AC-X Vs AC-F: The difference.

AC-X & SPY VS AC-F

Both sails are more friendly oriented sails for slalom as they do not have cams. The AC-F in our case, is the real no compromise crossover. Freemove in 5.9 and 5.4. It could be the more freeride version of the Spy wave sail, to be used on any freeridefree or freewave boards. The longer boom of the AC-F against the Spy, delivers a bit more power to get going in lighter winds, the straighter luff curve keeps the sail feeling to be light. For cruising around the AC-F wins over the SPY, but the shorter boom and direct feeling of the Spy gets the advantage as soon as you start wave sailing or doing some maneuvers. When you get to the 6.4, 6.9 to the 7.5 size, the sail gains a full slalom set up as the AC-X, but with 6 battens and a less extreme low slalom base, instead of full racing low base and 7 battens. If you are looking for a more advanced freeride sail the AC-X can be an interesting sport slalom sail. The AC-X will pull you out from the relaxing side of windsurfing and will welcome you to challenge the surfers who will even be on full slalom race gear, so you need to sail most of the time in full racing stance by closing well the gap and pushing on the fin. The AC-F even if it’s a slalom oriented freeride, is using a more forward profile, demanding less action on your body to cruise and with a lighter feel. The biggest difference of the 2 sails, is that the AC-F being a softer sail due to less luff curve, less battens, more Dacron in the front, will allow to use a size smaller than an AC-X for the same wind range. This way on one side the AC-F will give you a light rig for planning in light wind and right wind range, while the AC-X will give you an endless acceleration, amazing racing speeds for challenging friends on the water and your Gps. You could say that the power of a 6.9 AC-F is equivalent to the 7.5 AC-X.

On the water the 2 sails have a very different feeling. The AC-Z having a deep low profile with the 2 cams below the boom, gives the nice drive that is needed in dodgy conditions of gusty light winds. The pull of the sail is towards the front center of the sail, which keeps the board easy and balanced over the water, but you need a bit more feeling to use the back-hand power to go upwind. The feeling is like a pure cam racing sail, but lighter. The AC-X has a perfect centered profile, which gives the same pressure on both arms, and it gives an easier back hand power to go upwind. To jibe, even the  AC-Z feels like not having cams, even if the 2 cams and lower sleeve are as big as the AC-One! The sleeve being this big could bring doubts about the water start, but as it’s only under the boom, to bring out the sail from the water it’s as easy as a no cam. If the cams are rotated to the wrong side, a little bit of technique is needed to turn them. If you really hate cambers in the rigging process, and you really hate even wanting to learn, then the AC-X is the solution, but the AC-Z has an easy wide sleeve at the bottom which gives straight access to the mast to enter in one shot, without having to wrinkle up the sail, but yes you need to learn to put the cams on them mast after having put some downhaul.