The last one looks like a quad with small center fin and the first two look like this: Bonzer – 5 fins. But (there is always a but:) you can also have a 3 fin bonzer with small side fins and large center fin or a 5 fin bonzer with larger side fins and a small center fin (this small center fin is called nubster). Generally it is a 5 fin setup with 4 small sidefins and one larger center fin. This is another fin setup found in shortboards and similarly sized wave riding vehicles and again a surfboard with this setup is also called a bonzer. Again – a quad shortboard is not for beginners of course because of the low board volume not because of the fin setup. Who is it for? Everybody can surf a quad but surf it if you want more speed and loose feeling. BAD: You have to get used to them and can slide out on late critical vertical drops (so they say). So if you want speed, this is your setup. Two fins on each side working together also give you more hold in turns. Whats the deal with four fins? They give you more speed then 3 fins, the lack of center fin frees the water flow under the tail of the board. So if someone is talking about a quad this is probably a 4 fin shortboard, but not necessarily:). There is a problem with naming surfboards by the number of fins – it is not necessary for a quad to be a shortboard.
4 fin setup is called quad and a surfboard with 4 fins is consequently also called a quad. When we start talking quads and thrusters we are stepping into the fin setup territory and more is said about that in another article but since you will sooner or later hear the word quad thrown around referring to a surfboard and since we have just called a 3 fined shortboard a thruster here it is – a quad is a surfboard that has 4 fins. Most of the quads have 5 fin inserts so you can ride them as a quad, as a thruster or as a 5 fin. Who is it for? Everybody except complete beginners. BAD: Water flow through the fins in not that smooth and you get drag when going straight. GOOD: They work in wide range of conditions including steep walls and barrels. Whats the deal with three fins? This fin setup gives a combination of stability and drive (twin fin maneuverability + hold of single fins). To be honest a 3 fin shortboard is still by far the most popular design but it used to be almost the only design worth mentioning when it came to performance surfing, these days the selection is wider. So:”What kind of thruster is that?” is no longer acceptable. Today this is no longer the case and you can expect 0, 2, 3, 4 or 5 fins on a shortboard (usually 3 or 4) under that guys arm. Since all (read 99.9%) shorboards used to have three fins you could use the name thruster for any shortboard you saw out there without looking like a fool. The terms were almost synonyms. The nickname thruster comes from the fin setup – three fin setup is called a thruster therefore a surfboard with three fins is also called a thruster. Shortboard=thruster and thruster=shortboard. Not so long ago all shortboards used to be called thrusters. Shortboardwith 3 sets of FCS fin plugs ready for 3 fins :) Thruster Most boards for people of average size and ability are around 6′-6’5″ long. The size of this board can vary from 5′ (1.5 m +) for young experienced surfers to over 7′ (2.lm) for bigger, heavier people. Still – with more width and thickness the volume between various shortboard models varies quite a bit and helps put the board into “more volume/smaller waves/intermediate surfers” or “less volume/bigger waves/better surfers” category. Besides a pointy nose another characteristic is relatively low volume (compared to other surfboard types) which makes them unsuitable for complete beginners. Of course within this range some boards are better for knee high mush and for surfers who suck and others for double overhead waves and ripping pros.
Shortboards can be ridden by surfers of different abilities, lets say advanced beginners (is this a level?) and better and in a wide range of surf conditions from knee high mush to a few times overhead waves. Or even simpler – he said that his board has a narrower pointy nose. There are many variations on this type of board so when someone says he rides a shortboard he just gave you the general outline of his board. Shortboards are generally meant for performance surfing, meaning spastic twisting and turning and jumping and making tricks.
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