I’ve seen a lot of people using the wing screws for adjusting the mast in the water - I assume they don’t create enough drag to be noticeable? Any reviews?
I don’t think I can blame the times I don’t catch waves on them. One thing I will say is that it helps to use tef gel or similar and don’t over tighten. I tend to set it up very lightly then tighten a little after a wave or two. I didn’t do that the first day and they seized up. It was a good thing I had a wrench. OTOH, I’ve been very glad I had them when I’m still learning a setup.
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I love them. If there is any increase in drag, its pretty minimal. I originally got them to dial in a setup, but now I use them more often than not given my need to easily remove the foil to pack my vehicle. When I’m setting up a new foil, I often move the mast several times during a session while Im in the water.
Can’t say Ive ever had an issue overtightening them, unless my hands are freezing and I can’t get them off. Ive had them loosen slightly during a session, so I usually try to tighten them in the water after 20 mins or so.
I use the Hydrofoil Wingscrews which are great, but pretty expensive. Unifoil has there version and I just saw a small fabricator “Valbo Designs” is launching a slick looking set.
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I’ve got them for Axis and like them a lot. No issues with drag for winging since you’ve got a power source to get you moving, I try not to use them for prone unless I’m experimenting on a new set up to make paddling back out as easy as possible and reduce drag because I’m not at the point when I can pump back out. I think I notice it dragging a little more but it could just be in my head. If I was good enough to pump back out mostly, I would only use the wing screws because I’d be paddling less, it makes set up and break down so quick!
I personally think these screws are a must have, they can drastically reduce the amount of time it takes you to find the correct spot for your mast with any set up. Instead of paddling or riding back in, setting your gear down, unlock car, get tools, change, put tools back in car, lock car, get back to water, all you do is turn board upside down, shimmy the mast around a bit, and tighten. I’ve done it in deep water when I couldnt even touch the bottom so long as you get into a calmer area of water. Takes about a minute vs 15+ turn around time. If you think about that in terms of sessions, this could get you dialed in a single session vs potentially 5+ due to how slow it will be to change your positioning + your reluctance to paddle back in and make a change at all. You’ll probably just stay out and try something new next session. So yeah I recommend getting a pair.
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They seized up after one day, how is that possible?
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Not really seized, just too tight to loosen with your hands with the limited leverage. Having a hex or torx option would be nice for when they are stuck. I’m also in mitts in Maine so there’s that.
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Foiling in waves. No issue.
Winging. Probably no issue.
James casey and zane Westwood laughed at me when I asked if they would use them in sup dw boards. So I guess don’t use them for that.
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They probably laughed at you because they have their mast positions dialed in. Probably no issue to use them for DW either.
I just picked up a set for Armstrong but haven’t used them yet. I noticed when screwing them into my T-nuts that they all didn’t go in cleanly. Upon further inspection the wing screw threads were perfect but a couple of my T-nuts had been galled from hundreds of uses. I ran an M6 tap through the T-nuts and all is fine. Now I keep that M6 tap in the van.
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My wing nuts got stuck again when I used them on the deeper-tracked FFB dagger, so they didn’t make it far enough into the nuts. Since I should have used the provided 28mm bolts, the smarter move would have been to just bring a tool. The cedrus tool that straps on, or I’ve also carried a T-handle in the wetsuit chest pocket.
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Well I was actually debating them saying there is to much drag for paddling up. Told them to a/b test it with the same exact boards and gear. They both laughed and said there’s no point. It’s to much drag.
I think they’re just really tuned into their gear.
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I have the Hydrofoil wingscrews for prone and I can honestly say I can’t tell the difference in drag. And the ease of tuning foil position in the water would make them worth it even if there was.
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I’m looking to get some wing nuts to go on my Unifoil Katana mast and I’m debating between the Unifoil wingnuts (titanium) and the ones from Custom Wingscrews (stainless/aluminum).
Anyone have experience with the Unifoil ones? Just wondering if it’s possible to get enough leverage given the smaller head.
Uni: Titanium wingnuts with t-nuts – Unifoil Hydrofoils
Custom Wingscrews: https://www.customwingscrews.com/product-page/satin-black-m8x30-wingscrew-set
I just got the Unifoil screws, observations:
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They are definitely big enough to tighten with your hands, but always check them after your first wave as they need a pinch up.
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They are about 0.5mm too short to easily slot the katana mast into place, so you mostly need to unscrew and drop them through the top. The normal screws slot in easily.
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They definitely drag if they are set sideways. I wouldn’t want to align then to cut through the water because then you are compromising on how tight they are, and I already had one that needed tightening after a few waves.
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With a 2mm baseplate shim (it is about 3-4mm thick on the thick end and 1-2mm on the thin end), the screws only just start to grip the nut thread, and so it wouldn’t take too many turns to drop off.
I didn’t notice the drag when paddling to catch a wave, but I noticed when on foil but not yet to my feet and board coming back down I noticed the drag. Maybe in my head but it felt like a handbrake. For drag sensitive stuff like tiny wave chips and lightwind DW paddle ups it would be a thing.
On the whole I like them, they are super light and I think useful.
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If you go custom wing screws, get the takuma M8 30MM size. The Katana base plate is thick and the 25MM wont go deep enough to easily slot in and out. Also make sure you get Takuma with that taper, because the straight edge ones will scratch your Katana’s slope. I got custom wing screws instead of unifoils because I just didnt want the rectangular straight edges with some weird scenario to cut my hands open.
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I love them for prone. I move my mast a lot to optimize the point of maximum pump / minimum jack on takeoff.
I do reach under the board and tighten them again about every three waves. One or two are usually a quarter turn loose already.
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do you guys use TefGel or anything on them? Mine are usually dry when i am screwing them on.