Starboard Evolution MkII fuselage and SLR wings - experiences?

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Awalkspoiled said..

Awalkspoiled said..

aeroegnr said..
This I thought was kind of relevant and interesting. Saw it pop up on Instagram.

Basically an adapter for Starboard fuses to Taaroa tails and front wings. If those are more modern/faster/more performant design, may be worth looking into:


www.taaroa-hydrofoil.com/fr_FR/shop/taaroa-pour-iq-foil-388#attr=215

Daaammmnn! Out of stock now on the front wing adapter but perhaps available again soon. If I could get my hands on one I could use the Taaroa front wings (I have three and really like them) on my IQ mast and Fuse - both are better than the Taaroa equivalents. Then I wouldn't have to struggle with the IQ 900 wing which doesn't do much for me. Looks like the front adapter is held on with only two screws so it's possible that the bigger, lower-aspect Taaroa wings would just rip it apart. Don't think I'd fuss with the tail adapter since the Starboard stabilizers are pretty decent.

Edit: emailed Taaroa and they got right back to me. Front wing adapter on the way! According to them it's OK to use with any Taaroa front wing. This could be magic - the IQ Mast is lighter and stiffer and faster than the NOE Taaroa mast, and the 115+ fuse is more powerful than the Taaroa 95. Means I can wait for at least the next generation of Starboard wings and fuses in the Fall, which are likely to be much more versatile than the current Evolution stuff. The Taaroa 1050 front wing offers more lift than either the 900 or 1100 from Starboard, and the 1250 runs rings around the Starboard 1300.

Update - Paid for the adapter on May 12, got an email confirming receipt of payment and "we're preparing your order to be shipped" and then nothing. No followup, no reply to my emails or phone call - nuthin'. I'm assuming Taaroa and their Swiss agent/subsidiary/shipping service fly4all are out of business. Disappointing since I really don't like the IQ setup on my Alien and the Taaroa mast and fuse are lower performance than SB's. If anyone knows anything more about Taaroa's status I'd be glad to hear it.

Update on the update! I opened a dispute withy PayPal and heard from Taaroa the next day. The gave me a refund and offered to send me the adapter which I could pay for once it arrived. So, it did arrive finally - actually two adapters - a front wing and also a stabilizer adapter which I don't plan to use since the Starboard stabs seem pretty good.

The rear wing adapter fits great. The front wing adapter seems a little sketchy - it's held onto the Starboard Fuse (which it fits perfectly) with two M5 bolts. Then, another M5 connects straight through the front of the wing and adapter into the fuse, and a pair of M8 bolts tighten the wing onto the adapter. I had to install m8 helicoils myself but I'd imagine that if Taaroa hadn't;t been in a panic they would have done this themselves. Not a tough install at all.

I sailed the thing yesterday, with a Taaroa 1050 High aspect front wing, the 115 SB Black fuse and the 330 stab. Slower to pump up which I attribute to the very far any position of the stab, but once the thing was up it was just effortless to foil, pointed extremely high and was very fast - significantly faster than the SB1100 on that fuse and more stable than the same wing on a Taaroa 95 fuse. I'm curious to try the setup with the 115+ fuse - next time...

I'm very pleased with the performance, but little worried about the slightly suspect connection system.