Standup Zone Forum
Stand Up Paddle => Gear Talk => SUP Gear Reviews / Newly Acquired / On Order => Topic started by: Off-Shore on October 25, 2016, 07:33:49 AM
-
So my 2017 SB Ace arrived today, to great excitement! When I got it unpacked, I was asked by my rather exasperated wife, why oh why, after buying "all those boards" had I now bought a kayak? "I thought you only liked stand up paddling?!"
Forget the ghost board...there was no hiding this one or saying it was a friends. It's not so bad. She paddles too as do my kids so it's a family board? Yeah...right..
Now looking at its massive sides and deep well, I'm thinking:-
1. How many strips of Railsaver Pro do I need down each side and where exactly do I position them? Do I need it at all? This is going to be expensive. I hadn't anticipated this..
2. Where best to position the Velocitek Maki? On the deck or on the front console area?
Appreciate the help as always...
-
I've got an Ace. Here's my take on it:
1. Tape the paddle not the board. 3M door edge protector (like thin narrow helicopter tape) is excellent.
2. Makai goes on top of the front of the board near where the accessories plug is inlaid in the deck and NOT in the footwell.
Welcome to the birdbath experience ;)
-
I'd agree not to use RSPro on the board, but maybe use their paddle edge protection:
https://www.rspro.org/collections/paddle-accessories/products/blade-edge-saver-rspro
-
I've got an Ace. Here's my take on it:
1. Tape the paddle not the board. 3M door edge protector (like thin narrow helicopter tape) is excellent.
2. Makai goes on top of the front of the board near where the accessories plug is inlaid in the deck and NOT in the footwell.
Welcome to the birdbath experience ;)
I use the 3M door edge protector Area 10 is talking about. In fact, I got the idea from him. Is very good stuff. I run two layers around the paddle blade and then another couple of layers about 12 inches up the paddle shaft. I’ll never use rail tape again.
-
off-shore, Congrats on your new canoe ;)
Take a look at this product: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004JFFED0/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&th=1
I've been using it for a while now. I use it to cover most of the rail area on both sides as my put it and out is off a very nasty deep water rocky area and I keep banging my board against the rocks mostly trying get back on land.
This tape take a lot of abuse and still holds very well. easy to apply and obviously a lot more economical than the RSPro.
No idea how it compares to the RSPro as I never put my hands on one, nor did I have any reason to since this one has been working for me.
Depending on the curvature of the board, you might want to take to units of the 3 inch rather than say a 1 unit of 6 inch wide as it might be easier to conform to the shape of the board.
Very easy to re-apply and correct position just by using a soap water applied on the board before applying the tape.
-
Wow. that looks like you need to climb on like a surfski to get rolling. I understand the value of footwells, lots of speed advantage. How does that drain? Holes or a ducted scupper?
-
Regarding the location of the Makai Area10 is spot on; on top by the FCS plug. Or even better, make yourself a mount that uses the FCS plug & tilts the screen towards you.
Re tail tape, I didn't rail tape mine at first but that soon changed. I found that I was rubbing the shaft off the side of the board so taping my padddle blade would'nt help.
I just used some 60mm wide 3M stuff that the local shop uses. I've used this on all of my boards and it's cheap and works a treat!!
I also taped the top of the rails (looking down into the cockpit)as they can pick up knocks when loading & unloading or falling etc.
-
Nice board choice too. Several of the crew have then and love them so far!!
Very, very capable 1 board solution.
-
Regarding the location of the Makai Area10 is spot on; on top by the FCS plug. Or even better, make yourself a mount that uses the FCS plug & tilts the screen towards you.
Re tail tape, I didn't rail tape mine at first but that soon changed. I found that I was rubbing the shaft off the side of the board so taping my padddle blade would'nt help.
I just used some 60mm wide 3M stuff that the local shop uses. I've used this on all of my boards and it's cheap and works a treat!!
I also taped the top of the rails (looking down into the cockpit)as they can pick up knocks when loading & unloading or falling etc.
Like Quickbeam, I run some tape up the side of the shaft of my paddles too, for the first 10" or so higher up from the blade. No more rail rubbing problem.
I also have some helicopter tape on the top rails of the dugout. One area where you get special wear with the Ace is just forward of the handle, where you rest the paddle as you jump to your feet. On a flat deck you rest your paddle on eg. an EVA mat and/or do it kinda without the shaft touching the board at all (with knuckles resting on the deck and the shaft in your hand. But with a dugout you tend to rest the shaft on the thin and unprotected upper rails and press on the shaft as you get to your feet. This wears the rails, and can in fact damage them. So it's worth thinking about exactly how you are going to get to your feet in the dugout, and protecting the board at potential damage spots. Falling is part of the Ace experience: it's a highly effective board, but the pintail does mean that you have to be on your game. In significant bumps it is fast, but exhausting mentally as well as physically. You can easily damage the upper rails falling on the board, clobbering them with your paddle as you change sides, and clambering back into the cockpit after a fall - there's a whole art to that in itself.
