-Advanced foiler, almost all wave foiling.
-5m SLS wing w/the new boom, coming from the 2023 Slick. Also had a 2022 Unit back in the day.
-At least a dozen sessions in flatwater at Stuart Causeway, waves in Fort Pierce and Bahamas.
Overall: This wing is very different from the slick. Very grunty and much worse upwind. Pulls hard downwind which makes it harder to build speed for takeoff on a high aspect foil. I'd say it has 2-3 knots less low-end than the comparable slick. Wider wingspan so it hits the water easier especially using a sinker board. Also much higher bar pressure/grunt.
Positives are that it surfs better, very stable when flagged out and tacks/flies very smooth. Probably jumps better too.
Overall for me I think the older Slick is a significantly better wing. New boom is great and the next slick will undoubtedly have it. Unit does flag very very well but the gruntiness and lack of low-end do not make up for it in my opinion.
I demoed the SLS and preferred my older dlab.
Then demoed the 2025 dlab Unit with a boom and bought it as it is significantly better than both.
Select to expand quoteIcebergmansion said..
-Advanced foiler, almost all wave foiling.
-5m SLS wing w/the new boom, coming from the 2023 Slick. Also had a 2022 Unit back in the day.
-At least a dozen sessions in flatwater at Stuart Causeway, waves in Fort Pierce and Bahamas.
Overall: This wing is very different from the slick. Very grunty and much worse upwind. Pulls hard downwind which makes it harder to build speed for takeoff on a high aspect foil. I'd say it has 2-3 knots less low-end than the comparable slick. Wider wingspan so it hits the water easier especially using a sinker board. Also much higher bar pressure/grunt.
Positives are that it surfs better, very stable when flagged out and tacks/flies very smooth. Probably jumps better too.
Overall for me I think the older Slick is a significantly better wing. New boom is great and the next slick will undoubtedly have it. Unit does flag very very well but the gruntiness and lack of low-end do not make up for it in my opinion.
I cannot believe you think the 23 slick is a better wing? the 25 unit sls has more low end and top end I think you just need to change your pump technique. also I think the boom effects the upwind ability especially if you are tall with long arms. Try the handles I much prefer them, they also give better pump.
i can use a 4.5 unit sls in same low wind as 23 slick 5m and stay on it longer than slick 4m. And as you say it's way better flagged out 
here I'm on the 4.5 using 620 glide and 50L board when others are on 6m wings. The Armstrong at the end is a 5.3. I'm 87kg
www.instagram.com/reel/DBtfUAlorLz/?igsh=OW84ajRuc25hNDc4
Relative to my SLS Slick, the '25 DLAB Unit does everything better (especially the tips not striking the water, lol). It does pull harder though and I prefer the Slick SLS boom (round shape and less aggressive grip).
Fully agree with LeePastry. I upgraded my gear from 4 wings Unit V3 (2023) to Units V5 (2025), and they are way more powerful, stable, do handle way better gusts and wings are easy in free wing surf.
Select to expand quoteFranP said..
Fully agree with LeePastry. I upgraded my gear from 4 wings Unit V3 (2023) to Units V5 (2025), and they are way more powerful, stable, do handle way better gusts and wings are easy in free wing surf.
And it doesn't doesn't flip over anywhere as much as the old wings.
Well it's certainly better than old Units as expected, but I like the slick style (less pressure, more upwind/forward pull) much better.
Just to defend that this review is not completely out of the blue:
Prior to purchasing this wing a month or two ago I asked the MacKite guys (where I get my gear from) and Tucker gave me almost the identical description that I am now experiencing:
-he emphasized NOT better low end, possibly worse. I had wanted to drop from a 5 to a 4.5 and he specifically advised against this.
-NOT better wind range, both lower and upper.
-More grunt and less forward drive compared to Slick, good for jumps and tricks.
Gave it recently to a friend for the day coming from Slicks also and he had exact some review.
