Single-Foil vs. Double-Foil Fins
If you have ever looked closely at your surfboard fins, you will likely notice that fins that go in the center of your board (including single fins) are double foiled (foiled evenly on both sides of the fin), whereas fins that go out on the rails (including twin fins and the outside fins of thrusters and quads) are single foiled (flat on the inside and foiled on the outside).
Wow, that was a long sentence with a lot of parenthesis.
Let's get into it...
Austin has been test-driving a new performance twin fin model recently, and in his excitement to get in the water found a random old set of double-foiled twin fins in a crate in the back of the shop.
Here are Austin's words...
"So, we are in beta testing on a performance twin fin here at Almond Surfboards, which is exciting. But on its first few surfs, I found it to be on the sluggish end of things and lack drive. Mr. Neumann-Kyle was here yesterday and kindly pointed out to me that my Twin Fins had double foil in them and that could have been the impetus of my problem. A double foil or 50/50 foil is something you would tend to find on a single fin or your center back fin."
The double-foiled fins lack the bite that Austin was seeking, which was especially felt when he was trying to drive the board up the face of the wave.
Upon Griffin's passionate insistence, Austin swapped out the fins he had been riding for a set of single-foiled upright twins.
"After Griffin's suggestion to switch out the fins, I went for a surf again last night after work. I immediately began surfing how I always imagined the performance twin to surf. It had immense drive and responsiveness off the rail. A great blend of performance and speed. Turns out the fins had more than a little to do with the performance of the board."
It was a good reminder for all of us, and one we wanted to pass along... fin style and placement plays a huge role in how your board feels, drives, and turns. A different set of fins (or moving your single fin in the box) can instantly transform your surfboard—and your surfing.
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