Hi frothers can you shed some light on DW board thickness? Boards going from 5" to over 7" thick. How does that impact the riding sensation? Also wind catching? Etc etc

I'm on the 7.7' KT Dragonfly and have been riding it for SUP and wing in very light to high wind (30+ knots). I have a 72L KT Ginxu that has been left more often in the van lately even when it's windy as I'm having too much fun to come in and swap. I'm absolutely loving the carving sensation and pitch stability of the DW board. Previously I'd be nursing turns a little more if I was on my shorter and wider SUP in waves to avoid catching the rail. On the DW board I can turn much harder without catching a rail and can ride a shorter mast while winging without worrying about breaching as often in turns. Added benefit is that the shorter mast is a little snappier in getting onto foil and turning. A smaller foil and/or hand wing can be used in the same conditions you'd ride a regular shape. Though there's a fair amount of thickness, the foil feedback is still excellent. I haven't experienced much if any downside if the wind gets strong as the shape cuts through wind and water effortlessly, like a missile. It's been a revelation riding the DW board. I ride my 72L if I want to jump or switch up the riding sensations. The DW board feels so much like snowboard carves in soft, groomed powder.

Windoc said..
I'm on the 7.7' KT Dragonfly and have been riding it for SUP and wing in very light to high wind (30+ knots). I have a 72L KT Ginxu that has been left more often in the van lately even when it's windy as I'm having too much fun to come in and swap. I'm absolutely loving the carving sensation and pitch stability of the DW board. Previously I'd be nursing turns a little more if I was on my shorter and wider SUP in waves to avoid catching the rail. On the DW board I can turn much harder without catching a rail and can ride a shorter mast while winging without worrying about breaching as often in turns. Added benefit is that the shorter mast is a little snappier in getting onto foil and turning. A smaller foil and/or hand wing can be used in the same conditions you'd ride a regular shape. Though there's a fair amount of thickness, the foil feedback is still excellent. I haven't experienced much if any downside if the wind gets strong as the shape cuts through wind and water effortlessly, like a missile. It's been a revelation riding the DW board. I ride my 72L if I want to jump or switch up the riding sensations. The DW board feels so much like snowboard carves in soft, groomed powder.

What's your weight if I may ask? And what foils are you using mast and front wings?

Windoc said..
I'm on the 7.7' KT Dragonfly and have been riding it for SUP and wing in very light to high wind (30+ knots). I have a 72L KT Ginxu that has been left more often in the van lately even when it's windy as I'm having too much fun to come in and swap. I'm absolutely loving the carving sensation and pitch stability of the DW board. Previously I'd be nursing turns a little more if I was on my shorter and wider SUP in waves to avoid catching the rail. On the DW board I can turn much harder without catching a rail and can ride a shorter mast while winging without worrying about breaching as often in turns. Added benefit is that the shorter mast is a little snappier in getting onto foil and turning. A smaller foil and/or hand wing can be used in the same conditions you'd ride a regular shape. Though there's a fair amount of thickness, the foil feedback is still excellent. I haven't experienced much if any downside if the wind gets strong as the shape cuts through wind and water effortlessly, like a missile. It's been a revelation riding the DW board. I ride my 72L if I want to jump or switch up the riding sensations. The DW board feels so much like snowboard carves in soft, groomed powder.

I feel the same way as you about my Kalama proto 8'4"x18"x6". It draws lines closer to surfing than "normal" wingboards. Mine weighs 9.5lbs. The touchdowns are welcome, fun really. I ride it in all conditions. This board is soooo much more versatile than my 5.0. It can flat water paddle up, sup surf, prone surf, DW, wing. I feel the same as you that it slices through wind a lot better than the other board. I predicted a year ago that this is where boards are going and that barn door wingboards are going to be looked back at as a great mistake that caused much pain and sticking and lead us to having huge hand wings and huge foils. When people ask me what foil to get, I tell them to start with what board you are riding because that can force them into certain limitations and power requirements. I can ride any size foil I want in any little breath of wind with the smallest handwing on my 8'4". And the crazy thing is it doesn't feel like I am riding a huge board. There is still about the same length of board in front of me but the swing weight is almost nothing because most of the volume is between my feet.

