Connection systems, old and new

Foils and Boards - Gear Talk
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I think one thing that is overlooked especially by newcomers is the connection system. I started on axis, and i remember in podcasts Adrian would go on and on about how much better the axis connection system is compared to the competition. Along the lines of no matter how big or glidey your front wing is, if the connection system is bad, then it doesnt work. I think he was badmouthing his number 1 competition, armstrong, and maybe brands like takuma. Nowadays, we the unibody construction is getting more common, like uni, f-one, code, lift… (While afs is taking it to the next level with one less connection, but thats another topic.)

I also remember in a podcast Armie (generic foiling perhaps), he was confronted about his connection system and i dont remember his response, but the reality is that old legacy brands are stuck in their connection system. And if the old connection system was any good, then more brands would be copying it. Instead all the newer brands are on the unibody construction, not sure if Lift was the first brand to do this.

From someone who has ridden axis and takuma, and now code, i am getting the first feels of riding a new connection system, and the feeling is way different. Obviously, its hard to compare apples and oranges as there would need to be a straight test with everything being the same except connection system. I do feel like you are getting a noticeable increase in efficiency by going to a new connection system. I do feel like front wing design is more important than connection system, but the construction is also really important too if youre chasing that last 15% of performance. It also feels to me that investing in older connection systems dont make sense anymore (unless there is a wing that you cant get anywhere else like the big axis art pros or pngs) because youre automatically losing 10 or 15% from the old connection.

Its not just the connection, its the carbon fuse. As well as the lack of having a huge rectangle where you bolt the wings onto the aluminum fuse. By not needing that huge rectangle area, you can make the wings more true to how the designers envisioned, instead of having to build around your existing connection.

Now i dont think connection systems matter for beginners or even intermediates. But if youre at the advanced or elite level, chasing that last 10-15%, especially if youre on bigger wings and heavier rider, then i think youre losing alot.

I want to know if im overthinking this, or if im just identifying the obvious. Which not alot of pros would talk about since they arent allowed to say their connection isnt as good as lift, etc…

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unifoils were also one piece wing and fuse for a couple years

that was our number one complaint

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That’s really interesting. Did you get counter complaints when you swapped?

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I think the Armstrong system has evolved into something that works ok.

My hypothesis is that initially the design started as a taper fit. But this is super hard to manufacture and get the tolerances correct.

Then it relied on the shear force of a bolt or two and a little bit of clamping force.

Then with the A+ system they added a barrel nut, and more recently an extra screw in the front which has moved almost the load the a clamping force rather than a shear force on the bolts.

I still havn’t seen a system that absolutely hits it out of the park in terms of design. Maybe one day!

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I think the higher the level of riding, the more the construction and connection system matter, because any amount of flex or drag translates in a big handicap. Adam was blown away by Fone’s construction and mast and that is why he spent so much time on the eagle/sk8. He has been clearly saying that those front wings are great but not super special (other brands do just as good, takuma v2, silk, army ha,…), that is especially the construction that made him stick around.

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I really like the connection system on my omen foils. They use stainless steel for the fuse section for the smallest possible diameter in order to minimize drag. Their website has a bit of an explanation for the design. I think levitaz uses the same thing for their race foils. The connection feels incredibly solid. Given how expensive foiling gear is, i like a premium product feeling from the gear i buy. There’s nothing worse than paying top dollar for gear that needs alu tape and other hacks out of the box

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I think that much like the advice in the earlier thread, the best advice is to get your hands on the gear and form your own opinions. Your question specifically is “am I overthinking it” and I think to some extent yes. People are riding very well on all of the major brands and systems at this point, and we aren’t hearing a lot of noise about failures or disappointment in any one connection any more like you did in the early days.

My opinion is that the F1 and Armstrong are currently the most rigid connections that I’ve had a chance to see/feel/flex. I was at AWSI this year and between there and Big Winds/Windance I had an opportunity to look at the connections up close and to flex the assemblies on land. I found that those two seemed to move as a unit from wing tip to board while most of the lever/socket type connections I flexed it seemed like you could get flex at the connection.

That said, I own a Unifoil set up as well as an Armstrong and I think they are both great products. I think your best bet is to pick the line that has the wings you want, demo it and see what YOU think of the whole system, and if it doesn’t have any big red flags for you I think you could be confident that it will be a good choice for your progression.

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Yeah, my issue with armie is that they wouldn’t stand behind it. When the 925 came out I got a 925 and the freshly released A+ and it was just garbage. Light years behind anything else in terms of stiffness, barely rideable. I evaluated it for one session, wanted out of it, and armie made me pay to ship the damn thing back to HONG KONG. I find it hard to believe they couldnt have worked it out to be delt with in the US. Felt punitive. @Clifford what would be the return policy if someone got a uni they felt wasn’t up to snuff? Am I off base being pissed off at having to pay $400 to return something that wasn’t competitive?

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You’re not off base for being pissed. Sounds like a strange situation to make you ship to Hong Kong! That’s effed up.

I’ve bought most of my Armstrong gear from REAL and they have a 30 return policy. I tried an HA1525 and it was not what I was looking for and they took it back, no questions asked. Same with a tail that was too draggy.

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