Standup Zone Forum
Stand Up Paddle => Gear Talk => Topic started by: PresidentStSup on November 08, 2019, 09:45:54 AM
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Long time reader, first time poster. You guys seem to be very helpful, so reaching out for some advice on my imminent new longboard SUP.
First off, I'm about 5'11" and 170lbs. Home break is Long Beach, NY. Intermediate skills.
About 4 years ago I started progressing to shorter shapes. Changed my tune a couple of years ago when I picked up an ancient Southpoint Bonga Perkins 10'x27"x4 1/8" off of CL. Standing area is only about 21" due to stepped rails, but this hasn't caused too many headaches as far as stability goes. Really love the way this board surfs, but it has seen much better days (I picked it up for $100 - this should give you some insight into the shape its in). Time to move on to another LB shape.
I've been eyeing the 10'x27" New Deal and 9'6"x29 Sunova Style for a while, but think these are out of my price range all things considered. The shape, dims and pricing of the Focus Classic (9'x28 3/4"x3 7/8") look to be good, but two things are holding me back: (1) I'm not a sophisticated new board buyer - past decade I've spent hopping around different used boards; and (2) I can't find much information out there on the Focus board.
Looking to you guys for any insight on the Classic or any other tried and true longboard shapes at a similar price point.
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I like to say positive things about the things that work vs. negative about the things that don't. The following will feel weird for me to write, as you don't normally see negative things written here, but my experience with the 9'0" Carbon Classic is such that spelling it out might save you some money. I don't believe they're a Zone sponsor, and hope I'm not breaking rules, so here goes...
Late July 2017 was the first time I ever stood on a SUP. Lifetime surfer, but knew zero about the SUP game or market. Bought a race board and paddled/surfed that. Soon realized I was hooked and needed a more surfable board. Bought a local branded junker 10' board because it was a 2+1, and would definitely surf better than the 12'6" race board. It did, but I soon found that it wasn't very good as far as surf SUP's go... Still didn't know squat about the different brands out there, but a friend had a Focus Torpedo he liked. So I found the Carbon Classic online. "Name brand," carbon, less than glass layup price...or so I thought. Bought two, one for me and one for a friend, and saved on freight to Japan. Great customer service.
The Carbon Classic has a great shape. Pretty stable, gets in very easy, and rips. That said, when the boards arrived, the volume listed on the board was 116L and not the 121L listed on the site. It's actually around 116L, and you can feel it. Board is super light, which should have been a red flag about the layup.
Like I said, it surfs great, and a great shape, but a carbon board for $1,200?? You get what you pay for.
Problem #1: It's normal to have pinholes in epoxy, but not that go through all of the layers, including the paint, and more than a couple. The layup was so thin, pinholes around the nose and tail were leaking saltwater as soon as the board hits the sun after a surf on both boards.
Problem #2: The rails in the tail were way over-sanded on both boards to the point where the paint was all that was sealing it...and soon started leaking. Once I found it, I was able to push my fingernail right through the rail.
Problem #3: Super fragile board that soon developed cracks, leaks, and delam where you put your hands to stand up.
Problem #4: The handle, being the type where you can hook your fingers into, is two-piece plastic which is glued together. A requirement for a mold with that type of grip, and not a problem if it's done right. Lots of manufactures use this type of handle. Both boards, the handle wasn't glued correctly, and started leaking...a lot. To "fix" this, I pumped polyurethane sealant into all of the corners inside the handle.
Problem #5: Not too long after fixing the leaking handle, the area under the deck pad, and around the handle started leaking. Cracking around the handle. Again, both boards.
Problem #5: Around both leash plugs was leaking, both boards.
Every issue surrounds a thin (lack of materials), weak layup. Not trying to direct you to any given brand, but if you go to the Blue Planet website, scroll to the bottom and there's a section on board layup. It shows the reinforcement around things like the handle, leash plugs, fins, extra glass and carbon layers in the highly stressed areas, etc. Any of the quality name-brand boards out there are going to be built along these lines, and last for may years.
Cheap price, cheap build. All of the above happened in under a year of owning these boards. This isn't to "bag" on the Carbon Classic. It's a performance carbon board for way less than a carbon board costs. It's my fault for not doing more research, and knowing that that price was way too cheap for a carbon board. I own eight SUP's now, and have four new boards coming in late December. The Carbon Classic is no longer in my quiver because I like to spend my time surfing and not working on boards.
My advice would be to keep shopping.
