Hello all,

I am looking to buy one of these two lightwind boards and have been largely unable to decide.
People out there who sailed one or the other or ideally both, could you share your take on these boards.
I am mostly interested sailing them with the fin (fin fan).

Read @Childspay's excellent review form a few years back but your input would also be greatly appreciated.

Thanks and best regards,
BV

What year?
Biggest sail?
Your weight.
And nobody has tried the newest models.

Hey BV, Ive been sailing a 2014 154 L SLW for 5 years now, its a great board and the price tag for the gold edition was well justified, but

At 100 kg the 165 L would be better.

If feel the standard 56 cm fin is too small, I use a 62 and a 9.0 sail.

The term 'super light wind' may be slightly optimistic, that term as far as I'm concerned is the realm of the windfoil, it still requires a steady breeze (12kts for me) and some enthusiastic pumping to get it going.

It may handle a larger sail but I doubt it would give any better wind range.

Build quality is fantastic but the gold edition although very light is quite fragile.

Id say 15kts, 9.0m race sail and the 62 fin it really is in its element and you won't be disappointed.

Next step up is formula but that's another story.

G'day BV, I've had a 2020 SLW for a couple of years. I like it. Puts a smile on my face every time I use it. I'm 75 kgs, use it with 7.7 and 8.7 V8's. Gets going in 10-11 knots with the factory 56 fin. I've got the pro version, light and stiff but doesn't feel fragile like the SB formula I owned for a short time. SLW is like a big free ride board, formula board was not. Haven't sailed a Falcon LW. The only issue I've had was with the mast base coming loose due to the recessed deck until I put a rubber sheet on the bottom of the base.

Thanks a lot for your responses, looks like the JP is the board to go for. There isn't a lot of information available about either board but the few about the JP SLW is all praise. I am 90 kg dry and would be getting a cammed 9 sail to go with this board.

Hopefully someone with the Falcon will see this post and add their view.

Thanks again,
BV

Not much between the two in this 2020 test.

www.surf-magazin.de/boards/slalom-race/test-2020-fruehgleitboards-xxl

I have a 2020 Falcon LW. I really wanted the JP but this one came up at a decent price so I grabbed it, but I will probably end up with both eventually as I really like this style of board as it suits the spot where I sail. First impression of the falcon was it is very unbuoyant in the front, it sinks easy when tacking so I usually prefer light wind pivot jibes when not powered up for planing step jibes, the majority of the volume is from the mast track back on this board and when slogging if you put your weight to far forward it will actually nose dive sometimes. The standard fin it comes with is better in in decent wind with probably no bigger than 8.5. I have used up to 64cm fin with a 9.5 in 12/13kt and yes it does plane quite well in very light wind (I am 87kg). Having a wide tail when you feel your about to pop on to the plane you need to hang and take weight of the back foot and get it in the strap early cause if you wait till your powered up and moving it can be hard to nail the back strap. Don't like the recessed deck much but they both have that anyway. There are plenty of good charicteristics of the board though. It jibes very well, but is sensitive to foot placement, basically you need to place the leeward foot back and right out on the rail, hope you got long legs, only took me 2 sessions to work this out and now feels perfectly natural and comfortable, you can choose to do a wide arc or tight turn and it does both with ease. It has a very impressive wind range, as I said it is very good in Light wind and I have also sailed it in 22kt with an 8.5 3 cam sail with the standard 50cm fin and I was stunned at how stable and comfortable it was in these conditions. Went for nearly 2 hours and barely raised a sweat, it seemed to just sail itself, it was that good it felt like it could have been 25/26kt and it wouldn't have made a difference, even with the big sail still on there. The board has very consistent performance whether light or strong wind. Not much chop where I sail but the few times I've ventured out wide into it, I found that is very easy to just lift the windward rail a bit, shift the weight back slightly and the slapping seemed to just stop and it was very good on what I consider to be medium chop at 23/24kt speed. Taking everything into consideration I am very happy and impressed with the board. There are going to be differences between the 2 boards but I reckon if what you want is a board that is easy to ride in a range of conditions from Light to fairly decent wind you can't go wrong with either of them. Hope this helps

We have 4 Starboard Ultrasonics 147 here that go out regularly. Guys here regularly on 7-8.0 sails with fins 52-58. I traded my SBUS147 for a patrik Slalom 150 then a Slalom 140. the Patrik 140 is only 7 litres volume less but 85wide vs 92-95cm. The patrik 150 was 90 wide. I really like the Patrik's as they sit so well on the water and are fast as. 2 sec increased by 2 knots on the second outing all with a 44 fin too. I used a Tribal custom 52 G10 then started with the CLSL2 44 carbon and at 8 cm shorter was amazed at the extra
performance. I'm 92kg & used NP V8 sails 7.2-7.7 There boards may have foil boxes but their shape isn't ideal like a foil board but certainly worth a go. Both boards super comfy and suit our long runs on flat water (9km sometimes). They fly the dim very well, honk upwind and off the wind and distance work is a pleasure. any of these boards would fit the bill after becoming accustom to them.
the patrik 150 & 1 SB US147 may be available here in WA if anyone is interested too.

