Has anbody of the "wave guys" here checked this foil? Its around AR 8 and should behave like the f one Sk8 and others.. . Unifoil progression, Axis Spitefire.. Etc?!
Saw it on the beach, looks nice. Unfortunately you're stuck with their foil to fuse connection system which is the worst in the business...
not the worst ! which is takuma
, fuse is not future proof ( old design) and screw has tendency to unscrew and to corrode especialy in the mast plate but if you find way to counter that they are cool foil. i dont think they will compare to sk8 they are flatter like most gong foil , but ratio of 8 is cool nevertheless.
Even though the specs are close, Curve H and Sk8 are not very close. Closer from Gong is Ypra-S. Or maybe even closer is Ypra-surf but i have not tested that one.
I have been driving Curve H in 900cm2 and 1100cm2. Ypra-s in 800cm and 1000cm2. F-one Sk8 in 850cm2.
Curve-H 900cm2 is lot slower than Sk8 850cm2. But it has slower stall speed also.
Ypra-s 800cm2 might be little faster than Sk8. But Sk8 has more playful feel. But the new Ypra-surf has little less wingspan and i would imagine it being really close to Sk8. But as mentioned, F-one system is more rigid overall. But for the price Ypra -S with HM mast and freestyle stab is pretty good setup in my opinion.
As a surf foil I'm not as concerned with top speed but more concerned with carving and playing on a wave face. I use the Curve MH 950cm3 from 12 Knots and the Curve LH 1100cm3 for Prone surf foil in small waves and MH in bigger. Super smooth foil, glides nicely, good speed and it really comes alive during a turn. An important factor for me is low stall speed as I hover for a set wave or a bump to pulse through - it really excels in this area. I have tried a SK8, I think it was a 750 which felt nice but needed to be kept going at pace or it would drop out - im taking into account the smaller size.
In summary anyone who likes waves either surf or wing would have fun on this foil. I think the SH Curve would be killer in 14 knots +. I'm spent out ATM or I'd have that as well!! For reference I'm around 80kg.
Thank u so far. Sounds not to bad. But yes I already know the gong fuse problem. Still price point is great. The most other brands are fxxxxxx expensive
So u are pretty lucky. I had it a lot and thats why I left the brand once. But I never used an titan fuse. May that's a gamechanger.
Used titanium fuse and their HM mast for a year now. Not noticed any problems or screws coming loose. Also, left assembled for prolonged periods (not recommended by Gong) without any corrosion. To me, it's been a worthy replacement of my Armstrong equipment. Traded my setup for much stronger and stiffer mast and more wings:-)
+1 for their Ypra/Ypra S range, really nice! Gong calls them intermediate+/advanced riders, but compared to something like HA1125, real easy.
I ride the new V2 Veloce L and Fluid L. Very happy with both but I'd love to try the Curve H M, the YPRAS and even a Veloce M. It's always a buy-to-try situation for me in the US.
Gong front wing to Aluminum fuse connection isn't the most fool proof but easy to deal with once you know the routine. Using Gong foils for 4 yrs now, including the original "floppy" 2-screw front wing connection back in 2019. I'll add a Ti fuse this year
Current Gong "weak link" for me are my H Fluid (pro) stabilizers. Awesome performance but they break easily at the wing-fuse joint. I've broken 2 of them, one in a minor shorebreak tumble and one just bouncing off a soft shallow sandy bottom. Good news is the new freestyle stabilizers are much more durable and I prefer them anyway. I posted about it on the Gong FB page and they removed it right away. A bit irritating but typical Gong..
Despite the drawbacks, I still feel I get great bang for the buck. Love my HM 85 mast/V2 Veloce L/freestyle stab (39/44). 76 kg on 78 liter Cab Code.
Yeah but guys 76 kg.... Honestly? I am heavy 95 kg. But yeah the pricepoint is a big one. An complete foil including HM mast for 1200 ![]()
I don't usually have problems with screws coming loose as apparently some people have. Couple of times only and those were on beaches where was a lot of fine sand. Maybe this could be the cause with those problems?
