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Ezzy Cheetah vs. Sailworks Retro 8.5
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bmoore98



Joined: 05 Apr 2004
Posts: 76

PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2016 9:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

swchandler is spot on about the size of the Zephyr. I own a Lion 7.5 and a Zephyr. The Zephyr does perform well in light wind and I have no problem hanging on when the wind comes up on a longboard. I always rig a new sail in the back yard before taking it to the lake. The first thing I noticed was the Zephyr's luff is 6cm longer and the boom is 10cm longer than the Lion. It's simple, the Zephyr is bigger. Just like with hot rod engines, the easiest way to get more power is to go bigger.

I agree with John I, while the Zephyr can be used on a short board it is not ideal.
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isobars



Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935

PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2016 9:15 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

cgoudie1 wrote:
both my current Northwave 6.7, and the 511s have a pretty big low foot area (ergo the tractor pull), and that is really easy for me to stuff into low wind swell. I'm just say'n you might have to adjust your
slash technique for results that don't send you over the handlebars.

No surprise there. Smile

Even my 6.2 Featherlite snags if I've gotten complacent with a smaller sail before rigging bigger. It remains to be seen whether its foot will clear small chop/swell when doing this:
[Imagine a picture here. That's as close as I can get. ]
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cgoudie1



Joined: 10 Apr 2006
Posts: 2597
Location: Killer Sturgeon Cove

PostPosted: Thu Jan 07, 2016 11:44 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I have been windsurfing for a long time too, and age is taking its
toll (but I'm not dead yet) ;*)

I also like to get in the straps and get planing in light wind (I just can't
seem to get my adrenalin jollies exploring with a longboard).

My rig for such is a 155 ltr Angulo Sumo, and a 9.5 Retro with all
the associated carbon rigging structure( that's my go to Utah rig).
For me, it's the ultimate light wind planing enjoyment. I've tried
formula boards, and I just don't have the chops to get them turned
around properly, especially in light wind.

If you really need to plane in light wind then you need a dedicated
light wind rig, and it doesn't come cheap.

But, I confess I'm only on that rig once or twice a year, because I'm
typically in the Gorge a fair amount of Spring, Summer, and Fall days,
and my biggest sail there is a 6.7.

I'll be most interested to see your real world side by side comparison
of the Lion and Retro.

Plane on!

-Craig


gvogelsang wrote:
I have been windsurfing for a long time.

Guess what - I like to get a board planing and get back in the straps. And motor around.

You guys who are in great shape and do the wave thing: you're better windsurfers than me. I used to do the wave thing out on Lake Erie in the big days on 4.5's or 5.3's and wave boards, but that was 20 years ago.

These days, the sweet spot for me is a 6.5 sail on a freeride or free move board. But there are days which are not quite as windy, that I can cruise around on the Formula board and a bigger sail.

I will be picking up an Ezzy Lion 8.5, and a Retro 8.5. I plan to use both when I would have used my old Pryde V8. The Pryde is a pain in the ass to rig, but performs nicely in the conditions that I have described. We'll see what the Lion or Retro can do in the same conditions.

I will be posting my results in the Fall.
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A8A8



Joined: 10 Nov 2011
Posts: 9

PostPosted: Thu Jan 07, 2016 1:03 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I have a zephyr and 8.5 and 9.5 retros. The 9.5 is the older monofilm version. I rarely use the 8.5 retro and jump from the zephyr to the 9.5 retro. I do have 80% carbon sailworks 490 mast and old dynafiber carbon boom for the 9.5. The 8.5 has xply and seems heavier rig on the same mast and boom. I use the 9.5 from 12 to 18 on a superlight 2 and the zephyr when it is closer to 20. Then I switch to a cheetah 6.5 on a future. If it is less than 15 I rig the Zephyr because at 250 lbs I won't be planing anyhow.
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isobars



Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935

PostPosted: Thu Jan 07, 2016 1:30 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

A8A8 wrote:
The 8.5 has xply and seems heavier rig on the same mast and boom.

Isn't X-ply lighter than sheer monofilm because they rely on the X fibers, rather than the monofilm, to achieve the desired overall strength?
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GURGLETROUSERS



Joined: 30 Dec 2009
Posts: 2643

PostPosted: Thu Jan 07, 2016 1:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

But it's a different kind of 'jollies' exploring by longboard.

Used to take chances at times, on the old Bamba, and was once caught out having to make a return 7 mile crossing ( or kip the night with the gannets on their putrid piles of dung) in a rapidly increasing blow, and tide race sea state. Apprehension turning to fright fully does the adrenalin fix thing. (Clenched backside or otherwise optional, or beyond full control.)

As John Millinton Synge (1871-1909) so aptly put it-

'A man who be not afraid of the sea will soon be drownded
for he will be going out on a day he shouldn't.
But we do be afraid of the sea, so we only be drownded now and again.'

Well we don't mind that so much (only being drownded now and again) but memory fades with age, and I can't remember how many lives still to go.

