making a fish board

[DreadManFred]

hey guys. im going to be making a fish board tomorrow, perhaps maybe a 6'2" x 19 1/2 x 2 3/4.

i was debating with myself if i should do a 5 fin set up, and if i do should i use all FCS, all Future, or Future as a single and use FCS as a quad. i still havent come to any conclusion so i thought i would take it to the forum and hopefully some of you guys could maybe help me out here.

im probably going to install fins completely last just so i can get some feedback.

thanks much guys.

-Fred

[Jimi]

Well, I can't offer any advice about fins, but 19 1/2" sounds rather narrow for a fish! If I were in your position I'd attempt a 5 fin setup - for two reasons - 1: it will give you the most variability to get it to feel right (i.e. you can always surf it as a thruster if you have 5 fin mounts to choose from) and 2: it's always cool making something that is a little bit rare or uncommon!

just my 2c.

[kitesurfer]

hey guys. im going to be making a fish board tomorrow, perhaps maybe a 6'2" x 19 1/2 x 2 3/4.

i was debating with myself if i should do a 5 fin set up, and if i do should i use all FCS, all Future, or Future as a single and use FCS as a quad. i still havent come to any conclusion so i thought i would take it to the forum and hopefully some of you guys could maybe help me out here.

im probably going to install fins completely last just so i can get some feedback.

thanks much guys.

-Fred

Fishes at least the retro variety usually have either 2 or 4 fins. Why do you want to go for 5? The types of waves that a 5 fin board would be bestsuited are pretty much the opposite of the types of waves fishes are suited for.

KS

[DreadManFred]

Well, I can't offer any advice about fins, but 19 1/2" sounds rather narrow for a fish! If I were in your position I'd attempt a 5 fin setup - for two reasons - 1: it will give you the most variability to get it to feel right (i.e. you can always surf it as a thruster if you have 5 fin mounts to choose from) and 2: it's always cool making something that is a little bit rare or uncommon!

just my 2c.

thank you. i was thinking the same thing with the 5 fin. but the width of the fish, i am kinda on the boarder of either a 19 1/2 or a 20 something.

@ kitesurfer - reason why is because if i want a retro fish i have it for a twin or quad. if i want a thruster, as jimi mentioned, i have it. i just thought it would be something different. also, where i am located, a 5 fin fish might work due to some waves. i dont think i would ever go out with all 5 though.

[kitesurfer]

it's always cool making something that is a little bit rare or uncommon!

I'm with you on this one but at the same time i'm not a fan of comprimising a design, which is what you get when you combine quad fin positions with thruster fin positions. You can end up with all the fins slightly out of position. Do you put the quads in the right place or do you put the thrusters in the right place?
Don't get me wrong, give it a go, i'm just not a fan myself.
As for the fin system i would use fcs if i was putting this many fins in. With futures you need to lay extra glass over the fin boxes and with this many fins this could result in a very lumpy tail of your surfboard needing lots of sanding. Also when combined with the futures box which itself is quite stiff could make the tail of your board very stiff, making for a bumpy ride.

KS

[DreadManFred]

thanks for your feedback kitesurfer.

i am going with future fins on this one. i want to kind of step away from the FCS on this board just as an experiment.