The Gong Allvator SUP/Surf foil

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colas said..
Here is one of the first posts by an user:

And he just added:

The two work exactly the same way ... wing pull up and stab pull down on both.
I practiced for 3 months on the gofoil of a friend while waiting for the arrival of my gong and I saw no difference on the water ... strictly none in terms of feeling.

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icharus said..

I have the naish' large and the 80 - very different beasts the gong is not as smooth - maybe just size - it feels every bubble in the surf where the Nash cuts thru . It's still a lot of fun tho and can carve nicely. It is slower but not excessively so.

Are the mast interchangeable between the Naish and the Gong? I understand they are made at the same factory

It is really really hard to find comparison of the Gong ALLVATOR Foil compared to other brand. I only see people from Gong responding to the questions, it's embarrassing in my opinion. The Go foil seems cool but expensive.

I am not sure what to do because I'm scared that GONG having so much people answering on forums and the fact that it is quite impossible to hear feedbacks of theirs products from other people than their ambassadors is scary for a customer.

There are not a lot of people out who have a ton of experience on multiple foil brands without also being in the industry, plus Gong is marketing to non-English speakers pretty heavily. I wouldn't read too much into it.

I just got my XXL and XL in yesterday. Not enough time for a full review since I have had very little water time on them, but here are some first impressions:

On the wave it feels like a very stable and predictable foil. I wish I had started learning in this foil.

Fit and finish are as Colas described at the beginning of this thread. No complaints, and no need keep a rubber mallet in my car ;) Everything assembles effortlessly.

On a superficial level, Gong's wings look more like Gofoil's than they do any other brand, both use very thick wings. It is clearly it's own design though. No performance comparision implied here, just a visual note.

Not much heavier than my full carbon KeNalu foil.

The Aluminum mast has a pretty sharp leading edge. I would be way more worried about getting hit by the mast than the wing. I guess its the same mast Naish uses, but my KeNalu's edge is much more rounded. The mast also takes in water if you don't plug it with something. Not a huge deal, but I soaked my backseat the first time I did a partial disassemble for loading.

Coordinating international shipping wasn't as easy or cheap as buying on Amazon, but gong (jaime) did a fine job on their end. The Travel case for the XXL is huge, but it has to be to fit the wing, and it's pretty cool that they give you one with the foil. The second wing came with it's own foam cut out, so you can swap it out in the case, but storing both in the case would be difficult without modification.

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Hdip said..
Thanks for that. Please post more impressions as you get more ride time. Your previous foil is a Ke Nalu? I'm interested in how you feel about that one too. Thanks.

If you are under about 180 lbs or not interested in down winding, the current sale price on the Ke Nalu is hard to beat if you are in the US. They held off on releasing the 970 wing because they felt like there was too much flex in the fuselage with it. Instead they have redesigned the fuselage/wing mount, so a new version will be coming out later in 2019, hence the sale of current stock. I wanted a big wing and didn't want to wait, so I went for the Allvator.

If the two smaller wing sizes are enough, I would get the Ke Nalu, just for the carbon weight savings at the about same price. If you want or need to expand to larger sizes, the Allvator is the way to go.

I just got my first session with the XXL wing in. I'm 6'5, 107kg. Conditions were about as miserable as it gets here, 0.8 ft, 12 sec, 14 knots off shore. I was still catching waves a getting up for short rides. It was so nice to be up on a foil gliding and not spending my whole time trying to keep it in the air. It does generate a ton of lift, but at my weight in these small waves I could bully it into submission. I was using a low rocker 7'0 sup board, so I had no trouble keeping the nose weighted enough to prevent unwanted take offs, but I imagine lighter rides on smaller board might have trouble. For me, this was what I wanted a foil for, smooth glides on what would otherwise be awful conditions.

Interesting about the wing attachment. Do you think that's your wobble or is it mast attachment?

Maybe just the wing has too much mass and torque for the stiffness of the mast?

Thanks and keep the updates coming. Anyone else have this sensation?

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Camarillo said..
-Wing has a very loose fit on the fuselage, I would prefer to have to use
a rubber hammer , what can I do about that?

I guess the wobbles may be due (in part?) by this loose fit.

The best solution is just to make a "hotcoat" of resin on the fuselage peg: just wet it and smooth the resin with a business card. and if it is too much, just sand it after curing. If not enough, add just another layer. Solarez is a faster solution, but you will have to sand it more (hard to make a thin layer with it). Most Gong wings fit perfectly, but they can require some adjustment. Mine was a bit to tight, so I had to sand it... and then re-add some resin because I sanded too much :-)

I have not read about wobbles from other people with the XXL wing, but they may not have had the opportunity to experience stronger masts, so I do not know how a Gong foil with a well fit XXL wing would compare to a NP with a large mast in term of rigidity.

I got an XXL wing to fit on my Gong Allvator foil and have been really impressed. Had a long session on the combo last week and did not notice any mast flex. The XXL had great lift and was still able to carve although not as easily as my L wing. The XXL did not feel overpowered even on near head high rolling waves. There was a little play between the fuselage and the wing that I noticed on assembly which disappeared on tightening the 2 m6 screws. I put a strip of electrical tape on 2 sides of the fuselage that the wing locates onto and it is now a very snug fit that needs a light tap with a mallet to get on and off. I cannot detect ant play when riding. I really rate the Allvator.

I am budget foiling. I have a Chinese copy of a Takuma which I started foiling on before moving to the Allvator. I Iike the look of the NP foil but don't think the Gong foil is holding my progression back. I also have the 45cm mast which I have been using a lot in shallow water. A really useful add on. I am also thinking of getting one of the Gong kite foil stabs to try on my L and XXL rigs. Great to be able to mix and match the parts from Gong!

Sure you are right DWF. Would love to try a GoFoil or Neil Pryde foil oneday.

I like a snug fit also. 3M 3350 Mylar tape is very durable high strength and is 3.1 mils thin so it works good for shim stock. Tape on 3 sides gets a tight fit before the screws go in.

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Fishdude said..
I like a snug fit also. 3M 3350 Mylar tape is very durable high strength and is 3.1 mils thin so it works good for shim stock. Tape on 3 sides gets a tight fit before the screws go in.

3.1 mils ? how thick is that in mm?

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Camarillo said..

Fishdude said..
I like a snug fit also. 3M 3350 Mylar tape is very durable high strength and is 3.1 mils thin so it works good for shim stock. Tape on 3 sides gets a tight fit before the screws go in.

3.1 mils ? how thick is that in mm?

Or if you are an old bloke like me then about 1/8th of an inch

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hilly said..
For the price you pay it should not be necessary to shim it. Poor design.

I'm not so sure. I hear GoFoil owners tuning and shimming the fit all the time. It's pretty common in composite things.

Also, "mils" are 1000th of an inch, much smaller than a millimeter. Tape and sheet plastic is measured in these. Like 6 mil trash bags.

I'd also figure that weight plays a part in mast stiffness. Someone at 65 kg will notice less than someone at 80kg, no?