I know there have been a few discussions on weed fins in here but what I would like to know is what size would you recommend for a 155lt GO?
I was out at Lake Connewarre today and the weed was shocking. The board was sliding out all over the place. I had to stop so many thimes just to clear the fin.
At the moment I just have the standard Drake fin that comes with it.
And also has anyone tried to make their own fins?
I have a JP 31cm Weedy which works great - they're machine cut out of G10 and are very strong and damage resistant (exactly what I need). It looks like the largest they do is 36cm - I don't know if this would be big enough for your board - take a look at the JP site:http://www.jp-australia.com/2008/index.php?id=73
Another good one is the Choco which comes in 40cm - checkout:
www.chocofins.com/fins/weeed/
Yep I make my own fins, at the moment I'm experimenting with a cedar core covered with carbon, comes out light and stiff.
Bender has just rebased his GO drake fin at 45%, not sure if he's tried it yet
I had a GO 160ltr and used what I remember was a Select weedy. I can't remember the size, but it worked really well. Jezz at 2nd Wind would know what size to use. Send him a PM. They are site sponsors.
Has anyone here tried the Flying Objects weedies? Comments?
www.hugedomains.com/domain_profile.cfm?d=auswind&e=com
Hi All,
for a couple of years now I have exclusively used Select weedfins. I use a 22 (sometimes a 30) in my Starboard Sonic 85 and a 30 (sometimes a 32) in my Starboard Hypersonic 105.
The rake angle of the Select guarantees shedding the 6 x 1/4 inch eel grass we get at Pt Henry.
In my opinion the Selects are a great for blasting and freeride and an excellent beginner to intermediate fin. I say this because they give heaps of notice before spinning out. You can feel them go squishy, at which time, if you reduce back foot pressure and unload the fin a spin out is prevented. If you do not heed the warning the fin kinda says 'well I warned you' and eventually lets go. However, they continue to hold enough lateral resistance (probably due to their width) so that the board merely points at 45 deg to your track, again giving you the opportunity to take remedial measures to re-engage the fin. Usually, by yanking the tail of the board back under your butt with your rear foot and both feet still in the straps, or taking your back foot out to assist pointing the board downwind works. The point being a spinout with this fin does not automatically result in a crash.
The Flying Objects Weedster is not as wide and has less of a rake angel than the Select, yet It seems to effectively shed the type of weed we get (note - after making the mod Frant suggests. That little gap on the front edge it a great weed collector)
If you have a more performance or speed focus, the Select will be limiting. I borrowed Frants Flying Objects 26 G10 Weedster the other day, combined it with the Sonic 85 and a 6.6 SSR and found it to be more solid than the Select. It provided the almost (8/10) same positive feel and confidence as experience with an upright fin, in this case the Drake Slalom Pro 300, the Sonic 85 standard supplied fin. The FO was definitely a couple of klicks faster than the same kit on the Select fin.
Back to your original query OB64. I would go for a Select 30 or a Select 32 Weedfin for now. They are very forgiving to sail and cope with heaps of abuse, like running them into the sand. In a couple of years when you have worn an inch or two off of the bottom of it and your sailing objectives change, take a look an alternative.
I am going to get a Select 32 or 34 weedy this week and see how I go.
I am also very tempted to cut one of the Drake fins I have and re-pot it at a 45 degree angle just to see how it goes. I made a mold for the tuttle box which produced a couple of trial fins without too many problems.
Just to point out, the 155lt Go is a pretty big board - depending on your sail size, you might find that something with a bit more length might make sailing upwind a bit easier.
With the low tides on Lake Connewarre we are experiencing at present a Select 32 is as big as I would go. You might find dragging through the mud everywhere a problem otherwise. Check out the fins at 4 Winds as I think they might have a 32 for a good price.
Frant
I rang them today...they will have stock on Thursday hopefully.
Although I will have to think of a new excuse for dropping off the plane all the time... wont be able to blame the weed![]()