I feel the same way as you about my Kalama proto 8'4"x18"x6". It draws lines closer to surfing than "normal" wingboards. Mine weighs 9.5lbs. The touchdowns are welcome, fun really. I ride it in all conditions. This board is soooo much more versatile than my 5.0. It can flat water paddle up, sup surf, prone surf, DW, wing. I feel the same as you that it slices through wind a lot better than the other board. I predicted a year ago that this is where boards are going and that barn door wingboards are going to be looked back at as a great mistake that caused much pain and sticking and lead us to having huge hand wings and huge foils. When people ask me what foil to get, I tell them to start with what board you are riding because that can force them into certain limitations and power requirements. I can ride any size foil I want in any little breath of wind with the smallest handwing on my 8'4". And the crazy thing is it doesn't feel like I am riding a huge board. There is still about the same length of board in front of me but the swing weight is almost nothing because most of the volume is between my feet.

I'm on a much smaller Kalama 5'9" @ 95litres and whilst it's not as fast through the water I'm good to get up in 6knots, but I need big wing and foil to do that with my current skillet. (8M Strike and GoFoil P1125 122cm wide with HA 13.2)

It's not a FAD for me at 77 yo and 73kg with weak knees slow learner but love foiling about 5 days a week atm.
I need all the help I can get for standing up from kneeling and getting up on the foil. My 90% set up is the DW Naish 105l, Axis 951 Axis ART pro with 360 stab and various size dlabs.

When you are older you may understand

AnyBoard said..

broVan said..

Windoc said..
I'm on the 7.7' KT Dragonfly and have been riding it for SUP and wing in very light to high wind (30+ knots). I have a 72L KT Ginxu that has been left more often in the van lately even when it's windy as I'm having too much fun to come in and swap. I'm absolutely loving the carving sensation and pitch stability of the DW board. Previously I'd be nursing turns a little more if I was on my shorter and wider SUP in waves to avoid catching the rail. On the DW board I can turn much harder without catching a rail and can ride a shorter mast while winging without worrying about breaching as often in turns. Added benefit is that the shorter mast is a little snappier in getting onto foil and turning. A smaller foil and/or hand wing can be used in the same conditions you'd ride a regular shape. Though there's a fair amount of thickness, the foil feedback is still excellent. I haven't experienced much if any downside if the wind gets strong as the shape cuts through wind and water effortlessly, like a missile. It's been a revelation riding the DW board. I ride my 72L if I want to jump or switch up the riding sensations. The DW board feels so much like snowboard carves in soft, groomed powder.

I feel the same way as you about my Kalama proto 8'4"x18"x6". It draws lines closer to surfing than "normal" wingboards. Mine weighs 9.5lbs. The touchdowns are welcome, fun really. I ride it in all conditions. This board is soooo much more versatile than my 5.0. It can flat water paddle up, sup surf, prone surf, DW, wing. I feel the same as you that it slices through wind a lot better than the other board. I predicted a year ago that this is where boards are going and that barn door wingboards are going to be looked back at as a great mistake that caused much pain and sticking and lead us to having huge hand wings and huge foils. When people ask me what foil to get, I tell them to start with what board you are riding because that can force them into certain limitations and power requirements. I can ride any size foil I want in any little breath of wind with the smallest handwing on my 8'4". And the crazy thing is it doesn't feel like I am riding a huge board. There is still about the same length of board in front of me but the swing weight is almost nothing because most of the volume is between my feet.

I have a barracuda and would much rather ride my 4'10" wing board in anything from 10 knots and up. No i don't need a bigger wing and foil to do this. I think boards will get a little longer and a little narrow like maybe 5'5" x 19 but riding around on a 7'8" board is just a novelty in my opinion and not much fun after that. I do it to get familiar with the board for down wind sup but i much rather be on my smaller wing board.

