patrolla Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 hi i'm new to the forum and live in Australia. i am a ski patroller on hardboots and am in need of a new board. i currently ride a Hot Blast 158 (a 1999 model) and i love it. but it's geeting a little tired now and i need to replace it. i also have an F2 Speedster SL 163 (2006 model i think) and i just don't like it. it's too stiff for what i need. i realise that most boards these days are going to be stiffer than 10 years ago. i want something that can ride anything - ice, groomed, slush, crud, moguls etc so i need something that's not too stiff. i'm 6'2" and 180lb. i was looking at the 2010 Volkl RT 162. it's all the right diemsnions for what i want except i don't know about the flex. alpine/carving boards don't exist over here so i can't test them. anyone know whether the Volkl RT is stiffer/less stiff than the Speedster SL? and how it rides in crud and bumps? any other suggestions would be great. cheers joel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunSurfer Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 Options would include - New: Look at the Coiler snowboards site - http://www.coiler.com/home.html Bruce Varsava's VSR or All Mountain carving boards might the kind of thing you want. You could really torment yourself by also looking at the Prior http://www.priorsnowboards.com/ & Donek snowboard http://www.donek.com/ websites as well. It's all so tempting! Recent advances in carving board design include decambered nose & tail, metal damping layers, & multiple sidecut radii. Read some of the board reviews to get a better idea of what I'm referring to. You could also look at the growing amount of stuff about decoupling plates. Some posters believe that these make a significant difference in crud/bumps/chopped up snow but it would be fair to say that there's just not enough opinion out there to be sure, and the technology is still maturing. A boardercross board might be easier to get hold of in Australia, and would probably handle everything you would throw at it. e-bay Australia occasionally has boards come up. SunSurfer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobdea Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 if I were to patrol in hard boots I'd be on either a coiler AM or one of the newer BX boards in a custom width. for BX board, Sean of Donek can help you and for the AM that would be Bruce at coiler. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NateW Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 Donek makes good AM boards too, I have a couple. One is custom and very stiff (per my request), the other is a regular model and the stiffness is... medium, for lack of a better word. I'm happy with both, but looking forward to the new-school designs that are coming out soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueB Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 Yeah, definitelly stear away from SL board for patrolling. A narrow BX or quazi-BX is the ticket. Rounded tail, friendlier flex, more (or more gradfual) nose, slightly more length... On cheap, look for the F2 ElDiablo/SpedCross 165/166, very versatile. The new titanal version is called Vantage, but more expensive. Next step up (pricewise) - Nidecker Proto 167. My very favorite bump board. Super light, agile, turns on a dime, good edge hold (no GS turns, though), floats very well. Donek, Coiler or Prior can make you pretty much anything you want. Finally, the real WC BX boards (still look for the narrow version), like Kessler, Oxxess, etc. Kessler BX 168n is the most versatile board I ever tried. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patrolla Posted June 2, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 i have only ridden one board (F2 Speedster SL) that was made in the last 10 years. i'm getting the feeling that boards have gotten a lot stiffer since then??? i'm after the SL shape dimensions (around 160, 19-19.5 waist and up to 25.5 nose/25 tail, around 9.0 radius) but with "friendlier" flex, i guess is the best way to describe it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kieran Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 a 9m radius on a narrow, soft-flexing board is going to be a bit twitchy in hardboots, no? probably an illegal amount of fun in a mogul field if your knees can handle it. as was previously said, nearly all the custom manufacturers will tailor the board flex to what you ask/need. pick a shape, throw some numbers and $$$ at one of them. then post pics. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patrolla Posted June 2, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 yeah, i guess that's where my issue lies: the flex. everything else is comparable over the net such as dimensions but unless i can flex a board in person, it's all relative to the individual. even with a custom made board, it's taking a risk. i guess i'm just gonna have to take a risk... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kieran Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 with a softer flex, you wouldn't need the tight radius to make small (carved) turns. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corey Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 Another option: tell Donek or Coiler what you intend to do with the board and your weight/style/aggressiveness and let them figure out the details. Their custom boards aren't much of an upcharge over a stock board from any other company. The new metal boards turn a lot tighter than their sidecut numbers would imply. My wild guess: a Coiler VSR XT 160-something will make you very happy with a little extra nose and tail length. I have a 167, it turns like a slalom board if I push it but it can draw out the turns surprisingly well when I want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowrider Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 Find a buddy order Two Boards share on shipping (Thinking Green)! order new board with plate inserts ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Tokar Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 