2024 F-One Strike CWC V4 Aluula Wing

Light Wind / Wave

Overview:

F-One's Compact Wing Concept (CWC) patent continues to prove its effectiveness for large wing surfaces in light winds. This new STRIKE CWC, the fruit of the developments made on their fourth STRIKE, offers ever more efficient planing and pumping. In flight, its perfect balance and unique forward traction ensure exceptional glide. The ALUULA struts reduce the inertia of every maneuver and enhance the feeling of lightness when riding.

Sizes: 6m / 7m / 8m / 9m

• Optimized design for perfect balance in flight and new forward traction
• ALUULA on all three struts for greater lightness, strength, and performance
• HITEX and TECHNOFORCE for increased durability
• Intuitive pumping for easy planing starts
• Equipped with F-One's new interchangeable handle system
• The quintessential light-wind weapon

Includes:

• Strike CWC Wing
• Bag
• Wrist Leash
• Repair kit including: 1 valve handle + 1 wing repair kit + 1 pump adapter

Details

All the design innovations from the fourth STRIKE have been applied to this STRIKE CWC. This wing features, once more, a super-intuitive pumping with a certain flexibility that makes it easy to start planing without having to expend a lot of energy or learn a special technique. Each pumping motion smoothly propels you forward, guaranteeing an instantaneous take-off and more efficiency than ever.

The aerodynamics of this wing have naturally been optimized for exceptional performance in light wind. In flight, the STRIKE CWC is perfectly balanced and easy to forget about. This incredible forward traction, inspired by the new STRIKE, offers a unique glide, enabling more enjoyable and prolonged sessions. The CWC makes going upwind easy, and boasts an impressive high end as well so you can absorb the gusts if the wind picks up.

Riding Styles

Specs

Features:

Materials
The leading edge of this fourth STRIKE CWC remains in HITEX 158g and 178g. This high tenacity polyester offers great resistance to elongation and therefore greater durability and performances. Both HITEX weights are perfectly distributed to account for the different tensions, high pressures, and weight distribution in this area.

The innovation of this wing lies in the strategic placement of ALUULA on its three struts. Thanks to the mechanical properties of this light and resistant material, the central strut is now thinner. This results in less drag and a noticeable reduction in weight, which also favors freefly and handling during downwinders or jibes. Finally, the ALUULA struts reduce inertia during maneuvers, transitions, and pumping.

Guaranteeing performance and durability, F-One's thicker TECHNOFORCE/D2 in 66g has been placed on the trailing edge where tensions are important and resistance essential. The rest of the wing's canopy is in TECHNOFORCE/D2 in 52g.

Design
The central strut of the CWC is now completely straight, which allows the wing's design to better control its deformation and possible twisting, while reducing drag. As a result, the infill is a bit lower and deforms less, and F-One has extended it almost all the way to the back. Their innovative Load Diffuser is reduced for weight gain, especially during freefly.

They've also added dihedral angle to improve stability and keep the wingtips out of the water when pumping and riding. The new leading and trailing edge tensions help keep the profile smooth and stable for incredible performance and control.

The wing's body features a horizontal cut to optimize the weight of the seams on these large-surface, light-wind wings. The trailing edge features a vertical cut in 66g for ideal traction control. A small radial cut is implemented on the back of the strut to spread tensions. Finally, the Load Diffuser further helps maintain the profile sleek and efficient, leading to the ultimate stability, performances, and longevity.

The accurate panel layout, precise load management and staggered seams continue to bring exceptional control of the profile. The materials are also perfectly distributed to account for the different tensions, high pressures, and weight distribution in each specific area.

Handles
The new CWC is fitted with our new interchangeable handle system. Soft, hybrid or rigid handles, you now get to customize handles at your preference.

The light wind revolution
F-One's Compact Wing Concept (CWC) patent allows adding more surface into a given wingspan without compromising lightness and performances. The two extra struts increase the wing's surface without increasing the leading edge's length and diameter. This specific geometry brings great power with ease of use and therefore a light feel with less wingspan.

The compact outline makes it easy to obtain an incredible start when planing and pumping. Highly maneuverable and easy to flip around when on the water, the CWC lets you ride effortlessly, making you feel like you're using a 5m, and with wingtips naturally staying away from the surface of the water.

With a refined design, the use of ultra-light and resistant materials, a new and efficient pumping, exceptional glide, perfect balance and a precise layout of every material, the fourth STRIKE CWC will continue to be a game-changer for your light wind days.

Tech:

COMPACT WING CONCEPT
The pending patent Compact Wing Concept is an F-ONE innovation. This new design offers a compact shape, easy to handle and offers amazing light wind riding sensations without compromises.

TRIPLE STRUT
This unique Wing geometry with its two additional struts allows adding more surface into a given wingspan.

Sail Engineering

Sail engineering is the science of controlling a design and its behavior while flying. These features have been created with one goal in mind: Mastering the kite's loads to maintain the desired shape for the longest time.

Warp Tension Line

Woven fabrics feature a longitudinal 0 degree yarn (Warp) and a transversal 90 degree yarn (Weft). Therefore, a fabric has great elongation resistance and strength capacities if you apply tension at 0 degrees or 90 degrees along the yarns. But it will deform and stretch when tension is applied at, let's say, 45 degrees.

Load Control Paneling

When engineering the load control paneling, F-ONE makes sure that fabrics panels are warp/weft oriented, meaning that the load path runs through the yarns. Fabric and seams are then in the best position to receive tensions and maintain the original kite shape.

