Wondering if people can share their winging experience with both the Code 850S and the KT Nomad 830, how do they compare in terms of lift, stall speed, glide etc...? I can (and will) demo the Code but unfortunately I can't demo the KT gear. I wing in open ocean and tend to ride upwind to catch the bumps on the way back, wind range 15-25kt and I am 72kg. Thanks.

Can only give you the comparison to the Atlas 790. Code felt smoother/more slippery through the water, needed more power/pumping to get up than the Atlas, much more nervous/unpredictable in the turns. Glide felt similar, but again the KT gave the sensation of being extremely predictable and therefore I felt more under control. Stall speed much lower on the KT. Overall the KT felt easier to ride due to its extreme predictability/linear response. If you give little steering input the KT makes a wide turn. If i give more steering input, the KT rolls into a tighter turn, roll always in line w the input provided. Code also very pitch sensitive which the KT isn't all. Overall i liked the Atlas much more. Sorry that I can't compare to the Nomad.

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georgsurfer said..
Can only give you the comparison to the Atlas 790. Code felt smoother/more slippery through the water, needed more power/pumping to get up than the Atlas, much more nervous/unpredictable in the turns. Glide felt similar, but again the KT gave the sensation of being extremely predictable and therefore I felt more under control. Stall speed much lower on the KT. Overall the KT felt easier to ride due to its extreme predictability/linear response. If you give little steering input the KT makes a wide turn. If i give more steering input, the KT rolls into a tighter turn, roll always in line w the input provided. Code also very pitch sensitive which the KT isn't all. Overall i liked the Atlas much more. Sorry that I can't compare to the Nomad.

Thank you georgsurfer, that is very interesting, not at all what I expected re Code being more unpredictable in the turns. Maybe something to do with the fuse/tail combo you tried? I am kind of leaning towards KT but it's not easy to get here in Western Australia and I heard from a couple of shops I contacted that the distributor has changed the way they are supplying. Code on the other hand is everywhere here.

I can't tell you what the nomad is like (yet) but I can comment on the 850.

When I did a short test on it two years ago (medium fuse 150AR tail) I felt it had exceptional low end and was very fast in the pocket of swell but sensitive to being out of the energy zone. I'm a big fan of surf foils around 8 AR and I did find the 850 to feel spanny at the time but I think if I revisited it today I might be more forgiving of it. With the amount of parawinging I'm doing now I can see the 850s as being a really attractive foil if I ever went back to code.

I am pretty interested in Surffoil and I still wait someone comparing things like fone Sk8, code s, new flitelab flux, afs silk, maybe kt nomad, Sab razor, New armstrong MA... They are all around 8 to 9 and got this so called "Moustache" shape!? Means tips pointing upwards. Also duotone is creating something that way?!

If you demo the code and like it, go for it I'd say. I've tried code 850 and Atlas. Fuse length made a huge difference but I did like the slow and easy old man pump of the atlas. It did feel a little bit wobbly though. Code turning was sweeter. I think code looks prettier too.