I bought a new board last year. None of the info available describes the fin box, but when I asked the distributor I was advised in writing it was tuttle. The board doesn't come with a production fin, so I ordered two new tuttle fins for it. When it arrived, I was surprised to find it's actually fitted with a deep tuttle. It's only a 91L slalom. I now have the problem of the fins deeply recessing into the board. So far I've tried tape and then spray putty on the front and back of the fin, but I had to apply so much to get the fit that the putty is cracking and chipping off under pressure - wont last more than a few goes.

I've already had some fantastic advice from Isaac and Keef, but just thought I'd check if anyone has any magic solutions to fit tuttle fins to a deep tuttle box?

I understand there's a couple of brands that put deep tuttle boxes in small boards. What are the advantages of doing this?

Any hot tips greatly appreciated!

Hi Nicole,

Is this a Carbon Art board? Both of mine look like they have deep tuttle boxes (even though they're only 50cm and 58cm wide). I think it's just the style of box they use which runs from the bottom of the board right up to the deck. They also seem to be larger than other boxes I have, the same fins sit deeper then in CarbonArts than my Starboards & JP. I've had to wrap a tuttle head in a re-shaped coke can to get it to sit in a Carbon Art box.

All things being equal, a tuttle fin should fit a deep tuttle box - I put a 26 cm slalom fin in my formula board (to teach my wife in shallow water).

Other than that, I've used mylar tape on the sides and Knead-It on the ends of a tuttle box to enlarge the head to fit it in to a larger finbox.

I recently got this when I purchased a second hand board.

Nicole I like to use the metal knead-it, its basically your normal knee-dit with steel filings and it sets in 5 min, normally you would build up the fin but in your case you will have to build up the box (http://www.selleys.com.au/putty/epoxy/knead-it-steel/) you can use it as a repair on any part of your board except its black
just get a bit of sand paper and rough up the back of the box ,
then stick some Vaseline on the back of THE FIN WITH THE BIGGEST HEAD (you only need to do the back)
mix up some knead-it and work it into the back of the finbox
insert the fin into the box and screw down so the fin is level with the board and the knead-it will ooze out
wait 10min and pull the fin out
you will need the knead-it to be solid but soft enough so you can cut it with a long Stanley blade (cut towards the tail you don't want to pull the shim out)
what you will find is there will be a blob of knead-it on the back of the box where the top of the fin was , so just get a screw driver and knock it off its not going anywhere
its just the same as making that shim we made at sanctuary point but its permanent
the best of luck, ive got the naish to 36+ and it jibes like a dream

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shear tip said..

Hi Nicole,

Is this a Carbon Art board? Both of mine look like they have deep tuttle boxes (even though they're only 50cm and 58cm wide). I think it's just the style of box they use which runs from the bottom of the board right up to the deck. They also seem to be larger than other boxes I have, the same fins sit deeper then in CarbonArts than my Starboards & JP. I've had to wrap a tuttle head in a re-shaped coke can to get it to sit in a Carbon Art box.

All things being equal, a tuttle fin should fit a deep tuttle box - I put a 26 cm slalom fin in my formula board (to teach my wife in shallow water).

Other than that, I've used mylar tape on the sides and Knead-It on the ends of a tuttle box to enlarge the head to fit it in to a larger finbox.

mike its about a 3mm gap and its a mistral 91 one of the best finished boards I have ever seen you would swear it's poly glass

Thank you very much. I think it's time to follow Keef's advice and bog the box

So I don't suppose anyone knows what the purpose or advantage of these oversized boxes is?

Hi Nicole I have had a couple of deep turtle fin boxes too. I have used spacers on the long fin bolts to hold the fin at the correct depth. You need some tube - maybe old tube batten it takes a bit of trial and error to get the right length and when you are putting the fin in you have to make sure the spacers stay on. This can be a bit fiddly but you get used to it and its better than bogging up the board.

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needsalt said..

Thank you very much. I think it's time to follow Keef's advice and bog the box

So I don't suppose anyone knows what the purpose or advantage of these oversized boxes is?

I think the purpose of the deep tuttle boxes is to give more surface area to stabilise and counteract the forces against larger fins. Its a pity we have all these different types of fin boxes.