Hello
Another topic, I expect interesting for more people. I'm going to ask a general shaper to install a double usbox track on a traditional windsurf board. I've seen on youtube this link , but I haven't seen anything about the inclination angle of the tracks regarding rake. Is something to take into account or you can put the tracks in the same plane of the hull and that's it?

I will put them next to the fin box, I guess it's a flat area. The foil will be a general purpose surf one, big front wing, long fuselage and mast.

Thanks.

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Lecum said..
I haven't seen anything about the inclination angle of the tracks regarding rake. Is something to take into account or you can put the tracks in the same plane of the hull and that's it?

Same plane as the hull worked for me on 2 freestyle and one slalom board.

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Lecum said..
I will put them next to the fin box, I guess it's a flat area. The foil will be a general purpose surf one, big front wing, long fuselage and mast.

If you're modifying a windsurf board, I'd suggest to offset them to the front a bit, so that the back of the US box is at the center of the fin box (at least). That's were I put mine, and I now have the foil mast close to the front of the track (Slingshot i84 in C position). Fully in front of the box as in the video would also work, and could be better if you ever try winging on the board.

Ready to insert 2 US boxes.
gets saw....

anybody think flipping an old slalom board upside down, inserting the US BOX on the deck!
i tried this on a 3D cad model. chopping the nose, flipping that.
(and simply remove some mid section of the board to shorten things)
you would not believe how much it resembles all the new wing board designs lol

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Boracay.Villas said..
Ready to insert 2 US boxes.
gets saw....

anybody think flipping an old slalom board upside down, inserting the US BOX on the deck!
i tried this on a 3D cad model. chopping the nose, flipping that.
(and simply remove some mid section of the board to shorten things)
you would not believe how much it resembles all the new wing board designs lol

That is out of the box thinking

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boardsurfr said..

Lecum said..
I haven't seen anything about the inclination angle of the tracks regarding rake. Is something to take into account or you can put the tracks in the same plane of the hull and that's it?

Same plane as the hull worked for me on 2 freestyle and one slalom board.

Lecum said..
I will put them next to the fin box, I guess it's a flat area. The foil will be a general purpose surf one, big front wing, long fuselage and mast.

If you're modifying a windsurf board, I'd suggest to offset them to the front a bit, so that the back of the US box is at the center of the fin box (at least). That's were I put mine, and I now have the foil mast close to the front of the track (Slingshot i84 in C position). Fully in front of the box as in the video would also work, and could be better if you ever try winging on the board.

Hi
I've seen that if I put the usbox tracks just beside the end of the fin box, the rear footstrap would be just above the begining of the usbox tracks, so I think it's a good position, right?

I don't want to try winging, but I dream to use it in future strapless with a more advanced position of the foil.

Rdgs

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thedoor said..

Boracay.Villas said..
Ready to insert 2 US boxes.
gets saw....

anybody think flipping an old slalom board upside down, inserting the US BOX on the deck!
i tried this on a 3D cad model. chopping the nose, flipping that.
(and simply remove some mid section of the board to shorten things)
you would not believe how much it resembles all the new wing board designs lol

That is out of the box thinking

Cmon, you know all these shaper geniuses love a beer! The board got knocked over after a heavy session, things landed ass up...and presto! Wing design.

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Lecum said..
I've seen that if I put the usbox tracks just beside the end of the fin box, the rear footstrap would be just above the begining of the usbox tracks, so I think it's a good position, right?

Define "end of the fin box". If you do it like in the picture of the video you posted, that will work. I'd think that "end" refers to the tail of the board. That gives you a position similar to the Fanatic Stingray. If you start with a windsurfing board, that's quite far back, and you'll probably end up wishing it was more forward.

One reason to have some overlap with the fin box is that the back of the tracks can be attached to the reinforcements of the fin box. I'm not sure that's necessary, but I'd rather over-engineer than under-engineer.

If your board has a windsurf-typical narrow tail, you may find that you want to have your back foot placed in front of the straps, where the board is wider. You get more leverage over the foil this way, and better upwind angles. That's also an argument to put the track box more towards the nose of the board.

Hi. Finally this is how the usbox tracks have been installed on my board. I've bought also a 80 cm mast for the foil glide. I cross fingers.

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Lecum said..
Hi. Finally this is how the usbox tracks have been installed on my board. I've bought also a 80 cm mast for the foil glide. I cross fingers.

Looks great Lecum. Let us know how it goes.

I wonder if it will be routine to install foil tracks forward of the fin box, just like this, on all windsurfers. To me it makes much more sense than make "foil ready" fin boxes. But maybe the empty tracks would ruin the ability to windsurf on the fin.

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thedoor said..
But maybe the empty tracks would ruin the ability to windsurf on the fin.

Adding tracks adds about a pound of weight (or more) to the board. In contrast, foil-ready boxes don't add much weight at all.

I was told if you breech a board that was made with tracks and then land with the foil flat on the water you will rip out the tracks. Your Board looks great, good job!, just be careful landing.

Lot's of silly, uninformed things said on the internet.

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Sandman1221 said..
I was told if you breech a board that was made with tracks and then land with the foil flat on the water you will rip out the tracks. Your Board looks great, good job!, just be careful landing.

Tell that to the wingers doing backloops.

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LeeD said..
Lot's of silly, uninformed things said on the internet.

That information was from a conversation I had with a guy who tested foil boards with tracks for a foil board company that also sold windsurfing boards, sails, masts, booms, and of course foils.

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boardsurfr said..

thedoor said..
But maybe the empty tracks would ruin the ability to windsurf on the fin.

Adding tracks adds about a pound of weight (or more) to the board. In contrast, foil-ready boxes don't add much weight at all.

Makes sense. Its just that IMO it's going to be hard to use the same footstrap positions, for fin and foil, while keeping the foil in the same position as the fin (eg foil ready fin boxes).

Do you think the presences of tracks would impact the ability to get planning on the fin or reduce top speed significantly?

Just like with deep tuttle, in the old days with fins, the structural emphasis was on side forces.

Now with foils, the structural emphasis has shifted to up and rocking forces. Make sure that your dual track structure is bonded well enough to the board structure to carry the up and rocking forces exerted by foils.

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segler said..
Just like with deep tuttle, in the old days with fins, the structural emphasis was on side forces.

Now with foils, the structural emphasis has shifted to up and rocking forces. Make sure that your dual track structure is bonded well enough to the board structure to carry the up and rocking forces exerted by foils.

I agree, those tracks do not go deep into the board like a DT foil box, wondering what an impact would do. Saw an installation video of tracks, not a lot going into the board compared to a DT box.

Surface area does wonders for strength.

Track boxes must be connected to the top laminate, just like a foil tuttle box. Install either one only connected to the bottom laminate and it doesn't matter how strong the box is it will fail.

Most old time board builders just woodie std boxes to the deck, bottom, front, and sides.
Spider web patterns work well, and 1" diameter wood dowels to deck.
Old school.

Also, just like in the old days, there were boards that were "approved" for jumping, and boards that were not. If you bought a "not approved" board, jumped it, and broke it, you could not get warranty support.

So, if you want to jump your foil, make sure your manufacturer has "approved" your gear for jumping. Simple.