SURFBOARD FINS Complete Guide Part 1

[@andywoolmer3779]

Mate, these vids are the best information that I have found on fins. Learned more about them in your videos than anywhere else. Cheers buddy!

[@lawson45uk]

Thanks for the feedback mate. Glad you like it and good to see people getting something from it. It's just my own personal opinion and experience and if people are finding that sound and useful i'm stoked :-) Cheers.

[@ro55spencer]

Thanks man,very clear run down on the main options. I'm just starting out, so it's really valuable information, well, it will be when I get good enough to move on from my Mini Mal!

[@lawson45uk]

Ross Spencer cheers Ross 👍 noting wrong with mini mals at all my friend. Stick with that for your first 6-12 months you will progress much better then you can add something shorter to your quiver. Thought noting wrong with making sure you have the right size and set up for fins on your mini Mal either 👍

[@goodvibes5592]

Love it! No nonsense, practical explanation. Cheers

[@lawson45uk]

Thanks mate. Appreciate the feedback :-) Yeah try to keep it down to earth. I'm not expert and not a good surfer but done a lot of trial and error that hopefully I can help people save time and money on and advance quicker by sharing.. Need to follow up on this series really its a bit of a jumble of old and new bits. Thanks for watching.

[@chrisfindlay5963]

Really good review on fins, as the others have said the clearest, most simple and thorough explanation of fin setups I have seen. What about doing a video on rocker. I have just ordered a mid length swallow tail and it was challenging finding information on nose and tail rocker at this length. I wanted a flat rocker but without making the board a nose diver nightmare on a better than normal wave. I read somewhere that the longer the board you need relatively more rocker but it was very hard to find any measurements online. Just an idea.

[@lawson45uk]

Hey mate. Cheers yeah i'm keen to do a feature on the numbers people should understand as well as the 4 they see so maybe try to get that all into one guide too.. Most people know length width thickness volume but dont necessarily consider Nose at the 12" tail at the 12" rocker at the nose rocker at the tail more detailed rocker and also the foil so maybe try help with that too.. Cheers. Yeah I think mids are very hard to get right aye. Yeah to some extent I would agree with that more rocker per relative length in general. You can't go super flat and super long and expect it to turn but another big one is how concaves etc affect rocker... Your board essentially has a stringer rocker and a rail rocker if you add lots of vee you can keep the stringer rocker quite straight and increase the rail rocker. I think I actually have a guide on this but it's old and rough. Cheers

[@tannerhopkins13]

Great video! I’m having a really hard time deciding between a 4+1 or a normal 5 fin box set up for a 6’11” custom egg I’m getting done. I’ve hear d you can’t ever set up a 4+1 like a normal thruster as the back fin will be a bit more forward than in a 5 fin box. Hoping to get a bit of input and see what you’d recommend! Thanks in advance!

[@lawson45uk]

Hi Tanner. Yeah you can get box fins for thruster and box fins for twin and trailer and even with an overhang offset if you really want to maximize your options. www.trueames.com/collections/single-fins-1/products/small-box-with-1-5-overhang futuresfins.com/products/lost-3-625 You could also get the shaper to put a 10" box a bit further back so it's all possible. The will be some downside though and it's probably more dependent on the board length and where you put your fix boxes as to if your going to end up making a sacrifice or not. So there was the simple answer now here is the technical answer..... If you put your front fins in the spot that's optimal for a thruster or quad it's probably a little far back and not ideal for a single and sides and also not far enough back to be ideal for a thruster. If your trying to put a thruster fin in a single fin box you might not be able to place it securely exactly where a thruster rear might want to be. My Red 6'10" mid on the Midlife Crisis review I worked it out without making too much of a sacrifice but it's still not going to be perfect for everything so I would speak to your shaper about what set ups suit his design best and where he likes to position fins. I would personally go either straight 5 fin if the board and you are going to like pretty normal fin set ups / single plus quad/ or single plus side bites set ups there the ones where you shouldn't have to make any sacrifices. Single and twin works too. Really need to speak to your shaper but it doesn't always pay to try and have everything and end up with nothing working optimally if you were 90% sure about the fin set up you wanted anyway. Hope that makes sense.

