For marginal light winds and gusty winter storms I wanted a board that I could uphaul every time with no stress (I'm 90kgs)... but still playful enough to carve some turns and ride swells 😀

Had to install track boxes, easy enough with the foil dual track box cassette, I hope it lasts.
Short and wide (193x71x14 - thick!! ) so doesn't glide up on foil particularly early but it's super stable and slogs easily.

Feels fine in the air although obviously not as nimble as my smaller boards.








eas

Oh no. You were going to be one of my official testers for something similar to that but you live in western NZ now.

My opinion, not short enough, I like it under 180 cm, but could be few cm wider

AI.Dave said..
Looks super floaty! Maybe will open up some new places to foil with that extra security of uphauling?

New spot ideas welcome 😀

Awalkspoiled said..
I think the twin tracks are a great idea with that board. I rode one with the stock foil base and a Starboard Evolution foil and found it really squirrely and hard to control in the air as if the mastfoot were way too far back, but I guess for some that's an advantage. I prefer a locked-in slalom-board sort of feel.

On another subject I see that your foil has the Simmer logo but it looks essentially identical to the Patrik AIO 1120 wing which is my current ride. I know that design is identical to the version offered by Tillo, and I suspect by Exocet also. I've heard a murmur that they're all a Zeeko original design, variously licensed to others. Do you have any info about that?

Know what you mean - love a locked in feel, so I have to really lean in to the carves 😀

Always understood that they were Zeeko and licensed to Simmer and Patrik.
I've had my 920 for 4 years and can't find anything better - fast and good control in big wind ranges, use it in 12 to 30 knots
Also have the 720 and 550
I use a smaller tail wing than the stock Simmers 🤟

How are you progressing with your longer (downwind style) board design?

Mr Love is loving the V3 board...will take some pics next time there is wind.....

Thanks JJ!
I love how you experiment with stuff that’s already built. Way easier and faster to learn the lessons!
I guess... no, I know... that I’m a glutton for punishment!
So, the downwind board was not all that much longer. The big difference was the cross-section shape with the deep beveled rails.
So here are my last three boards, in order of their build. All in the 145–150 liter range.

Red = Funky Dory, the downwind board. It sucked! Hard to uphaul, hard to slog straight, and it refused to release. I chalk it all up to the bevels. Note how far forward the bottom handle is, it balanced the weight nicely but would knock me over when it was windy because the handle was too close to the aero pivot point.

Blue = Folly Boat. After the DW disaster, I went brutally flat-bottomed. This board uphauled well and was easy to slog. It was still a bit squirrely in yaw when on the water, I think that is from the round tail outline. Predictable and nimble in the air though. I loved this board and was not planning to build another until the tracks ripped out!
I glued the tracks to the side of a Tuttle box. The ends of the tracks cantilevered fore and aft of the Tuttle. With my SAB foils, the foil was placed from middle to full forward. I had zero issues using this track design across three boards and six years. Then I switched to Axis and needed to move the foil full aft.
The load from the aft bolts pulling downward is the big design load that has to be handled. When that big load pulled in the middle, in way of the Tuttle, it was fine. When it pulled on the unsupported aft end of the track, it failed slowly over about 10 sessions.

White = Pearl, my current whip. I needed a board, and fast. I did not find anything I could buy or wanted to buy.
The big change here is the foam. I switched from 1# EPS to 2# XPS. I built it from 2" thick sheet foam in slices parallel to where a stringer would go, then hole-sawed a bunch of foam out from each slice.
I went a touch shorter to keep the nose off the ground when carrying it with the foil mast on my shoulder and the board on my back. It’s also a touch narrower.
I’m sneaking some arc back into the bottom shape, lowered the rocker forward, and made the deck mostly flat fore and aft, partly for aero drag.
The other big change is in the laminate. I had always used Innegra, and I skipped it this time and went with less carbon because the foam is waterproof. It made the build a LOT easier, but the board is already full of small punctures and if it were EPS would probably be in the bin by now. I’ll bring the Innegra back when I get the strength to build again, I have the foam staring at me in the garage. This board tracks straighter and takes off early. The arc in the bottom maybe helping the release. The really low rocker forward allows for aggressive pumping and the straighter outline and square tail seem to help slow speed tracking. The low nose is fine until it's not and is easy to pearl but I have adjusted,
This one is going good for now and has taught me a lot, and the learning is part of the fun for me.

I hope I’m not derailing this thread. With the conversation being about uphauling and light wind, I figured this was a good place to share this info.

JJ. you are creating the impression that the people of tasmania dont have houses 😏

utcminusfour said..
I just took a "trip" to Tassie with google earth. It's gonna take you a minute to even scratch the surface of all the amazing places to explore and sail! Hobart looks like a big city but then it goes wild as soon as you get out of town. You are surrounded by national parks, mountains, peninsulas and islands. Yeew!!!
XPS is has its pros and cons, it makes sense for homebrewing. One often cited con is outgassing leading to delam. I want to get another board online before August so I can put this board to the ultimate test, leaving it in my car in summer's heat. If it survives that I may never go back to EPS. I need to figure out what shape to try next.
You don't need shop if it short enough to fit in the bed of your truck, the foam is waterproof so you can build it outside!
I feel like what I am doing is windsurfing's version of mid length. And yes, length is useful for glide with the con being swing weight but that can be offset by moving the tracks forward. I do not feel that length is a detriment to pumping particularly at the lower volumes in our free ride boards. You can pump a longer board harder without burring the nose.
One more comment on my recent build, the white one. It is like industrial velcro with the slightest touch down! Normally I would not care because you just need to sail better but this board is next level grabby! I need to sort out a shim under my mast plate, that will help with pearling and touchdowns.
Are you using bigger sails with that bigger board in your new environment? That board can carry them.

Tassie definitely has heaps of interesting, beautiful places to foil, Hobart in particular

I've heard of the outgassing potential of XPS - let me know how yours goes.

I've tested the mast base shim - give it a try, it should help with your touchdowns.

Used a 5.7m with the new board in 15-20 knots and that went pretty well, got a 6.5 which I plan to use too.
Its a WIP - not sure about the glide potential yet, I'll let you know after a few more sessions.

I know someone using XPS who purposefully doesn't fill all the pinholes and just lets the board breathe. That's for wingfoil boards though with less force on them.