Looking at the many impressive sessions of some WA sailors on the GPSTC, they are using mark II Chris Lockwood fins (creatively nicknamed "Clockwoods"??) with great results and positive feedback. Last year he kindly sent through some detailed information on his mark I designs and I am enquiring if anyone has used the markII's in iSonics (preferably a 2014 iS90 and '13 iS110). It seems that most the sailors (and especially Chris himself) use fins much smaller than convention so I'm wondering if a 33-34cm for the iS90 (with 6.3 & 7.0) and 38-40cm for the iS110 (with 7.8 mainly) would be the optimum size. I have successfully used Select S1 33cm & 34cm Goldwing with the iS90 and a 40cm StingII with the iS110 /7.8 and 44F-hot with the iS110/8.6.

My past experience with his KA slalom fins has been brilliant. In case I haven't mentioned this before I sail open ocean and weigh low to mid 90kgs.

Photo of the Lockwood markI's (I think) - EDIT JJ confirmed these are Mark II's ;

Hey Snags - I think it depends if your priority is to go downwind fast. If so - I reckon go small...

I use a CL SL1 30cm in an Isonic 86, Mistral 91 and Mistral 112 in the ocean (properly powered up) - magic fin.




I use a CL SL2 38cm (same fin as your pix) in my Mistral 137 - I'm 80kgs.

Cheers JJ

JJ,
Thanks for the info. I can understand the 30cm working in the iS87 & M91 but how the hell do you get it to work in a 68cm wide board in the ocean (even fully powered up)? So you can effectively go smaller with the CL's.
I doubt conditions here would really allow peak 2sec speeds above 34-35knots so a slightly larger fin per se isn't going to be significantly slower but be beneficial when needing to point hard. Anyway what I'm asking is, would a CL slalom 33cm for the iS90 and 38cm for the iS110 be good all round choice?

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sausage said..

Looking at the many impressive sessions of some WA sailors on the GPSTC, they are using mark II Chris Lockwood fins (creatively nicknamed "Clockwoods"??) with great results and positive feedback. Last year he kindly sent through some detailed information on his mark I designs and I am enquiring if anyone has used the markII's in iSonics (preferably a 2014 iS90 and '13 iS110). It seems that most the sailors (and especially Chris himself) use fins much smaller than convention so I'm wondering if a 33-34cm for the iS90 (with 6.3 & 7.0) and 38-40cm for the iS110 (with 7.8 mainly) would be the optimum size. I have successfully used Select S1 33cm & 34cm Goldwing with the iS90 and a 40cm StingII with the iS110 /7.8 and 44F-hot with the iS110/8.6.

My past experience with his KA slalom fins has been brilliant. In case I haven't mentioned this before I sail open ocean and weigh low to mid 90kgs.

Photo of the Lockwood markI's (I think) - EDIT JJ confirmed these are Mark II's ;

that's why there have been so many shark sightings over there

Snags - I know - it's weird but the 30cm fin is a screamer in the M112. Handles the ugly river chop too.

I think 33cm for the IS 90 and 38cm for the IS110 would be great, perhaps drop to 32 and 36 at upper wind ranges for those boards.


I have 2 fins for each board (for upper and lower wind ranges)

M91 - SL1 27 and SL1 30

M112 - SL1 30 and SL1 34

I think the consensus it that the SL1 is a bit slipperier so a fraction more top-end, SL2 has fraction more grunt and more controllable, both are magic fins.

Snags
I use the following in my 82 wide mistral (not sure of the width of the ISO 110?)
38-7.0&7.8
40-7.8
46 -7.8-10.0

In this board the 38 is sensational(mk2)
I think Chris uses this one a lot as well.

The mk1s are as recycle states above-downwind speed oriented.
Mk2s are classic around slalom

I am waiting on a 30 mk2 specifically for my mistral91 58 ish wide- this should be the optimum fin

For your 90 and 110 I recon recycle would be correct with his recomendation..

I have to add,bender used my mk1 36 in his ISO 97 in sharkbay and loved it...if this helps?

