The immense popularity of old school/retro style fishes has made the twin fin cool again. Surfers were so fixated on thruster fin setups for years but currently, it’s cool to have twins.

Most retro twin fin fishes utilize a fin of the past, also known as the keel fin. While most surfers probably don’t know the difference between the various types of keel fins, my own experience has shown me that the board being equal, different keel fins have different characteristics.

Old School Keel Fins

One of my favorite fish boards utilized a very old keel fin design without much rake in the fin (see photo below). When I first saw this board, I thought “Wow, that is an old school fin…it must be very hi-performance.” I was quite surprised at my first go out with the board. Most of the fishes I had ridden prior to that board were quite slippy and too loose for my liking. This board however, had tremendous drive and felt more like a thruster than a loose twin fin fish. If you’re looking for a twin fin with a good amount of drive yet still loose enough to throw your tail around, the old school keel fin is for you.

The only negative I have about these retro low rake keel fins is that they make it more difficult to release the fins than a fin with more rake. The low rake gives these keel fins an extremely wide base which is great for drive but less than great for turns and snaps. You can still throw your weight around with these fins, just not as easily as modern keel fins.

Keel fins with very low rake

Modern Keel Fins

If you’re a surfer who’s ridden a thruster fin setup for most of your life, a modern keel fin with moderate rake may be what you’re looking for. These fins make retro fishes extremely loose, almost to the point where you feel like you can push a turn hard enough and disengage the fins into a 360. I would say that these fins are perfect for the surfer who really wants to feel a significant difference from their standard thruster shortboard.

Moderate raked keel fin

Personally, I like my fishes to be slightly more drivey. That way, I can surf it like a thruster but with the wave catching ability and insane down the line speed of a fish. To summarize, if you want your fish to feel more like a thruster, go with the low rake keel fins. If you want an extremely loose and slippy board with the potential for 360’s in the pocket, get a moderate/high raked twin fin.