www.instagram.com/reel/C_gVV9TS3-V/
I like this concept a lot. Also want to see how this unlocks and if that is also tool-less
Hopefully there is a new generation of wings/tails to go along with the new mast and fuse.
No tools and no bolts.
One lock will have choice of mast stiffness, additional bigger front wing and refined rear wings.
Looks like an interesting concept. I wonder if they'll produce front wings and stabs which parallel the existing series? I love my G900 and 899, particularly with the 360 VTail.
Looks really cool but my concern would be stiffness of a system like this. I haven't heard anybody on the slingshot team mention how stiff this system is compared to other offerings. You'd think if this system is super stiff they'd be talking about this fact.
Slingshot send 1 to TME for a build review.
Select to expand quotefoilthegreats said..
Looks really cool but my concern would be stiffness of a system like this. I haven't heard anybody on the slingshot team mention how stiff this system is compared to other offerings. You'd think if this system is super stiff they'd be talking about this fact.
Slingshot send 1 to TME for a build review.
Joint between the mast and the fuselage should be much stiffer (and stronger). Carbon fuselage should also be stiffer and being one piece with the front wing (and stabilizer) should yield gains in both stiffness and strength.
For some reason the marketing people chose to focus on the lack of screws (which are still used th hold the mast to the board)
Looks a very cool idea. Does away with messing around with 2 different size torx bits halfway through a session
Like all the slot together stuff - I will reserve judgment and wait til they've all had a couple of seasons use - but for now my preliminary thought is I think the joint will wear too much and I will have a lot of work to do tightening them again for customers. Like the GoFoil front wing onto fuse that gets loose. Interference fit is not a good idea for composites and when you add sand and salt it makes a wonderful grinding paste. Just look at the wet black goo that develops in your windsurf mast (that the sail rigs on) after one session.
To quote myself from the awsi thread:
I'm excited too but am abit concerned about the carbon shell on the end of the mast becoming the new weak point. It looks very thin vs the thickness of other systems carbon and alu fuselages. But maybe it becomes less of a stress concentration point than fuses like axis/code, right in front of the mast connection.
It holds together on a dyneema rope and dyneema is low stretch, but still stretches in time....and then you are screwed 
I having complete planes standing in the back of the car, I rather rely on my 2 of bolts that might cost me 3 minutes? more to install everything.
As the line stretches and the tapers wear, you just tighten the adjustment screw.
Select to expand quoteJeroensurf said..
It holds together on a dyneema rope and dyneema is low stretch, but still stretches in time....and then you are screwed
I having complete planes standing in the back of the car, I rather rely on my 2 of bolts that might cost me 3 minutes? more to install everything.
The dyneema length is adjustable with a thumb screw, so as stretch or wear happens you can tighten it.
I used systems like the tensioner in the clip in sailboats and its imo inconvenient when forces vary.The very easy thing with screws is that they are cheap, so you can keep a couple spare and still cost you virt nothing.If you don,t bring them on your holiday you can go to a lot of hardware stores and they sell something you can work with.
I see it as an solution for an non existing problem.
I do like what they did with there wing. The 2024 was already very good and the new one seems even better
In this video Fred Hope addresses most of the concerns about the new Slingshot foil system noted in this thread -- check it out at the 25 minute mark.
Select to expand quoteJeroensurf said..
I used systems like the tensioner in the clip in sailboats and its imo inconvenient when forces vary.The very easy thing with screws is that they are cheap, so you can keep a couple spare and still cost you virt nothing.If you don,t bring them on your holiday you can go to a lot of hardware stores and they sell something you can work with.
I see it as an solution for an non existing problem.
I do like what they did with there wing. The 2024 was already very good and the new one seems even better
The one lock tensioner is basically the last line of the connection even if it fails it's virtually impossible to come apart.
You have to follow a wiggle and snap process to unlock the system.
With bolt systems there are all different lengths, they get loose, get lost, get grease, get sand, can sheer off especially with large front wings!
www.facebook.com/share/v/BSSmowHSG5w5kDUS/
I think a lot of these questions will be answered when more people have hands on this and can examine the connections, friction points etc...