I have a 38 lockwood for my 107carbon and it rocks. What can i say up wind, down wind, flat and rough it make no differences it just works. Sausage i think you looked at it when you sailed down the Gold Coast.

Thanks JJ and Snides. I understand Chris has also designed a G10 range and they will be released soon. Looking forward to seeing those as well.

JJ, is that a super big carbon weave the CL1 30 is fabricated from?

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Jas71 said..

I have a 38 lockwood for my 107carbon and it rocks. What can i say up wind, down wind, flat and rough it make no differences it just works. Sausage i think you looked at it when you sailed down the Gold Coast.

Jason, I thought you had the iS76 out the day I was down??? I recall you had Vector fins but not a CL. Is yours carbon or is it a KA slalom? I'm thinking a 38carbon as mentioned above for the 75 wide iS110.

Sausage, I have 48, 38, 34 in the SL2. Got these for 135, 115, 100 Patrik Slalom boards (85, 70, 64 wide)

I tried the 34 in the 115L the other day (7.5m sail) and it was great to my surprise. I've had 40cm G10 fins that have felt too small on this board. I'm now looking forward to trying the 38 in my 135L. I will even give the 34 a try!

I did notice with the 115/34 combo it was a bit harder to hoike upwind but off the wind was sensational.

Yer its carbon and i love it, ill be getting more. They are a little expensive but worth it. The vectors are nice fins but i like the lockwoods more. See you at Burrum Sausage

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snides8 said...
Snags
I use the following in my 82 wide mistral (not sure of the width of the ISO 110?)
38-7.0&7.8
40-7.8
46 -7.8-10.0

In this board the 38 is sensational(mk2)
I think Chris uses this one a lot as well.

The mk1s are as recycle states above-downwind speed oriented.
Mk2s are classic around slalom

I am waiting on a 30 mk2 specifically for my mistral91 58 ish wide- this should be the optimum fin

For your 90 and 110 I recon recycle would be correct with his recomendation..

I have to add,bender used my mk1 36 in his ISO 97 in sharkbay and loved it...if this helps?

Sorry JJ my bad, it was you who posted not Recycl....

Hi guys,

Fins are available- you can PM me for details.

The wider weave carbon was a limited production- we are back to normal carbon now since its much easier to work with and get the best finish.

Brian, for a 75 wide I think 38cm would be about right for an allrounder in the SL2: take a few cm off what you would normally put in this board. They are really grunty for the size.

SL1: works best when you are doing low 20s+ (ie you need to be powered up most of the time). Lower drag overall. Really fast in wider boards since you can go a bit shorter. Ideal for speed sailing on slalom boards.

SL2: fantastic allround- more bottom end than SL1, still really good top end (got my 26cm to 45kts), and is a little less susceptible to weed pickup.

Seeing sindes has dragged me into this ,my two boobs worth,Snags,I used a S2 38 in last years 107 with a 7.8 and found it a little big but only just.so should be perfect in the 110 as an alrounder,Ive just aquired a 2014 97 and have used it a couple of times well powered with 7.0 and S2 30,felt good for speed and bare aways but a little small for across and up wind am about to order a 33 for lighter winds and the 7.8 ,the 90 has a very narrow tail and requires a small fin than you would think for its overall width, for your weight and as an alrounder for the 6.3/7.0 a 32 /33 I think would be the go .

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recycle said..

Seeing sindes has dragged me into this ,my two boobs worth,Snags,I used a S2 38 in last years 107 with a 7.8 and found it a little big but only just.so should be perfect in the 110 as an alrounder,Ive just aquired a 2014 97 and have used it a couple of times well powered with 7.0 and S2 30,felt good for speed and bare aways but a little small for across and up wind am about to order a 33 for lighter winds and the 7.8 ,the 90 has a very narrow tail and requires a small fin than you would think for its overall width, for your weight and as an alrounder for the 6.3/7.0 a 32 /33 I think would be the go .

