Armstrong will launch the new Ha range in few days, so the waiting is finally over.
Early reviews referred as a huge upgrade.
Range of 7 sizes but not all available from day one. They will have much more lift and they will be more user friendly than current generation.
But will they be as fast as the current Ha ?
Will they have the same glide?

The early hype is a little over the top so hope to hear some balanced reviews!

When wasn't there a Hype when the Arnie-team brings out something new
The gear looks always lovely and high quality but the only thing they seem to be better in as in developing gear is in getting the hype going.
imo a bit the Apple under the foil gear in that regard.

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Jeroensurf said..
When wasn't there a Hype when the Arnie-team brings out something new
The gear looks always lovely and high quality but the only thing they seem to be better in as in developing gear is in getting the hype going.
imo a bit the Apple under the foil gear in that regard.

plenty of hype around other brands releases so not sure why you single out armstrong. Code is getting plenty of hype on here (and well deserved mind you ).

From what i've heard personally from those who have ridden the prototypes it seems to tick all the boxes for Sup / Surf. (and is fun winging and when wind and swell big the team riders have been using them for downwinders).

Turns are linear and smooth, good low end stall speed, can be pumped at different cadence levels and handles turbulent white water. Def slower than the original HA which has now morphed into two different wings really.

But other brands have already had good options in the surf foil arena for a good year or so (and in lifts case two years or more). and given the gap between brands is closing so quickly i cant see how this new Ha will be a "game changer".

more like a market "catch up a". Lift had the camber idea in there foil section a looooong time ago ...

We will see. The reports are very positive but if you have been testing the other brands options out there then as i said - it could just offer armstrong riders what other brands have been offering for a while now.

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eppo said..

Jeroensurf said..
When wasn't there a Hype when the Arnie-team brings out something new
The gear looks always lovely and high quality but the only thing they seem to be better in as in developing gear is in getting the hype going.
imo a bit the Apple under the foil gear in that regard.

plenty of hype around other brands releases so not sure why you single out armstrong. Code is getting plenty of hype on here (and well deserved mind you ).

From what i've heard personally from those who have ridden the prototypes it seems to tick all the boxes for Sup / Surf. (and is fun winging and when wind and swell big the team riders have been using them for downwinders).

Turns are linear and smooth, good low end stall speed, can be pumped at different cadence levels and handles turbulent white water. Def slower than the original HA which has now morphed into two different wings really.

But other brands have already had good options in the surf foil arena for a good year or so (and in lifts case two years or more). and given the gap between brands is closing so quickly i cant see how this new Ha will be a "game changer".

more like a market "catch up a". Lift had the camber idea in there foil section a looooong time ago ...

We will see. The reports are very positive but if you have been testing the other brands options out there then as i said - it could just offer armstrong riders what other brands have been offering for a while now.

I think you are right a catch up. Hopefully they nail it this time as there have been a few false promises in the surf sup line up.

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hilly said..

eppo said..

Jeroensurf said..
When wasn't there a Hype when the Arnie-team brings out something new
The gear looks always lovely and high quality but the only thing they seem to be better in as in developing gear is in getting the hype going.
imo a bit the Apple under the foil gear in that regard.

plenty of hype around other brands releases so not sure why you single out armstrong. Code is getting plenty of hype on here (and well deserved mind you ).

From what i've heard personally from those who have ridden the prototypes it seems to tick all the boxes for Sup / Surf. (and is fun winging and when wind and swell big the team riders have been using them for downwinders).

Turns are linear and smooth, good low end stall speed, can be pumped at different cadence levels and handles turbulent white water. Def slower than the original HA which has now morphed into two different wings really.

But other brands have already had good options in the surf foil arena for a good year or so (and in lifts case two years or more). and given the gap between brands is closing so quickly i cant see how this new Ha will be a "game changer".

more like a market "catch up a". Lift had the camber idea in there foil section a looooong time ago ...

We will see. The reports are very positive but if you have been testing the other brands options out there then as i said - it could just offer armstrong riders what other brands have been offering for a while now.

