What's your favorite mass produced softboot carving board

[scottishsurfer]

On 3/27/2020 at 12:48 AM, JRAZZ said:

btw, anybody have an opinion on GNU/Lib-tech or on Korua?

Ive ridden a bunch of lib tech and gnu's

T-rice 152 pro

way way to small for me but a friend asked to take a couple of laps to soften it up for him, edge hold was good right up until boot out which would be what id describe as explosive lots of grip then boom your down without warning. like most of the C2-BTX libs(center rocker) its very skatey and not particularly stable while flat base it literally wonders where it wants as a result you really want to always be on atleast some sort of edge. there is almost no support out at the tips of the board im guessing this partly down to the lack of metal edge and core material aparently its only tip fill past where the edge ends.

T-rice 155 pro horse power

Very similar but a tad stiffer and light due to the higher end core

T-rice 157 pro

again a litte stiffer a little longer my general opinion on the 152-157 boards are there essentially park boards that marketed as all mountain due to being travis's signiture model

Magic bannana 158W (2017) (26.5cm waist)

This is my own personal board for playing about on when im not being to serious. The reason i put the year in is because 2016 or 2017 the magic switched from being BTX which is pure center rocker to flat under the feet to C2-BTX which is rocket between the feet to camber under foot like the T-rice pro boards. The makes the Magic essentially ride like T-rice that has taken all the steriods and mexican supplements it can find. It is significantly stiffer than the T-rice and you can tell this visually just looking at the sidewall of the board it is much much thicker especially out at the tips. As a result it is significantly more supportive both entering and exiting turns where the t-rices would flex and buckle the magic will bite and turn. Again flat base it is due to wonder because of the center rocker but its just a matter of  edgeing or rolling the board from edge to edge if you want to track straight and doing this it is actually fairly stable even at speeds in excess of 45mph. The sidecut is 7m which for most here will be far to tight but if your just looking to play around and carve at slower speeds especailly with friends who arent that great at riding its pretty fun Due to the 7m sidecut it flares out rapidly at the tip and tail and as a result this leads to the board drifting as it boots out rather than exploding out from under you like the T-rice pros. I'm under the impression that C2-btx magic bannanas became unoffically the replacement for the C2-btx lib tech darks when they switched them to the C3 camber in the for of the Darker and the Dark knife.

Hot knife 156MW(26.5cm waist)

The second board i ever bought and i still ride it today albiet for a different style of riding that i initally bought it for. Out the wrapper the board is medium flex thats a little bit softer towards the tips.... It does carve very well for what it is which to be honest is an all mountain board that can do most things fairly well but not exceptional. Edge hold is good with relatively good support towards the tips. It is pretty stable unlike the C2-BTX boards it will track straight while flat base due to the fact it is camber that has a flat section between the feet. The biggest downside is that it soften ups quick and what is now camber is flat with almost no support out at the tips it can still carve but you need to be super super careful and ride between the feet. Fortuneatly the slightly pointed tips makes it an excellent powder true twin especially now that it is completely flat as a result it is now my go to powder tree board.

GNU billy goat 158

Rides very similar to the hot knife but more directional with a bit of set back and taper, it also has a bit of a directional flex softer nose with a stiffer tail but all in all not to much different.

Orca 156

Possibly the most overated board I have ever ridden.... I have no doubt in powder it is incredible but for carving and on the groomer i rode it on well it was pretty damn terrible. The board is marketed as having C2-BTX but in reality it is center rocker with camber under the back foot and a big ass flat rocker section under the lead foot. As a result it makes entry into turns incredibly vague and at times it feels like there is no bite at all as you intiate a turn . The directional flex and the rocker front means there is almost zero support there it if you do get it to bite it will buckle and fold up on you if your agressive. This lead me to think maybe you should ride it like a japanese  pow surf carver but that didnt really work either just slightly better.  After two runs i gave it back to my friend telling him his new pride and joy was on of the worst boards ive ever ridden lol.