Recycle, Thanks for your two boobs worth (just don't post any photos of those mammies). I think I'll go with the 33 and 38 - my thinking is the 33 can be used in my iS97 as well as the iS90 and the 38 will be a great all rounder for the iS110.

Chris, Thanks for the feedback too. Will your G10 range be under an already established brand i.e Mistral?

Snags, I believe they'll be sold under the brand "Tribal"

Slides let me borrow his 34cm C.L fin late in the day today. Had used my 36cm Vector Rockit in my Patrik 92 with my 5.6 m for the previous hour plus.

A decent gust came up late in the day so got a reasonably powered up run on it.

Managed to line up another sailor who I had been racing earlier in the day.

Was the 34cm fin faster? No,not really. Close to identical in speed actually. Had the wind been stronger,may well have been faster though.

The fin itself, felt it produced almost as much lift as the bigger 36cm Rockit. You can definitely go a smaller size with these fins. The feel was very smooth. It lifted the board high out of the water without the feeling i was going to get overpowered if a bigger gust hit me. This is possibly due to the extreme curve in the tip of the fin.

Overall I think board size and sail tune make a bigger difference than fin choice.

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petermac33 said..

Slides let me borrow his 34cm C.L fin late in the day today. Had used my 36cm Vector Rockit in my Patrik 92 with my 5.6 m for the previous hour plus.

A decent gust came up late in the day so got a reasonably powered up run on it.

Managed to line up another sailor who I had been racing earlier in the day.

Was the 34cm fin faster? No,not really. Close to identical in speed actually. Had the wind been stronger,may well have been faster though.

The fin itself, felt it produced almost as much lift as the bigger 36cm Rockit. You can definitely go a smaller size with these fins. The feel was very smooth. It lifted the board high out of the water without the feeling i was going to get overpowered if a bigger gust hit me. This is possibly due to the extreme curve in the tip of the fin.

Overall I think board size and sail tune make a bigger difference than fin choice.

Peter,
I understand where you are coming from but tend to disagree re: board size and sail tune make a bigger difference than fin choice. A lot of sailors underestimate the value and effect that a fin can add or subtract to the sailing experience i.e put an unsuitable fin in a perfectly tuned board and sail and it will still be a dog to ride. Add a good fin and problem solved although a combination of all 3 perfectly tuned is the ideal.

I like the idea of a curved leading edge for rough water - my theory is when a board starts pitching up / bouncing around & /or tail walking in rough conditions (i.e. nose up) a fin with a more acute (closer to vertical) leading edge, the tip can potentially reach a point where it is in front of the leading edge at the base and that becomes very messy for the rider. A curved leading edge eliminates the potential for the fin tip to travel ahead of the leading edge (perpendicular to the water surface) at the base. Of course this only my opinion and I have very limited knowledge of fluid dynamics.

BTW is your Vector Rockit carbon or G10?

My fin is the G10 Rockit. Being a lightweight I get overpowered more using carbon fins. My favourite fin for the Patrik 92 is my super soft 36EX. Tested it against the 36cm Rockit and

I'm faster with the softer fin in 20 plus knots for sure. The stiff Rockit planes much quicker though,better upwind and thru the lulls. In 25 knots I have used the 34cm Rockit in this board and it feels so much smaller and controllable than the 36cm Rockit. I bought a 46cm fin from Chris for my big board which I no longer use. Tested about 6 or 7 others and the C.L was easily the best.

I agree the wrong fin can turn a great board into a dog. Forget my fin for my i-87 last winter and borrowed another 32cm G10 from Kevin. It was too upright and stiff

and thought i was in a fight. Comparing top designed fins the differences in speed are so small...I think.

Another way to go faster is use a smaller sail. If I go smaller than my 5.6 though,the increase is nothing. From 6.3 down to my 5.6 the increase in top end is huge. Using my 7m I only have two gears.

Hence i now only use my 5.6m or stay home.

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paddymac said..

Sausage, I have 48, 38, 34 in the SL2. Got these for 135, 115, 100 Patrik Slalom boards (85, 70, 64 wide)

I tried the 34 in the 115L the other day (7.5m sail) and it was great to my surprise. I've had 40cm G10 fins that have felt too small on this board. I'm now looking forward to trying the 38 in my 135L. I will even give the 34 a try!