Perhaps it's now time to just stick with short board blasting - on boring auto-pilot!
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U2U2U2



Joined: 06 Jul 2001
Posts: 5467
Location: Shipsterns Bluff, Tasmania. Colorado

PostPosted: Thu Jan 07, 2016 2:35 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

isobars wrote:
A8A8 wrote:
The 8.5 has xply and seems heavier rig on the same mast and boom.

Isn't X-ply lighter than sheer monofilm because they rely on the X fibers, rather than the monofilm, to achieve the desired overall strength?


Sail materials come in different weights, much like motor oil. Mono or X ply as well , measured in mil.

X ply of the same thickness as mono, IMO will be heavier.

Mono is punished by UV.

Using high performance laminates in critical sections is the light weight and strength way to go.

Lots use thicker mono in some sections for its strength to cost bias.
Twaron
Technora
Pen
Polyester scrim
Polyester woven
X ply
Mono

Strongest top to bottom. A top sail shaper will utilize materials in certain areas for their properties. Rx the top panel has different requirements than the center..

_________________
K4 fins
4Boards....May the fours be with you

http://www.k4fins.com/fins.html
http://4boards.co.uk/
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brynkaufman2



Joined: 10 Sep 2002
Posts: 383
Location: Kailua Oahu

PostPosted: Sun Jan 24, 2016 12:06 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I sailed the Ezzy Zephyr for the first time in a very light wind and I am happy with it. It definitely has a lot more pull than my Ezzy Freeride 7.5. Whether it pulls like an 8.0 or 8.5 I am not sure, as I have nothing to compare it to.

So I probably lowered my wind minimum slightly, maybe another .5 to 1 mph. However, below that there is just very little wind, probably under 10 mph average, and I think I would need a 10 sail and a different board to even think about going in that low wind. Based on my smaller size, the Zephyr feels like a lot of sail to handle as the wind picked up just slightly, so I will not be going with a larger sail.

The thing I liked the best, and this was my main goal for the purchase, is when the wind picked up just slightly, I was fully powered. Where the regular 7.5 might have had me planing but yearning for more power to go faster and head more up wind, once the Zephyr was powered up, I had a ton of power, so I was very happy with the speed boost.

Also, the sail is very stable, I was able to take both hands of the boom numerous times. The sail just held in the same position.

It definitely feels bigger than my other 7.5. It does not move around or pump as easily, and it is so big with very little wind I can still use it to beach start easily. I did not end up falling in, so no report yet on up hauling it or water starting with it. My guess is slightly more work than my 7.5 but very doable.

One other interesting point is I experienced my first spinout ever on that board with my large 50 cm fin.

This was my first and only time on the sail so far. I am sure I will come to like it even more as I learn how to pump it better to catch perhaps even a slightly lighter gust to get going. I also found I did not tune it optimally for part of my session. I left a little extra out haul, but I think it was too much. When I pulled it in to Ezzy's recommended out haul for light wind, the sail felt lighter, easier to pump, and more powerful.
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gvogelsang



Joined: 09 Nov 1988
Posts: 435

PostPosted: Mon Jan 25, 2016 4:08 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the report!
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antonputman



Joined: 22 May 2014
Posts: 137
Location: North Shore Italy

PostPosted: Wed Jan 27, 2016 9:04 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hi! Yeah thanks for your reports endeavouring new horizons on the 10' WindSUP with the 50cm fin and the 7.5 Zephyr and all.

Last week I split the monofilm window in my 7.8 North X-Type, just by caring it on my head, BANG. I repaired the cut with Dacron tape but guess it will not hold for long. Time to think about the ZEPHYR again! I saw a used one a few months ago, very rare here in Italy, now I am regretting I did not bite the bullet. Buying a longer boom was what hold me back (I have a single 160-210 North boom for my 4.7, 5.5, 6.6, 7.8 quiver) Now I will have to find AND a new ZEPHYR AND a longer boom.

btw What did you do with the dagger board? Did you "sew it shut" like John suggested me? I have no idea what that means.. I always sails with the daggerboard up with an elastic around the mast foot preventing it from slipping down in the chop and when I need to come back in in offshore winds I still find it very usefull. I saw guys looking at my lay lines like WTF, lol. Guess that with a 50cm fin the dagger board becomes unnecessary.
The box is still an issue. I got an email from my dealer, he cut my previous water damaged board and told me the daggerbox area was full with water, even after a repair. I have no idea how the water came in. Maybe from kicking the board up too hard? I am still a bit paranoid sailing my replacement board, especially in chop or when the board wants to go airborne. I put 3M helicopter tape around the rails in the hope to prevent any minor chips on our rocky beaches.

I still love the board, lately I am sailing with the formula guys at Nice airport, France in the thermal winds early in the morning. Very cold but good fun. Of course they are faster on their iSonics, Mantas and cambered sails but the WindSUP keeps up well, even with my 6.6 X-Type. I have set my footstraps completely outboard and can really hang on like this.

Have fun!
Anton
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