I think you are right a catch up. Hopefully they nail it this time as there have been a few false promises in the surf sup line up.

indeed

they will be great. From what I've seen the foil section is really really similar to the v1 takuma kujiras, so should have great low end, pump, and glide. for an airfoil without tons of rear loading it is very well optimized for surf foiling. I expect it to run like a higher aspect kujira v1 with a stiff mast and fuse length options! Will be a sweet surf foil and intermediate wing foil. I'm excited to try!

I was at the meet and greet at Kite Power last week with Armie and Armstrong team. They had all the final proto new HA to look at. Great evening talking to them all getting their feedback with beers and pizza.

The new HA's look so good a little lower aspect than current and allot going on in the foil sections.
I spoke to Armie about which sizes to replace my current MA's but he convinced me that for my style of wingfoiling, riding waves at beach and reef breaks with ocean swell to just stick with the appropriate size MA and tune with tails and shims. They will still outperform these new HA's in the surf and especially in breach recovery or landing jumps.

Confused I then asked where he saw the new HA main application. We then talked then about the foiling market in Europe and North America being primarily flat water sailing on lakes or rivers. These people want to ride foils that are fast, easy to turn and can glide well on gutless wind bumps. The new HA's will excel at this.

To be clear not all the team agreed with him and I will be buying the new HA 680 for high wind and big surf it looks such a weapon.

Interesting.... I would've thought the DWP foils would suit USA/EU lakes mentioned above better due to the glide and AR and the HA v2 would be more surf like competing with unifoil's progression series?

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KB7 said..

Confused I then asked where he saw the new HA main application. We then talked then about the foiling market in Europe and North America being primarily flat water sailing on lakes or rivers. These people want to ride foils that are fast, easy to turn and can glide well on gutless wind bumps. The new HA's will excel at this.

To be clear not all the team agreed with him and I will be buying the new HA 680 for high wind and big surf it looks such a weapon.

I am confused too, what is the difference between MA and the new HA for Wing surf perspective? What is new HA main application

Armie said the new HA (and the DW) will extract the most energy from the wave - for those lucky enough to have access to decently powered waves the MA (especially with wing) are killer foils - but that still gives room for a small foil like the new HA680 to be used for fast moving swells hitting the reef (while on wing) - definitley on my xmas shopping list ...

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KB7 said..
I was at the meet and greet at Kite Power last week with Armie and Armstrong team. They had all the final proto new HA to look at. Great evening talking to them all getting their feedback with beers and pizza.

The new HA's look so good a little lower aspect than current and allot going on in the foil sections.
I spoke to Armie about which sizes to replace my current MA's but he convinced me that for my style of wingfoiling, riding waves at beach and reef breaks with ocean swell to just stick with the appropriate size MA and tune with tails and shims. They will still outperform these new HA's in the surf and especially in breach recovery or landing jumps.

Confused I then asked where he saw the new HA main application. We then talked then about the foiling market in Europe and North America being primarily flat water sailing on lakes or rivers. These people want to ride foils that are fast, easy to turn and can glide well on gutless wind bumps. The new HA's will excel at this.

To be clear not all the team agreed with him and I will be buying the new HA 680 for high wind and big surf it looks such a weapon.

you would have met my son antman there? The dopey looking know it all teenager with aiden

for winging in serious waves / and jet ski towing the MA shines. its ability to handle turbulent contains, hold its Sh1t together in powerful big waves is uncanny. Watched antman today behind the ski is really large but turbulent conditions - lucky he was on the 625Ma and dart 140 tail. Looked intense.

The new HA design brief and subsequent testing of prototypes have been focused primarily around surf foiling in waves (prone and Sup) that includes the pump and link capabilities. Let's be honest the MA is a massive B1tch to pump and link unless you are the likes of oskar, bennet, wilmott, antman, mateo etc etc. and from what Ive heard the design and testing have been the surf foil team riders at armstrong. the winging focused crew have been kept at arms length (and for a reason). The last thing is surf foil riders want is another Ma type foil that's for sure.

But the new Ha wings pretty good for winging to antman said to me - even DWs okay in the right conditions. but it's NOT designed around winging .. AT ALL. winging was not even a factor thank god .. Hence maybe armie's comment to you.

and what armie says lies the truth i feel to why we've had to wait so long for such a foil. the flat water sailing market in america and europe is massive and armstrong are market leaders - especially in America. The surf focus side of things wasnt a priority like it is here. We are such a small p1ss in the ocean. We aren't even that - maybe the tiny bit from the less than three shakes at the end of a p1ss.