I think boards have tended to become softer vs 10 years ago, at least based on the boards that i rode then and what i've demo'd the last few years. I think the theory is to make the middle softer to allow easier turning and better grip on ice while maintain a decent amount of stiffness in the nose/tail so the board doesn't chatter at speed or wash out under pressure. My personal trend has gone from skinny stiff boards to wider softer ones for better versatility and more fun. I love my Coiler AM. Enjoy the hunt. MT Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donek Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 I've got shipping to Australia down to $65. That's only $25 more than shipping to a destination in the US. I have a stack of demos and prototypes I'm selling, so it may be possible to get you into one of them. Or I can custom shape a board for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobdea Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 yeah, i guess that's where my issue lies: the flex. everything else is comparable over the net such as dimensions but unless i can flex a board in person, it's all relative to the individual. even with a custom made board, it's taking a risk. i guess i'm just gonna have to take a risk... IDK, with donek or coiler there's very little risk as long as you are very honest about your riding with them. if your yardstick is boards from a decade ago with most of the new shapes just be prepared to have your mind blown. the new stuff is way different and easier/better riding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvrocks Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 I've been patrolling on a Donek Axis (Axxess) 177 for about 4 seasons now. Its a stock board and I find it to be very versitile on our little 1000' vert hill. Carves well but will skid a turn easily when needed, floats in pow, good in crud, goes switch without burying the tail. Its a little tricky in tight trees and moguls (randomly sized, icy bumps formed mostly by out of control boy scouts) but some of that is lack of skill on my part. I don't hesitate taking it anywhere. I have a GS and SL board as well but 90% of my time is on the Axis. I'll replace it with a custom metal Axxess in the next year or two. ________ Zoloft settlement news Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacopodotti Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 F2 can not be compared with a Coiler , Prior , Donek or Kessler and SG , but an F2 Speedster GTS or a Sl Equipe could be a cheaper choice with still good performance and much easyer to get. On summer you could find good offers on ebay.de or .at Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NateW Posted June 3, 2010 Report Share Posted June 3, 2010 yeah, i guess that's where my issue lies: the flex. everything else is comparable over the net such as dimensions but unless i can flex a board in person, it's all relative to the individual. even with a custom made board, it's taking a risk. i guess i'm just gonna have to take a risk... Or buy a used board from the classified section... I bought a Donek via the classifieds and used it as a baseline for my custom (just a tad stiffer). Good deals on used boards come up frequently. If you don't want to keep it you can probably resell it for only slightly less than you paid. I look at the classifieds section here like a rental catalog. Except that I haven't yet sold any of my 'rentals.' :o Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leeho730 Posted June 4, 2010 Report Share Posted June 4, 2010 Hi patrolla, Where do you snowboard? I live in Western Australia and I've recently ordered donek fc metal 163 which seems to have the dimention you are looking for (20cm waist width, versatility; sidecut radius is slightly wider, though). The only problem is, I'm 145lbs so it might be too soft for you. I'll be in NZ between 25th to 31th July or give me a buzz and I'll see if I can travel to the eastern states so that you can demo the board. You can also try sidewinder if you're interested ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fat Old Bastard Posted June 4, 2010 Report Share Posted June 4, 2010 but I do have a never ridden 2001 (?) Hot Blast Stiff 172 if you're ever looking for another Blast. Bought it back from Tokyo in 2002 and haven't been riding since. If you're interested e-mail me on: guru_mick at yahoo.com Board is on South Coast, NSW. Good luck in finding your new board ! Mick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dantheman0177 Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 Hey Joel, I'm planning to be up at Hotham in 3 weeks for a boys weekend. Probably not a lot of riding, unless it really dumps early, but you never know. I'd be happy to bring up a couple of my Priors (169 4WD, 167 WCR Metal, 165 WCR) for you to take a run or two on and check them out. Otherwise I'd definately recommend talking to Sean at Donek. He's a great guy and will really help you find what you need. And if he can do shipping that cheap, with the AUD so srong against the USD, now is a great time to be buying from the US. Will be great to see a patroller on HB's - in fact it will be great to see ANYONE else on HB's in Oz!!! Drop me an email through the board and we'll try to catch up. Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patrolla Posted June 17, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 17, 2010 decided to go a Donek. should be good! dan, i'm up this weekend but not next. then basically every 2nd weekend in the season with a 10 day stint at the end of July. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dantheman0177 Posted June 18, 2010 Report Share Posted June 18, 2010 Good call on the Donek. Sorry I'll miss you next weekend. We're up again on the 14th-16th. Then I'll try and do another 3 day stint at some stage. Send me mail and we can try to catch up for some turns and/or beers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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