Standup Zone Forum

The Foil Zone => Wingsurfing, Windfoiling, Wingfoiling, Wing SUP => Topic started by: daswusup on October 26, 2019, 10:30:16 AM

Title: mast position on fuse
Post by: daswusup on October 26, 2019, 10:30:16 AM
I have been struggling to get my board unstuck from water. I have the Slingshot 6'6" outwit with the infinity 84 front wing, large stab and a Slingwing. I have been out maybe 6 times in what seemed to be enough wind but haven't really been able to get up on foil. I am 5'11" 190lbs and an avid kitefoiler and intermediate sup foiler. I have had the mast going into the wing which slingshot calls position "A". I am wandering if anyone here has been wingfoiling on this setup and might have some advice. I am going to move the mast back to "b" and see what happens. I noticed that the Gofoils are mounted back from the wing. This would be equivilant of position "b" on the Switch Fuse. Apparently this creates more lift.
Thanks for input.

BTW, does anyone know any news on the F-One 6meter Swing release date other than the December statement on their website?
Thanks
Title: Re: mast position on fuse
Post by: supkailua on October 26, 2019, 11:13:48 AM
The position you are using is good for kiting where you have a lot more power. I have the same setup and use position B. With the Slingwing I need a lot of wind to get started and I weigh 160 lbs.

I think changing the mast position to be behind the front wing will help, but if the wind is toward the lighter side you will need the Swing 5 or 6 to get going. The Swing 5 gets me going with around a 15 to 16 mph gust.

I am also looking forward to the Swing 6 coming out as I know it will get me going in the marginal winds with less pumping and probably lower my wind minimum too.
Title: Re: mast position on fuse
Post by: GL on October 26, 2019, 01:13:23 PM
I also have the Slingwing and Slingshot foils. I'm currently using the Infinity 99 but used to use the Infinitiy 84. The first time I tried the 84 I had the mast in the wing and I had trouble getting flying. I moved it back into the B position and was able to fly quite easily. It made a much bigger difference than I thought it would. With the 84 and the Slingwing I would need 16 to 17 knots to get flying. With Infinity 99 about two knots less. I weigh 175 lb. One thing that surprised me as well was that I thought I needed to keep the board flat on the water to pick up speed to fly. Instead I found if I had the board slightly nose high it would fly much easier. I thought that would slow the board down and slow it rising up but it did the reverse.
Title: Re: mast position on fuse
Post by: flkiter on October 26, 2019, 10:08:34 PM
Do you have it all the way forward in the track? A strap will help you to pump onto foil also.
Title: Re: mast position on fuse
Post by: Admin on October 27, 2019, 03:31:50 AM
I have never used the Slingshot foils but I do have about 60 days on that 6'6 Outwit now.  It is a really excellent board.  I can't help with the foil question but as for the board you want find a fore/aft foot position that is relatively level and stable.  You will know this right away because it is a relatively short board and you may only have one real option.  This allows it to gain some speed on the large flat section.  I am sure there are a zillion techniques to get foiling but in really light wind and on this board mine starts with the tiniest bit of front foot pressure with an immediate release and a slight shift to the back foot and right to the front again.  Starting with back foot pressure on this board will make it plow and stall (until there is more wind, when everything starts to work).  That micro weight and unweight on the front foot is small enough that it won't dig the nose and it starts that pumping flow very smoothly.  All we are doing with pumping is changing the pitch of the foil underwater and riding the upstrokes until we are flying but doing that to aggressively (going for it all at once)  when you are lightly powered will stall you.

I saw Tony Logosz at the beach yesterday and beach-winged his new 6 Meter design that is in near final stages.  He has been putting a lot of thought and time into developing a full range of wings.  He mentioned a 7 as well and had smaller wings with him as well (uninflated).  This wing is a big departure from the Slingwing (which will stay in the line).  It felt light, has no inflatable trailing edge and is very stiff.  The handles are broad and feel very stiff as well.  I think we are going to see some amazing second generation wings available soon.
Title: Re: mast position on fuse
Post by: PonoBill on October 27, 2019, 05:53:48 AM
Tony let me try the 6M Slingwing in the water. The wind looked do-able but stripey, with lots of lulls, and it seemed to drop just before I launched. On the first run, I couldn't get up until roughly the middle of the river where there were a few more steady gusts. It's a remarkably well-behaved wing. Normally I flat out hate handles but these seemed to be as good as they get. In the light wind the front handle seemed too far forwards and the next handle a little too far back, but it was usable and stable in both positions.  I had the Fatboy foil wing on, so once I got up I was able to pump and stay reasonably high. Once up, I kept the wing mostly overhead and it was easy to manage. That half a run was the last time I was able to get back up fully, though I was able to skim along briskly a few inches off the water on the starboard tack with a downwind angle.