Kind of all makes sense now to be honest. That's how i see it anyway - i'm probably wrong lol.

They will have three very specific type foils (not including the CF beginner range which happens to be a sick freestyle winging wing mind you) that can still be used for all disciplines but will be best at one thing.

summer time Perth WA where it is <1m swell and 18knot seabreeze sounds perfect for winging with a new HA? I hope the new HA will do it for winging in ocean wind waves while still allow good surfing feel to it and forgiving when things get hectic in larger ocean conditions

@Eppo, Agree more brands seem to Hype up. I think it is also depending on in what echo-chamber you are//but for what I see Armstrong is doing an above average good job in that. Living in Europe and riding slow gutless wind bumps and waves the new HA sounds like the perfect foil/ maybe a good follow up for my Cabrinha H1200/H1000/H800 and kujira,s

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Jeroensurf said..
@Eppo, Agree more brands seem to Hype up. I think it is also depending on in what echo-chamber you are//but for what I see Armstrong is doing an above average good job in that. Living in Europe and riding slow gutless wind bumps and waves the new HA sounds like the perfect foil/ maybe a good follow up for my Cabrinha H1200/H1000/H800 and kujira,s

yeh no doubt about the marketing prowess lol.

@ poida... yeh me to on those points you made.

then i'd like a sneaky DW wing to open up the throttle and some stage and even for the real
small surf days.

Is the increase in MAs for sale here indicating that quite a few of us are moving from the MA to the new HA?

had a good looks at the DW wings today - aiden is over here, man they went hard on the camber and it starts really early - like half way along the profile. Really interesting design - Aiden confirmed the even foot pressure using the wing at all speeds. Also early
lift. Also saw the proto 680 new HA. Antman's out with aiden towing (antman has the 625ma aiden the 680 HA) be interesting to see what he says when he comes in - using it at our well known local.

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eppo said..

Jeroensurf said..
When wasn't there a Hype when the Arnie-team brings out something new
The gear looks always lovely and high quality but the only thing they seem to be better in as in developing gear is in getting the hype going.
imo a bit the Apple under the foil gear in that regard.

plenty of hype around other brands releases so not sure why you single out armstrong. Code is getting plenty of hype on here (and well deserved mind you ).

From what i've heard personally from those who have ridden the prototypes it seems to tick all the boxes for Sup / Surf. (and is fun winging and when wind and swell big the team riders have been using them for downwinders).

Turns are linear and smooth, good low end stall speed, can be pumped at different cadence levels and handles turbulent white water. Def slower than the original HA which has now morphed into two different wings really.

But other brands have already had good options in the surf foil arena for a good year or so (and in lifts case two years or more). and given the gap between brands is closing so quickly i cant see how this new Ha will be a "game changer".

more like a market "catch up a". Lift had the camber idea in there foil section a looooong time ago ...

We will see. The reports are very positive but if you have been testing the other brands options out there then as i said - it could just offer armstrong riders what other brands have been offering for a while now.

Thankfully, I think the industry has matured, ideas traded, shared, refined enough that there's somewhat of an an equilibrium. Much much less temptation/reason to jump brands now than there once was. All the major brands have quality options.

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eppo said..
had a good looks at the DW wings today - aiden is over here, man they went hard on the camber and it starts really early - like half way along the profile. Really interesting design - Aiden confirmed the even foot pressure using the wing at all speeds. Also early
lift. Also saw the proto 680 new HA. Antman's out with aiden towing (antman has the 625ma aiden the 680 HA) be interesting to see what he says when he comes in - using it at our well known local.

Any experience using the DWP foils with a wing?

Eppo, i'm very interested in what Antman says about the comparison 625/680 ??

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wingedsurfer said..
Eppo, i'm very interested in what Antman says about the comparison 625/680 ??

well yesterday they were towing with the 625ma on one board and the 680 on the other. both on 865/60 fuse/ dart tail. They also had an F one eagle front foil rider on them to (moved from armstrong after the MA release didn't serve the surf foil interests - common story over here).

Both antman and my mate agreed that

1. They have definitely fixed the stall speed / pumpability. My mates 6 footish - 83kg ish and was able to pump the 680 out to link. Antman to of course also but he can pump out anything.