I did notice with the 115/34 combo it was a bit harder to hoike upwind but off the wind was sensational.

Hi paddymac
I have the 100l Patrik as well. Do you still think the 34 Sl2 is a good all rounder or would you go a bit smaller. I use mine with a 6.2 & 7m and 90 kg of ballast.

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Waiting4wind said..

paddymac said..

Sausage, I have 48, 38, 34 in the SL2. Got these for 135, 115, 100 Patrik Slalom boards (85, 70, 64 wide)

I tried the 34 in the 115L the other day (7.5m sail) and it was great to my surprise. I've had 40cm G10 fins that have felt too small on this board. I'm now looking forward to trying the 38 in my 135L. I will even give the 34 a try!

I did notice with the 115/34 combo it was a bit harder to hoike upwind but off the wind was sensational.

Hi paddymac
I have the 100l Patrik as well. Do you still think the 34 Sl2 is a good all rounder or would you go a bit smaller. I use mine with a 6.2 & 7m and 90 kg of ballast.

For you, I think my Talons would be MUCH better

I have only had the 34 out once with a 6m on the 100L. But it was enough to know I had to have it, really drove the board out of the water but with control. Could have gone smaller but this one will be great with larger sails and upwind legs. For an all rounder I think this is the one. I'm keen to try a smaller one for going broad. I may give the 30 weedy a whirl as many of our speed spots are weedy or shallow.

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[b]

Hi paddymac
I have the 100l Patrik as well. Do you still think the 34 Sl2 is a good all rounder or would you go a bit smaller. I use mine with a 6.2 & 7m and 90 kg of ballast.

For you, I think my Talons would be MUCH better

I have only had the 34 out once with a 6m on the 100L. But it was enough to know I had to have it, really drove the board out of the water but with control. Could have gone smaller but this one will be great with larger sails and upwind legs. For an all rounder I think this is the one. I'm keen to try a smaller one for going broad. I may give the 30 weedy a whirl as many of our speed spots are weedy or shallow.

Thanks, yes the Talons would have been good if you hadn't of mentioned the SL2!

Well we had a bit of wind and some flat water on Monday and I got to test out a couple of the fins with a powered up 6.5m Turbo.

First up, in a building, gusty breeze, I wanted to test the 135L 85cm wide with the 38cm fin. Sweet from the get go with loads of grip. 27s, 28s on this combo but felt the back leg starting to fade from too much grunt

Try the 34... can't believe it ... the only time it let go was if I was a bit clumsy getting my back foot in the strap. As soon as it was up to speed, no problems hoiking upwind and heaps of control off the wind. A couple of comfy 30s for a big board PB for me. A bit better trim and tuning and I would have gone faster as I couldn't keep the pedal down in a couple of squirts. Keen to give raygun a challenge for the 85cm 2sec peak

Rest of the day was spent with the 34 in the115L 70cm wide board. I can now see how a 30 would work in this board and be smoking in the 100L. Keen to see how small you can go.

There's something special about having a small powerful fin in a large board in flat water. You can get up wind so easily and you have heaps of leverage. And in the lulls you have a nice advantage. I had a ball! Nice fins!!!

Hey paddy. Your on.
31 something kn's is mark. But I did that with a 47 fin. Just picked up a 44 volt2 for the beast, hoping to give that a run when I get back and see how it goes. I also have a 40 Canefire Carbon that I can give a go but may need more wind for that.
This is my last swing doing the FIFO gig so hope to make it out more often. Look forward to seeing you out there and we will put these boards through their paces. They must have more to give.

Colin let me try his Patrik 92 with what I consider a very small fin for the board a Vector 32 EX in G10 with his 7m Warp. Honestly it was shocking.

The board did not plane as there was next to no drive from the fin. The wind was around 20 knots. Was planning quicker on my 5.6m that day.

