m giving this one a thumbs up.