Author Topic: Surftech Bark Dominator 14'  (Read 36847 times)

sbsup11

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Re: Surftech Bark Dominator 14'
« Reply #60 on: April 22, 2011, 11:30:16 AM »
A good friend of SUPGlobal.com bought the first Dominator to hit the shores over here and has put together a pretty comprehensive review, which brings up a lot of the points here: http://www.supglobal.com/stand-up-paddle/reviews/255-review-of-the-surftech-bark-dominator-14-ft-stand-up-paddle-board.html

I race the 14ft category and having tried a Dominator and a JM 14ft (the pink one  :o) I think for the the JM is the choice as a race board for me, but the worries about the pressure dings does concern me.  Hopefully Surftech will work on it!

The trade off for insane speed appears to be durability. It is lighter than a lot of 12'6s, and is winning a lot of races. Hard to argue with proven track record. Something about that board that trips me out and is stuck in my head is that it finished in ALL TOP THREE SPOTS in the Dana point challenge (3.6.11)!! And that is in SoCal where the scene is huge and there are a lot of good paddlers.

I've never even HEARD of a single (production) board do that before! Sure, you'll see Starboard or Naish or someone finish with two or even three models in the top three, and that is unbelievable, but the SAME exact board sweeping the top three!

Please let me know if anyone knows of another case of that, I'd love to know. Dom just seems like the board to beat right now... I don't know if you could go wrong buying one, but it is all preference.

jlv

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Re: Surftech Bark Dominator 14'
« Reply #61 on: April 26, 2011, 10:05:11 AM »
The carbon/epoxy Dominator is very flexy and super susceptible to pressure dents and dings.  I am getting dents on the bottom just from where it sits against my hip while walking down to the water!  But, it is fast and very fun to downwind.  And very stable, even in big chop.  I only wish they had added two pounds to it and made it a little more tough.  It already looks like I've had it a year, when I've had it 2 months. 

so quite a good deal? very light but ding and flex

Argosi

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Re: Surftech Bark Dominator 14'
« Reply #62 on: May 04, 2011, 11:08:40 AM »
I've read just a few accounts of how well the Dominator does on downwind runs. There seem to be some conflicting reports.

This is the most comprehensive review of the board I've seen (as pointed out earlier in this thread):
http://www.supglobal.com/stand-up-paddle/reviews/255-review-of-the-surftech-bark-dominator-14-ft-stand-up-paddle-board.html

It's generally a glowing review but the one criticism is downwind performance. I'm wondering if any others can weigh in on the Dominator's downwind performance.

Here's the excerpt (by the way, I think the reviewer is a better paddler than he claims to be):
We do not get proper open ocean swells here, so I cannot comment at all on the board's ability in serious downwind conditions. If you are likely to be using the Dominator for that purpose then please seek out an opinion of a DW specialist.

What we do get here instead is short-period chop, with strong winds behind you, often at a cross-angle. In these conditions, the Dominator shows a weakness – perhaps its only one.

I'm not a shaper, so I can't tell you why this might be. Progress is still quite quick - you have to work hard to find a situation where this board isn't. But it is not what you can call an enjoyable experience, unless your idea of fun is beating your naked man-parts with a thistle-bush. I think it might be something to do with the relative volume distribution in front vs. behind where you stand. It's not the shape per se, because its little brother, the Competitor, is actually surprisingly decent downwind for a 12-6. And it's easy enough to keep the nose up and it blasts through the wave in front nicely. And the Dominator can certainly catch and ride waves. But in short-period chop with the wind behind you, the Dominator feels quite skittish and unstable, and I have trouble getting it onto runners. I have no idea why. Maybe this is just me – I am not an experienced downwinder, and perhaps if you are taller, or heavier (or perhaps lighter and smaller) and/or a better paddler you might not have the same experience as me.


Tecpartner

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Re: Surftech Bark Dominator 14'
« Reply #63 on: May 04, 2011, 01:30:57 PM »
I think Joe should name his next board "The Virgin Queen Bee".

South3rnSUP

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Re: Surftech Bark Dominator 14'
« Reply #64 on: June 16, 2012, 04:31:29 AM »
The carbon/epoxy Dominator is very flexy and super susceptible to pressure dents and dings.  I am getting dents on the bottom just from where it sits against my hip while walking down to the water!  But, it is fast and very fun to downwind.  And very stable, even in big chop.  I only wish they had added two pounds to it and made it a little more tough.  It already looks like I've had it a year, when I've had it 2 months. 

I just took my JM 12'6 in to get repaired very disappointed with the construction on this board the glassing is paper thin it would crack with finger pressure in various places exposing the foam just below the surface is this what is meant by "Pro Elite"?

bruiser

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Re: Surftech Bark Dominator 14'
« Reply #65 on: June 17, 2012, 01:59:34 AM »
I have a few 'dings" in my dominator as well. I think it would be better with a full carbon make up or a least a tuflite top? Still its a fantastic board as long as you look after it!

I hope your JM gets fixed ok.
Bark Dominator 14'
Fanatic Falcon 14' x 30"
Exocet Fish 8'10" x 32"
Fanatic Allwave 9'6" x 32"

 


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