Filed in: Surfing Trends | On: April 4th, 2007 | Comments:
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Four fin quad set-ups first arrived in the early 80’s during the thruster rampage. Back then, quads felt were very similar to twin fins and because of that surfers were looking for something which provide something in between a twin and a single fin. The early thrusters provided a happy medium by providing an excellent balance of drive and turning ability. Thus, the quad died a quick death and was over shadowed by it’s popular thruster cousin. Many shapers have since dusted off their original quads from the 80’s and have tried to apply quad fin setups to today’s modern day board design, foils, rockers, fin templates, and everything else in between. The modern day quad utilizes today’s board technology in the pursuit of helping surfers achieve that elusive ‘next level’ of surfing. Why Do Quads Work Better? Quads are way faster than standard thrusters or even twin fins. Most would think, how can they be faster with an extra fin…wouldn’t that create more drag? Actually, because both sets of fins are working together on the rail, there’s nothing to slow you down like the center fin of a thruster. Quads are a lot more efficient with speed. Quads are much more responsive than twin fins or thrusters. The reason is that the fins are set further up the board which essentially puts the fins directly under your back foot. The end result is an ultra responsive board that goes where you want it to go and fast. Four fins boast an extraordinary amount of holding power in larger surf. A large number of the world’s best big wave surfers use quads in giant surf at Jaws and Mavericks. Many of them claim that a quad fin board has better holding power and speed in giant surf. If it works well at Jaws, imagine what it could do at your local beach break? Quad fins have a ton of versatility due in large part to the advent of the removable fin system. There are countless combinations of different fin setups you can use in your quad from fin size, cant, rake, angles, fin material, and more. You can basically find a fin setup that will work for your quad and if you have a quad that isn’t performing very well, you should probably check your fins. Quad Fin Reviews 42 Comments »johnny, on May 10, 2007 @ 12:55 am |Got a quad the other day ! Also had one in the early 80’s but can’t remember much of that ! McKee, on May 11, 2007 @ 8:06 pm |A parallel world out there… Did you know that Tom Curren was riding in 1992 at 6-8ft Jefferey’s Bay, a Mckee Quattro 6′11″ swallow tail, featured in the majority of Search 2, Searching for Tom Curren and all of the JBay section of Utimate Sessions videos. Nobody has ever mentioned it.. not even Tom! John, on July 8, 2007 @ 5:01 pm |I agree completely! I’ve been surfing a 6′2 quad recently as my all-rounder and its amazing how fast and responsive it is. Picks up a stack more speed in small beachies - which is really why I bought it. But its the way it holds in in the bigger, hollower stuff that’s really suprising. Good review! Neal, on July 8, 2007 @ 10:44 pm |I recently tried a quad for the first time (TORE Rocket Fish) and it was a totally different feel from my thruster of twin fin. I took it out on a small day at Velzyland, North Shore, Oahu, and fell off the board on every turn. The small surf probably didn’t provide the best conditions to truly test the board out. I’ll report back when I try my new TORE Back to the Future Quad but one thing is for certain; quads definitely take a few sessions to get used to them. Lastly, I’ve heard from everyone I’ve asked that once you get the hang of the quad, thrusters feel slow and boggish. 5 Fin Surfboards: Enough Fin For Ya?, on July 8, 2007 @ 11:12 pm |[…] I was at the book store reading the current issue of Transword Surf magazine (I think it was Transworld) when I stumbled upon an intriguing article on the new trend of routing 5 boxes in your new board. The article wasn’t talking about some weird 5 fin bonzer or experimental surfboard. It was referring to a board with a thruster setup. And Quad fins. The recent popularity of quad fins surfboards has created a large movement of open eyed surfers who have added an extra fin and gotten rid of the one in the middle for way more speed and quicker turns and snaps. However, the majority of hardcore thruster setup enthusiasts are still somewhat apprehensive to fully embrace the four