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How much would you happily pay for a foil board

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Starsky
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Re: How much would you happily pay for a foil board

Postby Starsky » Sat Jul 15, 2017 2:33 am

Custom boards have always been a bargain, they are generally priced right. It's production stuff thats way out of line. Lift??? Their foil looks like a bargain, their board... not so much, but it really does depend on what kind of board. Race... gotta be all carbon, Gonna jump it? Gotta have way more strength, want it light and strong.... your gonna pay.

I just carve around strapless, no need for a pricey board.

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Re: How much would you happily pay for a foil board

Postby TomW » Sat Jul 15, 2017 4:29 pm

I make some surfboards to order. They take me 25-30 hrs work, and 300 euros in materials and consumables. Sell them for 850-900 euros. I don't make much money, but am learning as I go, someone gets a nice custom, and the boards are built to last.
But a foil board doesn't have 4 fin boxes, or 4 fins, shape is simpler and easier to finish sand.
I think the Shinn boards are reasonable price for a factory board.

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Re: How much would you happily pay for a foil board

Postby Peter_Frank » Sat Jul 15, 2017 6:43 pm

The shape is maybe somewhat easier, agree, eventhough the nose scoop is important although not as difficult to get right as the tail and edges of a waveboard - but I still think it is more difficult to make a mast box in a foilboard, than fin boxes on a waveboard.

The mast box require quite extreme reinforcement, and you have to distribute the load over a big part of the board (your feet and maybe straps) so it gets totally stiff.

Doing this, while still keeping it light (and maybe thin which some wants) is not easy and often require carbon, so I see no reason why they shouldnt cost at least the same as waveboards - maybe more sometimes.

8) PF

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Re: How much would you happily pay for a foil board

Postby socommk23 » Sun Jul 16, 2017 11:14 am

I find generally that the sport as a whole is crazy expensive. All of it. It appears aimed at just the ones with ££££s of expendable cash. So I'm always looking for bargains and maybe unheard of brands offering good deals.
£305 for a brand new large tt with pads and straps and delivery....yes please.
£300 for a brand new 15m foil kite.....yes please.
£900 for a second hand foil.....no ta.

Don't get me wrong...i have 3 f.one diablos. 2 second hand and one brand new and I paid handsomely for them but it took me forever to save the cash so I'd never be in debt to the sport and I NEEDED them to be competitive in the sport.
But for general entry to any part of our sport I think prices should be coming down.

A foil board basically needs to have rails for the foil. Once it's out of the water the design matters less. So why are they so expensive? Directional and tt are designed to be IN the water and can be picked up for less.

To get into it a basic board would be around £300 for me to buy one. Naish comes to mind. And foil design and materials have been around for a while now too. They should be around £300 new too. I don't think it too much a stretch to ask for a new foil and board for £600.

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Re: How much would you happily pay for a foil board

Postby Kamikuza » Sun Jul 16, 2017 11:28 am

I think the SS boards are priced almost right. No straps for the price is a bit of a surprise though. . . .
socommk23 wrote:
Sun Jul 16, 2017 11:14 am
I find generally that the sport as a whole is crazy expensive.

>snip<

To get into it a basic board would be around £300 for me to buy one. Naish comes to mind. And foil design and materials have been around for a while now too. They should be around £300 new too. I don't think it too much a stretch to ask for a new foil and board for £600.
I wonder how much of that is because it's a captive market and your (apparently) ludicrous import duties though. We got a similar situation here . . . the domestic markets of the US and EU are huge, in comparison.

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Re: How much would you happily pay for a foil board

Postby Bletti » Sun Jul 16, 2017 12:52 pm

socommk23 wrote:
Sun Jul 16, 2017 11:14 am
To get into it a basic board would be around £300 for me to buy one. Naish comes to mind. And foil design and materials have been around for a while now too. They should be around £300 new too. I don't think it too much a stretch to ask for a new foil and board for £600.
I think you underestimate how much extra time and materials go into a foil and foilboard than a cheap twintip. If you think you can start up a business to sell both for £600 you should totally do it as you'd have me and many other customers lined up through the door to get them! I'm still waiting for chinesium carbon foils to hit the market and lower the price point.

A friend of mine built a near identical mikes lab copy as there's never been a single new mikes lab sent to Australia or anywhere in the eastern hemisphere other than to Matt Taggart, co-founder of Ozone, in NZ to my knowledge. It was $800-1000 in materials and you wouldn't believe the amount of hours it took make it, from 3d printing the mould form, to the mould and carbon first test wing, to the full fab of the whole fuse and wings and also full carbon mast to go with. The thing is a work of art, but it makes you realize just how good of a deal mikes lab foils (and to the same extent the mass produced race foils) are when you consider how much blood sweat and tears go into them.

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Re: How much would you happily pay for a foil board

Postby Starsky » Sun Jul 16, 2017 1:32 pm

Of course its pricey for a one off. Once tooled up for production, a simple clean design should be a little less, but I understand companies want to maintain the margin as high as they can.

As to boards only. There are few simple production boards. The likely don't do enough volume and changing designs year to year keeps the price high. Someone should come up with one piece 90 mm spacing tracks insert that can be put in nearly any foam and fibre board, laminated right through to the deck and be a plug and play piece with a big enough foot print to virtually guarantee you can't rip it out. Kind of the stick on mount for builders. Even just building it out of two chinook tracks first then mounting it in the board might be an easy way for the DIY/custom guys. Make up a bunch of em and then just plug em into whatever board the client wants.

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Re: How much would you happily pay for a foil board

Postby Dspace » Sun Jul 16, 2017 5:51 pm

This dealer/shop in WI still has a couple of leftover 2016 4'10" Liquid Force Happy Foil boards for $449. Includes 3 straps and even the quad fins for straight surf riding. I have one and luv it. Light/strong/balanced and not too floaty. It's a bargain compared to some of the new stuff out there. I'm not affiliated with the shop, just a contented customer

https://kiteridersllc.com/product/2016- ... foilboard/


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