Reviews

TKB Review: PHANTOM 1480 “delivers the perfect high-performance user experience”

The Phantom seems like a great option for wingsurfers who are looking for a little more low-end foil-up speed and some extra stability when up and riding. We’d also choose the Phantom for prone and SUP foilsurfing, specifically for the purpose of bumping up our pump game to get back to the top of the reef. The Phantom creates a ton of drive on pumps that help you stay on foil while looking for the next wave or swell to lock into. For wingsurfers, it’s the same game and the

TKB Review: F-ONE BANDIT-2020 “A truly refined ride, the Bandit performs in all wind conditions”

This year the Bandit platform has been divided into two distinctive kite models based on sizes. What was simply the 2019 Bandit is now the Bandit 2020 and the Bandit-S models. The Bandit 2020 is now optimized to perform as a big air freestyle megaloop kite and the Bandit-S is designed to perform as surf kite. F-One had been valiantly attempting to optimize the Bandit for multiple disciplines, but having taken ‘one size fits all’ to the limit, the freestyle big air crowd now gets a dedicated launch platform in

TKB Review: 2020 F-ONE BANDIT-S “Foil and surf heaven! Very nimble and intuitive kite”

The steering response continues to be one of the crispest and instant on the market with a smaller tighter radius steering path that pivots around the center of the kite which makes the Bandit incredibly agile and easy to place wherever you need it, confidently creating power in any part of the window. The Bandit-S shines for surf because it will happily hover deep in the window and riders can use the progressive power control to dial in the perfect amount of power. Many of the surf-oriented qualities that have

TKB REVIEW: 2020 F-ONE Mitu Pro Bamboo Foil Convertible “versatility is priceless”

The Mitu Pro Bamboo Foil takes F-One's standard Mitu board in three sizes and outfits it with foilboard tracks to give users the versatility of one board that conquers both kitesurfing and foilboarding. If you look at dedicated foilboard designs today, you will see that there is a unique but generally accepted formula that works best for foilboarding. It generally includes low volume thin decks, chimed rails, and wide noses that taper to a narrow and straighter outline tail. The drawback of these designs is that your dedicated foilboard is

TKB Wing Review: GRAVITY 1800 V2 “perfect wing for wingsurfing”

The Gravity 1800 seemed like the perfect wing for wingsurfing with a nice slow foil-up speed that promoted easy waterstarts and allows you to carve as tight as a turn as you'd like in the pocket of windswell. What we really liked about the 1800 was its higher top-end speed that allowed us to keep up with the faster swells when the larger of the two Gravity wings couldn’t. The 1800 has a really nice foil-up speed with smooth lift delivery, meaning that as you approach lift-off the wing generates

TKB Review: 2020 F-ONE WTF?! BOARD “Great for freestyle”

The WTF?! remains true to its freestyle form with a noticeable rocker, heavier wood core, a rounder template and full tips that are designed to offer the best load/pop and release for maximum amplitude. The WTF?! has a potato chip skatey-ness and a stiffer load and pop flex pattern that targets tour freestyle-type riding, yet the response from our testers indicates that the WTF?! has enough range that it can be really fun for more aggressive freeride kiters. We recommend beginner and casual freeride kiters take a second look

TKB WING REVIEW: 2020 F-ONE ROCKET WING V1

The Rocket Wing 5’10” is a dedicated board shape for wingsurfing with a thicker deck, wider template and chined rails specifically designed for the sport of wingsurfing. What does that mean? It offers you sufficient volume for learning with a smaller outline so that you can use that board for performance wingsurfing through intermediate and advanced skill levels. There are no inserts so you will be learning this sport strapless and the deck is nice and flat which we think is the best surface for control inputs to the foil.

TKB REVIEW: 2020 F-ONE SLICE BAMBOO “appeals to an audience broader than just surf”

The Slice does an excellent job of balancing a quick and skatey feeling that encourages aggressive strapless freestyle with reliable carving and control that delivers fun freeride cruising and smooth lines in small and medium surf." Tkb Staff

TKB REVIEW: F-ONE POCKET 130 TS V2 | “the Ferrari of foilboards with its solid construction, perfectly tuned outline and rocker”

"The Pocket TS is the Ferrari of foilboards with its solid construction, perfectly tuned outline and rocker with an overall precision feel that gives the rider pure control over the foil and a steady supply of adrenaline from its sporty feel." Tkb Staff

TKB Review: 2020 F-One Mitu Pro Bamboo “One of the best surfboards of the test”

Every time we cross paths with the iconic Mitu Pro surfboard in our freeride test we find there are a ton of layers to peel back with this full line of sizes and various constructions. This year we tested the Mitu Pro in the bamboo construction in the choppy small windswell conditions of our freeride test. The 2020 Mitu returns with a substantial amount of bottom shape with a double concave in the nose and a subtle spine trending into a single concave channel out back through the tail. The

TKB REVIEW: F-One Swing is the gold standard of wingsurfing

"The freshman effort of the F-One team seems to have landed solidly on the nose with a focus on lightweight build and finely tuned performance that gives you a wing that works well for riders of all skill levels from beginner to professional. It's important to remind ourselves how the historical innovation curve of kiteboarding played out over the first 10 years, which means there is much left to discover here, but it is our editorial opinion that the F-One Swing is the gold standard of wingsurfing's start." Tkb Staff

KW Review: BANDIT-2020 10 & 8M | BEAUTIFUL, CONSTANT ARC FOR KITE LOOPS AND LOVELY STABILITY OVERHEAD FOR BIG BOOSTS

The Twenty-Twenty is really for those riders that want to use the Bandit for big air, hangtime and kite loops. At its top end, the ten metre Twenty-Twenty is more physical to handle than in the past, but the flipside is that it has better low end performance in 18 knots. The eight metre is totally dedicated to strong wind with stunning top end performance. On both kites when you’re moderately powered you can still throw them around, unhook and can combine airs and loops with some pretty decent wave
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