In my own opinion, I would think the ideal spectrum for a taka 3 is between 4.5 and 5.0. I would go Elite in 5.7 and 4.2 and probably 5 battens below 4.2, the extra weight is not that dramatic and had some stability and wind range.
Larger than 5.7, a lot of tissue to stabilise so I would go with the zeta also, I'm 72Kg, so bigger sailors might move that spectrum a bit. ;-) hovever, ezzy make similar power sail, I would not switch model as easy in some other brand.
Forceten,
I'm in Klamath Falls, Or. 5 hours south of Hood River, Or. (Columbia Gorge). We have a pretty nice little spot here for windsurfing. We park and rig next to a golf course, walking to the water's edge to launch is 100 ft from parking. Pretty nice venue we have here. One of the best spots I have windsurfed yet. Lake is 2 miles wide, 22 miles long and 15-30 feet deep. Best spot to go is at harbor Isle. Best chance for guaranteed wind is May and June. Season starts in March and goes to early September. The secret is the wind doesn't show up until 4-5 pm and when it picks up and fills in, it's pretty darn nice. Wind lasts up to 10-11pm at night. Sunset is at 9pm. I've been out until 9:45pm on a full moon. There are only 5 of us here now. Be a good place for you to check out. Feel free to email me for more details if you want.
Select to expand quoteNordRoi said..
In my own opinion, I would think the ideal spectrum for a taka 3 is between 4.5 and 5.0. I would go Elite in 5.7 and 4.2 and probably 5 battens below 4.2, the extra weight is not that dramatic and had some stability and wind range.
Larger than 5.7, a lot of tissue to stabilise so I would go with the zeta also, I'm 72Kg, so bigger sailors might move that spectrum a bit. ;-) hovever, ezzy make similar power sail, I would not switch model as easy in some other brand.
All good thoughts, you did read the OP has chosen the Legacy ..? Their is more to the sail difference than weight and number of battens.
there is certainly some merit for 5 B Tiger, having better range and stability. my 6.1 Elite I felt as good as the Panther LTD, which morphed into the Tiger, my quiver then consisted of a 5.9, 6.0, 6.1, 6.2 and 6.5. These were very different sails. The 5.9 6.0 remain.6.5 replaced with a 7.0.
My sails would probably vary from what I have , if I didn't have a closely spaced quiver. I would desire more range, as in the Tiger.
maybe...
Select to expand quotebatstonem said..
I agree with Mark.
I use ezzys all the time and have tried taka's in the past. They have great (amazing) low range and depower easily. They also overpower easily and are a very on/off sail.
If you are sailing gusty places and want to maximise the amount of time you spend on the water without changing rigs I would use a 5 batten sail. Especially if its super windy and gusty like the gorge. Otherwise you will spend about 10% of your time comfortably powered and the rest over or under.
My choice is actually the Tigers for the reasons above. Great wind range and very stable with good build quality and constant steady pull.
Email Dave Ezzy though. Very approachable and will give you an honest opinion.
I'm sorry, can't help myself. This might be true of the the Taka, but doubt it.
My Experience with the latest generation of 3 batten wavesail is that you can no longer make such generalizations. As a Gorge sailor, I myself was very skeptical of the Hot KS3 but I have found the wind range to be absolutely shocking on these sails. In most sails from the last few years it comes down to preference of feel rather than outright suitability or wind range. Personally I don't think I would want more top end even if adding a batten or 2 would help it - I mean do I really want to be sailing a 5.5 when I could be on a 4.5?
Magic, I'm sure you will like your Legacy as well, but I certainly wouldn't Write off a sail based on batten count - not these days anyhow...
ChinookRandD,
The funny thing is, I was going to get the 5.3 Taka2 sail, but my shop was sold out of the ones that were on sale, so my next choice was the 5.2 Legacy. Since Klamath Lake is the main place I sail, I now think the Legacy is the better choice. The Legacy in the 5.2 is like the Tiger, but without the bells and whistles, and less expensive.
Select to expand quoteMagic Ride said..
ChinookRandD,
The funny thing is, I was going to get the 5.3 Taka2 sail, but my shop was sold out of the ones that were on sale, so my next choice was the 5.2 Legacy. Since Klamath Lake is the main place I sail, I now think the Legacy is the better choice. The Legacy in the 5.2 is like the Tiger, but without the bells and whistles, and less expensive.
Make sure you get the pulley ,as a extra .maybe the sail foot protector too. 
and bobs ya uncle .