fin setup. A number of these ‘on the fence’ quad adopters have experimented with 5 fin boxes which allow you to ride your board both with a quad or thruster fin setup. For those that have been stubornly downplaying the advantages of four fins, the 5 fin box allows you to put the quad setup to the test. Go ahead and ride your thruster first and then switch them out with a quad fin set (Future quad fins seem to be the most popular here in Hawaii). And remember, give your quad setup several sessions for you to acclimate yourself to the increase in down the line speed and much more responsive turns. Like the not so old adage goes, “don’t hate it till you try it”. […] tim, on July 9, 2007 @ 3:24 am |ive been experimenting with a couple of quads in West Australia, i find they have amazing hold and drive and are a very precise turning board. i have ridden a thruster since and through it straight back into my board rack, toooooo slow. slip in 4 FCS H2 fins and rip away. Leigh Dens, on July 26, 2007 @ 5:27 am |I’ve been riding Quads for a couple of years now, I was after something similar to my Steve Lis inspired 5′5″ but without the limitations I’ve experienced with the Twin Keel boards, when the surf Picked up. I found an aging copy of ‘Surfing Magazine’ with an article on Bruce Mckee’s Quattro quiver being tested at Mundacca, I coupled the info in that with some of Martin Potters articles on Twinzers plus a whole host of Info from the net derived from Knee board websites (including specifics for Fin placement, Cant, toe and templates) and then went to my shaper. Using a more parallel template, which is generally wider than the Thruster planshape, coupled with the quad fins, and a generous Tail rocker (upwards of 2.25 inches) whilst keeping the entry rocker around 5″ (for lengths of 5′10-6′) gives you a very fast, fluid and drivey little board which will run in 2ft Junk up to overhead perfection. I own quite a few specialist small wave boards, including some shaped by big name shapers…nothing comes close to the quad. They are incredibly tunable, with regards to fins. I have experienced better results with more upright templates (less rake) up front. getting carving turns out of the board means you need the slightly smaller set up front and a bigger set in the back. Make sure your shaper nails the fin placement good and proper, or they track badly. Noticed a comment about the bottom turn thing…yeah, there is a tendancy for them to step out if you ride them like a thruster, not sure I could explain the difference in the apprach needed on quads for this turn as it is subtle. Just keep trying and it will click. John Jacobs, on August 20, 2007 @ 5:55 pm |I’m looking for a board to take to Tahiti (one all rounder and one gun). Can anyone comment on the Cole Firefly for these surf conditions? I’m 185lbs so will be looking at a larger version of the board - perhaps 6′4″. How well do they handle bigger barrelly surf? johnny, on August 27, 2007 @ 12:06 am |Rode my quad for about 4 months in various waves . Detlef, on September 30, 2007 @ 5:02 pm |I love quads. I have been surfing a fishy quad for about 1.5 years now. If feels more natural to me any thruster I’ve owned. I’m a competent surfer but certainly no ubershredder so maybe it would be different for somebody who is already very good on a thruster. I have lockbox fins on mine and I made one adjustment to the fins and have left them there ever since. I’m getting a new quad very soon (with future fins) and I’ll report back on it. I surf mostly in head high and under beach break. jed bush, on September 30, 2007 @ 8:36 pm |Quad’s are great but bonzers work in anything from big to small and they are not and I mean not experimental boards( Bonzers) they are proven boards .Bonzer Five fin’s are very fast and ride in the tube . Juanzo, on October 18, 2007 @ 9:33 am |I rode a 6′7 Twinzer for about 2 years in the mid 90’s and I loved that board…It was MAGIC!! It was ridiculously fast and could handle ankle high to overhead waves. The hold it had on steep walls and hollow waves was amzing. Unfortunately I rode it to its death and mourned for about a year. I am now the proud owner of a 6′3 EPS Barry V Bat Tail Quad and once againg, amzing speed down the line. Still messing with fin configurations since the larger fins up front are a little akward to me. Really easy to release the fins but hard to go vertical, especially backside. Waiting for a good groundswell