But still if the screws are tight, there are some play between fuselage and front foil. This varies a lot depending on foil. With my more used foils this is more noticeable. I have or have had at least 11 Gong foils and over time especially bigger ones develop some play. This is perfectly logical as the connection point wears out. I'm using titanium fuselage. With fuselage/mast connection this does not happen that much as when there is wear, mast just sits deeper in fuselage.
Overall stiffness is not also as good as F-one. I tried my setup with HM mast and friends F-one with standard aluminum mast and the F-one was stiffer. Both in land when twisting from foiltips and also i could feel it when riding. Having said that i think the Gong setup is still good value for money. I'm also using freestyle stabs (41, 37) as they are stiffer. I weight 82kg.
I've never had any connection problems with Gong foils
Yeah me neither, though I have had issues with another brand.
My Fluid H stab fell apart at the trailing edge from hitting sand while walking.
The new freestyle ones are stronger?
I had issues with loosening screws. But this problem appeared to me when using front wings which wingspan is above 1000mm like Veloce XXL.
I don't usually have problems with screws coming loose as apparently some people have. Couple of times only and those were on beaches where was a lot of fine sand. Maybe this could be the cause with those problems?
But still if the screws are tight, there are some play between fuselage and front foil. This varies a lot depending on foil. With my more used foils this is more noticeable. I have or have had at least 11 Gong foils and over time especially bigger ones develop some play. This is perfectly logical as the connection point wears out. I'm using titanium fuselage. With fuselage/mast connection this does not happen that much as when there is wear, mast just sits deeper in fuselage.
Overall stiffness is not also as good as F-one. I tried my setup with HM mast and friends F-one with standard aluminum mast and the F-one was stiffer. Both in land when twisting from foiltips and also i could feel it when riding. Having said that i think the Gong setup is still good value for money. I'm also using freestyle stabs (41, 37) as they are stiffer. I weight 82kg.
F1 Alu mast is stiffer than the HM of Gong? Wtf! That's sounds shxx to be honest.
Whole setup felt stiffer with f-one, yes. Can't say how much it is from mast alone and how much from better connections. With f-one there is one connection less as front wing connects directly to the mast. Also f-one stab is noticeable stiffer which could affect the stiffer feeling when riding. Freestyle stabs were a good improvement in stiffness after fluid h stabs but still they are not as stiff as f-one.
To be fair, aluminium mast can be built stiffer than any brands HM mast if it is thick enough. But then it adds drag. Gong V2 aluminum is actually pretty good in stiffness. But there's more drag than with HM mast. Same was with F-one aluminum. It had more drag than Gong setup. Hard to say how much from it was the mast and how much from foil.
Same thing with stabs. Gong older stabs/fuselage system was stiffer and bombproof. But newer are much lighter and glide more so they are definitely better. Everything is a compromise.
Lot of feedback yet. But I tried Alu mast for winging again and it isn't an option for me longer. It's so draggy. Wtf like something is holding u back. So seems like if I would ever change to another system I directly have to buy carbon mast. It's expensive to do so. But yes completely gong foil with HM mast 1200? but just normal Alu fuse. Also no option as I am a heavy guy.
Has anbody of the "wave guys" here checked this foil? Its around AR 8 and should behave like the f one Sk8 and others.. . Unifoil progression, Axis Spitefire.. Etc?!
The Gong HM 92 mast and foil system feels much stiffer to me than the SABFoil Kraken equivalent.
I've got the Curve H S (700 cm2) with the Fluid H 38 stab. I'm impressed - great in overpowered, 35+ knot conditions when it can gybe really slowly in short period messy chop, but has good speed and turning on the wave. The take off is so easy that at 82 kg I would use this in light winds too. It feels like a faster version of the SABFoil Razor with a slightly higher stall speed.
The screw loosening in the aluminium fuselage was solved with some medium loctite on the threads.