Rider: 88kg, Advanced
Style: Freeriding, Surf, Wake, Freestyle and Race
Weather: 10-18 knots
Build Quality: 10/10
Satisfaction: 12/10
Disclosure: I work at a shop and am team rider for Airush
My Comments:
Recently I was lucky enough to go to Thailand where I was able to try the new Sector V3's. I had 1½ days on the water chopping and changing between all 3 Sectors but on the same kite (2013 Airush 16m Lithium One) the water was choppy with very small waves breaking. The wind was constantly up and down with small rain squalls coming through.
Sector 66: This board fits perfectly between the Sector 60 (a very fast and fun free ride board) and the Monaro (a balls to the wall full race winning machine). The 66 points really well up wind has good board speed and is still moderately easy to ride. It only wants to be ridden flat but didn't like to “Fly shadow” (when the windward rail lifts so you are ridding off the fins and toe side edge like the Monaro does). It is easy to tack and gybe because it is nice and stable but it is more a race board than a free ride board. This board is a perfect board for a 1st time racer who is only interested in racing but doesn't want to make the big commitment of learning the huge amounts of technique required for a full race board. I believe that most people in their first season of racing will be quicker around the course on the 66 or even the 60 than they will on a full race board and you can still get the ball rolling in terms of learning the required technique for the full race boards like the Monaro. The 66 would also suit the heavier person (105kg or more) in light wind.
Sector 60: The 60 is still my favourite Sector. The V3 60 feels much quicker than the V2 60 but having said that I didn't have a V2 there to test against. It is supper quick but doesn't point as high as the 66 does. But I felt that it is quicker than the 66 on a reach. It can be set up with 1 or 2 foot straps at the back depending on your preference. I liked it set up with the 2 straps at the back but mostly because I didn't like the way the centre foot strap had to be screwed into the fin at one end. It still has the great throw around fun factor that the 60 always had but this year it seems to have stepped up a notch in performance. It had great bottom end but also seems to hang onto more power (possibly due to the new tail shape?) This board will suit anyone that wants to get out in light wind and blast around playing on the water when everyone else is still sitting on the beach. And it will still suit people wanting to get into their first season of racing. It is a really fun early planning free ride/race board. As I said before I believe that most people will be quicker around a course in their first year of racing on something like this or the 66 than they will on a full race board and because it can be ridden flat you can start learning the technique required for the full race boards while you are learning to race on this board.
Sector 54: This board was an insane amount of FUN! It is so playful you just don't want to come back into the beach. It boosts well and is so easy to throw around that I found myself smashing lips, carving turns and doing board offs and all sorts of transitions with it. It is a huge step forward from the V2 52 as it has much more performance but also feels easier to ride. Like the 60 you can ride this board flat or edge it heel side so anyone that can kite can just jump on and ride away (just like the 60). It doesn't have the bottom end of the 60 or 66 but it will still smash any twin tip or surf board in terms of bottom end. This board is really fast too so it will make an ideal downwind slalom race board but just doesn't point as high as the 60 or 66 (I'm looking at getting one for the next Rotto race)
Sector Fins: I got to try the quad and tri fin setups and also the new swept carving fins and I like all of them! The boards do feel different with the different set ups. They all seem to be faster and more “racey” with the tri fin set up but more stable and easier to ride in the quad set up. As for the Carving fins it definitely loosens up the board and it does carve a lot better but it will not turn your Sector into a surfboard. The carving fins will satisfy your average free rider that wants to play in the waves and smash a few lips here and there but I don't think we will see people on the KSP wave tour riding Sectors.
Overall: Airush have done a fantastic job again this year and have brought some great offerings to the table with the sector line up. I couldn't fault the build quality and finish on any of the boards and i really like what they have done with the fin options. They are great boards for people that just want to get out and blast around having huge amounts of fun or for people that want to get into racing the Sector range is impossible to go past!
Writing this makes me want to go for a kite so bad now
What about fin boxes? How many in each board? Have they been improved respect sectors V1 and V2?
And what about standard fin sizes?
Thanks in advanced
Saffer
Pricing has not been finalized yet but it looks like they will be a similar price to last year.
Catalaussie
They all have 5 fin boxes.
The 54 is a huge step forward from the V2 52
The 60 is a step forward from the V2 60 but more small refinements than big changes
and the 66 is new to the range so yeah i guess it has improved from the V1 and V2
Can i hear all the good stuff on the sector?Anyone who has one,info would be cool.
cheersAny model v1 v1.5 v2 v3 ??
I have been using the Sector 60 v1.5, v2 one design and the new v3 60 back to back.
I believe I have the only Sector V3 in Australia at this time, why, because I use the World Wide Web and got it in within 5 days. I don't believe that we should not be able to have them before August/September when the rest of the world has them already. I kite all year round and do not work to any seasonal marketing program, if you want one, go get one! Cost should work out the same as when the powers that be allow you to buy them here.
“Get on with it, Life's too short to bugger about! “
been using quad strap great for feet on the rail but harder for toe side now trying tri strap set up with tri fin.
JUST A BIT OF FUN!
No wind and idle hands make the devils work!
Sector 60 V1.5 and TRX 17 with a fleeting shot of the New sector 60 V3.
More to come when the wind plays the game!
thanks for a pointless video of an old sector and no footage of the v3 . Considering this is a v3 thread an all .
I did say there was a fleeting shot of the V3 watch it again and Ste asked about V1.5 and V2 so I think I'm on topic! Eppo I have been using the V2 and there are minor changes in the way it rides compared to the V3 but need more time on the V3 to be conclusive. Also you have more options with the V3 quad strap, quad fin, tri strap, tri fin and so on.
Just a note re: Damo's comment on the 60 V3 centre strap position. Airush only provide two screw positions for it and give no option for bigger feet, the rear position is the forward tri fin fixing screw. I have modified this by drilling a new fixing hole behind this position (there is enough solid meat in this part of the board for the fixing). I then removed the dome head stainless steel screw for the fin and replaced it with a counter sink screw and counter sink washer (had to make the counter sink washer as couldn't find one). This works very well and stops you having to ride with a dome head screw cutting into your foot.
The plastic adjuster rings fitted to the straps are poor quality and snap, I will be replacing these with stainless steel soon!
Pete , interesting comment about the strap . I never had any issues with the ring pulls on the v2 60 .
Also that third fin , looks like the position of that fin is all over the shop .
wonder if it would handle better if you used the correct fin .
I did have a ring pull go on a V2 as well, they don't stand up to much of a tug ,may be I'm heavy handed but I think you will see them have to change them for a stronger ring pull in the future. For now I will change to a 316 stainless steel pull!
Well for a board that may cost me 1300 bucks I would expect everything, including the straps be spot on.
Won't stop me getting one, as it's the boards performance that really counts in the end,
but for the record that's crap Air-rush!
The whole fin, screw, move this, change that, just sh1ts me to living tears to see that, for such an expensive board.
Maybe I have been spoilt by Cardboard.
anyhow enough ranting...sorry don't know what got into me; I'm really keen on one of these, but the stuff above has just given me the absolute Farqin' sh1ts...weird hey? Must be that time of the month!
Eppo