to try smaller fins up front and larger in the back. Amazing speed but really miss my Twinzer. Benno, on November 24, 2007 @ 11:34 pm |Good article, I’ve had 2 custom quads shaped by Murray Bourton (Pipedream Australia)in the last 18 months. The first was a swallow tail 6.2″ with a H2 fin setup. Great board in most conditions up to 4-5ft. Turns on a dime and absolutely hammers down the line on the points. As my template is on Muzza’s laptop I went in recently and discussed the performance with my first one and made some adjustments for the next one. The newie is a 6.3″ bat/diamond tail combo with a deep single into a very late double just after the rear fins. This board is really, really quick I could not be happier with it. definitely a cut above the rest. I see a fair few quads out there, but I suspect many shapers haven’t achieved the right template for the fins, so they get skatey etc. Can’t wait to try out the new FCS fin sets for quads. MIKE GARRETT, on November 28, 2007 @ 1:35 pm |I have been riding Rich Pavels boards for over 16 years and 10 years ago he added a twin fin fish in a batch of boards he made me I am 6′-4″ and my fish is 6′-3″ the bottom tail section is definantly not flat between the fins and they are not keel shaped fins the fins are foiled on both side’s ( prevents slide and push ) the combo of the bottom contour and the foiled fins ( wood glass ons my preference ) keeps the board from sliding out . I am on my 6 th fish from Rich he allways refines each one to improvise even though the first one worked really well the follow ups keep getting better . Rich recently made me a quad fin but not a speed dialer ( my twin fin fish is a first generation to the speed dialer template just with the 2 fin set up instead of 4 ) This new model is on another level of surfing medium . It is 7′-8′’ quite wide 22″ rounded diamond tail ( soft rails ) wide tail area and what I call a plattipus nose . When I watched him finish shapeing it I was wondering how I was going to approach riding it . ( I ride mainly my fish and a single fin longboard traditional longboard also shaped by Rich ) This new model is amazeing ! It catches wave’s like a longboard but turns as fast as my fish but it is much faster I am constantly figuring out way’s of slowing it down or using the energy . The added rail from a 6′-3′’ template to the 7′-8′ template creates a different riding expearence. I ride it like an old 7′-2′’ pin tail on the take off but then go into a fish top turn in the pocket push forward excelleration the funny thing is you think the board may slide out in that part of the wave position due to the long rail line but it holds better than anything I have ever riden no sliding, in a part of the wave that normally means you would slide strieght out if you even attempted to turn . ( lock box fin set up I really like ut on the quad ) The fish desighn was way before its time as well as the twin fin and quad set up . I still ride my tri-fin guns they work good and I still know how to surf them ( better than before ) but can notice the limataion due to the brake fin ( the middle thruster fin ) If you get a properly shapped fish or quad fin it should work on whole different level than a tri . But sadly pro surfers are creatures of habit and tend to be me too’s and do not want to step out and really take this sport to the next level . Trust me the top guy who decides to be the maverick and take it on will change the sport of high performance surfing ( Nathin Fletcher has been doing a good job in his realm ) clint, on December 1, 2007 @ 10:13 pm |got a Simon Anderson quad 6′2 (S4F model)about 3 months ago love the feel of a quad, just takes a little to adjust to..big walling down the line faces is where you have some real fun on a quad..so much drive, speed and hold..had it in knee high to almost double overhead and overall much prefer it to a thruster..the only aspects i prefer in a thruster is the snap and pivot feel of hitting the lip vertically and the ability for it to sit that bit tighter in the pocket..although, the suckier the wave is the better the quad goes and the more you regain the vertical snapping aspect..the last 3 months i’ve definitely felt my surfing jump another notch..better at linking and blending everthing together, better at making and floating over difficult sections, surfing faster..as for re-entries, and once again, if it’s a sucky bowling wave then you’re top turn is like