Finally throw in the towel and jump into winging :) What are the options for a wings with booms as I here more people use booms now and most on sales are without. Does it really matter boom or not?
Not sure id say most people use booms. It's a preference thing. Freestylers and people coming from windsurfing usually prefer booms. Some people also like them for 1 handed riding (although most newer hard handles are balanced and can ride 1 handed). downside is that they are more cumbersome to pack.
Hard handles get you 95% of the benefit and if you are just beginning you probably won't be looking for that 5%. I wouldn't really worry about finding a wing with a boom. Just get some solid gear and get on it asap.
some setups like north and f one also allow you to switch the handles to suit your preference.
Yeah, booms aren't especially necessary but some like them for sure. I prefer rigid soft handles tbh. When I did fly booms I liked the slim duotone boom. The fatter ones are too fatiguing for me.
Coming from windsurfing I'm using North Nova with the handles. There are a lot more options.
When I was looking there wasn't many second hand so when the new season wings came out the shops discounted the current stock and got a affordable price.
I see new designs with full booms and not really interested with extra hassle setting up and packing away and one less item to forget to bring.
I did get a pump with a gauge and then you get the correct pressure. One time I under inflated and wasted session.
After a few sessions it's great fun, enjoy 
i swore by booms (Slick SLS) for first year or so of winging, but when hard longer handles came out it wasn't necessary anymore. i still occasionally 'grab the air' between the handles, making me wish i still had a boom, but overall, it shouldn't be a primary factor in wing selection.
Hard handles with a vertical "pistol grip" front are the real game changer.
I believe Gong has wings which can do both?
I've recently moved from hard handless (Duototne Unit 2003) to booms (Unit 2005) and it's way better. More reliable manoeuvres, easy surfing, easy to trim harness lines .... The only downside is that wings packaged are less compact.
I've been using Ensis Scores with textile handles since I took up winging 4 years ago and would like to add that soft handles mean there are no hard parts to fall on or to hammer into your board. All my family have learned on them and they've proven great for this.
I've recently bought a wing with boom and hope it will mean easier tacking with gloves in the winter and a quicker freestyle progression but am also scared as I have already landed nose first on the strut in botched rotational jumps and was happy to have no boom to fall on.
As a beginner I wouldn' really care but look for a good budget-friendly wing with whatever handles.
I'm on f-one strike v4 and purchased the 4 types of handles.
1-soft.nothing to do with first and sec generation of soft handles.
2-hybride, stiffer but not as stiff as hard handle.
3-rigid.
4-boom.
my fav is the hybrid, i still prefer the oval form..for ergonomie and like the fact it absorbes the gust and i find the wing is better positioned while winging vs the rigid and the boom. Maybe the f-one is designed around the hybrid?
the sec is the boom, because the freedom of one handed.tou don't have to look at the boom to learn a move...you have a larger marge of error.and I'm also a windsurfer.
I'm not a fan of hard handles on any brand..but some are really are and I respect that and understand that, specially if you learned on hard handles or you transitioned from not soft but floppy first gen handles to hard.
Boom and hard handles are more tiring and are rough on the deck of the board also. On very large wing.i'm torn.low weight of soft handles.and enhance of control while pumping, there I think if you don't surf and freefly.hard and boom can be an advantage, but harness is mandatory for most mortals.
Select to expand quoteNordRoi said..
I'm on f-one strike v4 and purchased the 4 types of handles.
1-soft.nothing to do with first and sec generation of soft handles.
2-hybride, stiffer but not as stiff as hard handle.
3-rigid.
4-boom.
my fav is the hybrid, i still prefer the oval form..for ergonomie and like the fact it absorbes the gust and i find the wing is better positioned while winging vs the rigid and the boom. Maybe the f-one is designed around the hybrid?
the sec is the boom, because the freedom of one handed.tou don't have to look at the boom to learn a move...you have a larger marge of error.and I'm also a windsurfer.
I'm not a fan of hard handles on any brand..but some are really are and I respect that and understand that, specially if you learned on hard handles or you transitioned from not soft but floppy first gen handles to hard.
Boom and hard handles are more tiring and are rough on the deck of the board also. On very large wing.i'm torn.low weight of soft handles.and enhance of control while pumping, there I think if you don't surf and freefly.hard and boom can be an advantage, but harness is mandatory for most mortals.
Curious if you've tried a hard handle in front paired with a soft or hybrid handle in back? My previous setup (OR Glide) had multiple handle options and I found the best configuration was hard front and soft back handle. You get the precision of the hard handle in front, while softening the response to gusts with the back handle. Felt like the perfect balance. Haven't had the opportunity to try that setup on other wings, but I bet I'd like it.
I like the look of the NP Firefly, pricing is really good for these in Canada:
www.neilpryde.com/products/firefly
www.neilpryde.com/products/firefly-pro
i get the boom for freestyle - but not many people are really doing this in the "real world"
And i can also see the boom working well for maybe blasting along a lake or flat sea
Q1. What are they like for the real ocean / waves? Do they flag out okay or heavier when luffing / riding waves?
Q2. i have heard that a single boom can be difficult ergonomically vs handles as the wrists are straight?
i think the new NP wave wing is a fixed boom only?
Select to expand quotenorthy1 said..
i get the boom for freestyle - but not many people are really doing this in the "real world"
And i can also see the boom working well for maybe blasting along a lake or flat sea
Q1. What are they like for the real ocean / waves? Do they flag out okay or heavier when luffing / riding waves?
Q2. i have heard that a single boom can be difficult ergonomically vs handles as the wrists are straight?
Don't know much about real ocean waves, but even the wings with ALU booms flag out just fine. But that's so dependent on the wind direction and strength, the speed at which you are going, etc.
