Kneeboard designs are much more varied than the modern footboarders thruster. We have the choice of tri or quad before you even get into outlines, bottom contours and all the other design features on a board. I am wondering whether we are narrowing these choices because of the excellent surfing of a few or because of function.
I personally ride a tri fin rounded pin and have never ridden a quad or twin fin. The current trend seems to be towards this sort of board the vast majority of kneelos here in the UK ride the tri as do the majority of the Aussies and South Africans. From what I have read it sounds like more and more of you guys in the US are riding them as well. There are notable exceptions to this in Aus. Baden Smith and David Parkes being two. Some people may disagree with my opinion that there seems to be a switch in favour of the tri.
I am wondering if this switch is because of what we have seen? What I am talking about is Simon Farrer's wave riding. He rides tris and tears every kind of wave to shreads on them and obviously that kind of talent is going to influence people. Simons ripping has then produced a lot of other rippers on tri fins which leaves a lot of people thinking those boards must really work. Has this caused people to overlook the potential of the four fin or even twinnie.
Through it's design the twin/fourfin requires commitment to your rails and therefore you have to get it going rail to rail to get the best out of it. The tri fin can also be surfed in this way as Farrer and countless other talented kneelos demonstrate. However through it's design it also lets you get away with surfing in a less committed way but still get away with a half decent feeling ride. What I am suggesting is to surf a four fin well you have to surf with complete committment to power no airy fairy turns or it won't give anything back. While on a try you can get a way with a bit of laziness. Obviously having never ridden a four fin I could be completely wrong. Have tri fin rippers blinkered people to the potential of the four fin or am I full of s#*t? There are ofcourse four fin rippers out there I don't know all your names I mentioned David Parkes, Baden Smith and of course your very own Don Harris. There must be countless others aswell and their opinions on this would be helpful and valid. What do you think
I've always ridden thrusters, but not Aussie-style ones. Being in Hawaii, not really a hub of kneeboarding my boards have all been shaped by footboard shapers. The result: narrow boards with the fins way too far back, like a surfboard. I wonder if this is the case for many guys in the rest of the US? However long fin foward design has been around, it has only recently gained a widespread exposure in the US. Recluse as many half-men are, I don't think it would be out of line to credit the Internet for this exposure. This design may be old to the brothers down under but it is spaceage to some folks. As far as quads and tris, combined with fin foward design, our options are vast. Suddenly foot surfing looks very cookie cutter and boring with respect to design. The board design world belongs to halfmen! Why not have boards in our quivers with both a menage a trois of fins and a barbershop quartet to suit your mood? Not to mention what Flexman brought up: the False deck. We should all try it all.
i am new to kneeboarding but not to surfing. what got me here was the internet. if blast and parkes didn't have websites i'd still be asking local shapers (who shape for standups like i was) if they could shape a kneeboard and they'd say no (thinking velo) or maybe yes and point me at their latest fish. i went with a small wave quad round pin(23.5 wide) cause it made more sense to me than a thruster type set. i quickly realized how tight it was and began working on unweighting the tail on cutbacks. the quad set gives you an engine for each knee cause of the way the fins work in pairs producing thrust. they allow you to keep your weight leaning way forward as you tear into turns (if you layback there appears to be an uncontrolable lag) but their best suit(for me) is off the bottom (if you like smok'n bottom turns with huge projection). in the barrel a quad will stick where ever you put it. the issue of drag is a herring(waves are not tow tanks) and the dynamics of turning a surfboard change all the physics all the time. fortunate riders occasionally hit conditions of board and wave where everything about the board is perfect for that wave; the rest is compromise. hence we acquire quivers to try and get satisfaction out of a wider range of conditions. my guess( i don't own one yet) is a tri allows you to shift your weight around as you turn( hand drag layback turns for instance) where a quad sort of demands you tear into everything.
Like Willi, I'm new to kneeboarding (6mo.) but not to surfing. I bought a used Dean Cleary quad, the quest model, and started having fun on my first session. It's a great board that will cranks off a bottom turn, and rides well in the pocket. I haven't ridden a Parkes quad, so I can only use the DC board to compare with my new Aussie tri .
I just had Bud from Blast shape me a 5'11", 17",23',17"
I find the difference between the two boards to be huge. After surfing one session on my tri fin, it's become my board of choice. It feels faster, looser and comes out of turns with great drive. I feel like my surfing just jumped up two levels. Here's the short and quick-if you don't have a Blast Aussie tri in your quiver, you missing out!!
