Author Topic: What board do I want?  (Read 12566 times)

Area 10

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Re: What board do I want?
« Reply #15 on: August 02, 2020, 04:45:30 AM »
Thanks for the info guys! Based on what's said here and some other reading, I think the 2020 Bullet is my first choice with the V2 Bullet or Maliko in second. I do have concerns about the durability issues on all these boards though. Are the other boards mentioned here (e.g. JLs and Hypr) close in non-surf performance b/c they seem to be much more durable?

Boaed designs are an INEVITABLE compromise since fratures thst improve performance in one direction NECESSARILY impair performance in another. So its best to pick a board whose top priority is what you are going to be doing the most. The Hypr gun is the best surfing 14 I have ever tried, by some margin, but you won't win a flat wster race on it.The JL Rail is aimed firmly at downwind. You probably won't win a flat water race on that either. But unless you are racing seriously, it won't matter and both will be very nice to paddle. If you regularly surf your distance/raceboards then get the Hypr. If you downwind a lot in decent conditions then definitely consider the JL boards.

I.suspect that some of the Bullet 2020 boards we have heard about should have got caught by QC but didn't. So most may be absolutely fine. Personally though I'd insist on inspecting the board before buying it. I have a 2020 SIC RS in the same construction and it seems very good - light and stiff and I've had no trouble with the paintwork, although the deck pad collects every tiny bit of dirt which is very annoying. SIC please take note for next year. So I doubt thst the reported problems are inherent to the construction, and are more likely to be that the person making it had a bad day at the office, or there was a problem with some of the materials used in that batch. This happens to all brands and all factories sometimes.

PonoBill

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Re: What board do I want?
« Reply #16 on: August 02, 2020, 09:25:09 AM »
If construction quality and strength are a high priority then I'd almost always go with Jimmy Lewis. I watched a Rail get blown off the rack in Maliko Gulch and cartwheel across the boulder field. If that had been my Bullet V1, as good as the Maui hollow construction is, I'd be headed home to try to fix what was left of the board. The rail had a few minor paint scratches and did the run, no problemo. Yeah, anecdotal, but typical. Jimmy spends almost as much time in Vietnam QC'ing and fixing issues as he does in Maui, so the production boards are as bulletproof as the customs.
Foote 10'4X34", SIC 17.5 V1 hollow and an EPS one in Hood River. Foote 9'0" x 31", L41 8'8", 18' Speedboard, etc. etc.

WHS

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Re: What board do I want?
« Reply #17 on: August 07, 2020, 01:29:38 PM »
Owned my 2020 Bullet for a few months. Have avoided dropping it or smashing into stuff so not sure about how durable or bullet-proof it is but the thing looks like a work of art. Flawless. I sometimes just sit in the garage with it and think how brilliant I am for buying it.

WHS

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Re: What board do I want?
« Reply #18 on: August 10, 2020, 01:33:13 PM »
Immediately after making my previous stupid post I proceeded to drag nose of board over some asphalt while dollying to beach. Yes paint does scratch off. Brilliant indeed :-\

Area 10

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Re: What board do I want?
« Reply #19 on: August 11, 2020, 05:41:31 AM »
Immediately after making my previous stupid post I proceeded to drag nose of board over some asphalt while dollying to beach. Yes paint does scratch off. Brilliant indeed :-\

Yeah but that would happen to any painted board.

I smashed my Hypr gun (NO paint).into a pebble beach nose-first in a stupid shorebreak lapse of concentration. If it has been my Bullet V1 the whole nose area would probably have crumpled. But with the Hypr I got just a little chip in the top coat and had to look hard even to find it.

Increasingly, my friends and I are making board decisions with construction in mind. If you use a board most days and are not a millionaire, it is a godsend if it can survive the inevitable stresses of everyday use. But until buyers demand it I guess it won't happen.


 


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