Tail Shapes - the back end

[weirdo]

Interested to see what people prefer in terms of tail shapes, what works what doesn't , what works best for sucky or fat waves....

[scoop]

wierdo

After looking at some boards at our last contest at Long Reef (and winning a custom board from Dave Parkes @ the Coff's comp) I just ordered a diamond tail (6'0")
Dave is going to put in some fliers and it is a quad fin double concave to "V" at the tail
I really loved his swallow tail with rear double concave and fliers with quad set-up
But also I have a Flashpoint swallow trifin double concave (5'10") with two extra fins in front of the outer's to disrupt the water flow which I presume makes the board cavitate
It is the board I use most at the moment as it is so versatile as I can change the fin set-up to suit the conditions (was a tad small for Hawaiian surf)

cheers

Tony

[Bintang Bob]

I'd been riding Steve Lis twin fin fishes up to the mid 90's when I switched to Blast hybrid 4 fin fishes and all was well, great even (those Blast boards work really well for me). A few months back I ordered a rounded pin 4 fin type of board from Blast (my wife rides them and loves them). I couldn't make the damm thing work, the tail kept sliding out on me during bottom turns. I ended up selling the board to a friend here in Gisborne and he loves it, he rips on the thing! I don't know exactly where I'm going with this, except to say, try a different type of board a few times before you spend the money..... Bob

[hannya]

I ride fishes and pintails it takes a little rider adjusment between the
shapes. I have a quad roundedpin that had a nasty hop while making
tight turns bottom,cutbacks. Was advised that I was to far forward, made adjustment. Board became slugish. I cut off the glass on and had fcs installed. In small waves it was great but not very controlable when waves were overhead. I just recently installed the probox fin system
which has some for/aft fin adjusment and fin cant options.The board works great even in the over head waves.
I had fishes that were shaped for me that were pure hell to ride sold them to a stand up magic! go figure.
I like the fish's ability to ride a broad range of wave size and type. But I'll try any tail design if it seems to work.

[weirdo]

Scoop- Never tried a Diamond tail....be keen to see how it goes!.. any reason for going for a quad fin instead of a thruster?

Bob- only ever ridden a standup's fish...which was good down the line...but a dog to turn (too thin)

Hannya... I've got a few rounded pin tails (with either single or double flyers).. The double flyer is extremely loose...

[K-man]

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Wide tail should allow for projection rather than going vertical,speed being the essence.No swell in sight

cheers

[matt holzman da kauai boy]

I'm riding a Blast swallow tail hybrid that Bud made me.
It's the best board I ever have riden.

The board rides so fast down the line that I'm making waves that the surfers can't even make!
I would really suggest tring Bud's boards if you like going fast.

Remember SPEED IS EVERY THING.

How do you guys thing those bat tail boards ride?.. Looks trippy.

Aloha Matt

[surfhorn]

How's this for a tail 'shape'.

My son-in-law is a hot satndup.aerial kinda surfer. He had a brand new, week old Channel Islands thruster and broke a chunk of the tail out while surfing.

It is the weirdest beak I have ever seen......and I have worked on boards professionally all my life. The entire squach tail from the side fin to the center fin is gone in one ragged piece. I've never seen a break like this.

But its some of that new foam........

I told him to return the board., claiming it as a 'factory defect'.

On another note, the O'Neill's Surf Sjhop on 41st Aveneu had a great gib ol' sign hanging on the front of their building this weekend:

"ALL CHANNEL ISLAND SURFBOARDS 20% OFF"

[Headwax.]

Hi w

In my humble experience:

Tail shape and wave shape could be a matter of geometry hey ?
What fits where, like those kidds wooden blocks.

Rounded pins sit better in sucky waves for me.
For smaller waves keep a little area under the rider by using wings.

Fatter waves deserve fatter tails. I use fish. Haven't tried a diamond.
The advantage of the fat fish tail is that even on litle waves you can achieve seperation from the lip and so increase your chances of hitting it.

On the other hand, getting back to geometry, the rounded pin with more planshape curve is more likely to fit into a smaller wave. You just have to surf them differently. You need to be less lazy and stay in the section. Can't just go drifting off onto the shoulder for a big roundhouse like you can with a wider tail.

More planshape curve means you can have less rocker and this (less rocker) alleviates the reduced tail area on the rounded pin. It also helps (I have recently discovered) you get more waves.

So I have no friends but get lots of waves ';)

What type of scenitist are you?

cheers

[hannya]

ARGH!!!
Are you saying pintails catch more waves than fishtails?
Or just that a board with less rocker in them make it easier to catch
waves. Hmmm can you hear it?
Is it possible to have two boards made one fish one pintail who knows how many fins. Hopefully the same for each board. The only difference
the tail shape/backend otherwise identical. UH never mind theyre just different I think

[Headwax.]

Hello Hanya

I was just raving, don't worry about me:)

I was saying boards with less rocker catch waves easier (depending on entry curve - thanks Prof Hart)

From my experience:

A wide board with hardly any planshape curve will need more rocker to alleviate rail catch in comparison to a curved planshape with the same rails and same bottom contour.

So, in theory, if we agree that a board with a narrower tail, compared to a board with a wider tail (given that they are the same lengths and same maximum widths somewhere near centre), can have more planshape curve, then that board can have less rocker.

From my expereince, a board with less rocker will tend to glide across a wave just as well as a wide tailed board with more rocker.

If you are making your fish as narrow as a rounded pintail maybe we have different definitons of a fishtail???

Of course we each have differeent experiences. Eg a surfer (not accusing anyone of this!) who likes to sit in the middle of his board with his bottom cheeks caressing his ankles will not enjoy a mimimal rocker board, regardless of tail shape.

cheers

[hannya]

Hi Headwax
It's all good I just thought I heard the rumblings of fish advocates going
WHAT THE !!!! A pin tail more waves than fish No ^%*&$#@ way.
But hey I assumed and you know what they say when you assume.
Thirty years ago I would only ride a twin fin fish. I would spin out with single fins. Till I bought a what some call a single flier pintail single fin.
It was great why I sold it I'll never know maybe I hated hearing my friend beg whenever we went surfing.
Hows about a bat tail on one of those hydroplane looking gemini boards?
I have two doublewing pintails one quad one tri they both work well now.
one quad fish I might do some surgery on and am waiting on my tri fish
from that professor Hart.

Enjoy the stoke
cheers hannya

[jim richardson]

Try them all, each board has its own style... The answer is does it feel right to you. If it feels good do it. Before the invention of the thuster. One of the best boards I ever had was a Pocket Pistols single fin 5' 10" stinger fish with tri-hull double concave from the mid point increasing in depth as it approached the tail, plus this board had the Incredible Hulk air brushed in full fury on the bottum of it shaped and painted by Bucky Olsen. Sadly after riding it for only 3 months this board was stolen off the racks of my buddies car in H.B. I never saw it again.
My point is that every Kneelo in the line up has an opinion on what board works best for them in the waves that they surf be it fat, steep, hollow, sucking, fast, slow, junky or good. There are very few boards that are all around and will work in any conditions. I have had a tri-hull on every board I have had made since that Hulk board and it has worked for me. A tri-hull increases your water contact surface area without widening your board. Tails either a hybrid fish/swallow or rounded.

There is nothing lower than a THIEF!!

[hannya]

I meant thruster fish.
But your right you gotta do what ya gotta do

[Beeline2.0]

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