Let me quickly share my impressions of the 2014 Severne Blade 5.5. I have had a chance to use the new Blade together with 400 Enigma mast a few times now.
Disclaimer: The sail I have used for this review is a demo sail and was provided by Severne. I am not a team rider or have been paid by Severne or any windsurf shop to post this review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
On land: The sail rigs nicely on a 400 mast even though the recommended mast is a 430. This is nice if you want to keep your quiver to a minimum. I am guessing this is similar to what's happening with the Neil Pryde wave sails in the 5.8 to 5.6 range which also rig on a 400 despite the recommended mast being a 430.The finish of the Blade includes more reinforcements compared to the S1, including a cross weave throughout the clear part of the sail. This results in a higher weight. Totally dry and brand new out of the bag I measured 3.4 kg which is spot on with what is quoted on the web sites.
The detailed features such as integrated mast protector, plastic down haul pullies (nice for preventing corrosion), outhaul ring, batten tensioning are similar or the same as the S1 (see my review of the S1 for details on that).
On water: Combined with the 400 mast, the sail gets a lot of flex and feels soft and forgiving. Still the sail has some good low end power. There is a distinct pressure on the mast base which requires a bit more concentration when dogging out in sub planing conditions. Using the recommended 430 mast I am guessing heavier riders would get a bit more power out of the sail as the flex reduces. Personally I actually prefer a softer feel.
In sub-planing conditions I wasn't quite as excited about the Blade as I was about the S1 5.6. I think it was the super light weight of the S1 that really blew me away. Once the wind is consistent enough that I was planing the sail felt solid and never really got in the way. On waves I could "put the sail in neutral" and use the power of the wave rather than the sail. The sail had plenty of power to load it up for cut backs. As a heavier rider that's where a bit of extra power always comes in handy.
Overall I was really surprised how similar this sail feels to the Neil Pryde Combat HD.
If anyone in the Sydney region is interested in testing this sail drop me a direct message.
I tried some 2013 blades and S1s and I just couldn't get use to how the draft just wander all over the sail. Have they addressed that issue this year? They were great in good conditions but when you pushed them too hard they gave up playing nice and just wanted to kill me. I think they suit the 80kg wave rider well but as soon as a bigger guy pushes them hard they go beyond there limit real quick, I thought the blade was going to flap itself apart when I pushed it hard upwind. What I liked was how light they are, super light on and off the water. In comparison they are 700 grams lighter when compared to my new NPs Atlas's in similar sizes. I really liked the Gators but I struggled to get them in the smaller sizes that I wanted so I gave up in the idea. I was so close to switching from NP to Severne this year, I so wanted to be one of the cool kids
but alas I couldn't do it.
I just think that they are so radically different that I found it hard to get use to them, But on the other hand I thought the Gators were excellent...Maybe next year
I don't know about the 2013 sails as I haven't used those. The 2014 S1 is a pure wave sail... meaning if you hold it flat into the wind in a neutral position it will flap like a bitch... but that's just what a pure wave sail will do. That said, I am positively excited about the S1. Did I mention it's stupidly light? For heavier riders like myself it won't have the same power as an Atlas. But I found in very light wind the additional weight of a cross over sail counter acts the power gain. Once you get planing conditions I would switch to using my Combats anyway.
Sails like the NP Atlas are a lot more free ride oriented these days, especially in the bigger sizes. Don't get me wrong. I think the Atlas / Alpha is / was a great sail. But it's different in feel to say a Blade or Combat let alone S1 or The Fly.
I guess the closest Severne has to an Atlas is the Gator. I am not surprised you liked the Gator given you really seem to dig the Atlas.
I think with the arrival of large volume wave boards we will also see a shift in the way people buy sails. In the past I would have always bought a full quiver of sails from 6.2 right down to 4.2 in the same range. These days I am not so sure that's the best approach.
For example for me I have worked out that for ultra low wind wave sailing on the Australian East Coast I prefer a super light rig with a wave board that turns well but has a decent amount of volume. On the flip side when it's windy I prefer a setup that is neutral in feel and stable in jumps. Rig weight at that stage is secondary and durability to me is more important... hence why I went the Neil Pryde Combat HD route. I think you could drive a car over that sail and it would still survive.
I'll give you a shout next NEer I am down in Gerroa. Have a go on the 2014 Severne S1 5.6. I think it would make a great addition to the 120 liter OES board you got on order.
FYI, I am not a Severne fan boi. Quite the opposite. I love Neil Pryde sails. I think they make some very solid sails, albeit a little on the heavy side.
Then there are a couple of things I would improve on the S1 as far as build is concerned. But you can't beat that sail for weight. If a light weight sail is what you are after you have to look at the S1. I am actually surprised they are not pushing this more in their marketing.
The Enigma mast they lend me is very light as well. Very similar in feel to the Neil Pryde XCombat / FX100. Fast and responsive flex and in both cases big price.
