Toodles Posted March 28, 2018 Report Share Posted March 28, 2018 What are the weight ranges for the Burton boards, specifically the Factory Prime, the Ultra Prime and the Alp series. I'm guessing the Factory Prime was for a heavier rider, while the Ultra Prime was for lighter riders.. The Alp was for all mountain carving? Looking for a board for my daughter to get started on. She tried a Factory Prime 164 but was getting kicked around alot. She's 14 yrs, approx. 120-125 lbs. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolf Posted March 28, 2018 Report Share Posted March 28, 2018 I remember an old Burton catalog saying the Alp was what their racers would use when they just wanted to take it easy and free carve. That's probably a stretch for marketing purposes, but the Alps were the softest and widest, the Factory Primes were usually the narrowest and stiffest with the Ultra Primes somewhere in the middle. The Ultra Prime may actually have replaced the Alp. Others here may know better. Years ago, a Bomber member named "derf" had posted old Burton catalogs on a website, but I can't find that site anymore. Here's a single data point for you. This is the sticker on a 1996 Alp 156 showing a weight range from 110-170 lbs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigwavedave Posted March 28, 2018 Report Share Posted March 28, 2018 The 164 FP would have been a mens SL board. They made shorter FP's (146, 151, 156) which were SL boards for lighter riders. UP and Alp were softer for their length and width compared to the FP. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
queequeg Posted March 28, 2018 Report Share Posted March 28, 2018 They were all pretty soft. That bit about racers riding alps when they wanted to relax does seem like marketing BS. I got one on sale once and it was a total noodle, I think I rode it once. At the time I weighed 165 and was not a particularly aggressive carver. It might be firm enough for someone who weighs just 120 lbs, not sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack M Posted March 28, 2018 Report Share Posted March 28, 2018 2 hours ago, queequeg said: That bit about racers riding alps when they wanted to relax does seem like marketing BS. Completely agree. Although for as much as people love to bash Burton, they really did give Alpine a sincere try, for longer than any other mainstream brand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
queequeg Posted March 28, 2018 Report Share Posted March 28, 2018 (edited) 29 minutes ago, Jack Michaud said: Completely agree. Although for as much as people love to bash Burton, they really did give Alpine a sincere try, for longer than any other mainstream brand. This is true, my first carving deck was a pj6—and I did lust after the FP’s when they came out. Didn’t see the light until I got into a Ride Kildy, and was like “whoah” this is rad. Edited March 28, 2018 by queequeg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toodles Posted March 28, 2018 Author Report Share Posted March 28, 2018 3 hours ago, Wolf said: I remember an old Burton catalog saying the Alp was what their racers would use when they just wanted to take it easy and free carve. That's probably a stretch for marketing purposes, but the Alps were the softest and widest, the Factory Primes were usually the narrowest and stiffest with the Ultra Primes somewhere in the middle. The Ultra Prime may actually have replaced the Alp. Others here may know better. Years ago, a Bomber member named "derf" had posted old Burton catalogs on a website, but I can't find that site anymore. Here's a single data point for you. This is the sticker on a 1996 Alp 156 showing a weight range from 110-170 lbs. Just curious, what does the top sheet look like on that board? Have my daughter on an Alp 156 right now that we borrowed (after a failed attempt at the Factory Prime 164) Wondering if its the same board... Blue top with some kind of wolf pic at the nose.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolf Posted March 28, 2018 Report Share Posted March 28, 2018 1 hour ago, Toodles said: Just curious, what does the top sheet look like on that board? It's green pinstripes. I think the board you have is one year newer but most likely the same specifications. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonny Posted March 30, 2018 Report Share Posted March 30, 2018 You have a 1997 Alp: http://www.burtonvault.com/main.php?year=1997&model=Alp It was an excellent all-mountain board for its day, not awful on hard snow but much better in slop and really nimble in trees. I still take my 163 out once in a while if the snow is deep and ungroomed or if I'm showing the roped to a new hardbooter. At your daughter's weight the 5 would be better but the 156 will work too. There's no special reason to distrust the board but with a 20 year old lay-up delamination is always a concern. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toodles Posted March 30, 2018 Author Report Share Posted March 30, 2018 Yes, that's the board. Its in pretty rough shape. Has multiple cracks across the nose of it and it has delaminated in one of the rear corners that someone has attempted to glue back together at some point. Its working for now but looking for some ideas on boards her size to work with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toodles Posted March 30, 2018 Author Report Share Posted March 30, 2018 What would be the difference between the ALP, the AMP and the COIL? Never actually seen a Burton Coil board before.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beckmann AG Posted March 31, 2018 Report Share Posted March 31, 2018 On 3/28/2018 at 10:55 AM, Toodles said: Looking for a board for my daughter to get started on. She tried a Factory Prime 164 but was getting kicked around alot. She's 14 yrs, approx. 120-125 lbs. Do you mean getting started snowboarding, or getting started snowboarding on hardboots? I suspect the latter, but it would be nice to confirm. The AMP was softer and wider than the Alp, and also had pretty good upturn at the tail. Either way, at her weight, I'd lean toward something soft. If you were closer, I'd loan you something appropriate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toodles Posted March 31, 2018 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2018 Sorry, she is getting started in hardboot riding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beckmann AG Posted March 31, 2018 Report Share Posted March 31, 2018 ^That being the case, and without any knowledge of how she's fairing with the Alp, from Burton I'd lean toward the Amp or E deck, depending on foot size and preferred stance angles. Both should be reasonably docile and tolerant of erroneous input. As a reference point, I weight around 180, probably well over 200 with boots and bindings, and I've made extensive use of a FP 158-60 as a platform for daily instruction over the years. Nimble and snappy, but there are better boards on which to start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkJeangerard Posted March 31, 2018 Report Share Posted March 31, 2018 The FP was my favorite board for quite a while. I came up through safari, M, PJ, probably more i can't remember. UP was the end of Burton for me. But that's not my point... I loved the FPs at a point in my life in which I averaged 110 Days a year on the snow, carving nearly all of them. I've noodled at least 8 of the things. They really only go 150 to 200 days before a man with healthy legs can push on 'em and fold 'em. I sold every one of mine to females. I couldn't in good conscience ask a man for money knowing that the board was past it's (wait for it...) prime. I sold the last 3 or 4 to the same woman. She would pull me over periodically, "How many days on that one?" So, in your case, it's win/win. Put your bindings on the Prime. Steep. Narrow. Stand in the middle and lean til it won't hold no more and, voila! Perfect gift for your daughter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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