A neighbor has asked me to renovate ( I hope not “restore) her deceased husband’s 60s Hobie longboard. The serial number stamped on the label carries a number in the 38,000 range. The board is/was a clear, heavy Volan glass job with a single 3/4” redwood stringer. I have been asked to replace the present black plastic Dion(?) fin box with one that’s “supposed” to be in the board. What’s supposed to be there had a single screw through the deck at the midpoint of the box. The replacement box install was nicely done, and it will be a lot of finicky work with my router to get it out. The fboard has a ten inch deep clear lexan cast fin with “CRAM” engraved on it. The dings I’ll need to fix are not serious but the trick will be to get some kind of color match.
Soooo… what was the box in there, where can I get a fin? Aside from eBay, of course. I haven’t seen a box like that in decades.
You’re not gonna find a box like that. You could find (on Ebay) a fin sooner or later or maybe never. The fin could be re-produced if you had one to look at and use as a pattern. The box that Hobie used looked like the outline of a dog bone. It’s possible to cast a box (if you had something to look at for referance) Rout the hole and install your cast box. Drill a hole thru the deck to the bottom side of the box. Epoxy a slotted/tapered screw into the hole and then epoxy your handcrafted reproduction fin into the box. Lots of work, but as close as you are gonna get look wise. If somebody did a good install of an updated box; I’d leave it alone. Some people are anal to the point of impossible. Chances are excellent that you will never find a box. I think you meant “Bahne” not “Dion” …
The Hobie “dog bone” box had a bolt through the deck and it was toward the rear third of the box. The only way to acquire one would be to remove a box from another board. The fins themselves were polypropelene and did not last due to breakage and environmental deterioration. There are replica fins out there, but without the right box it’s not worth trying to retrofit an old one, IMO.
If the desire is make the board look period correct I’d go with a glass-on and not bother with any box at all. Maybe a beaded wood fin?
I did a related project, for my brother’s old hobie.
It had the dogbone box, and a huge ( D shape I think) fin, with a leash attached by a cord through a hole drilled in the fin trailing edge.
The combo made it nearly unturnable, except in the “all toes over one edge near the nose, and wait… sense.” well slight exaggeration, but it was a 10 footish log.
I made a mold off the original fin, then potted a more modern fin into it. It’s a harbour one (but not the banana kind), I set it about 2/3 forward in the box. Moved leash point topside to a webbing loop under a fender washer on the fin bolt. Result: less drag, better paddling, turning, more fun.
I would consider this approach with such a board, depending on where you ride it (or if you do). This made it better for eastern beach breaks for us.
By the way thanks for keeping the site going, but…
lets give the admin some forum software for Christmas, there has got to be an easier, better way.
The original Hobie system had three fin options, a D shape and two different ‘speed’ fins. This scan is from an ad published in the Spring of '66 and shows the three fin outlines…
This ad is on the opposite page from that scan I just posted. Hobart M Alter modelling the latest McGregor Sportswear “surf” design. Matching trunks and jacket that match his board.