Its an over blown fad

AnyBoard said..

broVan said..

Windoc said..
I'm on the 7.7' KT Dragonfly and have been riding it for SUP and wing in very light to high wind (30+ knots). I have a 72L KT Ginxu that has been left more often in the van lately even when it's windy as I'm having too much fun to come in and swap. I'm absolutely loving the carving sensation and pitch stability of the DW board. Previously I'd be nursing turns a little more if I was on my shorter and wider SUP in waves to avoid catching the rail. On the DW board I can turn much harder without catching a rail and can ride a shorter mast while winging without worrying about breaching as often in turns. Added benefit is that the shorter mast is a little snappier in getting onto foil and turning. A smaller foil and/or hand wing can be used in the same conditions you'd ride a regular shape. Though there's a fair amount of thickness, the foil feedback is still excellent. I haven't experienced much if any downside if the wind gets strong as the shape cuts through wind and water effortlessly, like a missile. It's been a revelation riding the DW board. I ride my 72L if I want to jump or switch up the riding sensations. The DW board feels so much like snowboard carves in soft, groomed powder.

I feel the same way as you about my Kalama proto 8'4"x18"x6". It draws lines closer to surfing than "normal" wingboards. Mine weighs 9.5lbs. The touchdowns are welcome, fun really. I ride it in all conditions. This board is soooo much more versatile than my 5.0. It can flat water paddle up, sup surf, prone surf, DW, wing. I feel the same as you that it slices through wind a lot better than the other board. I predicted a year ago that this is where boards are going and that barn door wingboards are going to be looked back at as a great mistake that caused much pain and sticking and lead us to having huge hand wings and huge foils. When people ask me what foil to get, I tell them to start with what board you are riding because that can force them into certain limitations and power requirements. I can ride any size foil I want in any little breath of wind with the smallest handwing on my 8'4". And the crazy thing is it doesn't feel like I am riding a huge board. There is still about the same length of board in front of me but the swing weight is almost nothing because most of the volume is between my feet.

I have a barracuda and would much rather ride my 4'10" wing board in anything from 10 knots and up. No i don't need a bigger wing and foil to do this. I think boards will get a little longer and a little narrow like maybe 5'5" x 19 but riding around on a 7'8" board is just a novelty in my opinion and not much fun after that. I do it to get familiar with the board for down wind sup but i much rather be on my smaller wing board.

Its an over blown fad

I agree, that has been my experience as well. I do not like a long skinny board for winging. I sold mine and kept a 60l 4?11 x 22 and have a Sup foil, 6?6 x 26 that I mainly use for sup foiling in the surf. The skinny one was hard work in the surf.

That's the beauty of the breeze, we get to ride what we want but first we come here to look for honest reviews of approaches and solutions to our foiling needs, in an effort mitigate the risk of an incorrect expensive purchasing decision and avoid the wrath of the finance minister.

I wouldn't even use a DW board for DW if i could paddle up a prone board. Even for DW circumstance the DW board is not the best solution once up and foiling and i think that tells the story right there. In all foil sports the board is just a compromise and it comes down to how much you need to compromise for your ability and local conditions whether foiling prone in the surf, sup DW or winging. Bigger boards provide easier takeoff but not without a performance penalty in all the disciplines in my opinion.

Just happened across the Foil Project podcast with Andrew Readhead and James Casey. They get into an interesting discussion of lengths and feels that are being chased. One of the things that James Casey mentioned, which is what I'm just now discovering with the DW board, is that once up and riding a swell, the total percentage performance difference lost by riding a longer board is in reality quite small overall, but the ease of getting up to foil is so much better than on a shorter, wider board. This is a hugely important point and is particularly the case if the board is very light so that swing weight becomes less of an issue. Ultimately though, it's what you are comfortable giving up to optimize for other desired riding feels/preferences. I'm sure the longer, narrower DW shape will continue to evolve, but currently it works amazingly for the application.

noepoxy said..

IanInca said..
Imho, Foil Drive trumps everything. I've had it 18 months and loved every minute. Alot of people say it's expensive but it's actually helped me reduce kit.

