purpletiesto Posted February 24, 2015 Report Share Posted February 24, 2015 Has anyone had experience on either or both of these two boards? Any words of wisdom will be appreciated from anyone who has had a ride on these! I'm about to buy one or the other and can't decide (and don't want to buy both ... ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adas Posted February 25, 2015 Report Share Posted February 25, 2015 Hey Purpletiesto, I have a SG Full Carve 170 (admittedly from the 12/13 season, so it is a couple of years old, so I'm presuming that Sigi hasn't changed his construction methods too much in the last 2 seasons) and when I first got it, I loved it (coming off an older Oxygen Proton 168). Then I discovered metal boards... And I got myself a Donek Proteus 170, metal but with some of the pop of glass boards (such as the SG FC) and there was no turning back. I actually would like to get a Coiler to add to the quiver - again, metal. My wife has a Kessler 171 - how cool is this, my wife and I can share boards! - so I have had some experience on the Kessler as well. I'm presuming you mean the Alpine (rather than their BX offering). The Kessler is awesome - you can't really compare the Kessler with the SG. Perhaps an SG Full Race Titan would be a better comparison. The Kessler is so stable - it's a real Cadillac - initiating carves is effortless, and the transition from turn to turn is smooth. The Proteus, by comparison, 'launches' you out of each turn. Also being a single sidecut (11m) v the Kessler dual-sidecut (11-15 I believe) it has slightly different characteristics. I notice on Sigi's website that the 170 FC has a 15.7m SCR which kind of surprises me. So I think you'd find the Kessler to be more versatile if your home-hill has narrow runs. So it really depends on what you like to ride - as well as where. I see you're in Australia - I'm from NZ myself, although now living in Snowmass CO. I would say for NZ/Aus conditions, you'd want to go metal. That extra dampness and edge hold is great in the uneven stuff and the ice. Don't get me wrong - the SGFC is a great board, but I personally wouldn't go back to glass (although I still have my FC sitting in the cupboard - I really should get it out on the hill this season!) The other thing to consider is price - both the SG and the Kesslers are pretty pricey. If you look into Donek or Coiler, you get darn good quality at a cheaper price, IMHO. But from memory, I think I paid something like $NZD1k (landed) for the FC, whereas I wouldn't have had much change out of $NZD1,800 for the Kessler. If you go for the SG Full Race Titan, you're getting closer to the Kessler price-point. I know that Kessler's are around the $USD1,599 here in the States, so that's heading upwards of almost $AUD2k...? Plus shipping (and any associated taxes). Hope that helps! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
That Guy... Posted February 25, 2015 Report Share Posted February 25, 2015 (edited) the Kessler dual-sidecut (11-15 I believe) Just a small clarification here... Kesslers are not simply dual sidecut boards. They have a clothoid sidecut arc that ranges from the large arc that exists in the cambered part of the board to the smaller arc at both ends. In the case of your 171 (it's actually 9-16m), the SCR of the board along the cambered part is 16m, and transitions to 9m the further towards the tip and tail you go. The significance of this is that the board has a truly variable turn radius based on how far it's tilted up on edge and where you center your weight on the board, which, when combined with the unique decambered profile they use, translates into a smoother and more predictable board. I'm a bit out of the loop what with everything changing and improving ever year, but I believe Kessler is the only board with this type of sidecut arc. If someone knows otherwise, please correct me. *edit- here you go, straight from the horse's mouth: http://www.kesslerswiss.com/en-US/technology/kesslerShapeTechnology *edit #2- Here's some info about clothoid curves, if you're into math. There's some really cool geometry going on with that KST. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euler_spiral Edited February 25, 2015 by That Guy... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adas Posted February 25, 2015 Report Share Posted February 25, 2015 Thanks 'That Guy' - you're quite right, my apologies for making it sound like it was a dual-SCR. That clothoid sidecut arc is obviously a lot more progressive than 'just' being a dual SCR. It actually is a 9-16 (rather than a 9-12) - I think what surprised me was how easy it was to make it quite 'turny' on narrower runs - for some reason I thought it would be more of a GS board, but that progressive sidecut all the way from 9m up to 16 makes it very versatile. And the transition between carves is smooth. With a capital smoo. A change from being launched out of my turns on the Proteus! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
That Guy... Posted February 25, 2015 Report Share Posted February 25, 2015 How I managed to interpret the specs on Kessler's website wrong while looking right at them is beyond me. You are correct; thank you. I edited my post accordingly. :) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigwavedave Posted February 25, 2015 Report Share Posted February 25, 2015 Kessler 168 has an 8-12m scr, more of a recreational sidecut between SL and GS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
purpletiesto Posted February 25, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 25, 2015 Don't have much time. Just quickly. Actually it is 8/15. Apparently a typo forever. Dealer told me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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