a really tight arc (not a snapping feel) and you’ll feel yourself speed up coming out of it..for re-entries in fatter waves i’ve adjusted by dialing my feet further towards the stringer (a shave less side on) and keep a slightly lower centre of gravity and surf it lighter off the back foot coming off the lip and harder off the front foot entering back down the face..seems to work..overall, they take a bit to adapt to, but there’s lots of fun getting your head around it also..glad i ended up getting one.. Tony Hill, on December 11, 2007 @ 7:07 am |I’ve surfed a Rainbow quad shaped by Doug Wright for a long time, now, and it’s gratifying to finally see everyone coming around. This board rips, but at my adult weight of 195 lbs, this 5′8′ board is simply too hard to catch waves on. Surprisingly, when I do catch waves, it still drives fast and hard. My big fear is getting a poorly-designed board and then hating it. I think designing a 4-fin board is an art, and the shaper really needs to know what he’s doing with the fins to really nail it right. Does anyone know how to get into contact with Doug Wright? Even if he doesn’t shape anymore, perhaps he could give some input on shape and fin placement. tonyhill@tidalwave.net is my email, if anyone has any thoughts in this direction. Bruce McKee, on December 19, 2007 @ 1:05 am |To get the thruster (pivot) feel out of a quad, the distance between the back fins must be correctly in proportion to the width of the tail. Vertical surfing and smooth rail to rail transfer are all achievable if your fins are placed correctly. Double-foiled back fins also help the pivot feel as compared to drivier 80/20 combos etc. Size of course is also a factor. Jason, on December 20, 2007 @ 12:37 pm |OK i think i need some advice. I have two quads, one a bat-tail and the other is a stealth quad by bill johnson. My stealth quad is the best thing i have every gotten my hands on and i can change fins to anything and it still performs great but my other board is the problem. I got it from a friend that is a shaper but for some odd reason i have tried the m5-gx combo and the stretch fins but the board is not even close to the stealth. I am not sure what is going on. Its so stiff and well on most frontside rides it feels like it wants to almost slide out but mostly not grab right away making it sometimes a little difficult trying to produce the speed i get with my other quad. Does anyone have any suggestions, maybe about fins or it could be my foot placement or even dare i say it the board is just not a good board at least for me anyways. thanks and look forward to the feedback! Neal, on December 21, 2007 @ 12:16 am |Jason, did you try measuring the fin placement on your two boards? Sounds like the problem may be: a) wrong fin size/type for that particular board I had a quad that rode just like how you’re describing. The board felt so loose…didn’t think I could make the drop and it wanted to spin out all the time. I cursed that board for the first couple sessions and then gave up on it. Then one day I compared the fins on that board with a quad that worked well in the past and what do you know? They had the same fin placement which meant it had to be the fins. I went down to my local surf shop and got larger fins for my board (due to extremely wide tail of retro fish). Went from a 4.25″ front fin to 5.5″ twin fin type and 3.75″ rear fins…all Future. That board is now one of my favorites. Keep in my that my retro quad fish is over 21″ wide, 3″ thick, with a swallow tail that is wider than most….I don’t think you’ll need 5.5″ fins but I would start by comparing fin placement. jason, on December 21, 2007 @ 9:08 am |Thanks Neal, Scott, on January 5, 2008 @ 3:40 am |H2 FINS - As for the H2 fin set up on a thruster i am not fully convinced with them yet. They are a very different feeling fin. They really lift the tail of your board out of the water. At this stage i prefer the looser feel of the normal outside foil fins. Has anyone tried the H2 fins in a quad set up???? would really like some feed back on them before i get more as i am not totally happy with the thruster set up. breauxwalker, on February 2, 2008 @ 3:21 pm |I just bought a new battail quad and am very bummed about its performance. It does paddle well but is nowhere near as fast as the original Merrick quad I had back in ‘82. Granted, I’m older but still surf everyday. The only thing I can think of is that the battail