The Strutless is our magical kite for foiling and light wind freeride/freerace.
For years, GONG has held a unique concept of an extremely lightweight kite with optional fiberglass battens: the Strutless.
The 40% volume gained by removing inflatable battens is a real asset for travel. But that's not the main argument. The real qualities are in the air. The absence of drag created by inflatable battens is truly felt. The kite glides unrestrained through the air and flies from as little as 3 knots of wind.
With this true 3-batten and strutless design, you gain in glide, low-end range, upwind performance, and relaunch capability. The battens are optional, it's up to you whether to use them or not, and they naturally slide into place along the trailing edge like on a windsurfing sail.
In case of a crash, relaunching in reverse is particularly easy on the Strutless and often the only solution in under 8 knots. The Strutless is so light that it can fly forward and backward by adjusting the tension on the rear lines. It relaunches with less wind and faster. Essential for kite foiling.
Extensive work has been done on the bridles and the ratio with two objectives: exceptional glide even in the lightest conditions, and smooth and progressive depower to improve stability at high speeds.
The Strutless is a freeride/freerace kite designed to be very user-friendly and hassle-free: inflation in 30s, minimal adjustments, and easy relaunch.
In light winds, the Strutless goes faster, points higher upwind, and turns better; always combining a top-level ratio of agility/dynamism/lightness in flight.
The Strutless features a design without inflatable struts for unmatched lightness and glide in inflatable kites. For kite foiling and in light wind conditions, it's simply indispensable.
Furthermore, this kite is equipped with an innovative and unique GONG system in the market: you can place 3 fiberglass battens into the dedicated sleeves. These battens give you more control and stability in more established winds by perfectly maintaining the profile.
But they don't generate any additional drag. It's up to you whether to use them or not, depending on the feeling you're looking for.
The Strutless is an open C shape that combines the glide and power delivery of an open kite with the maneuverability and ease of a C shape.
The new reduced diameter bridles minimize drag while maintaining impeccable mechanical characteristics. The kite flies much more smoothly.
Your Strutless also adapts to your preferences thanks to adjustments on the rear bridles.
The new short bridling system enhances feedback, resulting in a much more direct feeling. Everything is more intuitive to stay in sync with your kite.
The profile of the Strutless is perfectly optimized for light winds. Thanks to its moderate and ideally placed curve, combined with reduced leading edge diameters without sacrificing rigidity, it creates a kite that glides endlessly in very little air. You maximize the use of apparent wind. You glide quickly without feeling like you're getting dragged.
The upwind performance is simply magical, as is the maximum speed, providing a very pleasant bar feeling despite the large kite size.
The moderate ratio of the Strutless provides a very healthy feeling across all flight aspects, enabling performance even in asthmatic winds, especially in Kitefoil.
With this kite, we achieve the best balance between essential power delivery and docility in high wind conditions. Even when heavily underpowered, we have perfect maneuverability for loops and figure-eights to get started, and as soon as the kite gains speed, we feel the traction to launch.
The power of the kite is applied even at low speeds. You can feel well supported in the air. The feedback is clear and allows for easy adjustment. This linearity in the kite's power is combined with a bridling system that allows for instant depowering. Everything is under control.
This feeling is reinforced by the absence of drag from inflatable struts. It's a truly sleek and agile design.
The lightness of the Strutless makes it easy to rotate the kite on the water to position it on one ear for easy relaunching. Simply pull on one back line and it pivots. This ability is indispensable in certain conditions and when you decide to push the limits of light wind.
The kite is also perfectly capable of relaunching in reverse by pulling strongly on both back lines: essential in less than 8 knots of wind.
Technical sheet
Buying guide
With its 3 fiberglass battens, it's as straightforward as any 3-strut inflatable. So, everyone will easily access its incredible flying qualities. Moreover, it's a kite that, by its very nature, isn't meant to be ridden overpowered, making it less physically demanding.
The Strutless is the inflatable battenless kite that will excel in freerace/freeride. You can cruise at full speed with a kite that doesn't catch air and glides perfectly in light or gusty winds. Ideal for foil, it also works very well on a twin tip and won't hesitate to send some good jumps.
Display : the freeride kite for rapid progression.
Vertigo : high-performance kite for all disciplines from unhooked to surfing.
