Quad vs. Tri setup on the Naish Hokua 9'6

[justingordon]

Any advice on the Quad vs. Tri setup on the Naish Hokua 9'6?

I just got the Hokua 9'6 and am blown away:
* Surfs like a smaller board than 9'6. Much easier to turn than my previous Naish 10'6 long board shape.
* Paddles like a much bigger board in that it's super easy to catch waves, and I can even take it downwind to go from peak to peak, and even get some small glides when it's very windy. And I'm 200 pounds.
* Love the traction pad with the tail kick.
* Super light and easy to carry, very unlike a SUP.
* Nice looking with the wood deck.

So, quad or tri fin setup? I've been riding the quad.

Thanks.

Justin Gordon
http://www.sugarranchmaui.com

[tautologies]

I could not agree more. Pretty epic board. I have been so happy with the quad I have not even bothered testing the thruster setup.

[ehrawn]

I've tried the different setup options with the stock M-7 fins. The thruster forward box set up was way too turn-y and wouldn't track straight. Set to the back box, the board was still fast down the wave face, but it has a hard time tracking straight during the paddle out and is a little twitchy for anything bigger than waist high (for me). With my abilities, I prefer the quad: it loses a little bit of speed on small days, but makes for an straighter paddle out, holds the line on the wave face, and turns quick. I did get a pair of Q-1s to use as the trailing pair, which alleviated a little bit of the stiffness of the M-7s.