my best super light board was the RRD X-fire lightwind 150 litres. I also had the JP and a formula. I made a review with some comparisons here:
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/Review/RRD-X-File-light-wind-v1-2014?page=1
I sold it because I went to foil , but for the purpose it was the most fun you could get

Thanks again for all of your excellent opinions, it's helpful and not at the same time. The two boards are head to head. It might simply come down to availability. Any views on build quality and durability? The LXT construction of the JP appears to be very similar to the Falcon LW too.

My ultrasonic might be upgraded to a Patrick air inside 140, think I've finally tracked one down

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Ben1973 said..
My ultrasonic might be upgraded to a Patrick air inside 140, think I've finally tracked one down

Contact patrik. I think that he has AI boards in his shed

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Ben1973 said..
My ultrasonic might be upgraded to a Patrick air inside 140, think I've finally tracked one down

They look pretty much indestructible from Patrick's video, have you seen it? Is the 140 the slalom shape, I wonder if they will eventually release them in F race I would love one of them but the price Ouch!

I love my 2017 140 F race Patrik ,it has a flat deck so easy to move around on ,I use 8,6 race sails and 8,5 ezzy lion on it ,
it's very comfortable to ride and does handle lumps ok .I use it in 12 -14 knots construction is great .it will handle bigger sails ..really early planer ,Justin @ windsurfing religion .will line you up with one..if you decide on one ..but there are many boards to choose from ..

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BVoros said..
The LXT construction of the JP appears to be very similar to the Falcon LW too.

JP LXT doesnt have a PVC sandwich on the hull, it has wood instead. Fanatic has PVC deck and hull.

Still sandwich, pet & glass/innegra/wood reinforced vs pvc & biax "fibre".

There is this good old review
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/Review/JP-SLW-vs-Fanatic-Falcon-Light-Wind?page=1

Havn't ridden either, love my old starboard ultrasonic just wish it had a bit more volume & a bit more rail curve under back foot. Not particularly fast but I don't expect slalom performance from it anyway, i step to my falcon 140 for that. So personally id err towards jp as slightly longer/bit nicer off the plane longer waterline & bit more freeride/relaxed (plus there is something satisfying in getting great performance out of a not quite so fast board).

But if there was a bit of 10 knot competition going on where you are id choose falcon lw, there might be a knot or two between the two & both would be blitzed by any 85w slalom when the wind kicks in another few knots.

Hi

I have a Starboard Isonic 147L from 2018 that is a Ultra Lightwind board.
I used it 3 years with a 8.5 camber sail and had some fun but only after 14 knots breaze kicked in.

So i stoped using it for fin and no using it for foil so i can go out with 10 knots with a 7.8 with much less pumping to get going and doesnt stop in the lulls.
I recommend you buying a Lightwind board that has a box that handles a foil so you can use both fin and foil.

Foil has opened a lot of staying on the beach or hard days of pumping to fun days on the water :)

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BVoros said..
Thanks again for all of your excellent opinions, it's helpful and not at the same time. The two boards are head to head. It might simply come down to availability. Any views on build quality and durability? The LXT construction of the JP appears to be very similar to the Falcon LW too.

Before buying an LXT Super Lightwind I'd be trying to find someone who has had one and sailed a lot of hours on it just to check how durable it is. I bought an LXT 102 JP Super Ride last year. Really rapt with the performance of the board especially with the 5.7 2021 V8 I bought to partner it. (Really love this sail, they have vastly improved the V8 in the 2021 model, IMO.). The board is a joy to ride in the 20 knot choppy conditions I use it in. But, it feels so light! It feels lighter than the 6.7kgs stated in the brochure. Only sailed it a few times but since the LXT was a new offering in 2021 it's longevity is not proven. Maybe someone on here has done a lot of hours on an LXT construction JP?

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Orange Whip said..

BVoros said..
Thanks again for all of your excellent opinions, it's helpful and not at the same time. The two boards are head to head. It might simply come down to availability. Any views on build quality and durability? The LXT construction of the JP appears to be very similar to the Falcon LW too.

Before buying an LXT Super Lightwind I'd be trying to find someone who has had one and sailed a lot of hours on it just to check how durable it is. I bought an LXT 102 JP Super Ride last year. Really rapt with the performance of the board especially with the 5.7 2021 V8 I bought to partner it. (Really love this sail, they have vastly improved the V8 in the 2021 model, IMO.). The board is a joy to ride in the 20 knot choppy conditions I use it in. But, it feels so light! It feels lighter than the 6.7kgs stated in the brochure. Only sailed it a few times but since the LXT was a new offering in 2021 it's longevity is not proven. Maybe someone on here has done a lot of hours on an LXT construction JP?