slows it down a lot. Any advice would be welcome. Thanks. Jamaican Rob, on February 6, 2008 @ 10:46 pm |I read a question from someone asking about use of the FCS H2 fins. Although for now, I ride a thruster, I can attest to these fins being amazing in subtle ways. I have been surfing 25 years and ride a Tufflite 6′6″ CI FlyerII. These ARE LIGHT WEIGHT - they noticably helped when I changed over to these by turning a shorter arc with less effort during cutbacks. They also release well when coming off the top and the acceleration without stalling (never paid attention to how single foiled fins stall) when you are dropping in or bottom turning is noticable - compared to the original fins on the same board. There you go - my two cents - hope it is worth something to someone. P.S. plan to buy the MR Mega quad but really really want to use the FCS H2 quad set-up once I find out what is available out there. Single foil fins are out dated in my eyes after 1.5 yrs on the H2’s pete, on March 10, 2008 @ 3:43 am |Just picked up a custom Byrne quad fin EPS/epoxy, 6′4″x19.5″x2.375″, baby swallow, running it with Future Vector IIs and 3.75″ trailers. I’ve never ridden a quad prior to this, and have had it out in waist high to 1.5X overhead conditions. The speed that the quad generates is pretty amazing. Takeoffs on steep waves are a breeze and the board holds lines much higher on the wave, which is great for tuberiding. A bit harder to throw around like a thruster, and definitely likes more rail-to-rail surfing, but I am sold. Love the quad! David, on March 15, 2008 @ 1:08 am |I just recieved my custom fluid juice Quad. Absolutely Stunning. Cant wait to test it out. Jason, on March 24, 2008 @ 10:20 am |just wanted to pass the word. Oh first must thank Neal for all the fin suggestions since i finally found a great mix of fins. I have the bill johnson stealth quad which i have never had a problem with the fins but have the fcs sf4 in the back and m5 or maybe m3 in the front But i am very tall and very thing so good for drive but still get the hold but still very loose with the sf4 in the back. But i also have a bat tail 6′4 performance quad that i have fin problems with but finally found a great mix. put my thruster pc5 (but sure the quad set are the same) and put the gx in the back great combo and i do not get hung up like i use to but i also decided to take this board to the next step by having it converted to a 5 fin so i can sometimes surf it as a thruster since i love the board but its kinda tight on turns like all the quad i have ever rode compared to a thruster. So i will let everyone know how this goes when i am done so wish me luck!!!! Kyle, on April 9, 2008 @ 11:51 am |i had a battail quad shaped by Mark Wooster and thought it was horrible…so stiff nothing like my thruster im definitly not bought on these quads still willing to try them cuz they must work if everyone loves them maybe its the shaper…any advice??? email me at Kchotos1@hotmail.com Neal, on April 10, 2008 @ 2:26 am |Kyle, it could be your fin setup…I noticed that if the quad fins are set too far apart they feel more like a thruster. When they’re set closer together you get that loose twin fin kind of feel. In my opinion when you have the quad fins set properly they go way faster than tri fins. Jason, on April 14, 2008 @ 10:01 am |ok, I got my conversion project (converted my bat tail quad to a thruster) back about 2 weeks ago and….well its amazing. Its so perfect. I haven’t tried it again being a quad but its still got so much drive as a thruster and is so loose of the bottom. The only problem is its sometimes tough to control the speed since i don’t have those back fins as support anymore but i think that might have to do with my skill level as well. But its the perfect board also love the bat tail on a thruster might get it done on another board in the future. But just wanted to let anyone know. But i still love the quads as well…well the bill johnson ones. hit me up if you need some info or want to know more about how the experiment is going! jason1435@hotmail.com Empire Ave | Chris Cote x UNIV, on April 19, 2008 @ 9:50 pm |[…] Chris has painted a board with some of his original art, which is a colourful take on the weapons and contraband featured in popular streetwear prints of late. The surfboard is a progression in design, a four-fin double-ender meant to be ridden both forward and backwards with ease! […] turtle, on