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Thanks OkiWild. Really appreciate the detailed insight. Potential first world crisis narrowly averted. Would be great to hear some feedback on other options in the same price range (within $300 with shipping factored in). Would love a carbon board, but not married to the idea. Lucky enough to be short walk or bike ride to the beach, so carrying weight isn’t a huge issue.
Unfortunately, don’t really know how to go about getting a demo and almost all of my buddies are proners or on all-around shapes looking to pick off ankle slappers. You guys may be my best resource in making an educated decision.
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All of the name brands with a longboard in their lineup should have an excellent board. In addition to the Blue Planet stuff, I've also ridden an Infinity New Deal 10'x27", Sunova Style 9'6"x29", Starboard Longboard 10'0" in Starlite, and a few others. All excellent boards in their own right, some feel better than others, heavier or lighter, but they all surf excellent, so it really comes down to how much you want to spend.
With the money you're looking to spend, you're not going to find a high quality carbon board like the Infinity New Deal. At least not in regular sales of new boards. Not even the Blue Planet carbon boards are in that range. I surf three to five times per week, and beat boards to death. While not immune to abuse, the Blue Planet performance boards in glass layup are very tough. Carbon boards are a few pounds lighter, but not really "tougher." My favorite board is the NP10. I surf it from ankle-high (see my most recent video) to just overhead, draining and super hollow slabbing reef break. I surf it as a quad with Futures F6 Honeycomb quad fins, and the rears replaced with QD2 3.75's in place of the standard QD2 4.0's, but I don't really surf it as a longboard much. I surf it from the middle to the back, and more carves/floaters/snaps than anything. I love this board so much, I ordered another one in carbon. If you're looking for something shorter, they still have the 2019 NP9's, but at 105 liters it might be tough to paddle for some people. I also have one of those on order for December. It's not listed on the site, but you can call them. If you want more volume, the 9'x29"x138L Nose walker might be a good option. Lastly, most of their 2019 boards are on sale right now, the price on the site is well within your range (for glass layup), all of the boards come with a bag, and they offer free shipping to the nearest major US airport.
Full disclosure that I'm a Blue Planet team rider...and might be a little biased ;-) but I'm a true believer in the quality and performance of their boards, as well as the business model and customer service. Outside of smashing them into rocks, the reef, and other boards, I've yet to have a quality issue. I even destroyed a GL2 fin ($140 set) the other day by hitting a rock, and it didn't damage the board or fin box.
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Pearson Arrow make excellent longboard SUPs, The Laird model is awesome.
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Unfortunately, I think you just missed inventory clearances at Blue Planet and Infinity.
Blue Planet might have some used NP9s and NP10s in their rental fleet which could be a decent deal.
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Hi PresidentStreet, welcome to the Zone!
Always love Bonga... he was one of the early rippers on SUP!
IMO, surfing is worth the best quality gear. Period.
A good quality longboard SUP can stay with you for life.... and make every session special.
Sacrifice what you need to and get a good quality board :)
Buying something "affordable" will cost you more down the road..... in $$$$ and performance.
Buy the best and only cry once!
Some good boards are dedicated to noseriding
Others are ripping performance boards
Some are quite good at both.
What do you like most about longboarding?
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Exiled- thanks and will check in with the guys at blue planet for sure.
Creek - big fan of your videos. Great perspective on the future costs of going cheaper.
As far as why I’m into the longboard style- I think it’s mostly having the ability to pick up the wave early on a beach break and enjoy those few extra seconds. Also love the glide and being able to carve off the tail, knowing you can take a step up and pick up the speed. On “Good days” (really relative term) touch 5 to the nose and hoping a step up in performance can help me progress in using the front 1/3 of the board more. Not looking for a dedicated nose rider, but wouldn’t mind if that was a positive side effect.
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Unfortunately, I think you just missed inventory clearances at Blue Planet and Infinity.
Blue Planet might have some used NP9s and NP10s in their rental fleet which could be a decent deal.
In fact, the sale at Infinity is still going on. 20% off and free shipping in US on Infinity New Deal.
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Exiled- thanks and will check in with the guys at blue planet for sure.
Creek - big fan of your videos. Great perspective on the future costs of going cheaper.
As far as why I’m into the longboard style- I think it’s mostly having the ability to pick up the wave early on a beach break and enjoy those few extra seconds. Also love the glide and being able to carve off the tail, knowing you can take a step up and pick up the speed. On “Good days” (really relative term) touch 5 to the nose and hoping a step up in performance can help me progress in using the front 1/3 of the board more. Not looking for a dedicated nose rider, but wouldn’t mind if that was a positive side effect.
