konrad wingman wings

anybody get on one of these yet?

We have just got stock in so will try and do a test soon !!

Cheers
Jason
WA Surf

The Konrad website needs a serious update for the new foils, wings etc...

I cant explain that statement but I've had a couple sessions on my 4m now.
Excellant wing, good power and incredible drift. I'm switching from WASP's to these quite happily.

It's better to have some windows than nothing. You can see enough out of the V2 windows.

The infill panel allows the turbulence to dissipate when sheeting out in overpowered conditions. Most of the good wings on the market use this tech. The Wingman is a well-balanced wing, light to fly, and really well behaved. It does not want to dip the tips or go wild when flagged out.

Quick review of 4M Konrad Wingman V2 after 10hrs use so far:

Pros:

Light handling
Very well balanced and well behaved drifting, tacking and jibing
Good low end pumping ability
windows are just right size (small)
Seems durable so far with full body high speed impacts (!)
Dump valves on boom and main tube allow super fast deflate (love this)
Minimalist design impression
Fast inflate time
Stiff airframe (little flexing)
Doesn't bounce erratically on the surface off the leash while restarting like an Ozone WASP V1.

Cons:

Leash feels slightly too short (especially if tying off to front handle) and looks a bit budget. This is only an impression.
Doesn't like being overpowered (heavy flapping in trailing edge) and gets backwinded in high end of range.
No included instructions or extras other than zip ties and spare repair material. Konrad website is not great and has not been updated with much info on new products.
Possibly too minimalist for some, but is light due to fewer bells/whistles.
Tendency for wing to roll a bit in heavy gusts beating up wind.
Doesn't appear to be overly fast feeling, but this is only an impression.
Would be nice to have more colour options (I think they're launching more colour ways soon?)
Handles feel a bit rough on long sessions.

I've only flown V1 Ozone Wasps previously and am super impressed how dialled they were for a first generation wing. The V2 Konrad is generally a very well performing wing. If it stepped up in terms of high end stability and had less flutter, it would be truly incredible. To be fair, I was pushing the wing into winds gusting over 35 knots and I'm over 200 pounds. It handles nicely in its proper power band however. Compared to the Wasp V1, the Konrad's boom strut extends further but has much shorter wingtips but similar sized tubes from a quick glance comparing the two. The Konrad feels like it's geared more towards wave riding than free riding and speeding along. It's really a dream to drift and so well behaved going down wind; I'd love to see its upwind ability and stability match its other strengths. The Ozone in comparison seems to be better behaved overpowered and slotting into an upwind groove but doesn't have quite the same impeccable manners drifting off the front handle downwind as the Konrad. I'd be happy on either, but its the down wind drifting aspect that's most fun, so I'd lean toward the Konrad for this purpose.

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bigtone667 said..
@ 35 knots, I think it's okay that the trailing edge flutters on a 4m. :-)

My rule of thumb is to down size the wing once the flapping starts when you are powered up.

Absolutely. 4m is my smallest wing so it's getting pushed beyond design intentions. The fluttering happens much earlier than 35 knots though and the wing could be more stable/quiet even in the 25 knot range. Perhaps a leech tensioning line could help reduce the motoring? I'm sure this will improve over time as designers dial in elements of these wings in the same way windsurfing sails and kites have all seen increased range over time. We're still only in the V2-3 at the moment so it's very early days yet. Anyway, the Konrad is a nice option in the market.

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pro merc said..
The print on there saying not to attach leash should have been removed on the V2. It's been reinforced to handle flagging out.
You can attach the leash to the inflate leash attachment now.
This should make the leash more manageable. You can always add a pigtail to it if you think it's too short!

Good to know; thanks!

I have the new Konrad Wingman V2 in 3,4, 6

They are a really stable easy to fly wing. They do not have the tendency to nose into the water like I have found some wings try to do. For their size they have a lot of bottom end power and have a large wind range, you do notice a bit of flutter of the wings when they hit their top end. The drift on these wings are amazing when waveriding or downwinding, you can just drop the wing grab the front handle and it just sits there.

From a construction point of view they seem pretty bulletproof with plenty of protection on the leading edge. I found I need to extend the leash on the 6m as the middle strut is quite long. The handles are nicely positioned and have a good feel to them and there is also a harness line attachment if you want to do that. The one pump works well and the new dump valve on the middle strut is great when deflating. The bags are also a really nice construction and large to fit the wings in easily. The windows are also positioned well so when you fold the wings up you don't crease them either.

Overall it's a really well built great thought out wing. Its also Aussie designed!

I'm a complete beginner after abandoning the whole winging idea last summer because I had such a crappy time with the Naish V1 (4m). I sold the naish after 5 or 6 attempts thinking it was all too hard, too slow and a bit boring.

This 5m Konrad is way more powerful, on my first attempt to use it I spent an hour riding my 32L prone board in 18kts, without too much trouble. Suddenly winging seems way more fun!

My leash did snap after the first wave hit it though, so can agree with the other comments about it not being up to task. .

How do I tell if I have the V1 or V2? (I don't want to attach my new (bodyboard) leash to the pump pig tail in case I have the V1)