2013 5.3m S1 mini review

Heard a shipment of '13 Severne sails had hit the local so ducked in for some off season gear stroking. Am currently on a mix of 2011 (5.3,3.7) and 2009 (4.0, 4.5) S1s and was curious to see what the new 4 batten model looked like. I have sailed the '12 5.2m Swat and really liked it so was hopeful the the 4 batten change would make the S1s more SWAT like.

I mainly sail in the bay on Melbourne sea breezes to 18-25 knots and am on a '11 76L Evo with 16.5cm Maui Ultra fins (heaps better than stock fins for the bay by the way) and a '10 JP Freestyle for < 18 knots.

I was hopeful that the new S1 would be a bit softer, gruntier and have the power lower down and more forward, before anyone says Blade I am a relative light weight at 70kg and am sold on the light weight of the S1 and love the way they depower and go neutral in a turn.

Was stoked when Paul said to take out a virgin 5.3 S1 for a demo!!

I thought my 5.3 '11 was light but '13 is even lighter and was a lot easier to rig the '11. Don't have a Severne RDM and the '11 model doesn't sit perfectly on my 400 Loft 100% carbon rdm but the '13 looks a lot better. Maybe one less batten makes it more tolerant like the Swat is supposed to be.

Specs say 2.8 kgs which is only a couple of hundred less than my '11 model but gees this thing feels a hell of a lot lighter. The weight feels like it has have come off the top of the sail too.

On the beach the first thing I noticed is the fuller belly, then the low aspect ratio. There wasn't much wind 10-18 knot gusty SW, showery and cold but it definitely pulls harder and has a more pronounced leech twist than my '11

Managed to get a couple of planing runs on the 90L freestyle and am very impressed with this new model compared to the '11. Heaps better to pump, pull is lower down and a lot more grunt but still depowers nicely in the turns. You can really tell they have taken more weight off the top of the sail and translates to an almost weightless fell in your hands.

Love the minimalist touches as well, I think its a crime to punch holes in perfectly good sail material just appearance only features. They have gone with what looks like fiber reinforced plastic pullies as well to save a couple of grams!!

Here a a couple of pic.












No kickback, gratuities, bribes have been received for this review....yet

Have been using the new S1 5.7 here in Gero for our first light wind waveriding of the season and it is a weapon.
Super balanced with good bottom end grunt and........super light.
One less batten and no clew patch due to the spider fibre set up has made these things so incredibly light in your hands with such a soft feel.
Puts the surfing into windsurfing.
Put them on a severne mast Northy.

My 5.3 rigged OK on my constant curve Loft 400, but the 4.7 didn't like the CC 370. Got a quite pronounced wrinkle between the top two battens.

I am trying them on K3 Battlesticks at the moment and they look and sail a lot better as they are of the stiff tip variety. Check the mast curve comparison tables that are listed around the forum to see how your Ezzy compares.

I am sure Severne Redlines or Gorillas would give you the best result. Would have loved a pair but the ATO was not kind to me this year....