FCS H-2 fins?

[dowapadedo]

hey i lost one of my k 2.1 fins (a side one), and i need some new fins. i was wondering if the h2's are really that amazing. i live in floirda so for 3/4 of the year the surf isnt that great. the SURF expo is coming up this weekend and i can probably pick up some fins for pretty cheap there. whatta ya think about the h2's?

[Brent]

Hi,
I've got two sets of H-2's and I have mixed feelings about them. I experiment with them alot and mix them up with everything from FCS FG-5's, FG-3s, GX, GS trailers etc.
My observations are based on 8 months or so use in hugely different surf & conditions.
If you look at them when mounted on a board they are very different (they do look cool eh?), they have a 'cant' of about 11 degrees or so, and have much more 'toe-in' as well, which would indicate they'd turn well & sharper…but suffer with more drag in a straight line at speed.
And this is exactly what I experience when using them; when mounted on a good performance board (6'4" x 18.5') they turn amazing, lean a rail in and they hold beautifully. But they do feel slower when I'm on bigger waves racing a lip or pumping to make some speed. After one session using them on this board I just go "na, the FG-5's are better fins" and I put them back in and this board works better all round, it's way faster in a straight line, it pumps better and it's more controlled in everything it does. The only thing the H-2's do better is turn really hard & sharp.

I also use H-2's in my smallest hybrid fish (5'11" x 20") and curiously they work great, perfect even, perhaps it's because this board has a wide tail (15.5") and is used most in small waves and I'm not racing sections or whatever, the emphasis being on short radius cut & thrust turns etc. I cannot fault them on this board & with small wave conditions.
Actually on this board these fins are better than the expected best set up, being larger outside fins with a real small GS trailer in the middle.

To be honest, I prefer the FG-5's and/or FG-3's (if you're abit smaller/lighter) for all round surfing. In my experience they are a better fin design for the whole spectrum of conditions.

Hope this is of some use to you...

[Dopey]