[@MarvinHecht]

Hi, so I searched all weekend for good youtube articles and even websites explain fin configurations and what they do. This video is heads above any other video from any individual you-tuber or companies like Futures, FCS, or Fanatic. And I had read about the FCS II fin system but you actually took the time to show how it snaps in - nice. I absolutely love the blue "Piggy" board -it's beautiful. In your other video about the Piggy you show the default grey fins you like on that board - a quad, but they are absolutely HUGE, I am curious why, and how it helps that board? I have one question. I myself have a 10"6 x 29" longboard-style Gerry Lopez Purple Big Darling Surf Sup, and I run it with quads. I had heard that "quads are better, more high performance" and so just went with that. I was in Hawaii but I now live in Canada and surf the Great Lakes, and I am finding it challenging to turn the board on this high-period, weak windswell. I am going to try a thruster, but I am so used to quads - the speed is great. And actually once I do turn and get into the pocket (near the end of the turn) they feel really good and sticky - it's just initiating a turn is SO HARD. In another video on KZbin by the "Shred Show" he talks about some fins that may solve this problem. He runs the AM2 sides (which you like too) and then he runs rear QD2 4.0 Techflex fins having FLAT FOILS. He says this makes initiating the turn with quads nearly the same as on a thruster. Would you agree? Or are there other particular fins that you believe making turning easier esp on a longboard? Maybe this is worth a whole video :) kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y5CmYaltns2Uf6c&ab

[@lawson45uk]

Hey mate. Thanks for the kind words and positive feedback 😊 Yeah I tend to like a pretty large fin myself.. Our waves are really weak and I’m not a snappy turner so prefer to do nice long carves that carry speed and never slip out. They were just a nice step up form my go to AM Large fins that work in most of my boards.. The piggy carves really nice lines. Those Mccallumn fins also put really good hold at the back without adding too much drag. It can depend a lot on the board.. Some wider tails need a bit of fin further back to keep them under control some you can go larger up front and smaller in the back to get it loose. 10’6” is a big ol board my friend had a Little Darling and really enjoyed it.. Ironically the Lopez SUP fins are a little similar to the Mccalumn fins in that they have a lot of depth but not crazy big base. That tents to greate grip without making them as difficult to turn but again trade off will be a little less drive over other opions. Will the board take a singe fin or a single fin and small side bites. Sups are quite specific boards too so might be worth looking at some forums etc or seeing what really experienced Sup riders use.. Allot of our local rippers go quad but keep pretty small back fins or even go twin and stabilizer MR Style.. I think there are some misconceptions regarding quads.. Personally it’s the speed and flow I like but I would say for me quads more likely to make your turns longer and rounder with more speed carry. Other options can be tried if you want loose. Yeah I think the general concensus is double foiled quads are more control and flat are more drive and freeer but cant remember 100% I just use the 80/20 foiled modern ones FCS2 etc best of both worlds…. Maybe just try smaller quad rears for starters.. You might be happy just to lose some grip in favour of turning now your in a wave that’s not got as much push for the fins to drag you round? I don’t think initiating a turn on a quad is ever that similar to a thruster personally but does depend on fin location and the HS board has rusty style quad layout that’s much closet to a thruster position that makes the quad feel more towards a thruster but still nothing like for my money.. kzbin.info/www/bejne/eqW1Z4NniJeEe5Y

[@MarvinHecht]

@@lawson45uk thanks this is so helpful - I've always just run quads since I heard they were more "high performance" LOL. My board does have 5 fin-boxes, and with the fins I own, I am going to try a thruster to see if initiating turns is easier, and while it's not technically correct to put twins on my board, I'll throw on T1s and experience what it feels like to have it even more loose / skatey than with quads! Others are suggesting buy some AM2 sides and put in a 7.5" center (2+1) and shove the center fin as forward as possible - will try that also! When buying my board, surftech also had me demo a set of V2F4 quads to "loosen it up" - and I just looked it up and found the rears in that set are actually the smallest QD2 there are: 3.75's, and they are foiled 80/20s - so I really like your idea of getting some really small quads - I am most excited about that- because in the end I don't think I want to give up the speed of quads AND that solid, fast feeling once you are well into the turn and sitting in the pocket going down the line. The SUP guys are saying that in the early days of SUP everyone thought you needed bigger fins and thus the GL1 and GL2 are now considered "huge" even for SUP. So again, I think going with smaller quads particularly for the trailers could be just the ticket - good to know that seems to be the trend in your area also! Right now I lost 1 GL1 and one GL2 so I am having to run GL2's in the front and GL1s in the back-I think it's those huge GL1s in the back that are really killing me. And in fact for the sides I see my GL2s are very close in area to the AM2 so I may not need to buy the AM2s- esp since the higher depth of the GL2's help turning. Again, great info, thanks again and keep the stoke! We are discussing all of these options in great detail over here - I linked 3 of your fin videos on page 2, thanks again! www.standupzone.com/forum/index.php/topic,36757.0.html

[@sallybrandon3585]

Super helpful, liked and subscribed, thank you!! :)

[@lawson45uk]

Thanks Sally, welcome aboard :-) Appreciate your support

[@dextroaus]

Such a good video! Yew

[@karljakobsson2687]

Yeow! Good video. What’s your favourite fin config for that specific board? Wife has a midlength with the same fin config but set up as a single. Coming of shorter thrusters I find it very strange to surf so considering getting a small centre fin that fits the singlefin box and set it up as a thruster. Not sure what size to get , 4.5 or 5” , board is chunky retro 6’6.