With the light wind, it's impossible to say how the power compared to my other 5M wings. It wasn't enough to overcome the light wind, my weight, and my limited pumping abilities, but I wouldn't expect a huge jump from 5 to 6M, it's only an 8 percent increase in area.

I agree that the next generation of wings are going to be a lot better. I didn't care for the first SlingWing I tried--it felt needlessly heavy and awkward, though the wing was stable and well-shaped. This version was a lot lighter despite a plethora of handles both along the leading edge and the strut. I have a pretty good wingspan and I don't think I could reach the last two handles even holding the second front handle. It's a prototype, so testing handle positions and use is reasonable. But there's room to make this design lighter, and I think everyone has decided that light is very good.
Title: Re: mast position on fuse
Post by: Admin on October 27, 2019, 07:04:44 AM
You looked really solid on that wing.  The wind basically cratered while you were rigging.  I definitely wanted to try it but it was powered 4.2 wind when I launched and I would have been way over on a 6.  Very cool feeling wing though.  No flutter motion at all from the center leading edge handle (there were a few).  I agree that it had a great calm feel.  It was still windy when I was messing with it so it was fully flying itself but it did feel very light.  I am not sure how light but certainly really comfortable in hand.  It is also stiff and feels very positive when you give it a pump. 

Title: Re: mast position on fuse
Post by: daswusup on October 27, 2019, 07:41:13 AM
Thanks for the tips all. I have realized that kitefoiling is a wayyyy different beast than I thought compared to winging. I was hoping for an easier crossover. I think a lot of my struggles have been seasonal too, with chitty fall wind. I will probably throw a footstrap back on front for waterstarts. Im not a huge fan of footstraps. When I kitefoil, I don't switch my feet ever. The most magical part by far is my toeside tack. Toeside, bearing off and shutting down the kite with a surf foil is what made foiling my #1 favorite activity in life. I realized that the kite is only a tool for me to get up on foil and into some bumps to smack and glide on. This feeling is what I am seeking with the wing. Tow in and then total depower!!! 
I saw a video of Elliot Leboe winging around and appeared to not be switching his feet. I have also watched people do small board waterstarts on toeside. This gives me great hope that I won't be required to switch feet except on long reaches for comfort. Most of us can rip it way harder with our good foot forward. Anyone not switching feet with the wing here?
Title: Re: mast position on fuse
Post by: PonoBill on October 27, 2019, 08:25:22 AM
That's what I get for hanging out at the shop for too long. I converted my Ion impact vest to add a waist hook and leash strap. Once I start sewing I have to keep going even if it's going to shit, which this little project did. My tough little sewing machine maxed out going through a plastic stiffener, a web strap, and wet neoprene. The result looks like it was sewed by throwing thread at it randomly.

I was going to bail for Swell City, the wind looked better there, but I couldn't resist Tony's offer. iWindsurf says Swell dropped off like someone threw a switch, but it was probably the thunderstorm that rolled through and I think I would have had a real session instead of slogging around.

 A lot of the better wingfoilers are not switching their feet. I think people coming from a windsurfing background tend to switch, footstrap kiters not so much. I don't switch feet when I'm surf foiling so I don't know why I'm doing it now, I think it's something I need to work on--going toeside I mean. I've hardly even tried it. For some reason, I started right off switching feet as soon as I got my own wing, and it wasn't long before I went strapless. I think for downwinding that both approaches have advantages and I need both in the quiver. If I ever want to jump a wave (I do!!) I'm going to need footstraps unless it's going to be a throwaway thing. There's no way I can bend enough to grab a rail. I just had to do three dips to pick up my socks
Title: Re: mast position on fuse
Post by: Dwight (DW) on October 27, 2019, 08:51:55 AM
Slingshot foils have more settings than any other brand on the market. That is good and bad. Good in that you can make the foils with any board. Bad, if you don’t have the know how to set it up.

Once you try the suggestions here, it’s going to be easy.
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