Vanguard vs Nugget - Light Wind

[Larry Pinta]

Currently riding Vanguard with no plans to move away from it. Ride 7/9/12 Neo and have a 15m Juice. I rode the Juice for the first time and took the Vanguard out, seemed to ride well. Wondering if I need to keep my Nugget? Would the boards just be an overlap, or would it extend the range to have the Nugget?

The Vanguard is the 5.2 version.

[PullStrings]

Isn't the Vanguard only 17 1/2" wide & about 23 liters ? Then keep Nugget that is 21 " wide and about 29 liters for more low end. You will track upwind higher and plane in less wind with a 15 sqm.

[L0KI]

That question will be answered by you after a while.
The boards don't have much overlap as Pull Strings volume numbers indicated.
With your new Juice, you may find yourself reaching for that Vanguard whenever you possibly can, and if/when your Nugget gets dusty, you can sell it.
The good news is, the market for used Nuggets is great.

[topmick]

I had the 5'2 VG & Nugget last season, found the Nugget was more fun in light wind (73kg). I actually used the VG as my high wind board.

[Larry Pinta]

The VG is my high wind board and until recently I never had a kite bigger than a 12m. Figure I will do some Caribbean trips and some lighter wind locations. This is where the Nugget question came up, can I sell it and have a one board quiver? If so would I be losing some on the light wind side but thinking perhaps the VG could make it work.

Other question the 2017 Nugget and sub 5" is that made for a specific weight range? How do you choose between the two sizes?

[Do-it]

How did you like the juice? Nugget is my light wind favorite, and you can hold her down when the wind picks up. I haven't been on a vanguard, but it's got to be hard to beat a nugget.

[NorCalNomad]

If you are just looking for max upwind, low end, and lawn mowing performance and you only want one board, it's the nugget.

BUT

If I was to choose one board for me it'd be the vanguard since it's more fun to play around with, is only tiny fractions less effective for super lightwind (just because it has less foam), and surfs a wider variety of conditions.

Really the vanguard and the nugget are both fantastic (own/ ride multiple sizes of each on and off the kite)

Do-it.
The Juice is a fantastic kite. I've also owned multiple year models. Drifts great (super useful for foiling and ULW), not bad at unhooking, and turns great for a 15m kite.

[TommyDuotone]

For light wind, it's hard to beat the Sweet Potato(similar to nugget). Have both a 5'6" and 5'4" S.P. and a 5'6" VG. The SP is not only great for light wind, but most of the onshore slop that we usually get when we kite. However, it can be quite a handful when the waves get shoulder high with steep faces. That's usually when the VG or a more traditional thruster works best for me. More often than not, we have the former conditions. So it seems I'm on the SP most of the time lately when I kite. I've used it with a 17m Fat Lady, 12m Neo, and 8m BWS and the things a blast. To really get the most out of that board though, you need to put a tail pad on it so you can slide your rear foot next to lip before you do any kind of hard turn. my 2 c anyway to the OP.

[foilholio]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mmdc9RIhmOI

Is it clear now?

[Larry Pinta]

Thanks for the info. The VG is an amazing board and only piece of equipment that is not North. Great in Maui, Gorge and even in light winds from time to time behind the Juice. For those asking had a 2014 Juice found it slow to turn and struggled to stay upwind, but was riding a 135 twin tip. Now a 2016 Juice that is fast turning on a VG and it is a great set up. I think the Nugget could extend my range a few knots on my 12m/15m until the wind bumps up enough for the VG. Curious about the 2017 my is 2014 and a big board for travel.

The 2017 4'11" (25L) looks interesting at 185lbs would I be definitely overlapping the VG and better to go with the larger 5'2" (29L) board. The 4'11" looks like a sweet travel board, nut not great if it struggles getting me out in the those light wind days.