Fins??

I am looking for any help possible with fins. I have carved out my first blank, and am looking for answers on fin selection, integration of fins into the foam, lay-up process with fins, web sites where I might be able to find fins and fin boxes and every other possible hint to make this process easier.

I know there are a lot of different ways people do this, and I would enjoy all the input possible. Thanks for the help in advance!! Jon

Good for you Jon!

There are only a handful of removeable fin systems:

FCS, Futures, Red X, O'Fish'l, Lok Box, Pro Box and 4WFS.

Arguably FCS is the most popular fin system in
new surfboard construction. They offer the most templates and are pretty easy to locate boxes and fins. Futures seem popular in wakesurfing also. I swear by Futures, but I also think the best fins that Futures offers are pretty pricey. Pro Box is very customizable and allows use of FCS and Futures fins. Lok Box is probably the easiest to install and offers some minor adjustments. 4WFS offers all kinds of adjustments but the installation process is cumbersome. Matt S did an install here on WW.

Futures Fins

http://www.futuresfins.com/installation.php

4 way fin systems

http://www.4wfs.com/index.php?p=install-points

Futures and FCS installtion guides in PDF format

http://www.foamez.com/page_2.html

Foam EZ is a bit pricey, but has most common supplies. Fiberglass Hawaii is a good source as is Fiberglass Supply. A quick search on a search engine will pull them up.

Also if you search for the fin system manufacturers almost all of them have links to reps or sell online. These sites also tend to have fin selection guides...although, you'll need to interpret them for behind the boat.

Hope that helps some.