Taking on ZoltanL's idea to join a foil to a race board.
Thought id show how I made it.
All the parts.
The wings are Slingshot hover foils . Nice and big.
The mast is from a foiling sailboat , Waspt. ( I think that's how to spell it ) . I used this because its stronger than a wind foil for heavy me and heavy board.
Made some inserts to be able to bolt to fuselage .
Milling the profile in plastic blocks to support the mast.
Plastic covers over CB slot .
The small gap at the front is so the mast can pivot back and come out if I hit something solid without wrecking the board . Still have to strip two 8mm barrel nuts.
Mast cassette assembly . EVA foam on sides for a snug fit .( thanks olskool )
Top plate
Mast is 850 cm high.
Fuselage is long to match the board. That's my theory anyway . I may shorten it .
1.2m total length.
6.7 kg complete.
Around fifteen hours . Hope it works ! It will at least make one hell of a CB.
Maybe I need a helmet , I have no idea of what I'm doing .
Can you document how this goes in action?
The old windsurfers with fixed centreboards experienced what was uncontrolled lift from the centre. I felt this too later with an RRD board with a bolt in centreboard and a race sail. The board rose up from the centre as it started planning. It was scary.
Stupid question, have you foiled before? I only ask because everything I've learned foiling tells me that is going to be very tricky to sail. Make sure you film it
Also, props on the fab work, tip top
Crankin engineering there mate! As usual, done to the "Imax1". Hahaha. Get some footage of the FLYIN IMCO. Keen to n hear report of it in action. Filth dude!!!! Im with Nelson, mast should be further back in CB slot? No helmet needed. Just have your biggest kahunas along with ya. YEEEEWWWW!!!
Moby, even a new RB will foil n rise up on the CB alone. If all forces equal its like doing a wheelstand. Can be held for a few seconds.But without the wing,things go south pretty darn quick. Have had many stacks tryin to control this.
Nice work. I'm impressed with that mast head, its defiantly ready for a heavy weight now!
Not sure if a race board is the best option for foiling though. I bet you could make a foil board out of a old race board by cutting it shorter and shaping it the way you want it. Seen a guy do this for his electric hydrofoil. Might want to do it with a slightly wider board.
www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.instructables.com/id/Building-an-ELECTRICAL-Hydrofoil-Part-12/&ved=2ahUKEwjEu6S94pjgAhWC3oMKHdh2CHwQFjACegQIARAB&usg=AOvVaw0u0ENJsWIzh8Ca9HwJjHZI
Ps. It's not too late. But get a video of this thing first
Ive not foiled. But surely each board n application would have different criteria to find its sweet spot. Mastlength wise, doesn't the rider control the height he flies it at? Only issue is running aground(mast too long) n clearing the expected waves or chop?(mast too short) More front leg pressure keeps it low.
Regards position of foilmast in CB case. CE of sail is related to board design n normally aligns between front n rear straps. Therefore if foil is more rearward less front leg pressure is reqd (coz of looong nose n weight) to counteract the foils tendancy to breach. Maybe it should be somewhere near front foot straps? That ol vid posted highlights it. Foil mast is raked back. Wings are closer to frontstraps. Just my rambling thoughts... Keen to see the outcome of Franken-foil
That's why I wanted to know the ideal kind of distance between front of foil and sail mast . Because the board is sooo long and flat rockered and the mast track also very long , I'm positive I can get this distance correct with room to spare . Would this not mean I just have to move me and the sail more central ?
Not sure about length of mast and how that works , I just picked average like the NP alloy . I can easily shorten it but not lengthen .
Yep with foilmast forward youd have to stand further forward n mast car further forward. Have a look at Zoltans setup. Looks about right. Foils can point much higher than a finned setup. So disregard having mastcar forward at all. Id think 2/3 back for mastcar n leave it there. Even in fin mode you can point ok from that position. Then you are also in the zone to use footstraps, enabling you to lift or push on board until you find its sweet spot. Length of foilmast should be sweet as youve got it.Another thing, is normal fin even reqd? Foilmast n wings doin all the work. Just from a "looks right" perspective foilmast should be 2/3 back in CB case??? All just my guesstimations. Wish i could come play...
Imax1, think of it this way. You dont wanna look like your sailing a bloody Sabot. Its an RB. Sail it like its a Top Fuel Drag Car. All that bonnet swingin in the breeze. Stance just like when shes fully powered up on a broad reach. Yeeeewwww!!!!
A super simple way to look at it is this. The main lift component is the front wing, basically...roughly....when in stable flight you are going to have that front wing in the middle of your stance. Looking at your setup that puts you way forward. Then look at the post above for a rough mast position relative to the foil. Yeah all foils are different and you're going to have to muck around but this we'll get you within a 100mm zone either way for foot strap and mast foot position.
Had my first go today , bloody awesome
Conditions , fresh water lake , flat , super gusty , swirly 2 to 12 kts ish , 9.4 V8.
Now I know why You sadists wanted footage .
Got half a dozen flights with four good crashes ,over the back , front and each side , got em all covered.
Below take off speed the board doesn't feel much different but I'm sure it's faster , points higher , but is much slower tacking and jibing. I have to stand right on the edge of the board .It also makes quite a loud humming noise just before lift off and stops when up in the air.
First attempt nothing happened until I leant back and it came straight up . This is where I sh.t myself and did everything wrong . Bent my feet , hung off the back and outboard for safety and sheeted in . It's amazing how quick a super long RB can slice into the wind ,... crash.
Keep talking to myself , when things happen stand over the board and lean forward , this is hard to do. It's not normal.
Next couple runs I could keep the board about a foot off the water with the back just tapping the water. 20 then about 50 metres , totally happy at this point . This is quite comfortable and slippery , I think it's because the rear fin is holding everything in line.
The next one freaked me out , Flying along about a foot off the water , ( I can say that now ) , with the tail clipping the water I thought I'm ready for more air so I pushed hard on my back foot to get more angle and it went nuts . I'm sure your not meant to see the front foil while sailing a foot above the water with the board at 45 deg. Talk about air ! Big crash over the front.
The next couple , I got a bit better , once the rear fin is out of the water it's like balancing on a exercise ball. Very short flights ,one crash and one save.
Its a strange feeling and I want more.
Its like learning all over again , the hardest part is to lean forward when it gets scary.
Better wind tomorrow, I'd like to use a smaller sail.
Not that I can compare to a proper foil board but i think It will work fine . It ramps up speed beautifully and with some of the rear fin in the water it stays in a straight line.
One tiny piece of advice I can give is use an older sail , I'm lucky I didn't wreck mine.
awesome !! good on you for experimenting and sharing !! Thanls !! (still would like to see a video !)