[@lawson45uk]

Cheers Karl.. Well I really like them as a quad myself as they carve so nicely with the vee in the tail etc but I like quads anyway and our waves are often slow and flat faced so as always it's a bit of personal preference. I actually have 2 of these boards at a similar length now. The other one being a touch more racy so that is set up as a quad with Large Al Merrick fins and I am going to leave the one in the video as either a single or a 2 plus 1. Just experimenting to see which of those I like best first. I haven't had much of a go as a thruster yet but this is a modern take so it will work with all the fin options. If your used to thrusters and like them certainly give it a go. If you get shapers fins you can buy some known templates like Al Merricks. The FCS you can get the FCS performer fin in a ear box and tue ames are always good if you are in the states or bringing anything in. If the single is not too big you could always try that with some sides if you already have them. I really enjoy single fins too as they just keep going so easily without the drag but that's probably more relevant to longer boards. If your used to a thruster give it a crack. When your choosing just remember the back fin might be forward of where it would sit on a thruster due to the box position but go with close to what you like in a normal board or maybe just a bit more to be safe as the board will probably appreciate some drive and hold with the extra volume.. Be keen to know what you think. Also if you have some quad fins or can borrow some give them a go too always fun to try and if you can do it for free by borrowing a mates etc even better . Cheers for watching

[@clarat.5836]

Hello there! Awesome video, very informative! Having you go through the configurations and visually explaining everything makes much more sense than reading about base, depth, sweep, area, etc...on websites. I do have a question for you, if you don't mind. I'm riding a small thruster set but I'm searching for two rear fins to add as to ride a quad (losing the center fin). Is there a major difference between rear fins for quad and side bites for 2+1 setups? And how much of a size difference should there be between my two "front" fins from my thruster set and the rear fins? It's not easy to find these info on the internet!

[@lawson45uk]

Hi. Thanks for your support appreciate the feedback. Sorry for the late reply. Yeah so if your in FCS you just need medium quad rear fins and if your in futures it's probably called a QD2 and around 4.25" deep. There generally a bit bigger than most side bites but can be the same as others. I use a meduim quad rear as a side bit too myself and even a quad large in my performance longboard but generally longboard 2 plus ones use either smaller or up as big as the same. Hope that helps www.futuresfins.co.nz/collections/quad-rears/products/hs-quad-rear-large www.surffcs.co.nz/products/fcs-ii-performer-pc-quad-rear-fins?variant=10099467878457

[@michael9061]

Do you reccomend the rear fins for the quad be a size smaller than the front fins?

[@lawson45uk]

I do personally but it's not uncommon to see some people use 4 equally sizes fins probably more likely to be 4 mediums or smaller. I personally use a Large front fin and Medium rear quads. Medium rear quads are generally the standard across most quad models and i would guess that they would be say 25% less area than the front fins at a guess. Cheers.

[@areuseriousyt9506]

Hey mate why would you recommend for a 6’1 31 litre board and a guy who’s trying to do quick turns? I’m new to this whole fin thing so I’m researching and as far as I can tell I would suit a medium thruster but as far as actual fins go I’m lost.

[@lawson45uk]

Hey mate. What system are you on? Fcs or Futures and what do you weight.. If you want fast turns yeah a more upright fin but really has a lot to do with personally preference the board etc etc etc. I have another guide that goes over all this for Rake and surface area etc. You can sometimes have a board that's too stiff that you need to loosen up so might use an upright or smaller fin but other times the board needs is too responsive and needs to be calmed down so you might use a bigger and more raked fin. There is a lot too it. FCS2 the Reactor will be the loose one and yeah maybe a Medium depending on your weight. You will see a lot of the more powerful surfers on more raked templates like the Al Merricks ones and a lot of the more whippy surfes on reactors. Perfoemers are the middle ground that's what Gabriel Medina is on. Futures do a legacy series in raked medium upright. Best way to get is try something middle ground and change from there to get the feeling you want. A medium performer is a good starting point in FCS2 if your like 70ish kg or under much over or if the board is too slippery go a large. Some places do fin demos. Hope that helps cheers.

[@jammyd33]

How much money have you spent on boards and fins? I'm building a quiver and the total is racking up haha

[@lawson45uk]

Would hate to think. Lots of debts worth unfortunately but try to things like fins second hand or on special where I can and sell stuff I'm not as stoked on to cover new stuff but yeah it still really adds up aye. Not gonna be buying many this year either. Just build a few the buzz lasts lot longer

[@jammyd33]

@@lawson45uk sounds about right! my last board lasted me 8 years, so I'm trying to calculate buying a new board by "price per year" and not the total sum.. about to pull the trigger on 2 boards from a shaper with fins, will be the biggest surf spend of my surfing life