Good idea, asked my usual shop if they had any feedback about last year's LXT boards.

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mmilhazes said..
Hi

I have a Starboard Isonic 147L from 2018 that is a Ultra Lightwind board.
I used it 3 years with a 8.5 camber sail and had some fun but only after 14 knots breaze kicked in.

So i stoped using it for fin and no using it for foil so i can go out with 10 knots with a 7.8 with much less pumping to get going and doesnt stop in the lulls.
I recommend you buying a Lightwind board that has a box that handles a foil so you can use both fin and foil.

Foil has opened a lot of staying on the beach or hard days of pumping to fun days on the water :)

Definitely, regarding foiling, both have foil approved boxes and claimed to be great foiling boards. My usual shop said they had a lot of good feedback about the JP SLW.

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PhilUK said..

BVoros said..
The LXT construction of the JP appears to be very similar to the Falcon LW too.

JP LXT doesnt have a PVC sandwich on the hull, it has wood instead. Fanatic has PVC deck and hull.

Would you consider the Falcon a better choice in this regard? I am planning on keeping this board for the long run.

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BVoros said..

PhilUK said..

BVoros said..
The LXT construction of the JP appears to be very similar to the Falcon LW too.

JP LXT doesnt have a PVC sandwich on the hull, it has wood instead. Fanatic has PVC deck and hull.

Would you consider the Falcon a better choice in this regard? I am planning on keeping this board for the long run.

I wouldnt buy either. For a board that big I would want some light stiff carbon.

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BVoros said..
Thanks again for all of your excellent opinions, it's helpful and not at the same time. The two boards are head to head. It might simply come down to availability. Any views on build quality and durability? The LXT construction of the JP appears to be very similar to the Falcon LW too.

Where are you? SBUS147 & patrik 150 in WA, not mine tho.

Hi VBoros. I have a 2018 falcon 159 and sail it with a Sailworks Nx 8.6 I weigh 93 k This is great allaroud board for someone my size . It planes up early and is very fast insight to medium wind. Its a rare day that I don't hit 30 mph. Top speed so far 34.68. I use a Ifju 52 extra soft rake 4 fin for lightwind, doesn't need Bigger. I also use a use a tectonics weed demon 2 38 an a trueames 16.5. When the wind is up and down I also sail it with a. tr 7.7 . Sailed about 2000 miles last year more thanhalf of those miles were on this board alone. My daughter. Is a intermediate. Sailor and loves this board with a 7.0 The board has had heavy use and has held up fine Hope this helps.

Agree with foiling comments, was out the other day on my AFS foil chasing down the kite foilers, then as the wind dropped (as did the wave size) the windsurfers showed up, they were a little faster than me for a short time, but the wind dropped a couple of knots and they were slogging half the time while I was still flying, then wind dropped a couple more knots with only occasional whitecaps and they were done, I just switched AFS front wing from F770 cm2 to F1080 cm2 and kept on flying!

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ronfast said..
Hi VBoros. I have a 2018 falcon 159 and sail it with a Sailworks Nx 8.6 I weigh 93 k This is great allaroud board for someone my size . It planes up early and is very fast insight to medium wind. Its a rare day that I don't hit 30 mph. Top speed so far 34.68. I use a Ifju 52 extra soft rake 4 fin for lightwind, doesn't need Bigger. I also use a use a tectonics weed demon 2 38 an a trueames 16.5. When the wind is up and down I also sail it with a. tr 7.7 . Sailed about 2000 miles last year more thanhalf of those miles were on this board alone. My daughter. Is a intermediate. Sailor and loves this board with a 7.0 The board has had heavy use and has held up fine Hope this helps.

Hello, thanks for this, this does help. Over 1000 miles on a board sounds very promising. My usual place is light to medium wind most of the time so this would work well.

Thanks again!

Pop a foil on that baby, and you'll be on the water in even lighter wind!

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MagicRide said..
Pop a foil on that baby, and you'll be on the water in even lighter wind!

Thanks, yes, that's the plan, one of the reasons for going for this board. 2 in 1 and supposed to be good at both.

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BVoros said..

MagicRide said..
Pop a foil on that baby, and you'll be on the water in even lighter wind!

Thanks, yes, that's the plan, one of the reasons for going for this board. 2 in 1 and supposed to be good at both.

Foiling is so much fun in light air! Flying above the water is magical and so smooth. I have a feeling you'll enjoy it. Your going so fast with hardly any wind! But finning is also just as addicting, but with more wind.