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Good luck on your Bluefin shopping.

Here are some links concerning Venturi drains which include information about bullets. Placement in relation to the Venturi drain cover seems to be important.

surfski.wiki/modifications#drainage

Thanks Reavley, really great video - you can see the stability - and lovely music. Really happy to have some reassurance on the Fennix, though it's a pity they didn't take the opportunity with the redesign to put more foot room in - thanks for showing it should be just enough for me. Remounts more important to me than water in the bucket, so I'm fine with that part of the design. I'll have to research what bullets are. I should be able to check out the 2 Bluefins on Saturday. Fingers crossed at least one of them is in good shape.

If there is anyone near you who is a skilled wing paddle user (K1 or surfski), getting a lesson or two may be quite helpful in avoiding the development of some bad habits with your stroke.
surfski.wiki/stroke

One other suggestion - I installed bullets with each drain and I do believe it accelerated drainage.

Nelo had had a more or less logical surfski assortment for a while. The model numbers from 510 to 560 were logical, showing the clear differences and categories.
The first confusion was the Vanquish which is supposed to fit between the 550 and the 560 somehow without following the earlier model number sequence.

But this year they really dropped the ball.
They came up with a new model numbering and products while still offering the old ones which made the whole product line very confusing.
They introduced the 62 (why not 620?) a model which was clearly an answer for the critics of their short boat concept.
They also introduced a model called 61. But it seems to be the same as the 62 only 10cm shorter. What is the point of that?
Now they also have a 52 and 54. These completely overlap the old 520 and the 540 models only without the bungee and by using bullet scuppers instead of bailers.
Can anyone see the bigger picture here?

Does the Arc have a drain bullet?

The Arc is a big hit here in Bellingham, WA, particularly with our older paddlers. After Ozone Northwest in the Gorge gets its next shipment (we're getting at least 3 of those here) I'm pretty sure we will have 10 or more Arcs locally. The carrying and loading weight may be a bit more important for some of us older paddlers. One of our local 80 yr olds who already has an Arc Pro is trying to get Kai to make him one with no paint to see how light he can get it.

If you do decide to go with a coiled ankle or calf leash, I recommend a leash with the molded swivel to coil joints. That's the strongest method at the common failure point of a coil leash.

Another weak spot is a calf leash slipping right off your leg. I learned that lesson back in my Sup days. A coiled calf leash is more tidy in the bucket than a coiled ankle leash, but if you ever get pulled, a calf leash is coming right over your foot in an instant.

That's extremely unlikely in a ski - most downwind falls are low speed, basically just rolling over when you can't quite stay upright. A ski ripping the leash off your leg is very unlikely.

But I did drop a paddle after a downwind wipeout, using a coiled ankle leash. I had to swim to it, dragging my ski behind me. Not fun. I had to sprint to get to the paddle before more white water came thru - or all was lost.

Tangled coils in my footwell is why I switched to a waist leash. A leg leash wouldn't be as much of a distraction now that I have more experience. A calf leash is fine, but not as bulletproof, or comfy in the footwell.

I had a few Epic leashes break under that wad of shrink fit covering the joint. I'm surprised Epic still uses that cheap construction on a leg leash. Lighter and cheaper yes. That poly coil is folded over and tied up in a big wad, then covered with shrink wrap.

IMO, it's fine for a wrist paddle leash, you can see it on the Mocke photo.

But a boat attachment? Yikes. That folded over part is the weak spot and it gets weaker with age.

mockepaddling.com/products/life-line-calf-leash

www.epickayaks.com/product-page/paddle-leash

Here is another problem to be ready for if you use a wrist leash. It also shows some significant tension on the boat leash. Use a good molded swivel leash. When things start to go wrong, the smallest detail matters.



This is a video in my early ski days, fussing with a coiled leg leash. I had a shoulder issue back then, so I could only enter from the right side. So, I was flipping the boat. Everyone should learn that - if you are stronger on one side or the other.



Now that I have a wrist leash, I swim around to the right side. You also need to be aware of not tangling the waist leash in the rudder as you go around.