Hi all,
My coreban icon pure arrived yesterday and I rode it in flat water today. Board is still plenty floaty at 10 ft for my 6'2 185 to 190 lbs. I jumped down from a jimmy Lewis 11'6" so that we had a board that would be better for us east coast chop aka 2 to 5 ft wind chop but still was a functional as A flat water paddler. My question is I am looking for some fin help-something to track better in flat water than the stock 6.5 and also some tips for wave set up as a quad or tri. Any help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks

For the flat water, a 9" fin with a with a wide base will help it track better. For the surf I have found that the supplied quad fins are a touch small. I upgraded the fins in my Fusion (9ft version of the Icon) to larger ones for a bit more control. The standard rear fin works well as a thruster with the supplied side bites though. Play around with a few types of fins. Try surfing it as a single as well.

I'm running mine as a quad with the original fins and love it, but agree with Paul, try out different fins and even change the position of the standard centre fin in the finbox, I was surprised how much this seemingly simple task made the board feel very different. I don't mind the way it paddles in the flat as a quad, I just have to work more on good technique, and it turns on a dime. You can buzz it around everyone, and have a whole lot of fun learning board control which will eventually help in the surf.
Enjoy, it's a real fun board to paddle everywhere.
Not yet surfed as a single, but I certainly will. The fins provided certainly give you lots of options to explore.

I posted a similar question a few weeks ago, I'm anxiously awaiting the arrival of my new Futures Byron Kurt 9 inch ocean fin for flat water. Not cheap, but hopefully it will help. For now, I'm running my icon as a 2+1 for the flat water using the standard fins with the centre fin pushed all the way back in the box. Once I get up to speed, I find I can get a good 6-8 strokes per side before changing. Depending on the wind direction, I can get more.

I'll let you know how the new fin goes when it arrives (hopefully the next day or so).

Thanks guys. Looks like thruster or the supplied quads are a good starting point for the surf. The 9 inch for flat water sounds like the ticket. Keep me posted with your thoughts djgaffa. I think this board has to be on a short list as a good surfboard that also is a more than serviceable flat water paddler

For the surf I always kept coming back to the Paddle Surf Hawaii quad set on my Fusion - I liked the speed of the quads and the turning with the more vertical rear fins. See if you can borrow a set and give them a try. Another similar set would be the Rainbow Heaters but I'm not sure about their availability down under...

My new fin arrived today (unfortunatley after I had already been for a paddle) hopefully I'll get out tomorrow or friday to give it a run. Here's a couple of piccies to compare it with the original.

Big wide tail fish boards do not paddle in a straight line. Reminds me of my Starboard 9'8", lots of zig zagging. Nice looking fin, but I think you'll find it will paddle better with the side bites in.

Cheers for the advice re:side bites. I'll give it a go.

Fin theory - big long base give you the drive on long point breaks, and allows you to draw out big power turns, longer radius on turns / cut backs. The fins with a much shorter base are usually better suited to beachies, and allow tighter pocket turns.

That's the theory in its simple form, but rails, bottom contours, and rocker profiles also come into play.

You posted pics of 2 fins... I think you know which fin fits which theory.

Talk to Lacey about flex, tip area, rake, toe-in, and cut-aways !

Sorry for they delay in my review of the fins. (work gets in the way of everything fun)

I went out and experimented for a couple of hours and was surprised to find just how much of a difference different set ups make.

I tried the new bigger fin as both a single and with the side bites in.

When paddling with the side bites in, the board felt more stable than as a single, but I was surprised just how much drag they cause.

In either case, once up to speed, with the new bigger fin, I was able to go from 6-8 strokes per side to between 15 and 20 per side. This will make a huge difference to those days when I want to put in a bit of distance.

Just my 2 cents worth, but very happy with my purchase.