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Sizes Available: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12m
Sizes Tested: 7, 9m

Naish Says:

The ideal choice to stoke out dedicated wave riders, the Slash delivers unmatched drift and a wide wind range. Establishing itself as Naish’s premier wave kite, the Slash provides incredible down-the-line drift and stable flight. Made to take a beating in heavy surf, you can focus on pushing your limits without having to worry about your gear. With the Slash, you can forget about the kite and become one with the wave.

Visit for more info: www.naishkites.com/product/slash/

TKB Says:

The Slash is back as Naish’s dedicated surf kite that spans sizes 5 through 12m with a medium to high aspect 3-strut airframe that features an open LE arc, and a medium diameter leading edge that noticeably tapers into the wingtips with the struts looking slim and aerodynamic. The Naish build features a number of construction details, like Quad-Tex ripstop canopy, Shark Teeth trailing edge, bladder lock strut system and wingtip strainers for quick relaunching””all of which give the Slash an excellent fit and finish. The Slash features a simplified single inflation/deflation point which uses a high flow push button valve. With the previous system you had to let air out of the struts via small individual valves, but the latest version lets the struts deflate through the main valve so you don’t have to open/close and double-check the valves on the struts during re-inflation, simplifying the rigging/pack down process. The Slash features a single setting shorter length bridle with a sliding pulley that is short enough that it won’t wrap around the wingtip in the waves. The front bridle attachment point ends in a knot and the wingtip ends in a loop/larks head. The wingtip offers three settings for tuning between light/heavy bar pressure, with the factory setting being in the middle.

We are happy to report that this year’s model continues to deliver excellent bar feel with the Slash’s super comfortable bar pressure, making kite steering and power control exceptionally intuitive and easy on your arms. The Slash scores high for its progressive sheeting with smooth power delivery across the throw of the bar. Like many of the top wave kites on the market, the Slash gives you ample low-end pulling power while offering plenty of depower at the end of the bar’s stroke. The steering response is crisp and while historically the turning radius hasn’t been as tight as Naish’s Pivot, this year we thought the turning arc seemed to be a slight bit tighter than previous versions. While the Slash offers plenty of drift, it really comes alive when you fly it more actively in the middle of the window and helps you get to where you need to be on the wave. The relaunch on the Slash continues to be quick and easy to initiate. This is important because even the best kitesurfers end up stuffing their kites in the rinse cycle every once in a while. Overall, the Slash blends one of the most comfortable bar feels on the market today with agile and speedy performance and tops it off with an exceptional build quality that can take on the worst of kitesurfing’s beating.

Our Slash came with Naish’s Torque ATB 50 (Above the Bar power adjustment) control bar which features very clear color coding with blue on the right and red on the left. This bar comes in either the 50 or 55 version, each featuring dual adjustable lengths (50:40/45cm or 55:45-51cm) with single centerline safety depower, a low V, a spectra sheeting/throw line, a replaceable insert, no sliding stopper, and an above the bar clam cleat power adjustment with an easily adjustable length throw for riders with different arm lengths and preferences. The quick release utilizes a below the bar swivel which keeps the rigging above the bar refreshingly simple and doubles as a quick release guard. The quick release handle cocks in an upward position when released, yet it is worth noting that reassembly requires that the rider put the end of the loop back into the mechanism, raise the release the handle and then drop it back into place””its clean, functional and easy to use with two hands for reset. The Torque’s center lines end in loops and the outside lines end in knots with clear line and pigtail color coding (center lines are grey, left is red, right is blue). The ATB 50 comes stock with 24m non-extension lines; the bar’s molded foam floats are integrated into the bar ends and are flexible enough to fold down quickly and easily for a painless wrap job. Retractable bungees have an easy to grab tab and a solid clip to ensure your lines stay on the bar between sessions while the Torque’s adjustable bar ends make it easy to adjust the effective length of the bar and also allow you to tune the outside lines in the event of line stretch. Rounding out the design, the chicken finger is a rigid material that ensures against foul hooks and can be easily rotated out of position for unhooked riding for the more aggressive freestyle riders out there. The grip has a nice rubbery feel with a solid texture and an ergonomic shape that accommodates both riders with wide and narrow grip stances (smaller bar diameter in the center for narrow grip stance riders). Overall, the Torque has the unique distinction of packing a ton of useful features into a light to medium weight and well-designed package.

Visit for more info on the bar: www.naishkites.com/product/torque-atb-50-control-system/


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