Ono M800 Review
If you had asked me a year ago if I would buy an Ono Foil I would have said I will pass. I did try Daniel’s old wings and I thought they were ok, but not anything as good as say a Cloud9 or Lift etc. Josh at The Foil Shop wanted to try my Cloud9 FS850 and he spoke highly of the new M800 wing, so we swapped foils and went out for a session. I was not expecting much, just your average HA style wing that would be no better than the others. I decided to buy it from him that day. Here are my thoughts and why I added it to my quiver of foils
Build
The build quality of the system is solid. I am not a fan of Aluminum on anything in my foil, so the fuselage being made of it was a negative. I feel like it is heavy and prone to corrosion. I am sure that the weight difference of Carbon vs Aluminum is not that much, but it seems heavier. I like things as light as possible, hence why I use titanium bolts on my rigs. That being said the fuselage is definitely solid with no flex and connects to the wings securely. The three M8’s that attach to the front wing keep the wing from flexing. I originally tried it with the Ono mast and it is solid too, but immediately got the Project Cedrus adapter and knew the flex of the front wing was minimal. I know that a lot of the brands have gone to an integrated front wing-fuselage design and I think that the flex issue is minimized with that design, but that makes travel a little more complicated with that type of design. There is nothing better than being able to break the whole system down to a minimal package.
M800 Front Wing
I am impressed with the design of this wing. The wing is a high aspect style wing. It is in the general size of other 800 square centimeter wings out there. I am comparing it to the Mike’s Lab 800, Cabrinha 800, Cloud9 FS 850, Lift HA120 all of which I own right now. Yes, I really have six brands right now. It is a typical dihedral design with flat in the middle of the wing and downward curve midsection of the wing with a slight leveling to a flair at the distal tips. The chord stays consistent until the last third of the wing. I see this design with all these wings for a good reason. It works. It allows the speed of the wing to be higher and then the dihedral allows the wing to turn and right itself without feeling too twitchy. The Lift HA 120 does not do this hence why it feels faster and more unstable. The Ono M800 adds some unique curve profiles to the top and bottom of the wing to improve it. That is what sets it apart from the others.
Below is a Comparison of the Wing Profiles
Pumping
Pumping this wing is a pleasure. I like HA style wings and the very first ride on this wing I was able to pull a double. This wing just has a good feel pumping. It is stable and predictable allowing me to pump in my familiar style. The fuselage length is 60cm which is in my sweet spot for my stance and weight. It has a surprisingly good low end stall speed. It allows for recovery when you mess up you pump. It does not accelerate during the pump like the Mike’s lab, but it is easy to maintain a consistent speed during the pump cycle.
Turning
The M800 turns well. I find that I can make some tighter turns than I would normally do on this style wing and with ease. If you slow it down, then you can do those sharp tail slide turns and it feels stable throughout the turn. You can really push the wing thru the turn. Pitch is easy to control but at speed you need to pay more attention or it will nose dive a bit. Yaw is not an issue with the Project Cedrus mast. In summary the wing is stable but not to a point where the wing feels stiff. It has a playful controlled looseness to it.
Tail Design
The Tail. I think that the Ono tail is well suited to the front wing. It allows excellent pumping feel and turns well. It is what allows the front wing to maximize its design. I will try other tails with this wing in the future and add it to this article, but I do not think that any other design is going to improve things. It matches the front wing well, which is to be expected. I am amazed at how some front wings are better with a second-party tail. It shows a lack of understanding of their front wings in my humble opinion.
Why?
Why did I buy this? I have a lot of brands and wings. I definitely do not need another one. I look for something in a wing that will be different and or better than something I have right now. This Ono wing is the best pure HA style wing that I own right now. I love my Cloud9, but it is more of a hybrid wing with the increased chord in the middle. I think that design is one of the best overall wing designs out right now. I find myself reaching for that wing more that any other. The Ono M800 is the wing I will ride when I anticipate more pumping and gliding to get to the next wave. I can still turn it, but it is not as radical in that department as say a Cloud9 or Lift HA120. I would ride it over the Lift HA120 or Cabrinha 800. It has a more stable feel to it than those wings and a better low end stall speed. I think it turns better than the Mike’s lab 800, but does not match the stability of the Mike’s Lab nor the pump. The last thing is the price. The Ono M800 at around $1400 is a great deal for a complete system. I did not get the mast, so it cost me even less, plus I traded in my Unifoil mast to offset the price even more. If you have the Project Cedrus mast then this is a steal. This is a high-end HA style wing for a great price. Daniel has managed to tweak the HA design to be better than the other HA wings out there right now. There are other wings with a lot more hype, but are not any better. Unifoil my be the exception with the Progression Project coming out, but since I do not have one under my feet right now it is still theoretical, but that wing even without a mast is north of $1800.
Pros
- Excellent price.
- Well rounded HA style wing with high end performance.
- Project Cedrus adapter available.
- Breaks down completely for easy travel.
- The tail that comes with it is the one you want.
Cons
- Aluminum Fuselage
- A little on the heavy side
- Only one tail wing placement. Needs more holes in the fuselage to vary length.
- Generic Wing cover is too big for the wing.
Who’s this for?
Project Cedrus Mast owners. Get it for a deal and you will be happy.
Bargain hunters who want high end for less.
You like HA style wings and 800cm is your sweet spot.
You are just foil obsessed like me!