My feelings on Ib tech are they can be pretty fun boards to play about on but they are not at all made well or are built to last any length of time. The do not finish there bases correctly/ or at all to extent of when there stripped of wax your average base is more furry than my cat. This is so bad that my local board store offers a free finishing base grind and wax to everyone that buys a new lib tech from them... They also have serious long term durabilitly issues with the exception of the magic bannana every single lib my friends own has become a dead limp noodle of a board within a season of riding. There seems to often be an issue with the enviromentally friendly epoxy they are using lead to delamination issues within a short period of time my Magic suffered from this after only 40hours of riding with zero impacts... fortuntately some good old unenviromentally friendly epoxy fixed it

 

[Lifeform]

On 3/27/2020 at 3:43 PM, Jack M said:

F2 Eliminator anyone?  Bueller?

I have latest shape Worldcup edition wood and titanial, wood for normal and titanial for icy days, I had normal Eliminator 2011 semi hammerhead, some say that it was more suitable for carving then pure hammerhead shape, but I disagree, same about 12.8 sidecut radius, that is too big, board will ride how you want it to ride, for me it is not BX board but carving one, especially wood version is really agile, springy, energetic, and massive edge grip, I also like hammerhead shape and vario camber more than classic shape/camber boards,I have also ride this year 2018 Niedecker Platinum, that is allmountain/carving deck, but Eli is miles better for carving, I dont like SCR 8 m that Niedecker has on his decks, it just doesnt feel ok for me, Platinum is more agile, great for powder, I couldnt believe how agile it is, good deck, and good edge hold, but not for my taste, Perlatechbase on Eli is wicked fast, fastest sintered base Ive ridden and much faster then sintered base on Platinum, for people who dont like big SCR normal Eli has true/carving 9m SCR and different offset, all in all  great decks for shure 

 

[Emdee406]

Finally got some turns in on my Nidecker Donuts, an old but unridden  board that I bought on this site. 
I loved the 2021 Nidecker Smoke, then discovered it was the same as the older Donuts, with cosmetic differences and a less dodgy name (and almost $400 cheaper!)
It’s an excellent soft boot carver, super fast base, grippy...and damn nice looking! 
Photo needs a little explanation to give you some idea of the grip this board gives you. I’m on a bank and am actually being photographed by someone standing on a 30 degree slope, looking downwards towards me. The slope behind me is level ground, so my hips are actually BELOW the edge, and the board is gripping like to a blanket  

 

Edited March 2, 2021 by Emdee406
Omission

[Deuxdiesel]

I have been switching between my Nidecker Concept 161 (bought last year) and my Nitro Pantera Wide 163 (new this year).  The Concept requires big angles (40+) for my boots, where the Nitro allows me more mellow angles (33/30) and is much more versatile.  I am going to put Donek risers on the Concept and see how that works.  No matter what, they both pale in comparison to my Coiler BXFR, the board that has my hard boots gathering dust.  

[JRAZZ]

I looked at the Smoke and almost got it. I love Nidecker's sidecut! The concept was also a very tempting one though I liked the Nidecker Area as well...  So many boards so little time

 

Ended up with a Korua Cafe Racer. Still feeling it out but it holds an edge so well! I was on the lift at Loveland Valley looking down and seeing trenches and thought there was someone on hardboots! I actually waited at the top to see who it was 

[lowrider]

LL Bean Kildieflex don't judge !

[charliechocolate]

21 minutes ago, JRAZZ said:

Korua Cafe Racer

It sounds like a solid carver and I've been meaning to demo one.

My favourites are

Nidecker spectre carbon

and the Yes Optimistic

 

Both are a hoot.

[pmorita]

I have always been partial to the older Lib Techs like the Litigator and Grocer.  They blew it when they started adding funky stuff like magnatraction and hybrid profiles.  

I'm on Donek Inclines today because I can't find something new that I like.  Always wanted to try the Nitro Pantera 166 but the way the sidecut goes from wide to narrow seems backwards to me.  I haven't seen any demos for Nitro but great to hear that it's so well liked by this group.

[Poloturbo]

I had a Pantera 166 SC carbon. Probably the best mass produced I tried. 

Very surprised about Korua as saw a few in shops. Could almost fold then in half just checking the flex. Absolutely not meant for my kinda weight.

Edited March 3, 2021 by Poloturbo

[JRAZZ]

27 minutes ago, Poloturbo said:

Very surprised about Korua as saw a few in shops. Could almost fold then in half just checking the flex. Absolutely not meant for my kinda weight.