But I guess it depends how good your balance is, how wide your Ace is, and how choppy/windy your waters are. My Ace is 25" wide, I paddle very choppy seas, and my balance is distinctly average. So the Ace is like a balance trainer for me, and some outings are more about resolve in the face of sheer frustration than going fast or having fun. Other people can paddle it all day in any conditions. Mind you, some can't paddle it even in the mildest of chop, so I guess I'm not doing too badly :)
-
…
So the Ace is like a balance trainer for me, and some outings are more about resolve in the face of sheer frustration than going fast or having fun. Other people can paddle it all day in any conditions. Mind you, some can't paddle it even in the mildest of chop, so I guess I'm not doing too badly :)
cool!
Do you have a t-shirt with "The beatings will continue until morale improves” to go with that?
(https://img0.etsystatic.com/000/0/6378568/il_570xN.292858312.jpg)
-
It sure doesnt look that different from the original SB New from so many years ago. I tried Argosi's 23" 12-6, and my only thought wasthat i was standing in some sort of foot bath... The water was up to my ankles.. Though Having you feet below the waterline sure helped balancing it.
One observation from an engineering design pov.. Why the f&$k does SB continue to NOT radius the top rail corners.. Dumb. Sharp corners are not user friendly as everyone has pointed out, and are structurally weaker. My 2 sense worth.
-
It sure doesnt look that different from the original SB New from so many years ago. I tried Argosi's 23" 12-6, and my only thought wasthat i was standing in some sort of foot bath... The water was up to my ankles.. Though Having you feet below the waterline sure helped balancing it.
One observation from an engineering design pov.. Why the f&$k does SB continue to NOT radius the top rail corners.. Dumb. Sharp corners are not user friendly as everyone has pointed out, and are structurally weaker. My 2 sense worth.
That Starboard NEW was the first Ace-like design. It had a really low sunken deck that kept your feet wet. They changed it in later revisions to raise the deck so your feet were above the water line.
-
Offshore, a couple of suggestions:
- I'd place your Velocitek further forward on the deck so you can look at it more easily when paddling. Paddling an Ace in choppy water takes concentration and reducing the amount you have to tilt your head will help. Far enough to see more easily, but within reach when you bend down.
- In addition to the usual places for rail tape, I'd also put rail tape on the top rounded corners of the top deck where you normally bring your paddle blade across when changing sides. Because of the sunken deck, it's easier to accidentally hit your paddle blade on the top corner of the deck. On the rails, I used 6" wide automotive tape from JEGS and it's been working great on my Ace going on year 3. It's thicker (14mil or 0.014") than most rail tapes. http://www.jegs.com/i/JEGS-Performance-Products/555/75023/10002/-1 (http://www.jegs.com/i/JEGS-Performance-Products/555/75023/10002/-1) Practice getting the air bubbles out first. Use wet application with a dilute dishwasher solution.
-
Have Fun with it, I'm sure you'll love it.
We've been BOP training on Aces lately :D
-
Thanks everyone for their great advice. This is where the Zone comes into itself. Here I am in Hong Kong getting the best advice from 6-7 different experts from 5 maybe 6 countries.. How awesome is that?!
Today I tried to get some helicopter tape locally but it was not to be found, and so with the board in the house, and being told under no uncertain terms that it was to be out this evening, I took the plunge and bought two packs of Rail Saver Pro Clear tape (wide) from our local SUP shop, and got to work on the sides and top rails. As you can see from the pics below, I think I did not start far enough forward (the tape starts midway under the "D" of "STARBOARD") on the side rails to stop forward paddle whack from happening but I think it will be good for laying on its side (which is my main concern).
For the top rails and centre piece I took one RSPro tape and did the following
1. Cut both ends off where it stops tapering
2. Cut off a piece that fits the centre section in front of the handle for use as per Area 10's suggestion
3. The remaining piece I cut into two and wrapped each piece along one of the the top rails
4. I then took the two remaining "tongue shaped" pieces and added them at the in front of the strips I'd add to the top rails
I did this all dry (i.e. no soap and water). I've had a lot of experience in my aerospace days laying tape and prepreg over various complicated shaped aircraft parts and so have a way to do this.
The only thing I found was when I placed it on my roof rack the RSPro tape on the top rails did not extend far enough back to reach the back cross bar of the rack. SO... I will have to take the remaining RSPro tape I have from the 2nd set and add some pieces here.
Is there anywhere else I should add some tape? Argosi is suggesting on the deck where I bring the paddle across. I took the board out today for a very short paddle and being so close to the water "in the bird bath" as Area 10 calls it, means two things. One you need a shorter paddle than a normal board, and 2 you do hit the deck as you are not used to having such a high thing in front of you to bring the blade across.
