Gifting has never been easier
Perfect if you're short on time or are unable to deliver your gift yourself. Enter your message and select when to send it.
A full day testing foils on the Brisbane River behind a Nautique GS20, ranked from easiest to ride to the sharp end. Everything below comes from that session.
This is not a spec comparison. We took the season’s foils out on the water, rode them back to back, and ranked them — from the one that gets a first-timer flying to the one that needs a rider who really knows what they are doing.
Reuben and Ryan did the riding, and Tom from Liquid Force came down to put the new Horizon and Stratus through their paces.
How to read this
Two questions sort the whole range, and they are not the same question.
1. How easy is it to get up and stay up? That is mostly the board and the size of the front wing. Bigger wing, more lift, more forgiving.
2. Do you want the first wave, or do you want to link waves? A smaller, more aggressive wing carves harder on the first wave. A wing built for glide and pumping is what gets you to the second, third and fourth wave back.
Plenty of foils are good at one and only fair at the other. Knowing which one you are chasing narrows this page to about two options.
Liquid Force Launch — the beginner foil
The easiest foil to get up on, hands down. There is nothing else out there that rides as easy, as stable and as smooth as the Launch.
The reason is the board, and it is worth understanding because it is the thing that makes or breaks a first attempt.
The Launch board is neutrally buoyant. That means you can sink the board as you are getting up, rather than fighting it. You are not dragging it through the water or getting shot out of it.
It is easy to roll over and get the board flat, so you come out of the water nice and slowly.
It is not only a learner’s toy either. Ryan rode it second wave back with the rope slack the entire time, with the mast all the way back. You can genuinely ride the wave on it.
If you have a boat and you want to get people up on a foil — the way you keep a kneeboard in the boat for first-timers — this is the one. See the Launch complete.
Armstrong S1 — beginner into intermediate
The S1 is the setup that bridges the gap between a complete beginner and an intermediate rider, and it does it through the wings.
It is modular, with four front wing sizes — 1250, 1550, 1850 and 2450 cm². You upgrade the wing as you progress instead of replacing the whole setup. That is the single strongest argument for it.
Which wing
- 1850 and 2450 — the stable end. The 1850 felt super stable with plenty of lift and is great on the first wave, and it still pumps to the second wave if you can pump. Suits lower-end intermediate riders and heavier riders.
- 1250 and 1550 — noticeably more efficient through the water and more aggressive in the turns. This is the intermediate end of the range.
You can learn on any of them. The 1850 is the obvious starting point, but you could learn on the 1550, and honestly on the 1250 too — on a slightly bigger board, with the mast fairly far back on the tracks.
Ronix Balance — loose and surfy
The Balance surprised us. It is efficient through the water, fast, and pretty loose on the tail, with a slightly tighter turning radius than the others here.
We rode the 1300. The honest version: for a heavier rider it did not quite have the lift we wanted, and it was a little twitchy side to side. The 1600 would be the better call at that size.
If you like a flowy, surfy feel, this is the one to look at — higher-end intermediate riders and above.
Not currently listed on the site. The Ronix complete foil setups are not on the website at the moment. If the Balance is what you are after, give us a call rather than assuming it is gone.
Liquid Force Carbon Horizon 1200 — flowy front wave
Same wing size as last season, but a completely new setup: full carbon fuselage, carbon mast, and a carbon-reinforced board.
The important change is the shape. The Horizon has gone from a low aspect wing to a mid aspect wing. That makes it faster through the water and more efficient than the one it replaces.
On the water it has a super loose tail. We rode it with the Glide tail — a smaller tail — on a fairly short fuse, and it was really good on the first wave: you can carve it and snap your turns.
Be clear about what it is not. It is a flowy, surf-style, front-wave foil. It is not a pumping wing. If linking waves is the goal, look at the Armstrong HA below.
On sizing. The 1200 was too small for a heavier rider — Reuben’s words were that riding it was like breaking in a horse. The bigger 1550 would give more lift and would be the better pick for linking waves.
See the Carbon Horizon complete.
Armstrong HA — the wing for linking waves
If the goal is to link waves, this is the setup. We rode the 980 and the 880.