That's interesting! I felt the flex was just right for me. One of the things that turned me off of the Nidecker Smoke was that I felt it was too stiff. 

[Poloturbo]

4 hours ago, JRAZZ said:

That's interesting! I felt the flex was just right for me. One of the things that turned me off of the Nidecker Smoke was that I felt it was too stiff. 

Probably some old boards as it was more than 2 years ago. Not sure what models. 

[JRAZZ]

That makes more sense. I understand they moved factory and that the quality improved afterwards... This is all hearsay, I haven't seen anything other than 2020 and 2021 models.

[Eboot]

I am clearly missing snowboarding and its only April!

I have been doing some research on getting a new to me soft boot carver and found this thread very helpful.

Below is a table that I created, based on what was provided in the thread, of information that I have been able to find.  This is biased towards my needs for a 29+ waist and only identifies the single length that I found with the highest suitable waist.
Table is sorted on Width descending.

[Eboot]

Using the details from the table Above I identified some boards that I would consider.
Below is a list of options that I can buy now.  I don't have the ability to test ride any of these and obviously am not in a position to make an informed decision beyond the data presented.

Although all could fit my budget, I would prefer to pay less, rather than more.

Any feedback / suggestions would be welcomed.

[barryj]

3 hours ago, Eboot said:

Any feedback

No joy in riding the Arbor A Fame.....it was a crudbuster for sure but surprisingly, considering it's scr was about as responsive as a Dumptruck!

Not the width your looking for but I second the vote for the  Alloy DO....especially a 1st gen!!   I really enjoyed it's super sexy high gloss black and gold topsheet and turns so quick it would pop your fillings out!

I'd give my left lug nut for another (nos) one of those!!

[Xargo]

12 hours ago, Eboot said:

suggestions would be welcomed.

This is surprisingly good: https://elevatedsurfcraft.com/products/5-3-salmon

I rode that only for 3 runs but it was enough to convince me. Not the cleanest riding but demonstrates the possibilities of the width pretty well. I rode the board with -18/+18 duck stance:

@kverho owns the board and can probably give more info.

Also, might want to add 167 Ride Timeless. 275 width and 12m scr. The scr value is a bit misleading though since it has much tighter radius near the nose and tail. Those can be annoying with high edge angles. Still one of my favorite boards. Could be wider though.

Edited April 17, 2023 by Xargo

[philw]

12 hours ago, Eboot said:

Any feedback / suggestions would be welcomed.

I don't like the Flight Attendant, although I can't remember exactly why. It's got a short tail and a very long rockered nose is probably it. The Hometown Hero on the other hand is more general purpose and has been extremely popular with my softboot mates, all of whom carve albeit not EC etc. It also rips hardpack with hard boots.

I personally find "no tail" boards less fun to carve, overall. But that to me would be the key feature.

[TimW]

Never Summer have the "Triple camber proto FR", which has a 284 mm waist width. 

(I never tried it, only seen it once, and must say the triple camber looks ridiculous. )

Edited April 17, 2023 by TimW

[softbootsurfer]

Hometown Hero is the best Stick I have used…

[dhamann]

are you lost? this is an old thread. 'wide' boards have gotten wider in the past couple of years; also more options above a 26cm waist are available but kind of limited above 28cm. 26 seems to be an older norm of what 'wide' is. more 27+ options available now, but not necessarily boards geared towards groomer carving. 28+ are just plain rare. then on the extreme side of the spectrum are 32cm+ wakeboards that are custom. compromises will be made with any sort of budget. also looking for an in stock, buy it now 'wide' snowboard to carve comes with compromise. nobody needs to spend a grand on a carving board because we all know that all boards can carve. they sure are nice though. finding what's right for you is to start to narrow down the preferences and tick them off the list. most will find themselves easily justifying a custom made board pretty quick. that's almost too easy though and i enjoy the hunt just the same. here are some preferences I typically lean to when window shopping for boards. if budget is number one, excuses become plentiful. preferences don't start with the numbers IMO; ie waist width. they start with how you intend to use the board. also the terrain, snowpack and snow surface the rider will ride the majority of the time. did your area get 60" of snow or 600"+? ability of and style of the riders intentions (freestyle, switch riding, freeride, sidehits, directional freecarve, slow carve, fast carve, aggressive bomber style), etc.

then the other equipment: boots, bindings (stance), plates

then get into the basic numbers. rider weight, height, boot size.

now get into the numbers of the board. length, sidecut, waist

now construction of board. flex, profile, woods, titanal, fiberglass, carbon, kevlar, vegan, etc.

what budget?

