I was interested in getting the newly released Strike 4.2m but was stunned to see how much F-One australia is asking for one. I have been riding F-One for years and this year the price hike has just been outrageous and quite likely not justifiable.

When comparing how much other brands sell over here to how much they sell in Europe, it's pretty clear that the Oz pricing doesn't add up.

(EUR Prices converted to AUD)



Given that they are all pretty much made in China, and shipping to Oz would be direct from factory and traded in US$, I don't really understand why F-one would cost so much more?

Local distrib in WA said he didn't get any stock cause of the price hike that for him is hard to justify. Looks like the importer has gone greedy....
Anyway, not sure which one to go for now?

Wow. It's not like the original S-wing was was cheap either.

We are looking for riders to try the new PPC wing if interested ?

Rated as one of the top overall wings in SUP Boarder magazine 2020.

Give me a call 0408 893 831

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Wingman WA said..
We are looking for riders to try the new PPC wing if interested ?

Rated as one of the top overall wings in SUP Boarder magazine 2020.

Give me a call 0408 893 831

Super impressed with the PPC 4.8 I tried. Punched above its weight in power terms. Really stable profile and bomber built quality

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jobic said..
I was interested in getting the newly released Strike 4.2m but was stunned to see how much F-One australia is asking for one. I have been riding F-One for years and this year the price hike has just been outrageous and quite likely not justifiable.

When comparing how much other brands sell over here to how much they sell in Europe, it's pretty clear that the Oz pricing doesn't add up.

(EUR Prices converted to AUD)



Given that they are all pretty much made in China, and shipping to Oz would be direct from factory and traded in US$, I don't really understand why F-one would cost so much more?

Local distrib in WA said he didn't get any stock cause of the price hike that for him is hard to justify. Looks like the importer has gone greedy....
Anyway, not sure which one to go for now?

I was interested in getting one also until I found out the price
As much as I love my current F-ones.......Pass

Yep, I have had 3.5 and 5mtr F-One Swings for over a year.
I was very impressed with them, so light and stable when flagged.
About my only complaint was the rear handle on the 5 could have been a little bit further back, looks like they have addressed that so was considering updating for a while.
However it's a pass from me too, not even thinking of getting a Strike at that price.

Just thought I would put in a plug for the strike. Wasn't so keen on the Swing but love the Strike. Have had a number of sessions in different conditions and wrapped with the change.

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913pepper said..
Just thought I would put in a plug for the strike. Wasn't so keen on the Swing but love the Strike. Have had a number of sessions in different conditions and wrapped with the change.

I have no doubt it is a great wing. Just questioning the Australian price structure really. It seems that someone has decided that Ozzies would have to pay more than anyone else in the world to get their hands on F-One gear. I have approached our local distributor in WA from which I have bought several kites over the years and even them said that F-One Australia had gone nuts and encouraged me to go somewhere else.
I have decided to get one but will order O/S just to make a point .

Here's a review of the Strike:

This is Tucker's favourite wing and he's test most. However, there's a lot of new wings about to hit the market so impressions may change. The Strike seems to have many of the Dart's attributes (upwind abilities and lofty jumps) but also a lot of power.

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foilthegreats said..

Surprising he didn't do a walk through of the wing which he normally does with every wing. I wonder whether it's because he doesn't want to find any negatives of his now favourite wing.

I tried the strike and was mind blown at its performance.
But it has a few negatives, high price in AU, sloppy tiny handles, zero scruff pads (very fragile), no dump valve....

This isn't the only new wing with a high price tag unfortunately...
It seems many manufacturers are going for topshelf pricing this season.

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Alysum said..

Surprising he didn't do a walk through of the wing which he normally does with every wing. I wonder whether it's because he doesn't want to find any negatives of his now favourite wing.

I tried the strike and was mind blown at its performance.
But it has a few negatives, high price in AU, sloppy tiny handles, zero scruff pads (very fragile), no dump valve....

