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Will old style boards work with new sails

 
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paulkenyon



Joined: 28 Apr 2000
Posts: 15

PostPosted: Thu Aug 03, 2000 4:40 pm    Post subject: Will old style boards work with new sails Reply with quote

I have several older boards, a Bic,Astro Rock (125 liters), an F2 280 Sputnik (103 liters) and a Seatrend 88/269 (91 liters). My sails are newer from a 99 North Rave 4.5m to a 97 NP V6 6.5m. I hear that the boards and sails are mismatched and will not work well together. Whats the scoop? How should a sail feel on a board? What does not working well feel like? Since I have apparently never had a board/sail combo that works well together, what does a rig that does work well together feel like? My sailing companions who have been sailing since the sport began, sail on equipment of widely varying ages. They seem to sail well (fabulously) and I do not hear talk of having to upgrade their boards because they just bought a new 6.5. They have their favorite boards and use them. Some are quite old. On the other hand, I have a 7.5 that doesnt work well for me and have recently been told its because the board I use it with it is two generations old and they wont work well together. It might be time to buy a new board but at todays prices I want to understand the differences in perforance is worth such an investment. On a similar note, how often should I expect to change my boards to keep them working with new sails? New generation boards seem to be coming faster these days. I would appreciate any observations and suggestions.
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isobars



Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935

PostPosted: Thu Aug 03, 2000 10:07 pm    Post subject: RE: Will old style boards work with new sails Reply with quote

Have you asked that question of rec.windsurfing? There are some serious gearhedz there that can write a small book on that topic.

Mike
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paulkenyon



Joined: 28 Apr 2000
Posts: 15

PostPosted: Fri Aug 04, 2000 8:06 pm    Post subject: RE: Will old style boards work with new sails Reply with quote

Mike, forgive my ignorance...recreational windsurfing? Is that a magazine? I tried it in my browser with no results.
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isobars



Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935

PostPosted: Sat Aug 05, 2000 12:12 am    Post subject: RE: Will old style boards work with new sails Reply with quote

The Newsgroup forum, rec.windsurfing. Its the internets windsurfing forum, which gets dozens to scores of posts per day on ... and off ... every windsurfing topic imaginable. Its an excellent companion to this forum.

Mike \m/
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dradeka



Joined: 11 Apr 2000
Posts: 7

PostPosted: Mon Aug 07, 2000 9:14 pm    Post subject: RE: Will old style boards work with new sails Reply with quote

Paul:

Its complicated but dont feel you have to start over! You can mix old and new. In my experience old is good in extreme conditions; there are guys here (RI) that wave sail (onshore 25-35 knots and storms) on 10 year old glass boards with new rigs. To assess your board quiver you should look first at your sail quiver and fin quiver and your average local conditions. I always rig by choosing sail first, then board, then fin depending on what I am doing and the conditions. In many cases you can extend a boards range by changing fins up or down with sail sizes. Assuming you are happy with your sails and fins you will probably need to cover some range of wind conditons and wave conditons(say 10 - 30 knots, bump and jump or surf) with 2-3 boards. At the low to mid end, considering the new wide easy planing designs I would probably dump the Bic and the F2. Depending upon your weight range you could buy 1 board; something like an F2 Xantos 300 at 144 liters if you are under 200 Lbs. This will take you from 10-20 knots using your new 7.5, at which point you will probably want to jump onto something smaller. Here is where old comes into play; if its cranking in the 20s youll be able to jump onto that Seatrend with a 5-6.0. If its in the 30s you may still get away with the Seatrend on your 4.5. I have that same 4.5 and can sail it on my F2 Air 260, which is 95 liters (Im 200 Lbs). I use 3 boards; 95, 130, 170 liters and can cover from 10-40 knots with 6 rigs for both my wife and I. The middle board is 6 years old. Go to your local shop and demo a new wide board using that 7.5 you perceive to be having trouble with. Youll see what its designed to do...

Good luck!
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unixmidiplugin



Joined: 07 May 2000
Posts: 3

PostPosted: Thu Aug 10, 2000 12:38 pm    Post subject: RE: Will old style boards work with new sails Reply with quote

I think the main issue is that recent sail designs moved the center of effort further forward. In response, board designs moved the mast track further aft. The problem of mixing old boards and new sails is the mast track is in the wrong place. Its also true that newer board designs may be better for other reasons, but (despite what some will say), my experience is that most sailors are fine on older boards.

The question you should be asking yourself is Is my gear preventing me from doing what I want to be doing?. If true, then dump it. The sooner the better. If, however, your gear isnt holding you back, then keep it.

I used a 1992 BIC E-rock until this spring (when it broke in half). However, the only way I could get it to sail well with my newer sails was to adjust the mast base all the way back in the track. If not, the board was slow and unresponsive. This is the board I used to learn all kinds of freestyle trick, including planing duck tacks, clew-first carving 360s, and trick aerials.

If the board hadnt broken, Id still probably be using it. However, I REALLY, REALLY like my brand new 2000 board! Im kind of glad I was forced into it. You might be glad as well. If you do buy newer gear, you might think about getting by with only 1 or 2 boards, rather than 3, to keep the cost of future replacements to a minimum.

Less is more!
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ian



Joined: 10 Apr 2000
Posts: 99

PostPosted: Fri Aug 11, 2000 11:03 am    Post subject: RE: Will old style boards work with new sails Reply with quote

After reading most of the responses to your question, I feel most inclined to say this: If you are having FUN sailing then dont worry about it!
That said, let me just add this. The newer windsurfing gear is WAY better than what was avilable even as recently as 2-3 years ago. The advances in boards going wider and shorter has been a great step both at the expert as well as the intermediate levels. Read that as if you blow a jibe on a freestyle board you has seriouly f-ed up! As far as sails, they have more range, are easier to handle and generally more durable than anything that has ever been available.
But, it all comes down to this: Windurfing doen not need to be an arms race, if you are having fun than keep having fun and be happy when you need to replace whatever breaks!
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