One of my concerns is that if I'm using a front wing with multiple stabilizers (or vice versa), and some wear more heavily than others, are you going to need to tighten or loosen the line for the given connection? For example, if I'm using front wing A and Stabilizer X, then I switch to Stabilizer Y with less wear, do I need to tighten up the connection?
Select to expand quoteCoreAS said..
With bolt systems there are all different lengths, they get loose, get lost, get grease, get sand, can sheer off especially with large front wings!
It's certainly true that bolt systems can be problematic. "Grease" and sand are a definite big problem if the brand suggests to use extremely sticky tefgel, and to disassemble often.
But it's a problem that can be solved with a little bit of engineering and knowledge about alloy chemistry - something Slingshot never did. I have used three different brands of foils over the last few years, and only Slingshot had frequent problems with screws (and under-engineered fuses breaking). No problems whatsoever with the two other brands. One uses more screws and stainless inserts, the other uses significantly larger screws, and a better engineered front wing connection. Interestingly, the amount of corrosion on that brand is very low, even after leaving wings assembled for many weeks. Corrosion resistant can vary quite dramatically for different aluminum and titanium alloys, so it's likely that they picked more corrosion resistant alloys.
Under-dimensioned screws and parts will break - it's just a question of when. Replacing screws with a plastic part and dynema rope seems like a rather questionable solution. Another brand has tried a bunch of different solutions in their wave foil lines over the years, trying to cut a couple of minutes of assembly time by reducing screw counts through "clever" connections. Those had to be re-designed several times, creating incompatible parts in a few years in a row. The only thing this really was good for was to drive customers away.
Select to expand quoteJeroensurf said..
It holds together on a dyneema rope and dyneema is low stretch, but still stretches in time....and then you are screwed
I having complete planes standing in the back of the car, I rather rely on my 2 of bolts that might cost me 3 minutes? more to install everything.
Video says there is an adjustment to tighten it, and they give you a spare
Select to expand quoteboardsurfr said..CoreAS said..
With bolt systems there are all different lengths, they get loose, get lost, get grease, get sand, can sheer off especially with large front wings!
It's certainly true that bolt systems can be problematic. "Grease" and sand are a definite big problem if the brand suggests to use extremely sticky tefgel, and to disassemble often.
But it's a problem that can be solved with a little bit of engineering and knowledge about alloy chemistry - something Slingshot never did. I have used three different brands of foils over the last few years, and only Slingshot had frequent problems with screws (and under-engineered fuses breaking). No problems whatsoever with the two other brands. One uses more screws and stainless inserts, the other uses significantly larger screws, and a better engineered front wing connection. Interestingly, the amount of corrosion on that brand is very low, even after leaving wings assembled for many weeks. Corrosion resistant can vary quite dramatically for different aluminum and titanium alloys, so it's likely that they picked more corrosion resistant alloys.
Under-dimensioned screws and parts will break - it's just a question of when. Replacing screws with a plastic part and dynema rope seems like a rather questionable solution. Another brand has tried a bunch of different solutions in their wave foil lines over the years, trying to cut a couple of minutes of assembly time by reducing screw counts through "clever" connections. Those had to be re-designed several times, creating incompatible parts in a few years in a row. The only thing this really was good for was to drive customers away.
Are you referring to the Slingshot Hover Glide foil?
The lock is not the part that is holding it all together, it is simply pulling the front wing and rear wing into position and over time if the carbon wears it actually locks tighter.
if the line stretches you can adjust it like in the videos... If it stretches say over 1-2 years past the ability to adjust it, they also give you a spare lock and line or you can buy a spare piece which is cheaper than a couple of stainless steel bolts,
The reason the lock is plastic because it's cheaper you break that part by over tightening it, then crushing the carbon.
Wow haven't seen a product launched with this amount of skepticism (contrast this to the BRM PW)
For slingshot I hope there is also reviews coming out focused on the front wing performance itself, e.g. glide, turning, cross section shape...low end top speed and all this.
But yeah...they brought this onto themselves putting ALL the attention on the OLS with lots of fanfare
Extra info here
if there goes a bit of sand in this system.. you can unlatch and pull all that you want, the fuse part aint coming out because it will be so stuck
At least when you have a windsurf mast you can get the both parts loosened up with vibrations... here.. impossible. I think we'll see footage soon of systems completely stuck
I can only see one benefit of the system ... after years of use you'll get a shorter fuse.. (to align with new skill levels)
Wow. Lighter, stronger, stiffer, and more convenient but it sure fires up the skeptics.