I spent $1300+ on it so I even have a sunk-cost-bias and want it to be the best wing yet, I just don't think it is for me personally. That being said I'm keeping it and will certainly enjoy it and I love the flag out stability.
Select to expand quoteIcebergmansion said..
Well it's certainly better than old Units as expected, but I like the slick style (less pressure, more upwind/forward pull) much better.
Just to defend that this review is not completely out of the blue:
Prior to purchasing this wing a month or two ago I asked the MacKite guys (where I get my gear from) and Tucker gave me almost the identical description that I am now experiencing:
-he emphasized NOT better low end, possibly worse. I had wanted to drop from a 5 to a 4.5 and he specifically advised against this.
-NOT better wind range, both lower and upper.
-More grunt and less forward drive compared to Slick, good for jumps and tricks.
Gave it recently to a friend for the day coming from Slicks also and he had exact some review.
I spent $1300+ on it so I even have a sunk-cost-bias and want it to be the best wing yet, I just don't think it is for me personally. That being said I'm keeping it and will certainly enjoy it and I love the flag out stability.
Interesting...I'm on '24 Slicks, and the forward drive, upwind ability, and smooth power in gusts are all pretty awesome, but I'd definitely trade a bit of those strengths for better flagging, which is pretty bad in my experience...they also feel a bit heavy in the hand to me (but very stout), which makes the poor flagging more noticeable...
Select to expand quoteIcebergmansion said..
Well it's certainly better than old Units as expected, but I like the slick style (less pressure, more upwind/forward pull) much better.
Just to defend that this review is not completely out of the blue:
Prior to purchasing this wing a month or two ago I asked the MacKite guys (where I get my gear from) and Tucker gave me almost the identical description that I am now experiencing:
-he emphasized NOT better low end, possibly worse. I had wanted to drop from a 5 to a 4.5 and he specifically advised against this.
-NOT better wind range, both lower and upper.
-More grunt and less forward drive compared to Slick, good for jumps and tricks.
Gave it recently to a friend for the day coming from Slicks also and he had exact some review.
I spent $1300+ on it so I even have a sunk-cost-bias and want it to be the best wing yet, I just don't think it is for me personally. That being said I'm keeping it and will certainly enjoy it and I love the flag out stability.
So why did you buy it and not something else that might suit you better?
Select to expand quoteIcebergmansion said..
Well it's certainly better than old Units as expected, but I like the slick style (less pressure, more upwind/forward pull) much better.
Just to defend that this review is not completely out of the blue:
Prior to purchasing this wing a month or two ago I asked the MacKite guys (where I get my gear from) and Tucker gave me almost the identical description that I am now experiencing:
-he emphasized NOT better low end, possibly worse. I had wanted to drop from a 5 to a 4.5 and he specifically advised against this.
-NOT better wind range, both lower and upper.
-More grunt and less forward drive compared to Slick, good for jumps and tricks.
Gave it recently to a friend for the day coming from Slicks also and he had exact some review.
I spent $1300+ on it so I even have a sunk-cost-bias and want it to be the best wing yet, I just don't think it is for me personally. That being said I'm keeping it and will certainly enjoy it and I love the flag out stability.
The hang time is definitely noticeable. The Slick SLS dropped like a rock. On the 2025 DLAB Unit even small jumps seem to take forever.
Select to expand quoteIcebergmansion said..
Very grunty and much worse upwind. Pulls hard downwind which makes it harder to build speed for takeoff on a high aspect foil.
Most likely pointing out the obvious but to buildup speed for takeoff with this wing you have to point the board somewhat downwind and pump the wing more in front of you.
For me this actually makes it way easier to bring my high(er) ar foils up to speed.
You literally shovel yourself up on foil with only a few strokes which is really nice on my heart rate ;).
Personally for me the lowend works great . I sold my 8.0 ventis, it got obsolete with the 6.5 dlab.
I'm most of the time on a choppy lake with high frequency mini waves but this winter on capo verde for a few weeks. Curious to see if this makes a difference.
Mostly agree with the rest of the review.