Thanks PresStSUP!
Because you were discussing the Style, I thought I would post a video of me on the 10' x 29 @ 131 liters. (I am 236 lbs)
It has 2 options at the 9'6 size
9'6 x 27.5' @ 112 liters - I think this would be perfect for you!
9'6 x 29" @ 118 liters (the XL version)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRTTyc0BT7w&t=3s
There is a container order being put together by November 25th, for early February arrival in the Mid Atlantic region.
If you want one of these, click on my email link below.
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Pearson Arrow make excellent longboard SUPs, The Laird model is awesome.
+1 on the Bob Pearson Arrow/Laird model. Was my "go to" board....until I went to the dark side (foil).
(https://i.imgur.com/AedYuG2.jpg?1)
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I have to say I love my sunova steeze. Technically not called a long board, but it seems like a good compromise between the longboard and performance mentality. (steeze stands for style with ease) Check with creek on the price for this one.
If I was in the market, I would seriously look at the fanatic style master. I think they run around $1300 in the US. The new 10'x28" looks like a sweet spot at 131 liters.
new in-depth review here https://www.supboardermag.com/equipment_guide/fanatic-stylmaster-10x28-5-2020/
They are also about to do a longboard comparison on their site. I think they have a review of the sunova style as well.
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Pearson Arrow make excellent longboard SUPs, The Laird model is awesome.
+1 on the Bob Pearson Arrow/Laird model. Was my "go to" board....until I went to the dark side (foil).
(https://i.imgur.com/AedYuG2.jpg?1)
If anyone is interested in a Bob Pearson Arrow/Laird model, I have mine available in the classifieds here:
https://www.standupzone.com/forum/index.php/topic,35432.0.html
11' x 301/2" x 41/4"
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It sounds like you want a nice all-around longboard. For me, if I'm on a longboard I'm nose-riding, and frankly my favorite board of anything in my quiver (foil, kite, surf, SUP) the one board that I always have fun on - Jimmy Lewis Black and Blue. Absolutely love it, but it's literally made to make one big pivot turn (you can trim it a bit as well) and then walk to the nose. So much fun - on sale right now too:
https://jimmylewis.com/shop/black-blue-machine-on-sale/
I have the 10'1" and I've had it since I started really getting into SUP, it's the only one that has never been replaced. I'd grab the 9'6" now since the rest of my boards are around 100L and I could definitely use less volume, but frankly, if it's not broken why fix it?
Good luck, LB SUP is what it's all about.
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I too am riding shorter boards, but I just moved to the beach and am looking for a great longboard. sometimes I just want to be able to stand with no effort and ride smaller waves as well as learn to walk up.
I am 6'1" 210lb, live in Santa Cruz CA. I am looking at the style. There are 2 10' boards and am leaning toward the XL version. Anybody with experience on these?
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Hi Paddle On
As I posted above, I have the 10' Style. (video posted above)
It's a great board for all around surfing, pretty much handles any conditions.
The 10' is a bit narrow for my 235 lbs, at 29" wide, but I am comfortable on it.
The 10' XL is a full 1.5 inches wider, but only 7 liters more volume.... should be super comfortable for you.
They paddle really well, catch waves easy and really fun to surf.
Today is the last day to get an order in for the February container
If you want one before May.... email me ASAP. Before 9pm Pacific Coast Time
supthecreek@gmail.com
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Want to thank everybody that chimed in here. Was planning on putting off the search until after the New Year, but found out that Blue Planet was running deals that couldn't be refused. Ended up ordering a NP10 (10'x28" @127L). Hoping to receive by early next week and get it out next time there is a bump in the swell in NY.
Would be glad to do a writeup of initial impressions once received, but doubt I could offer anything more in depth that what OkiWild has already offered on this board.
Thanks again guys.
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I had the pleasure of riding that board for a couple of weeks in Waikiki last year. One of the most maneuverable 10 footers I've been on. Looking forward to your review PSS.
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We've owned quite a variety of makes and boards. When it comes to long boards, though I haven't tried them all, I like the Imagine boards. This past summer I had a day that we compared the Fanatic Style Master 9x29, the New Deal 9x28 and my old Imagine Impact 9x28.5 in decent stomach high waves on Hatteras. The Imagine was, all around, the better board. The New Deal a hair snappier, but it is carbon and lighter. The Style Master wasn't even close. It felt more like a beginner board compared to the other two. We rode them all with the same fin set up.
Imagine is coming back, and will be distributed by Adventure Sports Miami again, I'm glad of it. Dave Kalama knows how to shape a board.