Fins are like the tyres on your car, helping control direction and hold, gripping the wave the way tyres hold the road. They play a massive part in the set up of your board and we place a strong emphasis in getting this right for all our boards.
Whilst we do make the occasional fixed fin board, by far the majority of our clients use removable fins. They’re not only better for travelling, but allow you to trial and use different options for different conditions. Most of our longboards have a fin box for the rear fin and standard FCS plug or Future fins as side fins.
We stock FCS fins as they’re universally available, and relatively easy to repair when disaster strikes. Great performance, finish, flex and fit make the FCS box fin range a pleasure to work with.
As of this year we now stock True Ames fins, they come in a wide range of shapes to suit all our models. MT is riding the California Classic in his stylemaster, while Jimmy prefers the more pivotal George Greenough ‘4A’ 10″ template on his custom 9’4″ log. These fins are great for the single fin surfer, they are made by guys committed to making high quality fins for single fin surfboards since the 70s and the results speak for themselves.
Fin Performance Characteristics
Drive provides forward acceleration and helps maintain speed through turns. The amount of drive produced by a fin is directly influenced by the base length, material and total surface area. Put simply, a larger fin with a longer base will offer more drive.
Pivot refers to the length of the turning arc. Pivot is influenced by the sweep angle (or rake), the foil and depth of the fin. Fins with less sweep angle and an inside foil will turn in a tighter arc; fins with more sweep angle and a flat sided foil will turn in a longer arc.
Hold is defined as the binding of the board to a wave. Hold is determined by flex and the overall fin template. Fins with more hold prevent the board slipping through turns; less hold allows the board to easily break free from the wave during turns (this is often referred to as release).
We are happy to talk any of your fin issues through and are always looking to help find the ideal set up for any board.