He may be right about the Taka, though I have heard good things about the new Taka3. You almost can't go wrong with newer sails these days. Like I said, to me it's all about differences in feel. For instance that constant, steady pull that is a trademark Ezzy is not my cup of tea. Sure I appreciate the decent wind range but I like a much looser more pivotal feel. It's really great if you can try things first, but not always possible. That's why it's good when you can read between the lines of peoples opinions & get a sense of how a sail will feel in your hands. It's always helpful when sailors describe how a sail pulls & give an idea of the wind range compared to others rather than make judgments based on pre-concieved notions of batten count etc ...
Hey Tardy,
The 2016 Legacy comes with the pulley and mast pad. So I should be good. Guess they upgraded the Legacy a little.
Select to expand quoteMagic Ride said..
ChinookRandD,
The funny thing is, I was going to get the 5.3 Taka2 sail, but my shop was sold out of the ones that were on sale, so my next choice was the 5.2 Legacy. Since Klamath Lake is the main place I sail, I now think the Legacy is the better choice. The Legacy in the 5.2 is like the Tiger, but without the bells and whistles, and less expensive.
Perhaps something to be said if the Taka was sold out, reference its performance in The US NW.
CHINOOK R n D, the KS 3 has some of the best positive reviews I have seen of late.
The first generation Taka IMO , is a very good sail.
your remark on discounting a sail , because it has X number of battens is true, and I wonder if the impression is based on a actual ride or what seems logical.
Force10, Indeed the Taka was well received but many acknowledged a limited top end. It seems so, since Ezzy has specifically addressed the issue in the later generations... As for impressions, I think it is logical. I felt the same way & was very happy with my 6 batten sails & very skeptical of the modern "compact" sails .... until I read a review from someone I trusted which described in great detail the character of this sail, then went ahead & tried it for myself. Sailing is believing.
Yes, David said the the initial designs of both Elite and Taka, have taught him quite a bit, so that knowledge goes into,thefurther development of those sails.
regards battens the HSM, SO, had if I remember had 6 b, I wonder how it would feel back to back with a KS3?
Select to expand quoteforceten said..
Yes, David said the the initial designs of both Elite and Taka, have taught him quite a bit, so that knowledge goes into,thefurther development of those sails.
regards battens the HSM, SO, had if I remember had 6 b, I wonder how it would feel back to back with a KS3?
....Like a lead garbage bag.
Just received my Ezzy 5.2 Legacy sail. This is my first brand new Ezzy sail and I'm stoked!!! Yes the mast pad and tack pulley is built into the sail now. It also looks like they beefed the sail up with higher quality fabric for 2016.
Downhaul pulleys on wave sails are a waste of money. They are totally unnecessary.
The Legacy was originally marked as a cheaper alternative without bells and whistles.
Sad to see it going the way of fashion.
Hey notwal,
Can we be any more crankier! The Legacy is still the cheaper sail of the bunch. You should know that products always gets better over time. That's just life. Come on now!!
Select to expand quoteMagic Ride said..
Hey notwal,
Can we be any more crankier! The Legacy is still the cheaper sail of the bunch. You should know that products always gets better over time. That's just life. Come on now!!
"Crankier"!? Gee I don't know. How "crankier" can one get and what's your criterion? 
My point is nothing more or less than what I said. I liked the idea of a no frills sail. "Gets better over time" is a value judgement that seems to be a substitute for abandoning the brief and joining the throng of more or less generic sails in the market place. To me "gets better over time" means performs better for longer without being repellently ugly or heavy while maintaining the no frills brief.
I would put your trust in David Ezzy. He makes great products, and he is known for his attention to detail, and where he sees an improvement necessary, he will tackle it. Heck, adding the mast tack pulley just made downhauling a Legacy that much easier. Who is gonna complain about that. Oh I forgot, you are! And the mast pad now. Hey I'm grateful!
Does it have a tack strap too?
Tack straps aren't really necessary either.
<edit> Just checked. Yes they do, one of those extra long ones that doubles as a strap to keep your sail rolled up when out of the bag. If the sail just had a large tack cringle/ grommet (whatever you like to call them) you wouldn't have the notch cut out of the tack to accommodate the pulley.
Very few wave sails have tack straps so they are QED not strictly necessary. If you downhaul your sail so the tack is close to the extension pulleys the foot can't move anyway.
Select to expand quoteMagic Ride said..
I would put your trust in David Ezzy. He makes great products, and he is known for his attention to detail, and where he sees an improvement necessary, he will tackle it. Heck, adding the mast tack pulley just made downhauling a Legacy that much easier. Who is gonna complain about that. Oh I forgot, you are! And the mast pad now. Hey I'm grateful!
