Haha "People are surprised how good these sails are, you need to order it!"
I used to sail Ezzy's and loved them; a stronger, better made sail money can not buy, however, they don't suit the type of sailing I do these days unfortunately.
These look good, ever since the proto spy shots I was interested, sounds like Dave has gone through some fairly careful iterations to end up with the end result. I'm entirely skeptical of the downhaul setting indicator though, I think it would be fine initially but as most people know sails stretch in quite significantly after their first half season or so...I don't think the calibration would then stand.
Maybe i'm wrong, Ezzy's certainly don't stretch as much as some brands and I can't quantify the effect of this on the downhaul setting with any certainty but there is no doubt it would have some effect; personally I thought the old system was a winner...couldn't get much simpler and was not effected by stretch per say.
Oh, my first ever red thumbs, thanks guys! 
Know what your saying CJW. I havn't noticed any stretch in any of my Ezzys however. That's not to say they havn't but it would be very minimal. I would prefer the system he currently uses on his other sails, ie. the coloured strings and markings on the sail. Works very well.
Well, he's keeping the outhaul strings, but the implication is that you'll probably need the correct Ezzy mast for the new downhaul system to work. That's an interesting move as Ezzy have long prided themselves on their sails working on a range of masts. It will be interesting also to see if he eventually moves the new system onto the other model sails as well.
A few photos here:http://www.godsavethewind.it/2012/06/ezzy-panther-elite/
and sail specs here:
www.surfsailaustralia.com.au/viewStory/Ezzy+Panther+Elite
Cheers ikw.
I'm guessing these are purely wave sails? Curious how or even if they would be recommended for bump and jump to more onshore small surf? Freestyle maybe? How they compare in terms of grunt, etc, etc. Hopefully there are some reviews to come shortly.
I was thinking about that too. They might be moving to make the five-batten Tigers the onshore wave/bump and jump line, and the new Panthers the hardcore wave line. The team riders have been on the new panthers for months and using them in wave comps.
I can't see how that new downhaul system would be anywhere near accurate enough... the head cap on my Ezzys can be raised or lowered way more than the 5mm or so that the indicator suggests is the range.
I'd also think that not all Ezzy masts would be within the couple of mm in length that they would need to be.
Still a cool idea... I'll still be giving the sail a shake and watching the floppiness though
The mast tests and measurements I have seen show that no mast is exactly the same from the factory, so that is why IMHO the manufacturers trim settings are usually a guide, and then on the beach and water the tuning begins.
Hi;
The downhaul indicator can be moved, it is velcro in, if you decide to use a different mast.
Regular indicator does not work on this sails, it is rig different, You downhaul until wrinkles go away on top panel.
having used the sails for about a month now ,have found they have the grunt feel heaps lighter ,can be used in any conditions onshore, cross shore and cross off the issue with the mast lengths they are all the same lengths and you can use a variety of masts on them not just the ezzy mast if you read the instruction s that come with the sail it will guide you into setting the tab on the downhaul guide system as they are velcroed on .also there is apparently no strech in the sail cloth at all .pretty much all the questions you have all raised are questions we ask David at his loft when we were going through the rigging process.hope this helps you all cos these are great sails and as he says order them.
I have managed to get some of these new elite sails, i can say they are the best i've had, super light, the power is fantastic, the downhaul tab works great, as it takes the guess out, and yer i do still look at the floppiness, I,ve measured all my Ezzy masts, and their all the same length.
Go for it, order one, their great.
great use of video as a medium to express a complex message
some good action in there too
this communication does a great job of speaking to current and potential customers.
good on ya Ezzy for being progressive!
Great video Dave. Look forward to getting a few for demo this season. Will be interesting head-to-head comparison with the Tiger...stay tuned.
The sail looks good. I suspect the next model will be Ezzy Panther Elite Gold... :) I wonder why Ezzy never changes their sail profiles. All the sails they make look the same.
I think that some manufacturers can be more careful with sail renaming. North seems to rename everything every year. The easiest thing I do is never buy North and avoid reading pages and pages of what was changed where.. and how it's not the model you're used to.