2. Turns aren't as sharp as the 625 as you'd expect - more drawn out - really smooth and linear. Like the Ma really stable in the turbulent white water - but the 680 far more pumpable. (well the 625 is hard to pump on any day for mere mortals like us).

3. 680 feels like it sits in between the 725/925 - slower of course but can be pushed harder without any weird drop out stalls after a hard carve like the old Ha.

4. My eagles riding mate also said 680 wwwaaaaayyy more glide and heaps better low end. More snow board style turns. Was towed on a wave - saw a better one behind - came off that wave and didn't even pump to the one behind. on the 625 struggle to get to a wave behind even full your full pump on. He said it's an ideal tow foil for around our local - never once felt over foiled - held fast speed really well - never felt like it was gonna suddenly push against you. He said it felt more like an eagle than a lift 120 (which he also used to ride).

another experienced rider on the 980 (rising the new 90L wing sup board) also said winner winner chicken dinner - surf sup wise. Intuitive - good glide, stable no silly old Ha stuff going on. He's yet to push it real hard through a turn yet swell was small.

I can't comment myself just had knee arthroscopy so this is all second hand news, but hey looks like armstrong may have finnaly joined the hard core surf foil party.

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ArthurAlston said..

eppo said..
had a good looks at the DW wings today - aiden is over here, man they went hard on the camber and it starts really early - like half way along the profile. Really interesting design - Aiden confirmed the even foot pressure using the wing at all speeds. Also early
lift. Also saw the proto 680 new HA. Antman's out with aiden towing (antman has the 625ma aiden the 680 HA) be interesting to see what he says when he comes in - using it at our well known local.

Any experience using the DWP foils with a wing?

there is a tech talk by aiden at WA surf today - and Stand up freo thursday from 3pm on (although aiden will be there earlier for demo try outs). maybe try and get along to one of those if you can.

Hes been visiting shops all over the world for last 10 months - he knows more than anyone about this gear.

The official release is tomorrow - the tour is well-timed.

Thanks Eppo for the feedbacks!

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ArthurAlston said..
The official release is tomorrow - the tour is well-timed.

The new HA are on the website now
www.armstrongfoils.com/products/front-foils/ha-foil-range//

sky rama has done a decent review. some interesting discussion all round on facebook / insta".

Good job on the questions Piros

Bennett on the new 680 HA.

www.instagram.com/reel/C0pLtDavBqO/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

Here we go again. Sounds like most people on this chat would be happier on another brand . I broke up with AS after the proning qualities of the MA became apparent and the term "tuned flex" being coined to describe the V1 85cm masts spagetti stiffness. I hope the hype of these HAs is justified for you that are left. You deserve better.

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CantSwim said..
Here we go again. Sounds like most people on this chat would be happier on another brand . I broke up with AS after the proning qualities of the MA became apparent and the term "tuned flex" being coined to describe the V1 85cm masts spagetti stiffness. I hope the hype of these HAs is justified for you that are left. You deserve better.

okay thanks for that Mr glass half empty lol. Sounds like you broke up a long long time ago. why even post ? Then again this is the breeze.

You that are left ?. just shows you what a weird market we have here. Biggest brand sale wise in America - but hey . those who are left in the most piss ant small market in the world deserve better.

Classic breeze

ps weirdly - I do kinda get ya though.

passing on some feedback by a local rider who'd out do cant swim types any day of the week.

..is pretty much spot on, i have been riding armstrong from the very beginning and have jumped ship a couple of times looking for that magic ingredient.
Once the new performance mast was released I was back on the Armstrong train and was super excited about the MA range for surf and pump, I can pump and link with them but found myself riding the bigger sizes to do so, winging them is not an issue and I absolutely love them for wave riding.
The new HA I what I have been waiting for, efficiency in a smaller package, I am blown away by how good they are.
I have only surf foiled them a couple of times because the waves are slim pickings at the moment but have been downwind padding them a fair bit and they consistently blow me away, today I went on the 1080 in around 12knots and did a 13km run with ease.
I have tried Go Foil, Axis, F-one and recently Code and have been impressed with all of them, I nearly even bought a code set up ??
Glad I hung in there because the new wings are another level, the 1080 is better in every way.
I am beyond stoked!!