Read any blurb on fins and the term loose is used consistently. Same with most boards these days. But what is exactly "loose".
A Fin and a board can have solid,stable and loose in there description of characteristics which seems a contradiction.

Loose = maneuverable.. IMO.

I think it's a relative term compared to what youre riding at the moment.
Any new board or fins will always feel stiffer or looser than what your tuned to already.

no habla ingles

Chill Loose.

Loose is the feel of the board under your feet. A loose board has a type of controlled instability about it wants to move even though it may track quite well on the wave face.

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slowpoke2 said..
Loose is the feel of the board under your feet. A loose board has a type of controlled instability about it wants to move even though it may track quite well on the wave face.

Mmmmmm....yep got it. Not loose as in v8 ute trying to drive on a wet road. Which I would call loose. But assume that it's called skatey in fin talk.

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peguin said..

slowpoke2 said..
Loose is the feel of the board under your feet. A loose board has a type of controlled instability about it wants to move even though it may track quite well on the wave face.

Mmmmmm....yep got it. Not loose as in v8 ute trying to drive on a wet road. Which I would call loose. But assume that it's called skatey in fin talk.

I would say yes like a v8 ute in the wet as a really loose setup. got to feather the accellerator to gain control.
For me loose is when a board turns ultra fast and easy, so fast you need to control foot preassure and rail pressure to avoid blowing the fins out both in bottom and top turn. It has a skatey feel like it lifts and squirrels around under foot. Should you want to blow out the tail and fins you can easily do so via control.
Not sure if i really helped there or added other words to the mix...
An example of someone that rides a loose board: Keahi

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peguin said..
But what is exactly "loose".
A Fin and a board can have solid,stable and loose in there description of characteristics which seems a contradiction.

They can all fit in an accurate description of a board IMO
I would read as:
"stable": easy to stand on,comfortable in rougher conditions
"solid" : able to drive a hard turn without slipping and holds well on steep waves... a well designed board
"loose": the ability to snap turns easily, or easy to purposely slide the tail out on a cutback
opposite of loose = "sticky" which is what I call boards that resist turning because of shape or fins are too big.

I don't consider"loose" as slip slidey but some may use it that way