I wonder if they’ve done any inhouse development on this version, or if it’s still strictly off the shelf diy modules.
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looks cool, huge improvement on the original, looks like a legit consumer product! Stoked to see it happen and prove my reservations wrong
Pricing - Foil Drive Kits – Foil Drive Pty Ltd,
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Alright. I think I’m finally sold on this.
Who can interpolate the various battery capacities (looks like there are four versions) to real world usage?
Seems like a no brainer to get a universal mast for this, but I’m not totally sold on the gen1 Cedrus option. Don’t get me wrong, its a good mast and I used to have one, but I want to use this for downwind and I think it is slightly draggy for that application (gen2 would be a sick option, but more than I want to spend for a dedicated FD mast). What are others thinking for masts?
Bill does a nice job breaking down the different configurations, batteries, and options for their typical use case.
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I currently have the Foil Drive Assist plus with the integrated Cedrus mast. (Motor just under board Approx 18cm down) If I were to upgrade, I would just use my unifoil mast. If you go to Foil Drive website, under Foildrive assist max there is an installation video. “Install on any foil board and mast”. Explains it. Basically with the integrated mast, you eliminate the external cable. But then you are locked into just one motor position.
I’m currently a FDA user but I’m in the outlawed box on my waist crew so the new model doesn’t hold a lot of interest to me.
I do think if you don’t already have an existing foil drive setup and have the extra money the new gen 2 does look like a nicer bit of kit.
But I think for anyone that isn’t using it in efoil mode (as in all the way down near the wing) you’d be crazy to use anything but a nice carbon mast the run of cable is so short that drag is so minimal and for such a brief time that I’d much rather have my choice of masts and higher performing carbon don’t limit yourself to axis or cedrus
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I demoed one this weekend. Axis spitfire on a ~45L board. Foildrive Max.
Me: Advanced foiler both regular and efoil but I’ve never ridden this setup before and never ridden a spitfire wing.
Conditions: Flatwater with rollers, strong wind (Fort Pierce Inlet)
Review: First off let me say that I didn’t spend much time on it, maybe 10 minutes, and I didn’t get it dialed in, would have loved to have hooked it onto my Unifoil setup which I have tuned to my liking.
Compared to Lift eFoil it is a massive upgrade. Power was excellent, more than enough.
Breeching is significantly better than the Lift. It doesn’t plummet when the prop exits the water, it’s noticeable and you have to adjust but the entry/exit of the device is relatively minimal and with little practice I could see it being second nature.
Not sure about battery life but they were demoing them all day and didn’t seem concerned about the batteries, claim they last an hour for the Max when efoiling around.
Max was bigger than the slim but not by much, they do add a bit of weight but nothing close to an efoil and I didn’t feel it in the water. The overall setup is small and compact. Controller is very small and nice.
The price remains very high for most people ($5k plus your entire foil setup) but it really is a “game changer”. Not sure if I’m going to get one yet but if you have the right conditions it would be insane (long point breaks, towing breaks, etc)
Conclusion: The hype is real, get one if you can afford it and it works for your conditions, see my other thread about “we will all be electric” which now seems prescient. Basically this will be the standard in short time.
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