Small fins with big boards feel crap for me,even worse with a big sail too.

For off the wind peak speed,yes they are great,but not for all round sailing.

Next I want to try a 31 or 32 C.L fin in my Patrik 92. Then i want to try a 30 or 31 in my i87 and see if there are any differences in speed over my Volt 31cm.

Great fun testing gear!

Tried my new SL2 34 on 101 Isonic last monday. Pretty stoked with the way it goes. I'm probably not the best person to be reviewing fins as I've really only used Talons and a few weed fins but I can say this fin is way better then my Talons.

Compared to my 34 Talon it had much better speed across the wind and I could point higher yet still felt even more slippery off the wind as well. The start of the session was pretty underpowered and I noticed it doesn't plane as early as the Talon in very marginal wind but as soon as you can pump onto the plane and get some water flowing over the fin it comes to life. Once on the plane it would hold it longer in the lulls. When the wind built I had no problems getting on the plane so its really only noticeable in very marginal conditions.

I intentionally launched of some of the bigger chop to see if it would spin out and it was solid as a rock. Not one spin out for the session in quite lumpy water.

The best way for me to rate this fin is by the number of woohoo!! moments and on that basis its outstanding.

Grumps

Hmm any possible way to ship these to the US? Currently using Select's VMaxs and HotRods but would love to try these fins!

PM Slowboat , he will be able to set something up for you

Jas71 showed me his 38 at Burrum - when I took it out of the cover there was an angelic type harp sound (albeit from Jason ). Seeing these in the flesh I was incredibly impressed with the craftsmanship that must go into them (especially that trailing edge).

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sausage said...
Jas71 showed me his 38 at Burrum - when I took it out of the cover there was an angelic type harp sound (albeit from Jason ). Seeing these in the flesh I was incredibly impressed with the craftsmanship that must go into them (especially that trailing edge).

Ha like that angelic harp sound!
More like the sound a Hattori Hanzo blade makes when it's drawn
Re kill bill

received my two CLsl2 , a 34 & 36.

tried the 34 on Monday and then again today with a patrik sl 100 + point7 ack 6.4

First impressions on Monday : 16/18knts average chop, lots of lift and a very impressive speed crosswind. Changes the handling of the board quite a lot, from being a very gentle and forgiving board the patrik turned into a scary speed beast. A bit more control is required but you really feel the fin working under your back foot. No spin outs and a dream to gybe and exit at speed.

today : choppy, very choppy, 25+ knts, speed is still there but had more issues driving it upwind, moved my lines a bit further upfront, much better. Didn't want to move the mast track as I really wanted to keep that speed.
Went out to our flat water spot (ilot maitre) only scored a 32 knts, a bit disappointed but didn't bear away as I was working on my upwind speed.

Session finished earlier than I wished with the 34 gently rubbing over a turtle at full speed and loosing 5 mm of carbon in the process....
Bloody expensive reptile !
Don't know if its related but on the way back in large swell (1.5m+) I was spinning out quite lot and having issues recovering.

Sanded it back to a decent shape and will have to wait til Friday to see how it works now it's been customised...

Hi Sean,

Glad you got your fins.

SL2 doesn't push the nose down as much as other fins so the board doesnt stick at really high speeds.

In rough conditions or using a big board in strong wind I run the track forward to balance everything. There is no loss of speed, just an increase in control. If you do this with other fins the board will stick and feel horrible.

Also, as mentioned before, the fins have a lot of power for their size, so its best to go a few cm smaller than normal for a similar power match.

From what you wrote, it looks like you could run with the track a bit further forward to settle things down, and perhaps the fins you bought are a bit big for the conditions. 34cm in 25kts wind is a lot. Re the spinouts, there is something wrong there. One of the best things about these fins is their ability to hang in under trying situations, and if they go they recover immediately. The tip would have to be quite smashed to make the fin spin out as you describe. The only other explanation is you had the track way too far back, not enough downhaul, or something else out of balance.

As for repairs, 5mm off the tip will hardly be noticeable if you clean it up. I hope the turtle is OK?!!