Hi everyone,
This might be an easy one but I would like to know what a different fin would do to my speed?
for example the FCS slater trout 8.5
can a fin make a board faster? I would think it is only the shape and construction of the board that can make a board faster.(of course also the paddle and paddle technique)
I have a SB race 12.6 ast and I want to know how I can pick up my speed...
(not that my paddle technique doens't need any improvement but all the small bits help
)
cheers,
charlie
IMO a fin can not make your board faster.. but it can make it slower.
The fin's lenght, shape, foil and surface area all cause drag.. and these things also effect stability, tracking, turning and weed catching.
I think you should always use the smallest fin that you can get away with.. and remember speed is not everything.. 
Also remember different fins suit different conditions.. and conditions change.
DJ
I've now tried multiple fins on my 14' board. Speed becomes very relative to conditions and the fin can only make a small difference in over all straight ahead speed.
In my experience on calm days, a 10" to 12" fin is right on. It gives me excellent tracking allowing me to paddle more strokes on each side which I feel makes me the fastest. If the tide is low I hate scratching over sand bars and picking up weeds so a shorter fin (9") with a more set back angle is preferred and faster in those conditions.
I'm not that experienced in the surf so I can't offer solid advice on proper swell and wave conditions. 
A fin wont make your board travel faster throught water, but might make you faster.
A race fin can provide you:
-stability: so you can concentrate much more on paddling as hard as you can
-tracking: so you'll have to switch hands less often (saving time and maintaining speed)
-tracking (again!): so sidewinds/sidesweel wont affect you so much
-easy turning (on buoys)
-Avoiding kelp drag
-Avoiding drag: a well designed fin will have much less drag than a poorly designed one.
Race boards don't travel as fast through the water as surfboards, so the "lift" that some fins provide wont affect you, that means, usually the thinner the fin the better (if it's correctly foiled).
I love the Starboard Race 24 fin, it's superlight, it turns easy and it tracks correctly, plus it feels dragfree!
For those who like the famuos Gladiator fin, i tell you to try a Futures Triangle Cutaway fin, the small one. It's a GREAT racing fin.
Here we go again... My old formula is;
Score out of 100. 100=highest score...
Paddler - worth 75% of your speed. *
Board - 20%
Paddle - 4%
Fin - 1%
75/20/4/1
or;
70/25/3/2
or;
70/22/5/3
Those orders of magnitude anyway...
Example...;
Quality Race Boards would rate 15-20.
Quality Paddle, 3 or 4... old adjustable paddle, lets go with 0.
Quality Fins - .75 to 1... dodgey old Plastic Windsurf Fin, still gets a 0.2...
Different fins will play with your mind! More than play with your speed or handling. 
* Paddler...
70% is probably base fitness / training / endurance
15% relates to being a light weight - small strong guys seem to have a slight advantage
15% relates to experience in the conditions on that day
if you have a slow/bad fin and replace it with a good/fast fin, of course your board will go faster.
never under estimate the fin position in the fin box of a board. it definitely alters performance. that performance depends on what you require
Select to expand quotelaceys lane said..
if you have a slow/bad fin and replace it with a good/fast fin, of course your board will go faster.
never under estimate the fin position in the fin box of a board. it definitely alters performance. that performance depends on what you require
ahhhhh yes .... golden words of wisdom from Seabreeze's resident sage / guru of the fin
ok thanks for the input everyone.
I think I will try a different fin but does anyone know if an FCS fin fits in a SB 2012 finbox?
The standard white fin I have now doesn't show a brand but I think it's hexel they use.
thanks
charlie
Select to expand quoteSupCharlie said..
ok thanks for the input everyone.
I think I will try a different fin but does anyone know if an FCS fin fits in a SB 2012 finbox?
The standard white fin I have now doesn't show a brand but I think it's hexel they use.
thanks
charlie
It will fit... That white stock SB fin is pretty good imo.
What FCS fin do you have in mind?
DJ
