A few gramm more on the ribs allows the Transwave not only itself but also its pilot. The power sail from the direct supplier effortlessly pulls even heavy surfers into planing. The combination of low profile and clearly defined pressure point position makes it as easy as possible for less experienced drivers to find the right angle to place the sail. The luff trim is quickly found with the help of the proven trim marking "FRED", we found the boom measurement to be clearly too long. In any case, the GUNSAILS’s large wind range is pleasing, retrimming is an exception and the pressure point is firmly concreted between the hands in the middle trim. This allows you to enjoy the uncomplicated characteristics of the sail immediately: gusts are comfortly dimmed, the new model has little to do with the direct and quite chunky Transwave of a few years ago. The batten rotation is soft and completely problem-free, but in direct comparison with the competitors you can clearly see that the GUNSAILS will not be one of the handling wonders of the group in 2018 either. You have to be a little more courageous here than with the lighter competitors, both when laying down in the bottom turn and when rotating and shifting in shallow water.

SURF RECOMMENDATION: A loyal companion for all those who are primarily looking for a planing, controllable and inexpensive strong wind sail for flat water, bump & jump and rare wave trips. For pure wave surfers and tricksters, the Transwave will be a bit too massive and "freeridy".

+: Gliding power, windrage, price
o: Agility when riding waves
-: nothing

DESIGN: The Transwave has not been changed for 2018 and remains true to itself, because the five-batten profile has gained a reputation as a real powerhouse among all testers. This year again we could be pleased about the classic features of a Power Wave sail: A deep leech on the bottom, deep but very harmonious profile in the battens and still clear loose leech distinguish the Transwave also this year. To avoid too stiff power transmission and to give the profile some air to breathe, a long Dacron track was sewn in the luff. The further equipment is known and answers at least quickly the question whether a sail should be rather well equipped or at most light. A sail from GUNSAILS should be well equipped and it shows this in many places with a lot of love for detail. Like all GUNSAILS wave sails, the Transwave does without monofilm, large-area use of X-Ply is standard.

ON THE WATER: Here you finally have something in your hands again! One or two testers may have thought so when they grabbed the Transwave after a nervous and lively four-batten sail. Because here you can also simply hang yourself into the harness lines and let yourself get planing. After departure, however, the relaxed time is over. Even without excessive technical input, the Transwave readily generates speed and gets everything out of the board in terms of final speed. But this straightforwardness is not for everyone. Particularly light riders who are looking for an agile sail for radical wave riding quickly reach the limits of what is possible with the Transwave. The turns get longer all at once and twice as fast. There should be some counterweight to ride the waves. The Transwave is a reliable partner for occasional wavers that also require a five square metre sail to be suitable for shallow water. The Peak is the better all-rounder for those who only ride the sail in the waves and are busy with frontside wave riding.

CONCLUSION: The Transwave splits the spirits. If you measure the quality of windsurfing days by the number of successful aerials alone, you don't have to think about the Transwave. Heavy riders who are looking for a sail with maximum wind range, rarely travel in side shore wind and are looking for an alternative to a small crossover sail will find the perfect partner in the Transwave!

OVERWHELMING ACCELERATION

DESIGN: The 5.3 Transwave is held by 5 battens and is reliably constructed, with a wide-meshed x-ply in the main window, numerous double seams and square-ply in the upper area. The 5.3 runs on a 400 cm mast. The manufacturer explains SDM and RDM compatibility. Note the well-known FRED, which indicates the best trim setting, 2 offset clew eyes and a Vario top.

ON THE WATER: The Transwave is a rather smooth cloth compared to what one would have expected, it has a very deep profile. It is undoubtedly one of the sails, if not the sail with the deepest profile in the test. Although the profile is strongly forward, it also has solid traction on the back hand, yet the profile remains quite balanced. The early planing is exemplary, the subsequent acceleration is overwhelming. This is one of the big advantages of this sail, ideal to rush at full throttle on the next ramp and to maximize its jump height. It is very profile stable, the Transwave offers very good control, although one has to admit that its performance makes it a bit more strenuous, especially in the upper range of use, where you have to deal with an omnipresent power. In handling you can already feel the longer boom, even if you can get around it a bit thanks to the two eyelets. The profile distribution ensures correct neutrality when the sail is open (OFF), but even if it has improved in this area in recent years, you can never completely get rid of its weight, its deep profile and a certain inertia.

CONCLUSION: GUNSAILS offers again an excellent wave/fast bump & jump sail, stable but above all super powerful. It is aimed at drivers who like to be powered up and who have a little more weight to move.

+: Performance, Speed, Range, Stability, Bump&Jump Jumps
-: Bulky, Neutrality

DESIGN: In this group the Transwave is the sail with the most pronounced profile behind the mast, it even pulls up slightly, with a good loose leech and a trim mark for the downhaul tension. Made entirely of x-ply with a Dacron mast panel.

ON THE WATER: The XXL power allows the heaviest riders to get into planing efficiently, whether in the slightest breeze, irregular wind or disturbing drafts. In our European conditions, this is perfect for those who would rather have more than less power in their hands. For a sail with this deep profile, it pulls forward with a relatively discreet pull on the back hand. This allows you to race with a completely closed sail in onshore conditions, also thanks to a good twisting top and good profile stability. With maximum pressure it is very easy to move back and forth in whatever water conditions, especially when going upwind. The price is a higher power consumption compared to the average of this powerful group, which will disturb heavier drivers less. If you ride down slow, weak waves or only currents, the Transwave brings the necessary push with you to have fun, to plane and to bring speed into the curve in these sessions as well. The range of use is good due to the profile stability, this prevents the pressure point from moving backwards and the pull forward allows a strong acceleration in the bottom turn, whereby one can push the board rail really well into the water to increase the carving effect. Wave riding with a bite.

CONCLUSION: The Transwave guarantees performance especially for heavy riders, but retains sufficient handling characteristics to have fun in good wave conditions, whether in light side shore wind or side on or on-shore wind.

+: Range of use (especially low wind), XXL power/handling ratio, price, heavyweights, stability, mobility
-: Pulls more than the average