I am trying to figure out whether I should make a mount for the Makai as Kirensup suggests or stick the mount that comes with the Makai on the board further up the deck as Argosi suggests..
I have not added RSPro to my paddle blade... looking to find some of the 3M tape first...
-
Have Fun with it, I'm sure you'll love it.
We've been BOP training on Aces lately :D
Chris, that looks awesome fun, and I only wish I was still in Australia with you guys (with my Ace) to join you.
Wow. that looks like you need to climb on like a surfski to get rolling. I understand the value of footwells, lots of speed advantage. How does that drain? Holes or a ducted scupper?
I hope not.. as I am absolutely shite at getting back in a surfski, in anything but flat conditions. The drain holes are impressive. Two at the back and two at the sides... but when I paddled it today what water appeared as I got in, disappeared very quickly when I started paddling and did not seem to come back in.
Nice board choice too. Several of the crew have then and love them so far!!
Very, very capable 1 board solution.
After my brief 2km paddle today, I'm not disappointed in the least. I purposely got the 27" wide one although I'm generally good down to 25" on other boards, because I do want this board to be one I keep for a long time and not have to fight like I used to on my Think XO 14. It will be my every day go to board which will be paddled in all conditions. I'll get it out downwinding too, but being so thick, it will limit the number of other boards we can get on our boat, and so the downwinders I do on this are likely to be ones where we don't use a boat
-
Just make sure you reach across and weight the opposite rail when you climb back on.
It would be a shame to not use it for as many DW as you can.
-
Just make sure you reach across and weight the opposite rail when you climb back on.
It would be a shame to not use it for as many DW as you can.
Thanks Chris. It felt amazing today. I managed to easily catch a couple of wakeboard wakes and the speed just shot up effortlessly. I'm also amazed how far FORWARD the fin box is compared to a normal board. I'm using the stock one first to get a feel of the board, then will swap it out for a VMG fin after I've done a couple of downwinders... Can't wait! :)
-
Have Fun with it, I'm sure you'll love it.
We've been BOP training on Aces lately :D
That picture says it all! Those that dare move on their board, and those that don't.
-
LOL..All its saying is we're having a great time, and an Ace is versatile.
Same day different wave.
-
So here is the finished RSPro protection on the ACE. I ended up adding another strip to each top rail so the total length of RS Pro tape was 55-3/4" or 1417mm to each side. This left me with about 47" / 1190mm of RSPro Rail tape left from the 2nd box to be used elsewhere (see bottom pic). Now only the Makai mount to figure out. Wind is forecast for the weekend... :)
-
So after paddling the Ace 3 times, I started to see black scuff marks on the deck from hitting it with my paddle blade. You do this a lot to start off with, because of not being used to the raised deck in front of the sunken standing position. So yesterday I added RSPro Edge Saver to my Quickblade V-Drive. First time I've added this to any of my paddles, but it went on very easily. I normally use this paddle for racing as it is 1" / 25mm shorter than my standard training paddle (a Quickblade Trifecta). I find my shorter V-Drive paddle more comfortable for the Ace because of the lower standing position to the water compared to the SIC Bullet 14v1 TWC and RedPaddle 14 x 26" Elite iSUP I paddle regularly (and less likely to hit the Ace deck).
I also tried out a position for the Velocitek Maki right up at the front of the board. The position was partly due to not wanting in a sort of ridiculous way to cover up the Starboard logo... I mean.. really... BUT....
I was sceptical that I would be able to see it up so far forward, but actually it is fine, and allows you to keep your eye on the horizon and only quickly glance down to check speed. Some of you will know I paddle in my prescription specs, and these are progressives (so lower half for reading and upper half for long distance), and so having it further out helps me clearly be able to see the display... Which is okay as long as it is not water covered.. ;) Ideally Starboard would make a nice recess in the nose here (with a removeable cover) to fit the Makai flush to the board deck, so it would not interfere with the boofing.. / flow of water over the nose... ;D
I could not find an adhesive tether mount, so I just used a piece of cord to tie this to the front leash point. Not pretty, but for the time being this will stop me losing the Makai by a random paddle tap.
One more thing about this Makai.. It really does help perfect paddling stroke / speed. I have found out surprisingly that I am almost 0.3 kph / 0.1mph faster paddling on my right than my left, and also when I use more core as opposed to not, so I'm very happy with this as a training aid to iron out these imperfections and improve speed.
One more thing that I am really pleased about is when I sold my 2012 SB Coast Runner 14' last year, the guy I sold it too did not want the board bag, and so it was put in storage, and I got it out over the weekend and it fits the 2017 Ace perfectly. Can be zipped up with the fin inside the bag too. So major score there. :)