Recently switched to a boom and interested in trying to use harness lines for the first time.
Any recommendations on what line length works best for free ride and any particular brands that are best?

I've tried windsurf harness line, Ride Engine non-stretch adjustable harness line, Ozone stretchy adjustable line, and just recently the Mystic Velcro attach stretchy non-adjustable line. Coming from windsurfing I initially preferred the non-stretch lines, but now I'm used to them I Prefer stretchy lines. I prefer the Ozone over the Mystic as it drops out of your hook better when trying to unhook. Downside of the Ozone line is it's position sometimes wanders on my wing handles

I use the Ensis harness line that has a plastic tubing over the rope. They are ok but are a bit brutal on the face when you are pumping the wing hard to get on foil. I have also used the Ozone lines and liked them too. Just a bit harder to hook into than the sheathed Ensis lines.

Hard windsurf lines are cheaper. They are sold as a pair, for the same price wingers pay for one. But they do hit you in the head during tacks and are generally annoying.

The bungee inside a cord lines, are least annoying in my opinion.

Try the Artness harness lines! They are really nice, no visual noise in front of you, no flapping in the face and no unintentional hook-ins with pumping which it found the most annoying. They are retractable, but at deployment there is no stretch in the line. See a lot of the pro's use them as well

The rigid windsurf line is nice when first learning because it sticks out towards you and makes it easier to hook in. Unfortunately it can also smack you in the face when pumping up onto foil. I prefer the bungee and if you really like the harness line getting the Artness Pro is really nice. The downside is just that it adds to setup time on every wing if you move it around a bunch.

a3dsport.fr/en?srsltid=AfmBOoq0Y1Yz8u2KmjaJfk2Edn69MiiZMlqkwsBBeNcicDen4ycFTdNK

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Stretchy said..
I've tried windsurf harness line, Ride Engine non-stretch adjustable harness line, Ozone stretchy adjustable line, and just recently the Mystic Velcro attach stretchy non-adjustable line. Coming from windsurfing I initially preferred the non-stretch lines, but now I'm used to them I Prefer stretchy lines. I prefer the Ozone over the Mystic as it drops out of your hook better when trying to unhook. Downside of the Ozone line is it's position sometimes wanders on my wing handles

The wandering really annoyed me too. I solved it with the most hack solution possible. Duct taped that sucker down.

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MrPieMan said..
Recently switched to a boom and interested in trying to use harness lines for the first time.
Any recommendations on what line length works best for free ride and any particular brands that are best?

I made my own with some 4 mm cord and plastic tube and they work great . ??Rich

Imo the best harness lines out there. Elastic, so light weight and no slapping in the face. Perfect for boom. I dont use anything else anymore, and i tried allot.

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BWalnut said..
The rigid windsurf line is nice when first learning because it sticks out towards you and makes it easier to hook in. Unfortunately it can also smack you in the face when pumping up onto foil. I prefer the bungee and if you really like the harness line getting the Artness Pro is really nice. The downside is just that it adds to setup time on every wing if you move it around a bunch.

a3dsport.fr/en?srsltid=AfmBOoq0Y1Yz8u2KmjaJfk2Edn69MiiZMlqkwsBBeNcicDen4ycFTdNK

Hooking in with that tight line looks horrible. I can imagine myself missing that line everytime. Or hook both the line and the boom or something like that

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larsdegroot said..

BWalnut said..
The rigid windsurf line is nice when first learning because it sticks out towards you and makes it easier to hook in. Unfortunately it can also smack you in the face when pumping up onto foil. I prefer the bungee and if you really like the harness line getting the Artness Pro is really nice. The downside is just that it adds to setup time on every wing if you move it around a bunch.

a3dsport.fr/en?srsltid=AfmBOoq0Y1Yz8u2KmjaJfk2Edn69MiiZMlqkwsBBeNcicDen4ycFTdNK

Hooking in with that tight line looks horrible. I can imagine myself missing that line everytime. Or hook both the line and the boom or something like that

It's actually no big deal once you get used to it. I haven't ever hooked a boom or hard handle and have been using some variation of a tight line for about a year. Your body adjusts to it, similar to everything else in foiling, repetition for perfection!