- 980 — for an intermediate rider who wants to link waves but does not have everything on point yet, and for heavier riders.
- 880 — a smaller wing, so more manoeuvrable and better on the first wave, but it still pumps really well. Third or fourth wave back, no worries. More of an advanced rider’s wing.
Do not go much below the 880 behind a boat. The next size down, the 780, would still be good on the first wave and you would get better manoeuvrability — but you lose the lift, the glide and the pumping efficiency, which is the whole reason you bought a linking wing. That is from riders who have run the 780 behind the boat.
Liquid Force Stratus 725 — the sharp end
The Stratus is the most demanding foil in this test, and we are not going to pretend otherwise.
The 725 high aspect is a really aggressive wing with a really high stall speed. Come off the wave without maintaining your speed and glide and it will drop out from under you. Reuben did not attempt it. Ryan rode it on the first wave and it was very good there.
Tom from Liquid Force spent the end of the day shredding on it, and said flatly that the 725 Stratus is his wing setup for behind the boat. That is the level it is aimed at.
There is a 950 in the same range, and for most riders it would be the better place to start.
Two setup notes from the day
Mast position
If you are learning, run the mast towards the back of the tracks. It came up on the Launch and again on the smaller S1 wings — moving the mast back is what makes a smaller or faster wing manageable while you are getting the hang of it.
Ballast
We ran the boat at about 50% ballast for most of the day, and some of the riding was done with no ballast at all.
Common questions
What is the easiest wakefoil to learn on?
The Liquid Force Launch, hands down. Nothing else rides as easy, as stable or as smooth. The reason is the board - it is neutrally buoyant, so you can sink it as you get up rather than fighting drag or getting shot out of the water, and it is easy to roll flat so you come up slowly.
What size front wing should a beginner get?
Bigger is more forgiving, because a bigger wing makes more lift. On the Armstrong S1 the 1850 is the obvious starting point, but you can learn on the 1550 and even the 1250 if you are on a slightly bigger board with the mast set fairly far back on the tracks.
What is the difference between a first-wave foil and a wing for linking waves?
A smaller, more aggressive wing carves harder and snaps turns on the first wave. A wing built for glide and pumping is what carries you back to the second, third and fourth wave. The Liquid Force Carbon Horizon is a flowy front-wave foil and not a pumping wing; the Armstrong HA is the one for linking.
How small a wing can I run behind a boat?
Around 880 square centimetres is the practical floor. A 780 would still work on the first wave and be more manoeuvrable, but you would lose lift, glide and pumping efficiency, which defeats the point if you want to link waves.
What is a high aspect wing, and do I want one?
A higher aspect wing is faster and more efficient through the water, and less forgiving with it. The new Carbon Horizon has moved from low aspect to mid aspect, which made it faster. The Stratus 725 is a genuinely high aspect wing with a high stall speed, and it is for advanced riders only.
Where should the mast sit on the tracks?
Towards the back if you are learning. That is what makes a foil easier to get up on and easier to control, and it is what lets you ride a smaller or faster wing before you are really ready for it.
How much ballast do I need for foiling?
Much less than for wakesurfing. We ran about 50% ballast for most of the test day, and some of the riding was done with no ballast at all.
Are wakefoils expensive to get into?
There is a foil for most budgets. There are setups at a good price with genuinely good performance, setups at a higher price with higher performance, and plenty in between. If the sticker price is what is stopping you, come and talk to us before you rule it out.
Where to go from here
There is a foil for just about anybody. If you have been thinking foiling looks too hard or too expensive, it is worth a conversation before you write it off.
Browse by where you are at — beginner foils, intermediate or advanced — or go straight to the complete kits if you want the whole setup in one go.
If you are still working out how the parts fit together, the wakefoil breakdown covers masts, fuselages, wings and aspect ratio. Once yours arrives, the setup guide and the getting up guide are the next two to read — that is exactly what we tell people at the end of the video.
Or see the full foil range. Come see us at Moorooka in Brisbane, give the shop a call, or hit us up on socials.
Waterskiers World — Australia's dedicated towed water sports retailer, family-run for over 20 years from our Brisbane store and online.