Easier than easy enough? You should take up kiting if that's your criterion.
You're missing my point here, All I'm saying is that this is all about convenience. What does kiteboarding have to do with this? Windsurfing is much more attractive to me than kiting is. Still not on the same page with you on this. I mean look at it this way, windsurfing in the 1980s and windsurfing up to date. The equipment is so much user friendly. You can't deny that. So in other words, the Legacy just became a more user friendly sail.
Select to expand quoteMagic Ride said..
You're missing my point here, All I'm saying is that this is all about convenience. What does kiteboarding have to do with this? Windsurfing is much more attractive to me than kiting is. Still not on the same page with you on this. I mean look at it this way, windsurfing in the 1980s and windsurfing up to date. The equipment is so much user friendly. You can't deny that. So in other words, the Legacy just became a more user friendly sail.
He is attacking your physche with remarks to kiting.
His discussion about a pulley on a wave sail being a waste of money is pretty well unfounded, a fair number of sailors would find it extremely useful.
he obviously feels it's an needless feature that can be done without. Good for him, all that weight savings on his sails to gloat over.
according to David the tack strap s function is to tension the edge of the foot, it also tensions the lower leach, it also servers as a ruler, and yes holds the sail when rolled up.
few designers have over the years been as consistent in making most sailors happy, and for more than a year or 2, with the construction details.
I'm not missing your point. I'm disagreeing with it.
A downhaul pulley on a wave sail is not a functional improvement.
It's a misfeature but it has market appeal. It doesn't belong on a no frills sail.
I could explain it in detail if you like.
Select to expand quote
Magic Ride said..
Details would be fine. Explain what you mean by a "no frills" sail?
Let me offer one.
To add to the confusion, here is a "frills wave sail"
albeit from 1982. State of the art vertical cut, high clew, short boom (for then). However, no D ring, no pulley and no tack strap, no built in mast pad. The downhaul was not tensioned anywhere like modern sails. It seems frills and no frills is a state of mind dependent on the needs of the time. Things have moved on today. It is a thrill whatever way you look at it.
From what I'm hearing is, frill and no frill sails are very old school sails, or state of mind, however which way that's interpreted. Still waiting for Nutwal to give me the lowdown here.
You guys have lost the plot. You're not following. I previously said this:Select to expand quoteI liked the idea of a no frills sail. "Gets better over time" is a value judgement that seems to be a substitute for abandoning the brief and joining the throng of more or less generic sails in the market place. To me "gets better over time" means performs better for longer without being repellently ugly or heavy while maintaining the no frills brief.
That pretty much eliminates all your kind suggestions.
Back to the critique:
A downhaul pulley is not more user friendly in a wave sail. It just isn't. It's not more convenient.
It's slightly less convenient to thread.
It's a little more expensive.
It raises the foot of the sail from the deck if you don't take extra design measures to counter that. And that involves cutting a piece out of the tack leaving the foot untensioned so now you need a tack strap to compensate.
It offers no real advantage.
With a cringle you lead through it twice. You only have to use 1 sheave in the extension pulley. It's quicker and simpler and it's not at all difficult.
I have an Ezzy 7.2 that I rig that way on a 460 and I'm just a skinny little girl who enjoys poetry, crochet and long walks on the beach.
The only time you need a pulley on a sail is when you need the additional mechanical advantage for sails with a lot of tension, typically race sails. As soon as you NEED more than 2x mechanical advantage a cringle doesn't work. Even then many race sails of the past just used a simple stainless rectangular dohicky with three tracks for the rope. It was very shallow and it was taped onto the tack with no tack cut outs to bugger up the foot tension, and they set close to the deck. They would still be adequate for all but the most highly tensioned sails and they would simplify the tack support.
Now to that otherwise unnecessary tack strap that gets in the way when stowing your downhaul line, that you have to wind around your extension because it's long enough to keep your sail rolled, that distorts the tack if you don't have a seat for a tack strap on your extension, that you forget to undo when derigging before releasing downhaul tension so you have to retension to undo. That one. It has a scale on it, whoopdy ****in doo. Now you can measure the umm.. err... length of your fin when you're rigging. There are better ways to keep a sail rolled than by using a long tack strap but since it's there it's probably cheaper than alternatives so I give it a grudging "no frills" pass but a "dweeberous" fail.
Foot pad no frills? It's moot. If you have a clip on pad it's unnecessary but no one seems to use those these days so if you can't get those then it's functional.
Arguably decoration does not fit the "no frills" brief but sails can look dead boring without a bit of colour. Just keep it simple and minimal.