North wing specific ones are good for a boom, velcro tab onto the boom so it doesn't wreck the eva foam grip. Adjustable for length.

I've been using Dakine 26 windsurfing lines for a while. At 5' 9", they seem about the right length for me. I was on 28's but they were a tad long. As DWF says, the windsurfing lines are a lot cheaper than wing specific lines and do they job well. Regarding getting smacked in the head while pumping, I just loop my thumb around the line then grab the rear handle. Problem solved. I also never get hit in the head while tacking. I did a couple of times when I first started using lines (even put my head through once which isn't good ), but you soon get used it. For mine, the retractable lines are an overly complicated solution to a problem that doesn't really exist.

Been using Saverne lines 32"-34" quick fix
Very nice and fit in NSI harness hook very well.Only soft lines I've tried are F1 which were too short for my liking have not tried/seen ozone

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MrFish said..
North wing specific ones are good for a boom, velcro tab onto the boom so it doesn't wreck the eva foam grip. Adjustable for length.

Also my favorite so far. Really like that you don't have to undo a handle to put them on. Super light and don't mesh up your Eva foam.

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larsdegroot said..
Imo the best harness lines out there. Elastic, so light weight and no slapping in the face. Perfect for boom. I dont use anything else anymore, and i tried allot.

What length do you use? I mail ordered the 25" on recommendation by the shop, but in hindsight I think the 27" might be a better fit. I have line mounted on a 2023 Nova 6m

I used to use the Severne quick fix lines. Easy to fit to the handles on wings.
But know using 6mm Double Braid Polyester (yachty rope). It's easy to adjust and hangs down when foiling so that it's easy to hook in. And when you pump you can hold it with your thumb to stop from slapping you in the face. Also very cheap.

Just make some out of the size you like dyneema rope, 3-4mm Bungy and plastic hook from your local marine shop. You'll put one on each wing for the cost of one harness line and this one is easy to fit and adjust. Easy to make, easy to use.No flapping about

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Stretchy said..

larsdegroot said..
Imo the best harness lines out there. Elastic, so light weight and no slapping in the face. Perfect for boom. I dont use anything else anymore, and i tried allot.

What length do you use? I mail ordered the 25" on recommendation by the shop, but in hindsight I think the 27" might be a better fit. I have line mounted on a 2023 Nova 6m

28" . 25" is too short imo. I use the nova pro wing with boom. I have the lines pretty close together, like i do with windsurfing.

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wavefoiler said..
Just make some out of the size you like dyneema rope, 3-4mm Bungy and plastic hook from your local marine shop. You'll put one on each wing for the cost of one harness line and this one is easy to fit and adjust. Easy to make, easy to use.No flapping about

I love simple DIY solutions like this. Well done.

DIY job, this one gold as it's adjustable!

+1 Severne quick fix lines
If you want to get in and out of harness fast nothing beats rigid line. A mono line could be good too. That's what I use on Parawing and has the same easy in and out fast and even simpler to setup and adjust.

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MrFish said..
North wing specific ones are good for a boom, velcro tab onto the boom so it doesn't wreck the eva foam grip. Adjustable for length.

The North harness lines are my favorite and I've tried a ton. The Velcro attachment is the way to go.

Simple use 8mm rope from Hardware store. You can buy it cheap as long as u want. Ever wing can get it's own line. I use the old windsurfing knot. I simple hold the line back with the thumb during pumping or in Manoeuvre.

+1 for the North fixed harness loop. It's the least annoying I've tried so far. When riding it just hangs perpendicular to the bar and doesn't swing about. You just hook in and out at will. No chasing the loop with your hook trying to hook in.

The loop is easy to fit with velcro. The velcro around the boom has silicone ridges on the inside. If you want the loop out of the way you just twist it around and it stays where you put it. It's easy enough to move the attachment along the boom or sideways while riding along.