I have no problem compromising on about half of my quiver (nitro, SG, OES, kessler). it's just a snowboard, ride it. some folks just need to have full custom everything though. i get it, but i also enjoy the inclusive options out there. if no compromise of ride, experience, performance can be had then skip the bullsht and pick a board builder. share riding footage with them and start the process.

OES FR and TT, medium flex, glass

deviation works, moment generator

SG soul

personal preference... highly suggest a plate with any off the shelf board due to some compromise on width (quicker edge to edge), dampness and edge hold pressures.

 

[Neil Gendzwill]

@Xargo, Ride no longer makes the Timeless. The replacement in the line is the Commissioner although I understand it is not as burly. 

[ShortcutToMoncton]

3 hours ago, dhamann said:

finding what's right for you is to start to narrow down the preferences and tick them off the list. … preferences don't start with the numbers IMO; ie waist width. they start with how you intend to use the board. also the terrain, snowpack and snow surface the rider will ride the majority of the time. did your area get 60" of snow or 600"+? ability of and style of the riders intentions (freestyle, switch riding, freeride, sidehits, directional freecarve, slow carve, fast carve, aggressive bomber style), etc.

then the other equipment: boots, bindings (stance), plates

then get into the basic numbers. rider weight, height, boot size.

now get into the numbers of the board. length, sidecut, waist

now construction of board. flex, profile, woods, titanal, fiberglass, carbon, kevlar, vegan, etc.

what budget?

First, this is great advice and a great order of operationS

[lonbordin]

3 hours ago, dhamann said:

now construction of board. flex, profile, woods, titanal, fiberglass, carbon, kevlar, vegan, etc.

Dude... Don't keep me hanging, you know I've been looking for a board made of pure vegans for years... Freakin' unobtainium...

[Eboot]

4 hours ago, dhamann said:

are you lost? this is an old thread

Thank you for your response.  I am not lost, i responded to the details in this thread with a consolidation of that information.  It was started in 2020 but the last comment before mine was less than 1 month ago.

rather than start a whole new thread on the same topic I decided to post here.

4 hours ago, dhamann said:

finding what's right for you is to start to narrow down the preferences and tick them off the list

Great advice, in my case already done, as part of this analysis, hence my reduced list:

• I am not yet convinced that SB carving is for me so looking for a cheap option to decide
• My current SB carver is too narrow, so width is absolutely critical for my choice
• I am in the NE so don't expect to see much powder, focusing on the board's carving characteristics
• My mountain does not have any wide trails so SCR is required to be short, determined in the data analysis

If I decide that SB carving is something I want to improve at, i will order a custom board, if necessary, once I understand what I need / want.
For now I want a SB carver that is fun to ride when riding with my daughter and for me that is carving.

[dhamann]

i know you're not lost. kidding. long story short, of the four you've narrowed down in that list above, the superpig could be a good start... while understanding the compromises and the intended use. short and whippy. too whippy for fast riding imo. although i'm pretty sure that board made it to the podium at some banked slalom races on the ice coast. the commissioner is better but not wide enough. get some of those virus isolator plates if concerns about drag still linger. the plates could go pretty quick around here if they don't work out for you. wink wink. why not just get the donek then? more bang for the buck while having plates can be more beneficial from board to board than just having a board that may take a bit longer to adapt to given the jump in width if you were on that NS summit 25.5w and again, intended use. significant difference in effective edge too so more speed/real estate may be required. i don't even wanna know how tight it can get at wawa on a weekend. the pig with plates would probably still be lighter, if that's part of the equation. it might be the impulse buy now option, but time is on your side. i'd sleep on it. seems there's plenty of those superpigs available and that could also say something. good news for you if that's what you're after though. i've been keeping an eye on a two year old discontinued board, only one left for a few months now. it's just a snowboard.