Ayto : the ultimate 5-strut kite for big air and kite loops.
Unik : lightweight mono-strut freeride kite for light wind, foiling, and waves.
Strutless : super light kite for light wind and freeride/freerace.
Strutless Revo : ultra-light and maneuverable kite for foiling and surfing.
Elips : the ultimate kite for waves.
The Strutless is the queen of low wind conditions. Very slippery and powerful, we love it at low speeds.
Choose your kite following our recommendations below. Wind ranges always depend on your weight, skill level, and the board you're using!
Keep in mind that the longer your bar, the easier it will be to turn your kite. Also, remember that the smaller the kite, the easier it will turn. So, the smaller the kite, the more you need a smaller bar to balance behaviors.
Conversely, the larger your kite and the more you use it in light wind, the slower it will be. A longer bar will have a greater leverage effect to compensate for this natural loss of reactivity.
Therefore, consider these parameters to choose the size of your bar and adapt the steering to the feeling you like and the conditions encountered.
If you want smooth and progressive steering, then you should “undersize” the bar. If you want more reactive but less forgiving steering, you should choose a longer bar.
For example, if I want smoother steering with my 9m2, then I will go for a 46cm bar.
If I want hyper-reactive steering, then I would go for the 52cm bar.
Oversizing the bar will have little interest and paradoxically will result in a feeling of heaviness in steering in the case of the 62cm. This one will be perfect, even essential in light wind. But in stronger winds, it will be slower to untwist and manipulate.
Between the 46 and the 52, there is no sensation of heaviness. These are two very close bars.
Note also that the 52 is perfectly usable on all our kites. No kite will not work or perform poorly for this reason. The 46, 57 and 62 are just optimizations for perfectionists.
It should also be noted that two bars generally age only half as fast as a single bar for the whole quiver ?
The key size is 52cm; it is the most versatile bar that you should choose if you want to have only one bar for a quiver 7-9-12 or 8-11 or even 8-10-13. If you want to add a second bar to your quiver, here are our recommendations with GONG kites:
The recommendations below are based on the behavior of GONG kites. Since our bars are compatible with a large number of kites, you can adjust your choice according to the type of kite used.
Your Feel-X bar comes standard with 80cm front lines, 19m of lines, and 3m extensions already mounted. The original setup is the most versatile and will be your best choice for 90% of your sessions.
One of the main advantages of the Feel-X bar is its great tolerance provided by its shape. By playing with its lengths, or even modifying them with our extensions (sold separately), you further enhance its versatility!
Note that 22m and 19m are not extreme line lengths and remain a fine adjustment to your piloting sensation.
Equipments
All our kites are obviously compatible with our FEEL-X bar but also with 95% of the bars on the market. If in doubt, get yourself a complete set (x4) of pigtails: PIGTAILS.
Don't forget to bring a pump ;-)
10 years of spare parts.
GONG makes durable kites: that's the basis of our specifications. Never disappoint.
GONG ensures the longevity of its durable kites: offering you all the components of our products for 10 years is a challenge that we gladly take on. Because we are convinced that a good kite today is still a good kite in 5 years if it is well maintained. And this maintenance is good for the planet because it will allow many young people to equip themselves second-hand at very affordable prices.
To ensure a long life for your kite, it will need maintenance.
Delivery
We indicate a preparation and shipping time of 3 working days. In reality, the majority of orders are shipped within 24/48 hours.
The delivery time, i.e. delivery time of the package to your home, then depends on the delivery location and the carrier.
We work with reliable and efficient carriers. 99% of shipments go perfectly and quickly. In the case of the remaining 1%, rest assured that we will do what is necessary with the carrier.
Unlike other sites, shipping costs are not hidden behind the price of our products. You know exactly what shipping costs you, and you are not disadvantaged if you choose to collect your order at our GONG Space Center.
Shipping costs are calculated based on the weight and volume of each package, and your delivery address.
Delivery tracking is managed directly by the carriers to whom we have entrusted your packages. They will contact you by email or SMS to allow you to choose delivery methods and follow the route of your package.
We work with the best transport societies to deliver to you throughout Europe and the world within very short deadlines. We chose them for their quality of service and their compliance with deadlines.
For mainland France, 80% of your orders arrive at their destination in less than 48 hours of processing.
