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[Poobah]

Problem: you've got a vintage single fin kneeboard that you want to prone ride, and you don't want to alter the board with glass-ons or additional boxes.

How about two fins in the same box? I've read about it being done on surfboards on Swaylock's forum, but have any of you tried it on a little board?

[doc]

Ok, first question is, is this really necessary? That is, does the board prone ride badly with the fin setup it has?

Second question - if it rides/works badly prone, how does it ride badly? If it's turning too slowly or not tracking well enough, then maybe a fin change is the answer, if it's something else it may not be.

Let's go with 'doesn't track well' to begin with. Rather than using tandem fins or one of those odd Vee shaped items seen in some old photos, what about a long base, low aspect fin instead? It'd not only be truer to the 'old school' nature of the board, it'd be an off the shelf answer rather than having to make something......

As an aside, tandem fins ( one in front of the other in the same box) are more likely to act oddly, create more drag and less speed and not do a whole hell of a lot. Outlying small fins on a quad or five-fin setup may have an effect to improve turning, though that hasn't been really explored, but something right behind another fin is gonna do little besides increase base drag and have no more effect on lateral resistance or tracking than a somewhat smaller wide based single fin.

[Poobah]

Sorry,
I forgot to mention conditions...let's say the set up was for shallow water riding...reefs, sandbars, bodysurfers heads, etc. And maybe a day when the waves are only 4 foot.

I was thinking maybe a 2" front fin with 4" rear fin. Blunt the rear fin for safety, but make the front fin sharply foiled. Anybody ever try that on a small board?

[tumak]

Poobah, I haven't done that myself, but I think I've recently seen a standard board with a really small fin placed right in front of a standard fin in a single box. I think the idea was to reduce the base drag on the larger rear fin. I think you should just try it! See how it feels! But...consider whether or not nature has created anything like that on "high-performance fish," as Greenough says. Has nature created any fish with little fins directly in front of larger ones?

[Solo]

Well... for the sake of discussion, fish fins:

http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/Gallery/Descript/BluefinTuna/bluefintuna5.JPG

More fish fins:

http://www.mandalacustomshapes.com/images/futcanquad26.jpg
Photo courtesy Manuel C. Caro/Mandala Custom Shapes

Multiple fins for softies:
http://www.ksusa.org/Forum/album_showpage.php?pic_id=1413
Photo courtesy of spongetomo

And last but not least... no fins:

http://digitalstar.com/dalesolomonson/images/398393.JPG
Photo courtesy Carl Olsen/Pearson Arrow

[Poobah]

Yes, the various tunas have tendem fins, but if we want to mimic nature with tuna fins we should be putting them on the rails and not on the bottom. Hmmm...I just had this wierd vision of a Chumash Native riding a sun dried halibut.

[Birdie]

I used to fish albacore in the PNW-

They haul ass....

Sleek solid muscle....

And the colours on them - iridescent rainbow - are
stunning....

Their side fins are very thin and long, sort of like skinny wings.

Birdie

[doc]

tasty too- make great sushi and sashimi.

[Birdie]

Here's the new speeedfins (4 1/4") on Fruitloop...

The fins are very close in front of each other

[Birdie]

Note the curve outward in the rail...where the color is orange.

[Nels]

Birdie,
Looking forward to more photos. I couldn't tell from the bottom shot, but does the board have a glass tail like this vintage Terry Peek kneeboard? Looks like a classic for summer.

[Birdie]

It just comes to a point in the center of the tail....and has a lot of very fine cool subtle shaping going on, I'll shoot the tail so you can see...it looks like it has some rocker to it....slight....rails wrap around to a flat edged bottom.

I just picked it up yesterday.....

There is a lot of design work in this...

I truly believe its a magic board, and...I haven't even got it in the water yet!

Dean Cleary is a great guy for knee and bellyboards.

He's out of board bags, so, I have a loaner used Island Style from him...

I'm sure we will get in the water this summer together.

It's 5' 10" 23 x 2 3/4" blue blank weight - 3/16 bass stringer - 6 oz glass

The deckpad is fabulous, I'll post that on a deck pad thread, later.

[Birdie]

You can see the tail outline better here....

Fits right in - on the wall....

[Birdie]

[Poobah]

??