FLIP TIPS are the term we use for the unique design of the tip extensions added to some of our fins. These tips add significant performance enhancements to the fins.

WTF, XTC, DS, and WS2 designs utilize these tips.

FLIP TIPS are set at between 14º - 16º angle (outboard) to the blade of the fin and provide a couple of important attributes to the performance of the fin.

Due to the hollow foils on the inside faces of the fins design that utilize these tips. The addition of the flip tip improves the efficiency of these inside foils. This is accomplished by allowing the hollow foil to extend to the tip. Making the un flipped portion of the fin a lot more efficient.

The tips themselves also have a slight hollow foil on the inside face to improve their efficiency and to better couple with the foil in the blade.

One of the most important attributes of these tips is how they allow the board to transition through turns. If you visualize these fins in use you can see that as the board transitions more to the rail the tips of the engaged fins become more vertical in the water.

Not only does this improve the feel of the fin, but it more importantly helps the board come around during the turn, as it provides something to pivot around. All of this is done without losing any speed!

Currently, the following HRD-KORE fins feature FLIP TIPS - WF2-S (Split keels front fin), DS-400, WTF-425 and XTC range.

FLIPTWO is the term used for our refined tip extension design. These tips add subtle performance enhancements to the fins.

QFT, Q5, WS2, and F8 designs all utilize these tips

FLIPTWO tips are flipped between 4º – 6º angle (outboard) to the fin's blade and provide a couple of essential attributes to the performance of the fin.

Due to the hollow foils on the inside faces of the fin designs that utilize these tips, the addition of the flip improves the efficiency of the inside foils. This is accomplished by allowing the hollow foil to extend to the tip. It makes the unflipped portion of the fin a lot more efficient.

The tips also have a slight hollow foil on the inside face to improve their efficiency and better couple with the foil in the blade. Compared to the older versions, the newer tips are significantly thinner, reducing the chance of cavitation.

One of the essential attributes of these tips is how they allow the board to transition through turns. If you visualize these fins in use, you can see that as the board transitions to the rail, the tips of the engaged fins become more vertical in the water. Not only does this improve the fin's feel, but it, more importantly, helps the board come around during the turn, providing something to pivot around. All of this is done without losing any speed! This newer, refined version is slightly more subtle than the previous versions but still has similar characteristics.

The photo shows the WF2-400F fin and the angle of the flip tips. These tips do not alter the fin's outline and are only noticeable when viewed from the front or back.

This newer version enables this tip style to be added to some of our CNC-machined fins. The older style tips would not have been possible due to the panel thickness required to accommodate the flip.

Currently, the following CNC fins will feature FLIPTWO tips – WF2-400F (Split keels front fin), QFT-500, QFT-425, Q5-600, Q5-550, Q5-500, Q5-475, Q5-450, Q5-425, and F8 range.

Foils play a crucial role in the design of a fin and can dramatically impact the performance. Most of our foils are loosely based around the NACA (National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics)  “00 series “of wing sections which is an ideal design for fins.

Our First foil design to talk about is

HANALEI FINS are unique in that we have perfected the use of inner hollow foils on the inside faces of most of our fins. We use these foils to increase performance and efficiency. In many cases, we also couple these foils with twists and turns in the trailing edge of the fin to better manage the ejection of water from the foils. These foils dramatically impact the overall performance of our fins, but in particular, on the speed! Our term for these inside foils is HOLOFOILS!

PHAT FOILS is our name for the thicker foils deployed on some of our fin designs. The fin's efficiency is dramatically improved by making the foils a lot thicker. Plus, on fins that also use our FLIP TIP technology, the PHAT FOILS allow a much better transition from the fin's blade into the tips.

Many different fins systems are available in the market, many with unique base styles. HANALEI FINS supports the three primary bases - GEARBOX (our base is also compatible with ProBox), DUAL TAB (FCS1 style) , and Single Tab (FUTURE Style)  for Twin Fins, Quad Fins and Thruster sets , and the REGULAR Finbox  base for normal longboard fin boxes.

The GEARBOX base is used in our fin system GEARBOX, and it features a full base for a solid feel and greater strength. The GEARBOX base also features vee notches where the screws land that allows the fin base to be forced down into the box when tightened, creating a compression fit.

The GEARBOX base is also compatible with the ProBox Fin System.

Dual Tab Base (FCS1 Style)

The DUAL TAB base is widely available due to many boards with twin plugs installed. The DUAL TAB base also fits in the GEARBOX fin box. These bases are designed to break under load and therefore tend not to be very durable, breaking at inopportune times. the other problem with these bases is the tendency to flex in the base instead of the fin. This is due to the narrow interface between the fin base and the box.

Due to its box design, the FUTURES fin base is much longer than other bases. Due to the nature of the fin box design, the cant angle is built into the base of the fins instead of into the box. This makes making fins for this system complicated, especially if they are custom fins, as the angle has to be machined into the fin base. Fit is critical for these bases as there are no means to tighten them if they are loose.

These bases can also be much heavier because they are almost double the length of a GEARBOX or DUAL TAB base. This is why you commonly see these bases heavily machined to lighten them up.

Modii Universal Finboxes are the newest boxes on the market  and we will be doing a couple of the GFD range in this design  - a single tab style that has a hook and screw to hold into tightly into the box – the base can be adapted quite easily to fit FCS2 finboxes

This is your regular fin box base that is used in longboards and single fins.

CNC Fins

Our newest fin construction methodology uses a CNC machine to create fins out of solid fiberglass panels. The method is the closest we can get to our hand-foiled fins. The process involves Robin making a sample fin it is thoroughly tested by team riders in Australia and Hawaii , which is then digitized into a 3D file. This file is then used to generate code that drives the CNC machine, allowing it to reproduce exact copies of the sample fin. The process involves first laying up panels of solid fiberglass that are then placed in the machine. The thickness of the panels varies depending on the size and thickness of the fin. One side of all the fins on the panel is machined first. Then the panel is flipped over and the other side is machined. It is a slow process but it produces precise fins.

As these are exact copies of the original they have the same flex and strength characteristics!

RTM molding is one of the most predominant methods for molding fins. It stands for Resin Transfer Molding. The fabrics and core that make up the fin are laid dry into a mold. The mold is then closed, and a vacuum is used to draw resin through the mold, wetting out the materials. Using a vacuum also draws all the air out of the laminate eliminating air bubbles.

RTM molding is much more cost-effective and less wasteful than the standard method of foiling a fin out of a solid fiberglass panel. Because a mold is used, it also makes it easier to manufacture more complex shapes consistently.

We are slowly moving away from this construction method to the CNC machining options as it gives us greater flexibility.