Hydrofoil Product Review | Armstrong HS1250

The Armstrong HS1250 is a mid-aspect foil that gives good pumping performance without sacrificing carving.

Being similar is size and shape, it's almost the little brother of the 1850. The 1250 is a great wing for cutting around on waves behind the boat on the lake, prone foil surfing, or under a kite.

We tried out the 1250 on a 60 centimeter fuse with the 232 back wing 72 centimeter mast on the Armstrong SKT311. The speed of the 1250 lends itself to loose riding, similar to what you get from the 1200 but much faster.  As you get used to the rail to rail turning, it’s easy to maintain speed when you come in for inside turns.

The 1250 does a great job on wave transfers, needing just a couple of pumps to glide across the wake. There are no problems at all with wave two to two wake foiling transfers.  It does take a little practice to stay high on the water column to maintain power during transfers. The pumping cadence is similar to the 1550 but the 1250 has a little bit more glide and typically benefits from a slightly faster pump cadence.

Well balanced while being nice and loose, the 1250 carves well and is very responsive. The feel of the carbon underneath your feet makes for an exceptional ride. You get good power transference from the carbon board down to the foil. Switching to the 50 centimeter fuselage makes the ride even more fun.  Again, make sure to stay higher in the column for more effective pumps.

We did a speed test.  Starting at 12 miles per hour, we went up to 28 miles per hour before slowing down. The foil felt stable and responsive around the 22-26 MPH mark.

Overall, the Armstrong CF1250 is a lot of fun.  It has speed and it’s nice and loose.