Now here is a spanner in the works, its not just about quads or tris its also about fin placement distance from the tail and fin size and flex. Get's confusing huh! Most US boards I have seen that are quads, have the fin placement close to the tail. Hence everyones call they drive great of bottom turns (makes sense) jump on a quad with the fins set at 17" from the tail and you will notice a huge difference, not much drive of the bottom and will need to be nursed through turns. Its no different on a tri setup except the variable of the centre fins placement to the twin fins (distance between) the further away the stiffer the board.
I think it all boils down to the waves and your style, if you lean forward when you surf you will need a drivey board that you need to throw through turns, power coming of the fins(usually better in hollow local waves) fins further back. If you sit back on your heels and kneelo sitting up, fins further up towards the middle of the board will be better suited (usually better suited to fat crumbly waves)
There are alot of variances, I have a four fin, five fin and thruster that I change depending on wave conditions and how they need to be surfed. I surf my four or five finners in small sloppy waves (fins are a long way up the board) and my tri's or thrusters in waves that are hollow (fins close to the tail) so I can get drive of the bottom and up and running faster. I know this won't work for everyone. but maybe it makes a little sense.
then we have rocker, tail lift, bottom shapes, sharpness of rails, thickness and roundness, and where the wide point should be situated.
I agree with what you said Steeno. A three fin could be made to perform like a four fin and vice versa by tuning them in different ways. I posted my comment after looking at a load of Parkes four fins and never having ridden one wondered how they went and why there was a trend for three fins.
(I lean forward when I surf) I just got a new board of Dave Parkes and its very similar to my previous board, a little more tail lift maybe. Anyway my twin fins are set at 15'3/4 and I usually have a box in the back to vary the drive I get from it. For some reason Dave accidentally put the fin box right up near the twin setup, I thought oh well, give it ago. It felt so much like a four fin (fins up the board setup) and the waves where hollow, I had to fully nurse the board through turns for survival. Currently I am getting a fin made especially for that board so I can use the box. The fin will actually hang out the back of the box by 2" so I can get it closer to the tail, beacuase I like my boards to drive through turns, not be nursed. Well I hope it works, will keep u posted. But I think it ads to what I was going on about above.
cheers
PS the 3rd fin gives u drive (lean forward not back)
Steeno, I am a great fan of David's boards. I have recently changed my 5'10'' rounded pin for yet anouther 5'10'' rounded pin. However, the diffence is the new one has full concaves as opposed to rolled bottom with Vee. I am hoping I will learn what the real diffence is in the two bottom shapes as the boards are close in design.
But there are so many other variables. For example, David has sent us some boards with large back fins while others have small stubby ones an yet the boards are quite similar?
Do you use large back fins or do you prefer smaller ones(not a personal question mate)? I guess you would use bigger ones if you want more drive - if so how far back do you set the fin to create the required drive?
I use the third fin to drive me on my three fin. I just assumed that four fins give more drive and less release. As I have said I have never ridden one. I suppose one with the fins set apart or further back like on Buds boards would offer more drive. All I had heard about four fins was that they could be tracky and hard to get to release and go vertical. Leading to by assumption that they are more drivey. It's just a case of where the fins are placed as your new three fin demonstrates.
Adding to what I just said. I thought the trackiness was the reason people appeared to not be surfing them. After seeing vertical in the pocket surfing on the videos. Thinking about it logically any board can be set up to be tracky and drivey or loose as a goose depending on all the factors of the board and how far up the fins are placed. I was just wandering if tri fins or should we call them two and a half fins are more suitable to getting vertical or is it just that we have seen more people getting vertical on them?
Hi Tony
To answer your question, my twin fin setup are custom fins a little larger than any FCS fins and my third fin is a normal (maybe a little smaller than a normal standup thruster fin) it is also a custom fin. The closer I move it towards the twins, the more I have to nurse it through turns, the more I move it towards the tail, the more drive I get out of it (less nursing) This also means to me that I have to throw the board more, buts that how I like to surf (leaning forward) My 3rd fin at the moment (from the back of the fin) sits comforatbly for me at 7" from the tail. I hope this helps.
Bottom shape makes a big difference to how you board will plane.
