Search for a Location
  Clear Recents
Metro
South West
Central West
North West
  Surf Cameras
  Safety Bay Camera
Metro
North
Mid North
Illawarra
South Coast
Metro
West Coast
East Coast
Brisbane
Far North
Central Coast
Sunshine Coast
Gold Coast
Hobart
West Coast
North Coast
East Coast
Recent
Western Australia
New South Wales
Victoria
South Australia
Queensland
Northern Territory
Tasmania
  My Favourites
  Reverse Arrows
General
Gps & Speed Sailing
Wave Sailing
Foiling
Gear Reviews
Lost & Found
Windsurfing WA
Windsurfing NSW
Windsurfing QLD
Windsurfing Victoria
Windsurfing SA
Windsurfing Tasmania
General
Gear Reviews
Foiling
Newbies / Tips & Tricks
Lost & Found
Western Australia
New South Wales
Queensland
Victoria
South Australia
Tasmania
General
Foiling
Board Talk & Reviews
Wing Foiling
All
Windsurfing
Kitesurfing
Surfing
Longboarding
Stand Up Paddle
Wing Foiling
Sailing
  Active Topics
  Subscribed Topics
  Rules & Guidelines
Login
Lost My Details!
Join! (Its Free)
  Search for a Location
  Clear Recents
Metro
South West
Central West
North West
Surf Cameras
Safety Bay Camera
Metro
North
Mid North
Illawarra
South Coast
Metro
West Coast
East Coast
Brisbane
Far North
Central Coast
Sunshine Coast
Gold Coast
Hobart
West Coast
North Coast
East Coast
Recent
Western Australia
New South Wales
Victoria
South Australia
Queensland
Northern Territory
Tasmania
  My Favourites
  Reverse Arrows
All
Windsurfing
Kitesurfing
Surfing
Longboarding
Stand Up Paddle
Wing Foiling
Sailing
Active Topics
Subscribed Topics
Forum Rules
Login
Lost My Details!
Join! (Its Free)

Forums > Windsurfing Gear Reviews

ZULU FINS

Reply
Created by izymiester > 9 months ago, 18 Jun 2015
izymiester
WA, 325 posts
18 Jun 2015 8:49AM
Thumbs Up

ZULU fins are an exciting new fin brand from South Africa. I had the pleasure to meet the designer and brains behind the fins in Mauritius last year and in a year the quality and performance of his fins have increased ten-fold! I recently tried the 30 at the Defi wind France, after the competition and it was amazing in 45 knots. Then I was lucky to have a few sent to me for testing and well, the 32 placed 2nd at the Green island Nationals in the final 2 rounds of slalom. The only thing stopping 1st was bad starts in quality opposition. I was using the 38 in a few windy heats in the Patrik 115v2 and they were slick but the lighter winds wanted a 40 so placed my zfin back in for full power racing. The 32 was used in a 92 Patrik board and this combo was unstoppable in flat and rough water. It felt soft and grippy and super slippery. The trim of the board was second to none.

The fin is similar feel to the z fin but I feel that is wants to go deeper off the wind than most other brands I have tried. It seems to hold its lift and power when bearing away and when I get the chance will test more with gps. But I already know from racing at the Green Island Nationals that these fins are first class and will win races and events. Maybe the ledge to Lancelin it will fly off the wind, can't wait to try more :)

What I love about the fin is it is super soft under foot, but it delivers awesome power and is very user friendly and makes sailing much more predictable and fun.











seanhogan
QLD, 3424 posts
18 Jun 2015 11:22AM
Thumbs Up

what size sail were you using with the patrik 115& 38 ?

izymiester
WA, 325 posts
18 Jun 2015 10:12AM
Thumbs Up

Select to expand quote
seanhogan said...
what size sail were you using with the patrik 115& 38 ?


38 is good with 7.0. But I would try a 39 or 40 with 7.8 In most Conditions.

