Filed in: Surfboard Reviews | On: February 14th, 2007 | Comments: (2)
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Dimensions: 9’0 x 22″ 1/2 x 3″ Last week we test drove Kimo Greene’s most popular longboard model, the Honolulu. The standard normal Honolulu model is a high performance longboard designed for off the lips and hard turns. Instead, we tested a Honolulu model crowd control board in hopes that we could catch a ton of waves and do a few hard turns as well. The board we tested had a slightly wider nose, flatter rocker, and a little more foam left on the deck for improved paddling and wave catching ability. We were very surprised to find that not only did this board catch any wave we wanted, it also turned incredibly well for a thicker/wider tanker. It was somewhat easy to pump down the line and floaters over sections were not a problem. The Honolulu model comes with a 2+1 box and O’Fishl fin set up but we rode it as a single. Round house cutbacks were not a problem and while we normally prefer 2+1 or thruster setups, this particular single fin was extremely fun. The extra wide nose and flatter rocker also made nose riding quite easy.
This particular board demonstrates a great blend between wave catching ability and performance surfing. While most performance longboards don’t catch waves as easy and most crowd control tankers don’t turn too well, this board gives you the best of both worlds.  Honolulu Model at the Mokes in Lanikai, Oahu Kimo’s boards are also noted for their heavy glass jobs done by one of the best glassers in Hawaii, Otis. It’s really hard to put a dent in these things and you know that these boards will last you a long time. The heavier glassed boards also easier to paddle into waves on windy days. Interesting note: We started off using a 9″ Proteck regular flex fin in the Honolulu model with favorable results. Then we swapped it out with a 9″ Proteck Power Flex fin. Amazingly, the board actually performed better with the softer core fin. After switching to the Power Flex, turns felt much smoother and trimming was easier. This fin works best in rolling waves head high and under, however, it has a tendancy to flex too much and get squirrely in larger or hollower surf. We always prefer Proteck fins because they’re safer, turn better, and save us trips to the ER. Pros: Insane wave catching ability, turns/maneuvers/nose riding are no problem, this board just makes surfing fun…plain and simple. Cons: Heavy glass job + size of the board makes it somewhat difficult to walk long distances/hike up a hill with the board under your arm. Get it: www.kimogreenesurfboards.com 2 Comments »By participating in online discussions you acknowledge that you have read and agreed to the TERMS OF SERVICE. Any violations of these terms may result in account suspension or deactivation. Please keep your comments civil and in good taste. To report a comment, email info@surfboardshack.comRhodes Gardner, on October 9, 2007 @ 8:25 am |That’s very good feedback on the Turbo Tunnel. I live in northern California and surf north San Mateo county and Santa Cruz longboard spots. I have two longboards and the one I am a big fan of for the 9.5 Turbo Tunnel is a 10′ 2″ Haut board I have. I must say I’ve tried an array of fins, different shapes from known fin makers….won’t get into who they are as they are fine fins for each personal use, to each their own like. But I found the Turbo Tunnel giving me longer rides, period. Somewhat looser feel once the board gets going but it seems to lock in the board from takeoff. It does seem to make me go up toward the nose more in the wave ride but that is where I like to go on the board anyway, without being a noserider. I found that the sweet spot on my board is about 2 -3 feet from the nose as I comeplete the ride. This is however a 2 to 4 foot wave experience I draw from and I am not the hot dogger surfer like many you may be. There are other fans of the Turbo Tunnel I’ve run into and from uor talks I conclude that it works best for the smaller of up to 4 foot wave. Bigger wave experiences I’ve heard from others have not been as favorable. I have a 9’6″ longboard as well and do a 2+1 set up with a 7″ Turbo Tunnel, and sometimes switch it out for a Thruster setup where all three fins are same 5″ kind of length and I find myself liking both , favoring the Thruster setup more in some conditions. Leave a comment |
Does the Turbo Tunnel Fin Really Work?, on June 9, 2007 @ 12:18 pm |
[…] I’m sure all of you have seen various ads in Surf magazines claiming that the funky looking fin called Turbo Tunnel provides longer noserides and smooth powerful turns. I was curious as ever and tested the company’s 9.5″ fin as a single on my 9′0 Kimo Greene Honolulu model. I tested the Turbo Tunnel fin at one of Oahu’s popular town spots, Queens in Waikiki, which produces perfect slow and rolling waves that sets up perfectly for noseriding. Conditions were clean and the waves were in the waist to occasional head high range. I was pretty excited to see how much of a difference this fin would make in my noseriding ability and on the first few waves I got to the nose without much problem on my Kimo Greene. The Honolulu model in itself is quite easy to noseride but after testing the Turbo Tunnel throughout that session, it appeared that the fin didn’t feel any different than the standard 9″ Proteck Superflex fin I have been using. […]