Slingshot One-Lock Tips and Tricks

Slingshot's One-Lock system is an interesting new concept in foil assembly with the goal to eliminate the need for tools as you're headed out to ride. Since there's nothing else like it out on the market, Tucker's got some tips and tricks to make sure you're having a smooth experience with your new foil and getting the most performance out of it.

1. Unlocking the Fuselage

By design, the two halves of the fuselage wedge together extremely snugly inside the mast collar. That's great for making sure it's nice and stiff while you're riding, but when it comes time to take it apart so it fits into your car, you might feel like it's gotten stuck. You've undone the release lever, but no matter how you tug, it just won't come apart! Now what?

Fortunately, there is a trick to get the pieces out without damaging them. Just rock the back half of the fuselage up and down. This action will cause it to wiggle free so you can pull it out. From there it's a simple matter to remove the front half. If it doesn't come out smoothly, press down on the front wing and then lift up and it should slide right out.

2. Set Your Line Tension

Having the correct tension in your locking line is critical to getting the best performance out of your One-Lock foil. However, as you use it, the line will stretch a bit and your fuselage won't seat quite as snugly. Fortunately, it's a simple matter to re-tension your line.

Inside the locking lever is a set screw. Turn it counter-clockwise. (You can do this with just a finger, so it's toolless too!) That'll cause the screw to extend and shorten the line. It's possible to go too far so that you can't lock down the lever, so you may need to play with it a bit until you find that sweet spot where it'll lock down nice and tight, but not so tight that you're struggling to lock it.

Eventually, the line will stretch to the point that you can't get a tight fit by adjusting the screw anymore. Then it's time to replace it, which is easy and takes just a couple minutes and an allen wrench. If you don't have a replacement on hand, there is a trick you can use to get back up and running while you're waiting for your replacement to arrive.

Back out the allen screw like you're replacing your line, but after you remove the old line, put a lark's head loop in the end and loop that around the allen screw. Tighten the allen screw back up and then adjust the line length as usual with the set screw in the lever. That lark's head loop will use up just enough line to get it tight enough again and buy you time to get a new line.

It does take many, many cycles of locking and releasing to stretch the line to that point, and some people may never need to replace it, but the replacement lines are inexpensive enough that there's no reason not to just keep one on hand. But if you misplaced yours, this trick will get you by.

3. Keep It Clean

The Slingshot guys did a short video showing that they could still get the One-Lock system apart even packed with sand in it. While impressive, it's still not ideal and will cause undue wear and tear on the parts, so do your best not to get any debris on the locking part of the fuselage or inside the mast collar.

Anyone who's been to a sandy beach knows that's easier said than done, so here is a tip to help with that. Sunscreen is a must for any outdoor activity, but try not to get any on your foil parts. Sand loves to stick to anything greasy and won't wipe off easily. If you can, assemble your foil at your car before you apply your sunscreen and before you step onto the sand. As long as the fuselage and mast collar are clean and dry, you should be able to blow or wipe off any sand before putting it together.

4. Find the Sweet Spot

In its quest for toolless assembly, Slingshot has also released the Rapid Track System (RTS) mast to board assembly. It works great, but it isn't adjustable on the fly. Pick up a set of Click Nuts where all four screws can be adjusted. You can figure out exactly where you like your mast to be and then switch to the Rapid Track System if you want.

The One-Lock system does a great job of eliminating screws to use and lose and does get you on the water even faster. We hope these tips will make your experience that much better.

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