Whilst the front and back wing usually remain fixed to the fuselage, there is no getting around mounting the mast to the board. The fact that four screws have to be pushed into the boxes and attached to the mounting plate is annoying for many foilers. The fact that the favourite position of the foil is not always saved exactly is also sometimes a nuisance.
General information and compatibility
The Duotone Quikmount Plate is designed to solve both problems, i.e. to speed up foil mounting and also to save the position in the box for the next session. The Duotone system is permanently glued to the mast. It is therefore not an accessory item, but you always buy the mast with Quikmount system. The Aero AL QM mast is offered here (the abbreviation AL stands for Aluminium; QM means Quikmount) in four lengths (60/75/82 and 90 centimetres), which cost between 499 and 549 euros. So if you want, you can replace your older aluminium mast and combine the Quikmount mast with your foil. In addition to the current Duotone AL fuselages, the AL QM mast is also compatible with the Fanatic Alu Fuselage Aero 3.0 from the years 2022 and 2023.
If you are looking for maximum performance and want to ride a carbon mast, the Aero Mid QM SLS MastThis is available in three lengths (75/82/90 cm) for 1359 to 1419 euros. It is also compatible with older fuselages, such as the Fanatic Carbon fuselages with lengths of 68/78 and 90 centimetres as well as all Fanatic and Duotone AL 3BS fuselages and the E/LAB series foils.
Practical test of the Duotone Quikmount Plate
With the Quikmount system from Duotone, a flat metal mounting plate is fixed to the board. This is done once and as usual using four track nuts. The corresponding mast with Quikmount Plate is then clipped into the mounting plate at the front and fixed at the back with a single wing screw. No tools are even required for this, as the wing screw can be fixed firmly enough with normal grip force. The positive aspect here is that the screw mechanism is discreetly integrated behind the mast so that no braking effect is caused when starting off - an advantage over systems such as the FoilFix (HERE there's a test). We tried out a foil with a Duotone Quikmount Plate for around ten sessions and only had positive experiences: the screw doesn't shake loose and is still tight even after long sessions and jumps. The system also feels pleasantly stiff and has no noticeable play. If you want to remove the mast after your work is done, you can do so within a few seconds. From now on, the mounting plate remains firmly screwed to the board, saving the position of the foil for the next session.
Conclusion
The system fully convinced us in the test, the Duotone Quikmount Plate looks high-quality and sophisticated. The (dis)assembly of foils is noticeably faster and, above all, without any annoying fiddling.