For Europe, delivery times vary from 3 to 6 working days, depending on the country of destination.
For the rest of the world, delivery times depend on transit time and customs clearance time. This delay depends on customs and can last from a few days to a few weeks depending on the destination and seasonality.
Please note, transport time is added to preparation/shipping time. Two companies collaborate on your order (GONG and the carrier). Each one masters its activity and is committed to optimizing its deadlines so that you are delivered as quickly as possible and at a reasonable price.
Preserving the environment is an absolute priority. This is why we do everything possible to reduce our ecological footprint.
The most important thing is to sell quality, durable products that will be repairable and will please you for a long time.
For our shipments, we use:
Scotch craft paper.
Final packaging in high-end cardboard.
For rigid boards: Flexi-Hex, very high resistance ecological packaging.
This means:
Reusable and recyclable packaging.
An almost total reduction in single-use plastic.
Maximum protection and impact resistance for rigid boards thanks to the innovative Flexi-Hex honeycomb design (35mm thick).
Upon delivery, check the condition of your package in the presence of the carrier. A complete explanation email on the procedure to follow will be sent to you when your order is shipped.
Despite our requirements and all the care we take in the packaging and protection of your product, transport hazards may occur, and your product may suffer more or less significant transport damage.
Note that the products are protected in their carton. If you have any doubts, simply refuse delivery and contact us.
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It is often thought that a kite without inflatable struts is complicated. In reality, it's quite the opposite because it will naturally hold its position in the air. So, you'll avoid quite a few hassles. It's a kite that can be piloted very precisely. Fans of 4-line kites will love it because the rotation and drift capabilities of a Strutless kite feel very similar.
The Strutless kite behaves exactly like a traditional 3-strut inflatable kite when equipped with fiberglass battens. Same high wind performance, same depower, same speed, everything's identical. But these volume-less battens reduce the kite's drag by 30%! This results in extraordinary glide and better overall performance. Another advantage of fiberglass battens: not using them at all! It's up to you. In very light wind conditions, you can opt for the pure Strutless setup to reduce weight and optimize performance. It's all customizable: no battens, one batten, three battens - your choice. But in any case, you'll gain a 30% reduction in drag.
Without battens: No, that's not its intended use. With battens: Yes, exactly like an inflatable kite with the same shape and battens.
It's better!!! Firstly, because without battens, the kite is much lighter. So, it will flip over and lift off the water better in light wind. Secondly, because there are no raised battens trapping water and weighing down the kite in a specific area, hindering relaunch. This water retention is a common cause of inflatable kite relaunch failures. In reality, Strutless kites sometimes have a reputation for difficult relaunch because users push them into such low wind conditions that nothing relaunches. They're not magic. But they always relaunch better than inflatable kites when you have the technique.
In our comprehensive range, we offer various "light" kites. Depending on your conditions and skill level, you should lean towards one model over another. If you want to cruise, go upwind with ease, ride in minimal wind without switching to a foil kite: the Strutless is perfect. If you enjoy using a small kite in light winds, maximizing maneuverability and minimizing bulk, love playing with your kite to make it turn and drift, and enjoy maneuvers: the Strutless Revo is perfect. If you want fewer drawbacks in light winds but still want to stick with the family of 100% inflatable, battened kites: the Unik is perfect.
You should consider some factors: An under-inflated kite will be unstable and difficult to control in gusty winds. Redeployment will also be more complicated with a kite that does not maintain its shape. An over-inflated kite increases the risk of explosion during a crash and will fatigue the seams and materials of your kite more quickly. If you leave your kite inflated in the sun for a long period, we recommend slightly deflating it to reduce the risk of seam fatigue.
The Strutless is a lightweight and sleek kite. A bridling system without pulleys, like the Elips, would give it an overly reactive behavior. Conversely, using 3 pulleys, like the Vertigo, would diminish the simplicity of this kite. Therefore, we have opted for a short bridling system with a single friction ring pulley. This type of bridling system, simple and proven, offers control in high wind conditions, tolerance, and remains simple to limit wear and provide an additional sense of security.
The Strutless has been designed to work with the FeelX bar. Our bar has 4 lines of equal lengths and a low V at the front. The attachments for the lines at the bridle level are: Kite-side loops for the front lines. Kite-side knots for the rear lines.
