I see a lot of foils, that I quite like the look of, but then see they have the closed off screw holes on the base plate......compared to the open ended ones where you can just slide the screw straight in from the board tracks. I don't understand...for the unnecessary stuffing about lining up the t-nut and screw.....?

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stevet73 said..
I see a lot of foils, that I quite like the look of, but then see they have the closed off screw holes on the base plate......compared to the open ended ones where you can just slide the screw straight in from the board tracks. I don't understand...for the unnecessary stuffing about lining up the t-nut and screw.....?

Or leave it together. First world problem

Not really if u take your foil off the board every session....which is pretty common. I would never buy a foil without the open ends for the screws....

It's done that way for increased strength, probably more important for fibre reinforced construction because fibres maintain strength in tension (ie by being continuous across the loaded area) and not so well in shear or bending.

In the event of a loose baseplate screw, drilled opening might save you whereas the slotted (cantilevered) connection will be more likely to fail.

Thanks ju foil. That makes sense. Thought it might be something like that and not just to save on costs. I had one or two foils over the past few years with the closed holes.....just found it an unnecessary stuff around lining up the holes/screws each time as opposed to being able to just flick them in from the tracks. One day I may be able to have a mega van set up and fit everything in still attached....but until the kids get older, the foil has to come off the board to fit all the other beach stuff in

Just put a bit of foam to keep the nuts in place, and voila, problem solved!

Or you can look at it another way. Yes increased strength but some of the more modern mast tracks have the holes at the back of the track (JP) so all you have to do is loosen you bolts then slide the whole unit out the back of the tracks and leave the bolts in your base plate. Even faster ;-)

Colas, good idea!
Activechris, also a good idea. I think I'd always take the bolts out. Lost too many in the early days leaving them in....

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activechris said..
Or you can look at it another way. Yes increased strength but some of the more modern mast tracks have the holes at the back of the track (JP) so all you have to do is loosen you bolts then slide the whole unit out the back of the tracks and leave the bolts in your base plate. Even faster ;-)

A small point: It is safer to have the holes at the front, just in case the bolts unscrew a bit on the water, then the foil base can slip backwards... and you lose the foil.

Or you can do this with most boxes without compromising the boxes I use GoFoil and this makes it easy as just pick a end that you don't use and you never need to take them out of the base plate as with my car I need to assemble every time which is also made easy with only two screws to install rear and front wings
before and after pics

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stevet73 said..
Not really if u take your foil off the board every session....which is pretty common. I would never buy a foil without the open ends for the screws....

I saw somewhere before that By having the opening you lose something like 70% of the strength compared to just a hole in the base plate

In all my time foiling I have never seen a mast fail at the screw hole openings. After using a mast with an opening to slide the bolts in and out it would be very hard to go back. Only a minor thing but just a small convince that can make a difference when you are in a rush to get on the water.

That foil board with 4 t-nut points is a good idea.
I don't doubt the closed holes are stronger but I've not seen or heard of any with the open slots failing?
Like with everything, some won't.mind the closed hole set up.a s some, like me, just want the easier set up....

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stevet73 said..
That foil board with 4 t-nut points is a good idea.

The drop in foil track setup (4 t-nut points) is standard on North foil boards.

I personally prefer the JP version with only one slightly larger hole at the back. It is super simple to slide the mast out with the bolts attached. As soon as you have a second hole you run the risk of you back bolts on the mast being to close to the front hole. You also limit where you can put your mast and it has to be spaced for the brand you are using. I have long tracks (16") with a larger than normal hole at the back on all my prone and Wing boards now and all I have to do is loosen my bolts by one turn and then slide it out of one board and into the next. So much faster than anything else I have ever used. I used to be a massive fan of the open slotted mast but now I couldn't go back. My bolts just stay in my mast plate now. I have been concerned about loosing bolts (and do have spares) but I haven't lost one yet.

I guess if you use these set nuts, then it wouldn't matter either way, as the nuts don't slide
www.mackiteboarding.com/stringfellow-universal-quickset-track-nuts/

I have achieved the same non sliding effect for free by salt build up. :-)