What do you mean by "no dump valve"? It has the same one way/dump valve as they've had on their kites since 2018 and it works very well.

High price in AU is due to the new guy in charge of F-One AU who has decided to not follow RRP structure and add an AU tax to all the range.

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Alysum said..

foilthegreats said..

Surprising he didn't do a walk through of the wing which he normally does with every wing. I wonder whether it's because he doesn't want to find any negatives of his now favourite wing.

I tried the strike and was mind blown at its performance.
But it has a few negatives, high price in AU, sloppy tiny handles, zero scruff pads (very fragile), no dump valve....

Agreed. Love the performance of my 5.0 Strike, well for a wing ;). I still don't understand why companies aren't spending more time on a fully ergonomic, cushy, non-arthritic handle.

Also the whole fragile bladder in a sleeve baffles me. ;).

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jobic said..

Alysum said..

Surprising he didn't do a walk through of the wing which he normally does with every wing. I wonder whether it's because he doesn't want to find any negatives of his now favourite wing.

I tried the strike and was mind blown at its performance.
But it has a few negatives, high price in AU, sloppy tiny handles, zero scruff pads (very fragile), no dump valve....

What do you mean by "no dump valve"? It has the same one way/dump valve as they've had on their kites since 2018 and it works very well.

High price in AU is due to the new guy in charge of F-One AU who has decided to not follow RRP structure and add an AU tax to all the range.

So that you can deflate the strut more quickly. On my current wings like many v1 I have to slowly squeeze out the air through the tiny tube to the main bladder. The Unit for example has one. I think it lengthens the life of the strut bladder too. Suspect I blew up mine when forcing the air out too hard.

Fone AU said their pricing is in line with Fone International pricing

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... I still don't understand why companies aren't spending more time on a fully ergonomic, cushy, non-arthritic handle.

This! Enough with ****e, basic handles already. The Duotone Unit handles feel great.

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Can555 said..

... I still don't understand why companies aren't spending more time on a fully ergonomic, cushy, non-arthritic handle.

This! Enough with ****e, basic handles already. The Duotone Unit handles feel great.

Let the cream come to the top, others will follow.

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Alysum said..

So that you can deflate the strut more quickly. On my current wings like many v1 I have to slowly squeeze out the air through the tiny tube to the main bladder. The Unit for example has one. I think it lengthens the life of the strut bladder too. Suspect I blew up mine when forcing the air out too hard.

Why would you need that when you have a one pump? I haven't received my Strike yet but this is not something I considered when purchasing. It looks like the exact same system that I have on my Bandit kites so I reckon it won't be an issue....

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Alysum said..

Fone AU said their pricing is in line with Fone International pricing

They are clearly not! F-One had a global increase of about 5% this year where as in Australia we are coping a whopping 15%.

Not sure if they are popular in your area but here the shop I was getting my gear from pulled out because of that. There was supposed to be a new distributor in WA as well but it looks like they have pulled out too.....

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jobic said..

Alysum said..

So that you can deflate the strut more quickly. On my current wings like many v1 I have to slowly squeeze out the air through the tiny tube to the main bladder. The Unit for example has one. I think it lengthens the life of the strut bladder too. Suspect I blew up mine when forcing the air out too hard.

Why would you need that when you have a one pump? I haven't received my Strike yet but this is not something I considered when purchasing. It looks like the exact same system that I have on my Bandit kites so I reckon it won't be an issue....

One pump is super convenient to pump it up but a pain to deflate. I don't know how big the tube on the Strike is but I'd like to be able to deflate the strut bladder without having to roll it up and squeeze the air out....

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Alysum said..

foilthegreats said..

Surprising he didn't do a walk through of the wing which he normally does with every wing. I wonder whether it's because he doesn't want to find any negatives of his now favourite wing.

I tried the strike and was mind blown at its performance.
But it has a few negatives, high price in AU, sloppy tiny handles, zero scruff pads (very fragile), no dump valve....

So unfortunate!!! In North America and Europe..price is par...I wonder why it's so expensive in Oz?

