Fins for Dominator 6'8"

[oscar]

Hi to all,

I'm from Spain and this is my first post.

I'm 43, 6'4" tall, 185 lb and average fitness. I used to surf 12 years ago with a beginner to intermediate level though nowadays I guess my level is back to beginner as I've not surfed since then... I've bodysurfed a lot in quite big and strong waves all these years but not on a surfboard since 12 years ago.

I recently ordered a FS Dominator 6'8" at an internet shop, hopefully it will arrive in a couple of weeks. I wonder if I chose the right board, maybe a little too big?, would it have been better a 6'6"?

Wich are the recommended fins according to my weight, size and level?. Should I use quad or thruster set up?.

I wonder if all FS Dominator need FCS fins, or they can be built to use Future fins... Looking at firewire site it seems that Rapidfire tech uses Futures and FS uses FCS, am I right or wrong?....

Thanks a lot in advance for the help and info.

Cheers!,

Oscar

[buzzy]

Hey Oscar, you probably got a slightly too big board for your weight, but given you are effectively starting over it will work fine for you as you find your feet again in the water. I suspect you'll struggle with that board above head high, particularly duck diving, but as I say it will work perfectly for now. In a year or so you may want to look toward a 6'2" or 6'0".

So far as fins are concerned I'm going to assume you have FCS. For that size board I think you absolutely have to get a thruster set up, and quite big fins. A good neutral large fin is the PC7. Another good and popular one is the GAM. I use both. Another very popular one are the large Simin Anderson fins. To be honest, I think at this stage of your development you should choose between those templates based on what looks best and has the best price. You're unlikely to notice much performance difference between them.

Ultimately you will likely transition to a slightly smaller fin when you transition to a smaller board. Bearing that in mind the Simon Anderson large set is probably the best of that bunch, as it is the smallest. It can also be bought in quad and thruster configurations, so maybe you can get a SA 5 fin set up? I'm not sure, but it's worth checking.

Have fun. You'll love the board. It is going to be perfect for you at this stage of your development.

[gizona]

Hola Oscar,

I had the same question about the fins and in this forum answered that firewire boards can have two system(FCS or Futures)but not because construction/tech(FST or Rapidfire),you can order the system that you will want, I mean that if you did not specified in the order in spain normally came with fcs system but you have to ask to the shop where you buyed or wait the arrive the dominator.

Enjoy your firewire!!!!

[Gnubee]

I have heard that the PC7 is a solid fit with that board. I really like the Nexus H3, although I am not running them specifically in a Dom. The 6'8" is definitely big, but the good thing is that if you get better, you can go down to a 6'2" Spitfire and sell the Dom for what you paid for it (almost).

[Chris]

thanks for the words folks. Good feedback Buzzy.

Oscar yeah it might be a little too big for you, but I am not sure that you will be able to change it at this point. Keep in mind that the 608 size will definitely be nice in helping you get back into the sport, but as you improve, it may start to feel a little oversized. This will depend on how much you surf and how quickly you improve. Look at it as a good reintroduction board and then if its too big for you later, you can always re sell it.

Cheers

Cheers!

[oscar]

buzzy, gizona, Gnubee and Chris, thanks a lot for the info and advises, I really appreciate them.

I've asked the shop about the type of fins (FCS or FUTURES) of the board and I'm waiting for their response. I also presume that by default they will be FCS. I think I'll get the PC-7 thruster as I can't find any place where to order a 5 fin set up for PC-7, SA or GAM. Do you know if they are actually available anywhere?, wich site would you recommend me for buying them?. I've found a german site where I can get PC-7 thruster for 70€ (88$) shipping included. Is that a good price?.

About the size of my Dominator, now I think I ordered the wrong one... Sure it'll fit for the first days (maybe months...) but not for the next couple of years...

In fact I chose that size according to the Firewire Volume Calculator. Asuming Beginner/Inter. level, Average fitness, 45 years old (I'm 43) and 84 kg. I got a MIN volume of 53 and a MAX of 65. Dominator 6'8" has 49.4 L, 15.1 less than the recommended for a Hybrid board. Even changing to Intermediate Level I got a MAX volume of 50, the recommended for a hybrid board.

So my question is, did I make something wrong when I used the tool?, or maybe I misunderstood the meaning of the results?.

Besides those factors, does height really affect?, I always thought that the size of the board should be according to the surfer height, as the center of gravity changes (goes higher with taller surfers). What about this?... I'm 1.93 m (6'4") so I guessed that the size of the board should be at least 6'6" or a bit longer...

Anyway, I'm afraid it's too late to change the order as it has been already ordered to Firewire by the shop where I bought it (blue-tomato.com).

Anyone out there with a 6'8" Dom?... I'd appreciate a lot his comments....

Thanks again to all.

Cheers!,

Oscar

[tallkook]

Hey Oscar,

Don't stress mate. I too got a 6'8" Dominator a while back which was probably one size too large for me. I have since moved it on but it was still a great board. The extra volume makes catching waves a breeze and it was still very manouverable so I think you'll be fine. It's a great shape with plenty of forgiveness built in so for a beginner/intermediate having one a bit big won't hurt you for a while. You may want to move it on for something smaller in a while, but you also may find you like the ease of use of the extra volume. The only problem I had was that duck diving can get a bit hectic when the swell is big, otherwise it went really well for me. When I sold mine, I got good money for it too. Relax, you will love the board. As for fins, I ran the PC7's as a thruster, didn't like it as much as a quad. I'm 196cm and 90kg intermediate. Hope this helps.

[Gnubee]

Yeah Oscar, don't worry about it. I'm 6'6" and a regular short board for me (non-Firewire) would be a 6'8". The hybrids are different in that they pack a ton of foam into a smaller space. For example, I ride an El Fuego at 6'3", but could easily get away with a 6'1", and I'm not that good of a surfer. If I was on a Dom, I'd go with a 6'2", but lots of other people would choose differently.

[benny81]

Anyone tried the mayhem large 5 fin set?

[oscar]

Hey tallkook and Gnubee, thanks a lot for your comments and sorry for coming back a little too late...

In fact what I can't understand is why the volume calculator offers those results when everybody here (included Chris) see them as wrong ones. Anybody at Firewire who could explain this a little, please?.

I'm going to open a thread at FIREWIRE RESOURCES / VOLUME CALCULATOR chat asking about this, maybe there I'll find an answer?

Cheers!