Generally when you buy a sail you will get the information on what boom/mast is required on the sail or the sail bag.

when you buy a board the shop will tell you the recommended sail / fin sizes or you can look them up on the manafacturers web site.

Best to go to a windsurf shop for advice, if you've got one near you!They will make sure you get exactly the correct gear for what you need to get going, and if you don't want to buy new, they always have 2nd hand gear.

Also go down to you local beach and ask some experienced windsurfers for some info.

cheers for that, i'll pop into SHQ today and see what they got.

I've had a few lessons but i'm still very much in the basics ie. can do a triangle and still pulling sail up standing on board which I can now do quite easy. Last lesson I used a 205L about 2.6m, had no problem geting up on this although wind conditions were pretty crap so didn't get to do much.

Is there a big difference from a 205L and a 150L, would I still be able to float on a 150L to uphaul ? I'm about 75kg. Or would this be too much of a step ?

Thanks

150l board should be ok but look for something wide, 90cm or so. sounds like 170l would be the better. (you are a lightweight.)

Higher volume boards that are wider are more forgiving when learning. eg a 300lt board that is only 45cm wide would be hard to balance on. but a 170lt board that is 90cm wide would be easier. something like "Starboard Go"

the trick is to keep your feet near the centreline of the board. you should be only sailing in winds up to 10knots when learning. go in the morning before the seabreeze kicks in and then as the wind strengthens throughout the day you can slowly test yourself more. also, avoid locations with a strong current. a 5.7m sail should be ok for wind up to 15knots. once you are more proficient and you start to go out in stronger winds you could use a 5.0m. so a 400cm mast should be ok. avoid cambered race sails, they are to heavy.

a board like the starboard go is good because you can use it all the way up to learning carve gybes, harness and footstrap techniques.
another is the new F2 lightning. the old F2 lightning was a full race board and not what you are after. try to get something made after 2000. all the gear just got better after that. easier to sail etc.

To keep the costs down, you've got to do some maths. Start by choosing a mast, based on the approximate sail size you want.
Eg, a 430 mast will typically rig from a 5m to a 6.5m sail. A 460 mast will typically rig from a 6m to a 8m sail. A 490 mast will typically rig from an 7.5m to a 9m sail. If you're lucky, the combination of your weight, your experience and you're board will allow to to buy 1 mast but rig two sail off it. I'd say you'd be looking at a 460 mast, and two sails of approx 6 and 7 sq metres. You may be tempted to go for a small combo, but remember, if you need smaller sails, the water will inevitably be choppy, and that big old beginner board will be an absolute handful, catching wind underneath it, trying to take flight, and crashing from chop face to chop face. Master your skills in lighter winds, then get a more appropriate board for heavier winds. Once you've got your sails, just choose a boom which covers both sizes. Then you'll have a 1 mast/2 sail/1 boom combo - good value for money if you ask me.

Eckas.