The tail of a surfboard showing fins, a leash plug, and traction
Pexels / 1753689

Gear

What belongs with the board

Fourteen checked Amazon listings: fins, a leash, pads, wax, a day bag, ding resin, a wetsuit, a rash guard, and two soft boards. Nothing here is a ranking, and nothing is a local shop.

Find a board firstFCS versus Futures

Gear

Soft-tops

An 8-foot foamie is the usual first board. The 54-inch Beater is a different, smaller board for people who already surf small shorebreak.

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A small black finless board in shorebreak. Illustrative photo, not the Catch Surf Beater.

Catch Surf

Catch Surf 54" Beater Original Soft Surfboard, Finless, Black

The 54-inch Beater is a finless soft board for small shorebreak. It is not an 8-foot learner log.

Worth knowing

  • Soft
  • Short enough to toss in a car
  • Finless, which is a different feel

Limits

  • Too small for most adults on day one
  • Finless is not a thruster foamie
  • Photo is a different foam board

Verdict. Fun in tiny shorebreak if you already surf. For a first board, start longer.

Wikimedia Commons / Bodyboard Surfing (49992694488).jpg

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A long blue surfboard lying on the sand. Illustrative photo, not the Wavestorm listing image.

Wavestorm

Wavestorm Classic Soft Top Foam 8ft Surfboard

An 8-foot soft-top is the board most adults should learn on: long enough to paddle, soft enough to fall on.

Worth knowing

  • 8 ft length
  • Soft deck
  • The usual kit includes fins

Limits

  • You will outgrow the performance
  • Hard to duck-dive
  • Colorways change by year

Verdict. A sensible first board for an adult in small waves. Check the volume calculator before you size down.

Wikimedia Commons / Abandoned surfboard (Unsplash).jpg

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Gear

Fins

Futures and FCS do not share plugs. Buy the system that is already in the board.

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Wooden surfboard fins on a display shelf. Illustrative photo, not the Futures listing image.

Futures

Futures Fins Legacy Series F8 Honeycomb Thruster

The F8 is a medium all-round thruster template. Honeycomb construction is lighter than a solid fiberglass fin of the same outline.

Worth knowing

  • Single-tab Futures box
  • Familiar all-round template
  • Honeycomb is lighter than solid glass

Limits

  • Fits Futures boxes only
  • Not a small-wave specialist
  • Colorways change

Verdict. A straightforward thruster set when the board already has Futures boxes and you want one everyday template.

Wikimedia Commons / Surfboard fins.jpg

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Plain surfboard fins in a board, with no brand name visible. Illustrative photo, not the Futures listing image.

Futures

Futures F8 Legacy Thruster Fin Set Gray/Black

The same F8 thruster idea in a gray and black layup. Buy it as a spare color, not as a different fin.

Worth knowing

  • Futures single tab and screw
  • Same all-round template as the honeycomb F8

Limits

  • Does not fit FCS plugs
  • Overlaps the honeycomb F8 if you only need one set

Verdict. Choose this or the honeycomb F8, not both, unless you want a backup set.

Wikimedia Commons / Diamond Quad.jpg

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A plain thruster layout drawn on a board tail. Illustration, not the FCS Performer listing image.

FCS

FCS II Performer Tri Fin Set (Medium)

Performer is FCS's all-round thruster template. This listing is the medium set, and it clicks into FCS II plugs.

Worth knowing

  • Tool-free FCS II install
  • Medium template covers a lot of everyday boards

Limits

  • Will not fit Futures boxes
  • Click-in fins can feel looser than a screwed fin in heavy surf
  • Small and large are different ASINs

Verdict. The FCS-side all-round thruster, if the board has FCS II plugs. Match the size to the board.

Original illustration

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Gear

Leashes

Match the leash to the board length. Six feet is a shortboard leash.

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A plain blue surf-leash cord and black cuff, with no brand name visible.

Dakine

Dakine John John Florence Kainui Surf Leash (6 ft listing)

A 6-foot leash is the usual match for a shortboard. The cuff and the swivel are the parts you notice every session.

Worth knowing

  • 6 ft length for shortboards
  • Dakine cuff and rail saver

Limits

  • Too short for a longboard or a step-up
  • This ASIN is the 6 ft listing, not the 7 or 8 ft versions

Verdict. A normal shortboard leash. Ride something 8 feet or longer and get a longer leash instead.

Wikimedia Commons / Waxing a surfboard.jpg

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Gear

Traction pads

A tail pad belongs on a hard board. A soft-top already has a deck you can stand on.

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Illustration of a three-piece tail pad with a taller center piece. Not the Dakine listing image.

Dakine

Dakine Andy Irons Pro Surf Traction Pad

A three-piece tail pad adds grip where the back foot lands and keeps heels from denting the deck.

