F-one board specs are out for their Rocket SUP DW Pro Carbon. Comes in 15 sizes and seems to have a stepped bottom like the KT boards.
I put together a list of the boards to simplify comparison as I think the primary things to consider are volume and then length to width ratio… ie aspect ratio.
I think most interesting is that the more recently released boards have gone longer and narrower. Also most brands are going higher aspect ratio on their higher volume boards (Sunova Prone 138L is the highest AR board I found, Axis DW 120L in second). A few DIY boards are higher AR for the relative volume so I added a “volume adjusted AR” which is interesting but not sure useful just yet.
Beyond this there is endless nuance in terms of appropriate board for conditions, suitability for brands, track centrality etc but that is impossible to meaningfully aggregate (and weight is brand claimed, so probably best to ignore).
The list isn’t perfect as most brand websites have zero ability to consistently list dimensions with consistent formatting, Aus come in last place here and special mention to USA for imposing their ridiculous measurement system on surfboards, which google sheets has literally nothing useful to cater for
F-one probably with the best “how to pick a DW board” guide
If you will mostly be riding in a windy place without ground swells (ex: the Mediterranean Sea, the Gorges), you can target a shorter board. These conditions are easier to take off in because bumps are mostly slow and steep. Keeping a compact board will provide a better maneuverability and a good pumping so you can connect the small and crosswind bumps.
If you are riding in light winds (ex: Caribbean Islands), you will need a longer board that provides more glide to take off on rounder bumps, with minor help from the wind.
If you are riding in ground swells (ex: Hawaii), then you need as much glide as possible to take off on these big, fast-moving bumps, and a longer board will be a big help.
I think more useful than longer or shorter used above is higher or lower aspect ratio as the length alone isn’t that useful. Volume and AR contains more information.
Did you get any help?
Yes, is that you?? Ha
Yesterday I rode my 5.5 AR downwind board 100L back to back with the Axis hybrid 110L 3.2 AR (yes this is a thing) and in pretty good but relatively messy bumps the long board was easy to get up onto foil, axis 1300 vs the Hybrid was impossible even with an easier 1150 foil. The wider board is so corky and sluggish and felt impossible. It catches waves easily in the surf zone and wings well but I could not make it work for DW. Im sure someone with excellent SUP technique could easily do it but I couldn’t. Swapping back I could glide into bumps on the long board again.
I wonder but I don’t see myself considering a DW board with AR less than 4.5 - 5 unless for somewhere with super strong wind and stacked bumps like Marseille or inland seas?
Everything being a compromise, the length at 8’6 feels like there is quite a bit of inertia, even with the foil boxes starting 900mm from the tail… I may chop the tail off
Nice list Matt. Curious if you were going to put the Sunova Elites on there? The Pro’s are very wide but Elites are in the 21-22 wide range like some of the others on there.
Cheers thanks yes I was going to but Sunova and Amos were by far the biggest hassle to format their dims so I got over it! Will definitely get around to it when I do a few more in one go.
You are developing a great resource here, Matt. Could you possibly sort the spreadsheet by the first column alphabetically? That would really clean it up. Thanks.
I don’t know if the Takoon Ultra Glide is worth putting on, but all the AR measurements are right around 3.5
Takoon Ultra Glide
6ft AR 3.51
6’2 AR 3.527
6’4 AR 3.45
6’6 AR 3.54
6’8 AR 3.55
Have been riding a 95 litres KT for some 700 km already, and absolutely loving it in our mostly unreliable winds. Just winging though. 1180 cm2 foil in the first half of the video and 631 cm2 foil in the second half. Gets going so effortlessly. But the paddle up is hard, probably not happening for me anytime soon haha.
Takoon Ultra glide is develloped for light wind winging. The Escape and Escape SW are dedicated DW boards
On Aspect Ratio, from the work I have done building boards, I found the magic number to be 0.66.
Aspect Ratio is Span ^2 / Area which equals Span over Average Chord.
I found that 0.66 x Max Chord gives a good approximation for Average Chord. If you divide you AR Calculations by 0.66 you will get numbers that start to look, and feel like the Aspect Ratios on foils. Otherwise your AR calculation is for a Rectangular Shape vs. a Tapered Board shape.
So AR Board = Board Length / (Board Width * 0.66)
Update: The KT is an excellent board. I have the 105L (7’4) and I’m learning to DW on it (past the beginner phase and was riding the Lift 150 in the Gorge). It is more narrow / long than the older stock Casey boards at 19.5 inches but not as narrow as the Barracuda (19) in the same volume range. The shape is displacement, similar to a boat hull, which makes it slip off the water during the pump more easily.
After trying the Barracuda (also with the Lift 150), I can say that the Barracuda gets going faster more easily than the KT because of its longer, narrower shape and flat bottom. This is beneficial when starting out in DW, flat water starting, or flying smaller wings in smaller bumps. Though it gets going faster, it sticks to the water a bit more in my opinion when coming off foil. This seems somewhat offset by the length and good pumping technique, however, but took a bit more “force” than the KT.
Two reasons to like the KT vs. the Barracuda: The track placement and design of the KT may pair much better with high aspect wings like the Lift and Armstrong foils. These foils typically require more forward mast placement. My buddy riding the Lift 150 with his Barracuda positions his mast all the way to the top, and when I was riding it it felt like I needed to be very back foot heavy. I much prefer the more balanced stance and have heard that baseplate shims might be needed if you’re not riding GoFoil or Axis.
Once riding, the KT felt much more balanced for turning, perhaps because of the reduced length and step at the back, or maybe because of said track placement.
Fanatic got bought out by duotone. So now it’s the Duotone Downwinder.
Fanatic & Duotone are same company Boards & More.
All foil, wing and windsurf gear is now Duotone along with kiting stuff.
Fanatic is staying for sup only
I’m not saying it’s why they did that…that would be a good strategy to dump all their fanatic overstock at low price…without looking too bad.
Blockquote
Not sure what you mean by that as a lot stuff was out of stock or simply replaced by exact same model with Duotone branding on the foil side
I’M not saying this is what they are doing, they also selling sup and windsurfing I’m just saying, that would be good strategy.