If you want to sail the Patrik 115v2 in a good 20 knots or more, then 38 will be perfect with 7.8 and 7.0

jaytee
WA, 154 posts
18 Jun 2015 11:10AM
Thumbs Up

Is the Shaka slalom fin close to production

seanhogan
QLD, 3424 posts
18 Jun 2015 2:15PM
Thumbs Up

interesting Isaac, I usually sail the 115 with 7.2 and 34 or 36 max
I upgrade to 38 for the 7.8

I always thought bigger fin meant quicker on the plane but then less top end speed

might have to try your combo

izymiester
WA, 325 posts
18 Jun 2015 3:27PM
Thumbs Up

Select to expand quote
seanhogan said...
interesting Isaac, I usually sail the 115 with 7.2 and 34 or 36 max
I upgrade to 38 for the 7.8

I always thought bigger fin meant quicker on the plane but then less top end speed

might have to try your combo



I would defiantly try the 40 Zulu in the 115. Both I and Rowan we are at different weights 70 and 88 kg are both agreeing that 40 is the size for maximum power in all wind ranges in slalom racing.

I'm 18 knots plus the 38 will work with 7.0 and 7.8.

Try mast track forward or boom down to get this to work for all round upwind/downwind.

On the Patrik 115 i have back straps all the way back and front ones in the 3rd hole forward. If you run severne mast track is almost at back of the nut widening slot. But other sail brands are forward a few cm more.

What fins are you using for 34 or 36? Even with carpenter I tried a 37.5 was usually too small. And these are one of the most powerful fins in the world. The Zulu is softer, slippery and faster I think with the patrik/Severne combo

seanhogan
QLD, 3424 posts
18 Jun 2015 6:03PM
Thumbs Up

I'm using lockwoods, straps all the way back, mast base slightly behind the middle, all my sails are P7 AC1's

I'm a heavy (fat) sailor 1.83 for 95kg... so I often switch to the isonic 117 with the 7.8 but keep the 38.

petermac33
WA, 6415 posts
18 Jun 2015 11:29PM
Thumbs Up

Chris sold me a 36 carbon fin that has from memory 13 degrees of rake.

I tried the much straighter 9 degree fin of the same design and length and honestly it was a complete shocker!

Virtually no lift so it was harsh to sail in the chop,as well as being downright slow! Also extremely poor thru the lulls for the same reason--- lack of lift.

Anyway,I'm absolutely loving the 13 degree raked fin in my 107 Sonic. It lifts the board sky high but somehow still provides decent control.

Chris told me he doesn't like this heavily raked fin but it depends what you're looking for.

This fin is a good bit more raked than my Vector EX fins which are the most swept back of the Vector range.

Need to do more testing but I definitely prefer the feel of a fin with this amount of rake.

Downside.....in a gust the extra lift provided by the steep rake can possibly count against you.

But I need to do further testing. 11 degrees is the rake in production CL fins.


izymiester
WA, 325 posts
20 Jun 2015 9:58AM
Thumbs Up

zulufins.com

Check out the website and the article on the front page

Ninjury
QLD, 167 posts
20 Jul 2015 12:59PM
Thumbs Up

I have been using a Zulu 40 with my AtomIQ 100 and a 7.3 sqm in Mauritius for everything from 13kts up to 25kts. I don't have too many other fins to compare it to but I can say it has excellent control in the wind chop in the lagoons. I have been pointing higher than the other windsurfers on similar size gear and it's just as happy going downwind. I'm not a slalom racer but it passes the freeride blasting test.

izymiester
WA, 325 posts
21 Jul 2015 9:24AM
Thumbs Up

Select to expand quote
sav911 said...
I have been using a Zulu 40 with my AtomIQ 100 and a 7.3 sqm in Mauritius for everything from 13kts up to 25kts. I don't have too many other fins to compare it to but I can say it has excellent control in the wind chop in the lagoons. I have been pointing higher than the other windsurfers on similar size gear and it's just as happy going downwind. I'm not a slalom racer but it passes the freeride blasting test.


Awesome to hear some feedback from a Freeride sailor. Yes they are super easy and fast, eat chop and there upwind/downwind range is phenomenal. I'm still getting amazed to how good they go deep off the wind, holding good power, lift and trim.



Subscribe
Reply

Forums > Windsurfing Gear Reviews


"ZULU FINS" started by izymiester