I would have in addition to my current wing board 60L, prone/downwind board 35L, 4m, 5m hand wing and 2 front foils wings (I use the same for prone and wing).

I would have DW board/light wind wing board
DW carbon Paddle
2 x front foil wings (bigger)
1 x 6m hand wing
Longer mid volume prone board

All of this would cost as much as a foil drive and I wouldn't catch half as many waves. I don't bother with light wind winging as I use foil drive into waves upto 12 Knots.

I don't believe you're right especially if you're > 95kg, FD gen 1 aren't good for heavy guys, and gen 2 might just be ok, but the battery tech is way behind and overpriced compared to the scooter market (e.g wolf king gt), maybe if yamaha made a FD equivalent, then I'd be interested.

I think it's mainly old men using FD in retirement, perhaps they get a mobility discount with pensioners card :)

DW boards are priced at USD equivalent in Australia, except we don't earn USD, way overpriced that's why only shop owners, or sponsored riders are using them, same a FD gen 2 tbh

And with FD you need two masts as assembly is a PITA and very time consuming so best to leave a setup dedicated to FD and tapped

Ha! Everyone has their own preference of setups. I was just making the point at around 80Kg the gen 1 Foil drive has saved me money and vastly reduced the kit I need to own. On top of that when I'm surfing I'll catch 8 x as many waves as I could with a paddle and DW I feel it really speeds up the learning.

*I use aluminium masts which cost peanuts
**Although I'm not a complete old fart remember noepoxy believe it or not you will get old one day and you may still want to chase the Stoke!!

AnyBoard said..

broVan said..

Windoc said..
I'm on the 7.7' KT Dragonfly and have been riding it for SUP and wing in very light to high wind (30+ knots). I have a 72L KT Ginxu that has been left more often in the van lately even when it's windy as I'm having too much fun to come in and swap. I'm absolutely loving the carving sensation and pitch stability of the DW board. Previously I'd be nursing turns a little more if I was on my shorter and wider SUP in waves to avoid catching the rail. On the DW board I can turn much harder without catching a rail and can ride a shorter mast while winging without worrying about breaching as often in turns. Added benefit is that the shorter mast is a little snappier in getting onto foil and turning. A smaller foil and/or hand wing can be used in the same conditions you'd ride a regular shape. Though there's a fair amount of thickness, the foil feedback is still excellent. I haven't experienced much if any downside if the wind gets strong as the shape cuts through wind and water effortlessly, like a missile. It's been a revelation riding the DW board. I ride my 72L if I want to jump or switch up the riding sensations. The DW board feels so much like snowboard carves in soft, groomed powder.

I feel the same way as you about my Kalama proto 8'4"x18"x6". It draws lines closer to surfing than "normal" wingboards. Mine weighs 9.5lbs. The touchdowns are welcome, fun really. I ride it in all conditions. This board is soooo much more versatile than my 5.0. It can flat water paddle up, sup surf, prone surf, DW, wing. I feel the same as you that it slices through wind a lot better than the other board. I predicted a year ago that this is where boards are going and that barn door wingboards are going to be looked back at as a great mistake that caused much pain and sticking and lead us to having huge hand wings and huge foils. When people ask me what foil to get, I tell them to start with what board you are riding because that can force them into certain limitations and power requirements. I can ride any size foil I want in any little breath of wind with the smallest handwing on my 8'4". And the crazy thing is it doesn't feel like I am riding a huge board. There is still about the same length of board in front of me but the swing weight is almost nothing because most of the volume is between my feet.

I have a barracuda and would much rather ride my 4'10" wing board in anything from 10 knots and up. No i don't need a bigger wing and foil to do this. I think boards will get a little longer and a little narrow like maybe 5'5" x 19 but riding around on a 7'8" board is just a novelty in my opinion and not much fun after that. I do it to get familiar with the board for down wind sup but i much rather be on my smaller wing board.

Its an over blown fad

hear thar windoc, buddy says your wrong about your experience with your gear!