Select to expand quoteMProject04 said..
if there goes a bit of sand in this system.. you can unlatch and pull all that you want, the fuse part aint coming out because it will be so stuck
At least when you have a windsurf mast you can get the both parts loosened up with vibrations... here.. impossible. I think we'll see footage soon of systems completely stuck
I can only see one benefit of the system ... after years of use you'll get a shorter fuse.. (to align with new skill levels)
How well is that tef-gel coated screw working for you after you drop in in the sand?
At least you will be able to wipe the sand off the new spline system.
Select to expand quotejdfoils said..MProject04 said..
if there goes a bit of sand in this system.. you can unlatch and pull all that you want, the fuse part aint coming out because it will be so stuck
At least when you have a windsurf mast you can get the both parts loosened up with vibrations... here.. impossible. I think we'll see footage soon of systems completely stuck
I can only see one benefit of the system ... after years of use you'll get a shorter fuse.. (to align with new skill levels)
How well is that tef-gel coated screw working for you after you drop in in the sand?
At least you will be able to wipe the sand off the new spline system.
I meant if there is accidentally sand in the system when you close it, and then try to open it..
The same way as when you have a 2 piece windsurf mast that accidentally has some sand in it...you connect the pieces and after the session you cannot disconnect anymore.
This one lock connection once locked looks very tight. It needs a proper wiggle and pull to get it out. Now I imagine this wiggle and pull with a bit of sand stuck inside.. doesn't sound nice to me
I may be wrong..
Select to expand quoteMProject04 said..jdfoils said..MProject04 said..
if there goes a bit of sand in this system.. you can unlatch and pull all that you want, the fuse part aint coming out because it will be so stuck
At least when you have a windsurf mast you can get the both parts loosened up with vibrations... here.. impossible. I think we'll see footage soon of systems completely stuck
I can only see one benefit of the system ... after years of use you'll get a shorter fuse.. (to align with new skill levels)
How well is that tef-gel coated screw working for you after you drop in in the sand?
At least you will be able to wipe the sand off the new spline system.
I meant if there is accidentally sand in the system when you close it, and then try to open it..
The same way as when you have a 2 piece windsurf mast that accidentally has some sand in it...you connect the pieces and after the session you cannot disconnect anymore.
This one lock connection once locked looks very tight. It needs a proper wiggle and pull to get it out. Now I imagine this wiggle and pull with a bit of sand stuck inside.. doesn't sound nice to me
I may be wrong..
Hopefully you can click on this link to the video from insta, it's the best way to explain the sand question
www.instagram.com/reel/C_vbzaIoT-9/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Select to expand quoteCoreAS said..MProject04 said..jdfoils said..MProject04 said..
if there goes a bit of sand in this system.. you can unlatch and pull all that you want, the fuse part aint coming out because it will be so stuck
At least when you have a windsurf mast you can get the both parts loosened up with vibrations... here.. impossible. I think we'll see footage soon of systems completely stuck
I can only see one benefit of the system ... after years of use you'll get a shorter fuse.. (to align with new skill levels)
How well is that tef-gel coated screw working for you after you drop in in the sand?
At least you will be able to wipe the sand off the new spline system.
I meant if there is accidentally sand in the system when you close it, and then try to open it..
The same way as when you have a 2 piece windsurf mast that accidentally has some sand in it...you connect the pieces and after the session you cannot disconnect anymore.
This one lock connection once locked looks very tight. It needs a proper wiggle and pull to get it out. Now I imagine this wiggle and pull with a bit of sand stuck inside.. doesn't sound nice to me
I may be wrong..
Hopefully you can click on this link to the video from insta, it's the best way to explain the sand question
www.instagram.com/reel/C_vbzaIoT-9/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Excellent video..answers my question!
Now seeing that I don't know if I would trust a system that can take in that much sand. What does it say? That there is a lot of space between the collar and the fuse?
Anyway hope the Slingshot fans are stoked with this. It's a great brand and I've got some other Slingshot products lying around.
I admit this one ain't for me.
Great to see innovation across the industry!