I do love that wing, and to it's one pump, deflate at bladder and at the strut...so instant deflate time. What is a dump valve?

I believe the Duotone Echo has a dump valve, which is a separate valve used only to dump the air from the strut (can't be used to pump up the strut). With a dump valve you don't have to touch the main valve to let the air out.

How durable/strong is the strut and bladder? I am concerned in particular with the fact that it requires 11psi pressure.

I blew up my strut bladder twice on my current non-Fone wing and it gets pumped to 8psi...

I have the 5m strike. 9psi is the recommended pressure...

Coming from the A Wing I was used to a direct power delivery / but the Strike has as much power and is much lighter.
I've been very happy with my strike!

Sucks to hear the Aus price is so high.
Poor form from the distributor.

Hi Longboard. I'm currently riding A Wing 5.5m and love the power - light winds here in San Diego. You say your 5m Strike has as much power.... curious as to which size A Wing you are comparing (4.5 or 5.5m). The only complaint I would have with the A Wing is it's a bit heavy so interested in the Strike.

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rpwduda said..
Hi Longboard. I'm currently riding A Wing 5.5m and love the power - light winds here in San Diego. You say your 5m Strike has as much power.... curious as to which size A Wing you are comparing (4.5 or 5.5m). The only complaint I would have with the A Wing is it's a bit heavy so interested in the Strike.

PM sent.

Perhaps it's the overall lighter feel of the 5m Strike that appears (to me) to be as powerful as the 5.5m A Wing, but the Strike has such a rigid frame that the power delivery is very direct which I enjoy personally.

I'll be waiting for the release of the new 6m Strike for light wind conditions...if it delivers as much as the 5m has it should be a great wing.

I started with the Strike 4.2 and now have the 5.0. Goes upwind really well(so much fun), and the balance on the jibe is great. It does tend to want to flip over easier on the water than the swing.

Anyone ridden the 3.5? I had my 3.5 Swing out yesterday in really gusty 20-30+ winds and it was not really stable, it was flexing and the power is not great for getting going (partly handle placement). It works ok for stable high winds.


Note: The dump valve on the center strut works great

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Alysum said..

jobic said..

Alysum said..

So that you can deflate the strut more quickly. On my current wings like many v1 I have to slowly squeeze out the air through the tiny tube to the main bladder. The Unit for example has one. I think it lengthens the life of the strut bladder too. Suspect I blew up mine when forcing the air out too hard.

Why would you need that when you have a one pump? I haven't received my Strike yet but this is not something I considered when purchasing. It looks like the exact same system that I have on my Bandit kites so I reckon it won't be an issue....

One pump is super convenient to pump it up but a pain to deflate. I don't know how big the tube on the Strike is but I'd like to be able to deflate the strut bladder without having to roll it up and squeeze the air out....

I tried 4.2 and 5.0 strikes over the weekend, might have been preproductions or proto's, but the ones I had had deflates on the main struts. Deflates very very fast.

Overall very happy with these wings! I tried the Ozone Wasp V1, Swing, Duotone Echo and now the Strike, the Strike is the stiffest of them all and has the widest windrange, very nice direct feel and faster than the Swing! Compared to the Swing its a little tougher on the hands / costs a little more energy to ride, but I think the tradeoff is worth it.

My level as a reference: I have I think only 10-12 wing sessions under my belt, but waveriding at sea, flying 95% of my jibes and 30% of my tacks.

If you're riding gravity wings I dont think you'd necessarily have to upgrade, if you're riding Phantoms, especially 1480 and smaller, I can definately recommend!

Heard this was the strike 6.0 specific design dedicated to lightwind winging.
Can anyone confirm?

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Pierre74 said..
Heard this was the strike 6.0 specific design dedicated to lightwind winging.
Can anyone confirm?

All I've heard from my local dealer is that the delay in the 6m,strike is due to a new light wind specific design...and I'm holding out for one!

If it's anything as capable as the 5m they can take my money...