Newbie looking for QUALITY board

[white water]

So, I have done enuf research to to know what size board I want, but with the vast selections of manufacturers, how do you know which company produces a quality product?

[supthecreek]

Read reviews from people who use them.

Go to the gear section on the zone and peek around

or.... use the "search" feature on the top right of this page..... it is hard sometimes to find what you are looking for, so keep trying.
Best to use the "advanced search" if you want to find specific info.

Search boards you are interested in, and see what owners think of them.

I personally have recommended Fanatic SUPs in the HRS construction. I have owned 5 Allwaves or Prowaves in HRS... I am waiting on my first Allwave LTD (carbon)
I have also owned surfSUPs from Naish (3), Hobie (3), Watersedge (1), Starboard (1), Laird (1), Cabrinah (1)

My Fanatics were all put to the test in harsh conditions and all looked fantastic after hundreds of sessions. Sold them all easily when it came time to upgrade. I have had only 1 minor issue with an HRS board, a small leak in the handle cassette (didn't enter the board itself) and it was handled efficiently by the dealer and Fanatic.

Boards are getting better from many companies, there are a lot of good boards out there.... read, ask, look.... have fun and get on the water soon.

[Off-Shore]

.. and always leave enough $$ for a good quality paddle which will last many boards. I still use the same Starboard Enduro 525 carbon paddle from the first hard board I bought 3 years ago. A good one is a great investment. I  was reminded of this, as I paddled a rental with an aluminum paddle around Peanut Island off Riviera Beach in Florida this morning. The owner of the rental place, Palm Beach Paddle Boarding, did offer me his carbon paddle, but it was a little short for me. A good paddle would have made all the difference.

[Zooport]

I second what Supthecreek says about the Fanatics.  I've got one too and love it.  Contact JimK for one of those.

Where are you located?  If you are in SoCal, you should hook up with Ralph at SupPosition.  He's got lots of boards from many manufacturers you can try. 

[Sup-position]

Thanks Zoo

Take a Look at me Website..

All Good..Quality Brands

www.Sup-position.com

[PonoBill]

A quality dealer makes all the difference, but don't worry about it too much, your first board won't be your last board. What you need today won't be what you need or want in six months. There are rare exceptions to that, but super rare. Even in places where it's hard to get a great board there are people figuring out how to progress. When I started doing this I thought the smallest board I'd ever have was 10'6", and I wasn't sure I'd even get there. I was only off by about two feet.

[coldsup]

I would start second hand...first board I got was sold pretty quick for the next one!

[Fog City Rider]

"you get what you pay for" is true in SUP as it is in most things.  keep this in mind as you sift through many no-name brands' offers.  don't take their word for how great their quality is...

Best of luck. 

[white water]

Thanks guys. I live outside New Orleans. My intension is to be able to surf. I go to Pensacola about once a month. I also wanted one stable enuf to fish off of and  get the wife out a little bit. Kind of a tall order for one board but like you said, it won't be my last board. In my area it's hard to find a board that might surf half way decent . Everyone does nothing but flat water since that is what we have a lot of.
I settled for a 2013 Yolo 11 ft. Coastal Cruiser.

[SUP Sports ®]

The definition of Quality to me has always been striving for excellence and attention to detail...continuous product improvement...
The big "Q" is an important part of what I call the "QVP = STOKE" formula...Quality x Value x Performance = Stoked For Life ®

I have been standup paddling and designing SUP products since 2005...10 years...surfing and windsurfing for several decades before that...
Our #1 goal since opening the first SUP retail shop on the planet has been getting our clients into the right board the first time...and, we (our team) has successfully done that thousands of times...

You don't have money and time to waste...and, neither do we...that has been our mantra since starting our parent company, SurfingSports, 15 years ago...

We have scores of testimonials from our stoked clients below:

http://supsports.com/stoked-for-life/
http://supsports.com/stoked/stoked-life-clients/

You can get the right board the first time...especially, if you are reasonably fit...not grossly overweight, and are willing to work for it a bit until your brain and muscle memory gets hardwired...

If you are gonna talk about quality, then I would urge you to consider a custom board individualized and built just right for you...not just cookie cutter production boards, with bland milquetoast graphics, designed and built half a world away...even those with perceived durability strengths...believe me, as a dealer that has handled most of the major windsurf brands...

http://supsports.com/standup-paddle-boards/california-custom-series/

I've been involved in board sports for over 40 years...have windsurfed for over 30 years...there is no such thing as "unbreakable"...they ALL snap and delam under the right conditions...heaps of photos and online chatter that bear this out...if you use the best available materials like we do during the build process, then you will get miles and miles of smiles from your board investment...

The most durable boards on the market are made of roto-molded plastic...they have a half-life of a million years...and, garages all across this country are filled with poly-whales and other relics that date from the halcyon days of windsurfing...and, I'm not even counting the millions of cheap primary colored RTM kayaks sitting around collecting dust in those garages...;-)

You don't have to sacrifice performance for durability...

We built this custom 10’3″ Hammer for Kristy in Florida…she fishes and surfs on it...see attached pic below...

Even though it's not 100% necessary...I would encourage you, or anyone else interested in acquiring  a quality board, to hook up with a legitimate shop that has been around the block for more than a couple of years and demo a few boards...

Our "try before you buy" program is hugely successful...in fact, we have several Canadian...as well as other potential clients from other areas of the country dropping in on us this coming new year  to do just that...
We take your purchase seriously, and offer private consultation to make sure all of your questions are answered...nothing worse than paralysis by analysis...

http://supsports.com/sup-lessons-sup-rentals/

TOW...time on the water...will get you closer and get you there faster than trying to figure it out vicariously online...we have been conducting demos for 10 years...and, we've taught over 4000 people how to standup paddle correctly...so, we have a huge experience base from which to draw from...

After having personally ridden and owned more standup paddle boards than anyone that I know in my relentless pursuit of the holy grail...that's a huge part of our value proposition...I know that we are closing in on it...;-)

[eastbound]

creek--hurry them up with the allwave--for some reason i thought you already had one--i been itching for the 8'11", but will now wait---eager to hear how you like it on bigger waves, compared to you prowave.