Staggered Seams

Most of the kite's back lines tension is distributed through the trailing-edge panels and seams. As seams are significantly stiffer than the fabric they join, they tend to strain under loads and therefore deform the profile. The staggered seams break that line of tension by balancing the stiffness between seams and cloth, which helps distribute the load over a wider area and maintain the original shape even under high loads.

Fabric Weight Management

F-ONE's sails feature four different cloth weights, from 52 up to 155gr/m2. Sail engineering allows them to control the shape and drive load tensions without using heavy fabrics or bulky designs, therefore they can reduce fabric's weight and use. It results in a lighter, optimized kite.

TECHNOFORCE
TEIJIN's TECHNOFORCE is the most reliable high density polyester fabric. Its tear-stopping structure using thin and high tension yarn makes the fabric ultra-durable. It has a great proven track record of lightness and durability.

HITEX

To meet the specific needs of the development of wings and kites, and to offer a high-performance and durable product without using inaccessible materials, F-ONE has developed HITEX, a new high tenacity polyester. Available in 158g, and exclusively for F-ONE in 178g, this new material is incredibly resistant to elongation and increases the durability of wings and kites.

HITEX is an innovative, high tenacity polyester fiber with an enhanced high-quality weaving and coating that increases the fabrics' resistance. The 178g is a new weight and perfectly matches the needs of the center strut and center of its leading edge. The lighter 158g is used in the leading edge tips.

Used throughout the inflatable structure of the wings and kites and designed to handle the high pressures when inflating, HITEX offers performance and resistance. Thanks to extensive Sail Engineering work, the R&D team has placed each weight of HITEX in different areas allowing absolute control of the shape session after session.

Moving away from kite fabrics

The efforts on a kite and on a wing are completely different. Here, F-ONE is talking about the structure of their products. Even if the canopy is the surface that receives the wind, the leading edge and the struts of a kite or a wing make up the main structure, and therefore guarantee their qualities in flight.

Held by two central handles, its two sides tend to deform under wind pressure. This is why the leading edge of a 5m2 kite is between 10-15cm in diameter, while the leading edge of a wing with the same surface is about twice as big.

The larger the diameter of the leading edge, the larger the surface area of the fabric. The air pressure in a volume is applied to the cm2, under the formula: pressure (Pa) = Force (N) / Surface (m2). With the same inflation, the material of the leading edge of a wing receives a much higher pressure than that of a kite. Moreover, in normal use, a wing is more often left flapping, dragged on abrasive surfaces, soaked in salt water, etc.

The ideal fabric for a wing has increased pressure resistance, limited deformation, and outstanding durability.

The High Tenacity Polyester: HITEX.

After working with their fabric manufacturer partners for a long time, F-ONE decided to use High Tenacity Polyester, a technical material offering a high resistance to elongation and superior durability.

Because each part of a wing does not require the same resistance to deformation, they developed two weights: 178g for the center of the wing and 158g for the wingtips. The center of the wing must not deform in any way; it is the direct link between the user's hands and the wind, and its rigidity guarantees stability of the wing while riding.

It is, however, interesting to keep the wingtips less rigid. Indeed, a controlled deformation of the wingtips allows to pump more efficiently, to absorb strong wind gusts, and thus to offer an increased comfort throughout the ride.

The use of this high tenacity fibre, in weights perfectly adapted to our sport and our designs, has allowed F-ONE to reduce the diameter of the leading edge and to limit the use of additional reinforcements. This results in improved aerodynamics and reduced weight, offering better performances.

The HITEX is coated with PLASMA, an innovation exclusive to F-ONE's supplier, which guarantees increased durability of the fabric. Coupled with high tenacity polyester fibres, it makes HITEX the most durable material on the market. F-ONE's wings stay in good shape much longer and thus retain their original design and performance over time.

ALUULA
The ALUULA Gold represents a pioneering category of composite material. This dacron benefits from an ultra-lightweight yet incredibly durable composition. Its unmatched strength-to-weight ratio allows for faster speeds, higher jumps, and greater maneuverability.

When strategically used to stiffen struts like in the STRIKE CWC, the ALUULA Gold ensures that the wing is lightweight, robust and long-lasting, while also enhancing performance and responsiveness on the water.

LOAD DIFFUSER
The Load Diffuser helps maintain the profile sleek and efficient, leading to the ultimate stability, performances, and longevity. F-One's innovative Load Diffuser is reduced for weight gain, especially during freefly.

RADIAL TIPS
A small radial cut is implemented on the back of the strut to spread tensions.

STRIKE CWC VALVES
The wing features two highly efficient inflation valves: one on the central strut and one on the leading edge. These two areas of the wing face different forces, and thus require two different pressure recommendations. As a result, the central strut is thinner in diameter and gains in rigidity thanks to its independent valve that allows for a better control of its pressure.

INTERCHANGEABLE WING HANDLES SYSTEM
In 2024, all F-One's wings are fitted with their new interchangeable handle system. Whether you're looking for a light and comfortable setup with soft handles, a more direct and aggressive ride with hard handles or something in between with their innovative hybrid handles, you're covered.

Wings come with soft handles pre-installed, but swapping a handle set between wings is quick and easy thanks to the screwless setup.

Tucker reviews the 2024 F-One Strike CWC V4 Aluula Wing

Read the full review on the blog.

Review Summary:

Not all large wings are created equal. Some are very cumbersome or don't have the extra power you want for light days. Some even feel full size in terms of handling and wingspan, but pull like a smaller wing. The Strike CWC rides every bit as powerfully as its posted size, if not a bit more because of the extra grunt and ease of pumping. We're excited to get these wings in your hands once stock arrives because we think you'll love them as well