I've seen good riders using the Unifiber single loop. That looks neat and cheap, but you have to dismantle your handle to attach it.

www.unifiber.net/windsurf-gear/accessories/set-harness-lines-single-loop-22-inch-5825d0bc362e6615c44eb415

I tried bits of rope knotted onto the handle. The rope chews into the handle and you have to stop if you want to move it.

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wavefoiler said..
Just make some out of the size you like dyneema rope, 3-4mm Bungy and plastic hook from your local marine shop. You'll put one on each wing for the cost of one harness line and this one is easy to fit and adjust. Easy to make, easy to use.No flapping about

I just embedded the bungee inside of the harness line. No flapping. Stays out of the way and the setup is clean with no extraneous lines messing about. Maybe I have PTSD from sailing I-14s but I'm always thinking about how can I keep things simple.

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wavefoiler said..
Just make some out of the size you like dyneema rope, 3-4mm Bungy and plastic hook from your local marine shop. You'll put one on each wing for the cost of one harness line and this one is easy to fit and adjust. Easy to make, easy to use.No flapping about

That's cool. I'm thinking about copying you but...I use F-one wings with the hybrid (non-rigid) handles. I currently use the plastic sheeted non-elastic variety of harness line. To hook in, I pull down on the wing handles to flip the line under my harness hook. I'm thinking that would not work with this setup.

To hook in do you grab the harness line with a free back hand to engage it under the harness hook? If so, I'm not sure that technique would work with non-rigid handles.

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foilthegreats said..
+1 Severne quick fix lines
If you want to get in and out of harness fast nothing beats rigid line. A mono line could be good too. That's what I use on Parawing and has the same easy in and out fast and even simpler to setup and adjust.

Spot on. I wanted to like the Ozone bungee line but getting in and out quickly was not happening. It's so easy to get in and out of a rigid line with a flick of the wrist or guiding the line with your fingertips. I use 28" or 30" lines from Ride Engine or Severne. There's no way I want to have to pull the handles all the way to my waist to hook into the Artness style line, even worse trying to get out of it in a hurry.

I tried simple rope, and then added some garden hose, but finally settled on the Mystic Harnessline Pro Vario Set (28 - 34") because the hard tubing makes hooking-in/out much more reliable. I use the thumb technique, and also keep the rear attachment loose allowing the lines to be flattened if I am doing a lot of pumping (which I don't).

Adjustable lines are really helpful for days when you are over-powered. Lengthening your lines allows much more freedom to spill off the gusts while staying hooked-in.

I have been skeptical of hooking-in/out of bungee lines, but I might try one of the DIY versions shown above. Thanks for posting.
-S.

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Robert211 said..
Try the Artness harness lines! They are really nice, no visual noise in front of you, no flapping in the face and no unintentional hook-ins with pumping which it found the most annoying. They are retractable, but at deployment there is no stretch in the line. See a lot of the pro's use them as well

Hooking in is still possible, but unhooking seems like a disaster to me, especially with a catapult at full speed!

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choosywinger said..

wavefoiler said..
Just make some out of the size you like dyneema rope, 3-4mm Bungy and plastic hook from your local marine shop. You'll put one on each wing for the cost of one harness line and this one is easy to fit and adjust. Easy to make, easy to use.No flapping about

That's cool. I'm thinking about copying you but...I use F-one wings with the hybrid (non-rigid) handles. I currently use the plastic sheeted non-elastic variety of harness line. To hook in, I pull down on the wing handles to flip the line under my harness hook. I'm thinking that would not work with this setup.

To hook in do you grab the harness line with a free back hand to engage it under the harness hook? If so, I'm not sure that technique would work with non-rigid handles.

Hey Choosywinger,

My technique is simple. As you can see the harness line is straight when not in use due to the Bungy. I hold the wing as you normally would and pull the wing in towards my chest hook in one sweeping motion (exactly like you'll see windsurfers hook in) when I want out of the harness as it's under tension. With my back hand I just squeeze my rear grip as the Bungy line is already incorporated into my grip as it's right there and I can literally take the weight off the harness line and the harness line drops out of my chest hook and I loosen my grip and the Bungy takes the slack back up and it's all out of the way.