Worth knowing

  • Arch for the rear foot
  • Three-piece deck coverage

Limits

  • One-shot adhesive
  • A pad on a foamie that already has deck skin is redundant

Verdict. For a hard board you want to lock a back foot onto. Skip it on a soft-top.

Original illustration

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Illustration of a flat three-piece tail pad. Not the Dakine listing image.

Dakine

Dakine Launch Surf Traction Pad

A simpler three-piece tail pad than the Andy Irons model, with a flatter kick.

Worth knowing

  • Basic tail grip
  • Flatter kick than a pro pad

Limits

  • Less arch than the pro pad
  • Still the wrong add-on for a foamie

Verdict. A basic tail pad when you do not need the higher arch.

Original illustration

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Gear

Wax

Pick the water temperature, not the scent. Tropical wax is for warm water.

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Hands rubbing a bar of wax onto a surfboard. Illustrative photo, not the Sexwax listing image.

Mr Zogs Sex Wax

Mr Zogs Original Sexwax, Tropical, Coconut

Tropical wax stays tacky in warm water. Cold-water wax goes glassy in the tropics, and tropical wax smears in cold water.

Worth knowing

  • Warm-water formula
  • Easy to find

Limits

  • Wrong bar for cold water
  • You still want a base coat underneath
  • Photo shows waxing a board, not this bar

Verdict. Buy the temperature that matches the water. This bar is for tropical water.

Wikimedia Commons / Waxing a surfboard.jpg

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Gear

Board bags

A day bag is sized to the board. This Dakine listing is 6'3".

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Illustration of a long day bag with a handle and zipper. Not the Dakine listing image.

Dakine

Dakine Daylight Surfboard Bag Hybrid, White, 6'3

A day bag keeps wax off the car and takes some UV off the board between sessions. This one is cut for 6'3".

Worth knowing

  • Listed length is 6'3"
  • Enough padding for a day at the beach

Limits

  • Will not fit a funboard or a longboard
  • Not a travel coffin

Verdict. Right if the board is 6'3" or shorter. Measure before you order.

Original illustration

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Gear

Ding repair

Solarez polyester resin is for polyester boards. Epoxy boards need a different resin.

Surfboard Life participates in the Amazon Associates Program. Links below are affiliate links: if you buy, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. We only link ASINs we checked, and we do not invent ratings. Affiliate disclosure.

A surfboard rail underwater. Illustrative photo, not the Solarez bottle.

Solarez

Solarez UV Cure Polyester Ding Resin, 2 oz

Sun-cure polyester resin fills small cosmetic dings on polyester boards. It does not cure properly on epoxy.

Worth knowing

  • No mixing
  • Small bottle for a car kit
  • Cures in sunlight

Limits

  • Polyester resin on an epoxy board will not bond the way you want
  • Not for snapped boards or fin boxes
  • Work outside or with real ventilation

Verdict. A glovebox kit for small polyester dings. If the board is epoxy, buy an epoxy resin instead.

Wikimedia Commons / Under the surfboard

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Colorful surfboard rails in a rack, with no brand name visible. Illustrative photo, not the Solarez kit.

Solarez

Solarez Polyester Weenie Travel Kit

A smaller travel tube of the same polyester UV resin, for a ding you notice on a trip.

Worth knowing

  • Packs smaller than the 2 oz bottle
  • Same sun-cure idea

Limits

  • Still polyester, not epoxy
  • Tiny volume
  • A touch-up, not a structural repair

Verdict. The travel size of a polyester ding filler. It will not rebuild a board.

Pexels / 757133

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Gear

Wetsuits and rash guards

A 3/2 fullsuit is for cool water. A rash guard is for sun and warm water, not winter.

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A surfer in a full black wetsuit stretching on the beach.

O'Neill

O'Neill Hyperfreak 3/2mm Chest-Zip Full Wetsuit, Men's

A 3/2 mm fullsuit is the usual thickness for cool water, not icy water. A chest zip is warmer and slower to put on than a back zip.

Worth knowing

  • 3/2 mm for cool water
  • Chest zip
  • Men's cut

Limits

  • Sizes are separate listings
  • Too warm for the tropics
  • Too thin for a true cold-water winter

Verdict. A cool-water fullsuit if you already know your O'Neill size. One listing is not a universal fit.

Wikimedia Commons / Man in wetsuit

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A blue and white rash guard on the beach, with no brand name visible.

O'Neill

O'Neill Men's Basic Skins Short Sleeve Rashguard, UPF 50+

A short-sleeve rash guard is the warm-water layer: sun on the shoulders, and less wax rash on the chest.

Worth knowing

  • UPF 50+ as named on the listing
  • Short sleeve

Limits

  • Not a wetsuit
  • Men's cut
  • Size still matters

Verdict. The usual warm-water top. It does not replace a wetsuit when the water is cold.

Wikimedia Commons / Both gender surfers with rash vest

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