custom lay-up
polyester fins
Rider: Marco Lufen
Photo: Douw Steyn
Why Polyester fins?
They offer flex and a feeling like no other!
Unlike plastic fins they don't have memory so their recoil, after a turn, is much faster thus giving you drive out of your turn without any lag. Traditional composite fins are too stiff and molded fins aren't durable. Our custom layup fins offer it all!
Performance tested & proven at world famous surf breaks like:
Platboom, Haakgat, SkeletonBay, One eye, Cloudbreak, Margaret River, Matanzas and Hookipa!!
It all started nearly 10 years ago as a part-time hobby for Ivan’s father, Abé, a retired
engineer with over 40 years of windsurfing experience at local spots in Cape Town.
Together with Ivan, using CAD/CNC techniques, he combined his passion for
windsurfing with his knowledge of structural mechanics and fluid hydraulics in developing unique custom engineered composite fins which provide innovative solutions to the complex problems of windsurf fin performance.
Our Story
Carve Machine Custom Fins
Since 2023, wave windsurf fin manufacture has become an integral part of the Carve Machine Boards factory operations.
It was started when we realized that the market needed a dedicated custom fin manufacturer with the ability to deliver within days!
From early custom handmade prototypes tested by the Carve Machines riders in challenging conditions at local and international surf breaks, final production was refined with CAD/CNC resin vacuum infused composite solutions.
Importantly custom composite plates are CNC cut by our inhouse machine to micrometer tolerances to ensure that all stages of manufacturing meet the highest standards, already a trademark of the very popular custom Carve Machine Boards.
Our fins not only complement our Carve machine boards but all other brands!!
Key features & advantages:
- CAD shaped to minimize drag with maximum lift & carving ability.
- Custom engineered glass/carbon composites.
- State of the art polyester/epoxy vacuum resin infused plates Precision CAD/CNC 3D carving in our factory so we can manufacture within days!
- Variable Flex Technology (VFT) for maximum control to suit rider styles & conditions.
- Unique projection on top turns & unparalleled bottom turns.
Polyester and epoxy custom glass & carbon lay ups gives you a waveride feeling like no other!
Rider: David Jeschke
Photo: Maleen Hoekstra
CAD/CAE SHAPED TO MINIMIZE DRAG AND MAXIMIZE LIFT
- Computer-Aided Design (CAD) proven with Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE) provide
innovative solutions to the complex problem of fin behaviour.
- Carve Machine Fins are shaped to minimize drag with maximum lift and carving ability.
This allows the rider to achieve maximum speed for jumps, the ability to get upwind easily and to
perform the wave moves he always dreamt about.
Rider: Hans
Photo: Maleen Hoekstra
CUSTOM ENGINEERED POLYESTER AND EPOXY RESIN GLASS / CARBON
COMPOSITES
Our fiber cloth combinations, fin profile and foil shapes were developed after many years of
prototyping and tested in all conditions at many different beach breaks over the world by our riders.
CNC CUT
Key Advantages:
- High Speed & Accuracy
-Unmatched precision and repeatability
- Delivers consistent cuts, intricate detailing, and complex 3D shapes
- Importantly the composite panels are CNC carved by our own machine
- Minimizes human error and operator fatigue - This ensures that all stages of manufacturing meet the highest standards (already a trademark of the custom Carve Machine Boards)
- Scalable production: Ideal for repeating identical designs from single prototypes to large-scale manufacturing batches.
- Importantly we can manufacture within days!
STATE OF THE ART POLYESTER/EPOXY VACUUM RESIN INFUSED PLATES
Infusion Layups Technology
Vacuum resin infusion (or vacuum infusion) is a closed-mould composite manufacturing process that uses vacuum pressure to draw liquid resin into a dry fiber preform (like carbon fiber or fiberglass). It creates parts with an optimal fiber-to-resin ratio, higher structural strength, and significantly lower void content than traditional wet layup
Key Advantages:
- Superior strength: The vacuum tightly compacts the fibers before and during the resin draw, the final composite features incredibly high fiber volume with less trapped air (voids).
- Consistency: It yields highly repeatable, uniform parts, which is why it is the standard for high-performance industries like aerospace and marine manufacturing
- Safer Working Environment: It is a closed-mold process, which drastically reduces airborne emissions limits operator exposure.
Infusion Master
Arno Seyfert
VARIABLE FLEX TECHNOLOGY (VFT) FOR MAXIMUM CONTROL
Carve Machine Fins have unique material properties which results in various flex characteristics to
suit rider style, board design and conditions.
We classify the fin stiffness with our Carve Machine Flex Gauge patent which provides us with GSI
(G10 Stiffness Index) readings as a measure of the fin flex relative to the standard G10 wave fins.