May 6, 2008 @ 10:54 am |I just picked up a Joe Blair quad. Joe’s shaping out of Solano Beach, Ca. I’m a bigger guy (6′1″, 215lbs). So, I’m going with a bigger 7′0″ quad, pin tail set up. Joe’s been shaping quad for years. He swears by them. I’ll be taking my new board out this week and will update on how it goes. turtle, on June 9, 2008 @ 6:16 am |I’ve been riding the Joe Blair Quad for a couple of weeks, I’m completely stoked with the board. The board has the XTR (epoxy) plank, floats me great, and is the fastest board I’ve ever surfed. The quad forces you to ride the tail and go rail to rail. It turns great, I’m sold on the quad. Simon, on June 13, 2008 @ 4:13 pm |I’ve been surfing Quads for the last 18 months. I LOVE them. I’ve got a 6′2 a 6′6 and 6′8 channel bottom (all Murray Bourton). I ride the 6′2 everyday, and it is the most capable small wave board i’ve ever had…..very fast and loose, loves the hollow bits and seems to get around looong sections like thrusters never did. I took the 6′6 and 6′8 to G-Land early this year, and they went amazingly. I don’t think the 6′8 even has a top speed! JD, on June 24, 2008 @ 8:40 pm |I too have a Joe Blair quad, it’s an XTR double bump pin tail. I’m 6′5, 185, and the board is 6′8. Its really wide, its marked 21.5 but I think its closer to 22. But it is the best riding board I’ve ever had, its unbelievably fast. I’m not that great a surfer, but I can’t say enough about it…Ican connect sections I honestly have trouble making on a longboard. I used to ride a narrower board, but this board turns better, even though its so wide (maybe because the outline isn’t as straight?). I was going to give up on quads, my first one kept spinning out when I’d drop in…not with this one though. I was out in Del Mar a few days ago when there were nice head high waves, switched off between this board and my friend’s 7′0 thruster…the difference in speed and agility was astounding. The 7′0 labored to catch waves, felt slow and less willing to make a turn, but at the same time was less stable, just didn’t feel as solid in any aspect. I think ideally I’d ride a 6′6, as the 6′8 can be hard for me to duckdive deep enough on larger waves. Hard for me to tell if it’s the shape of the board (honestly its the widest shortboard you’ll ever see, but it all looks proportional) or the fins or the light XTR foam or what, but this board is something else. I swap boards a lot, can’t bring myself to ride anything else anymore. i’m going to get a center fin slot put in so I can try it as a thruster to see if its the fins or not. go to jblairsurf.com, the model I have is at the bottom of the custom boards page. Micah, on July 8, 2008 @ 3:00 pm |has anybody tried “the new toy” from surf RX. I saw one in the shop and was thinking about buying one as my first quad but i want to make sure im getting the right one. eric, on September 3, 2008 @ 7:11 pm |Jason, Grandma Lips, on September 17, 2008 @ 7:54 am |sooooooooo…..for small florida surf i cant decide to take a risk and go quad or stay thruster and tiwn. so my question is how similar is a quad to a twin finny John, on September 22, 2008 @ 9:41 am |im looking to get a quad im either gonna get a rusty bat tail or a bill johnson stealth tail or maybe even the rusty stealth tail. suggestions? Kamil, on October 28, 2008 @ 3:49 am |Got a proquad from Arnaud Bazat, see pics: http://i37.tinypic.com/8×606v.jpg http://i38.tinypic.com/2ikpshe.jpg Fins are quite far apart, the back fins having no cant. It does feel great riding proper waves but sometimes I wish it could perform better in smaller waves. All in all a great board however here in Holland it can’t beat my 6′0 twinner fish. Kamil, on October 28, 2008 @ 3:53 am |more pics: Cheerz Leave a commentRSS feed for these comments. | TrackBack URI |
Quad fins are making a comeback and increasing in popularity. Superstars like Kelly Slater and Bruce Irons are riding quads and there is talk that once someone on tour wins a contest with a quad, all hell will break loose and the quad will see an explosion similar to the abundant fish population.
Ronnie, on April 26, 2007 @ 12:40 pm |
Good article and explanation. Todd Proctor has taken the art of shaping quad fins to a totally different level! If you are looking for a quad fin board that offers everything you wanted in a board…then you should check out www.proctorsurf.com Tell em, Ronnie sent you!
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