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Raygun vs Turbo Dream vs Riders Choice or Burton with Frostbite

16K views 22 replies 10 participants last post by  p-rizzle 
#1 · (Edited)
Hey everyone,

I need some good advice. I'm going to be getting a new board and want to know what you all think.

I am 6' and 180lbs. Been riding a K2 Illusion with K2 Cinch Bindings for a few years and have outgrown it. I need more control and more speed. I won't be hitting the park at all, so 100% freerider. I live in ohio and will mostly be on groomers with occasional to more than occasional icy conditions. I'm getting different opinions from every shop I go to. I would really appreciate all of yours.

Choices so far:

k2 Raygun / Turbo Dream
Gnu Riders Choice (better base than Lib Tech TRS)
Gnu Carbon Credit
Burton V Rocker with Frostbite (possibly process or Custom)
Never Summer Premier F1 / Heritage

Thanks Fellas
 
#2 ·
Hey fellas. I'm even more confused now. Never Summer seems to be a pretty great company, and the Heritage series looks like it would work well.

I guess I'm stuck on Magne Traction since I will be in a lot of hard pack / icy conditions. Should I spend the extra cash to get the riders choice or go for the K2
 
#10 ·
Wow, a few things about comments here...

First, the Magnetraction deal... It's a love/hate relationship with that tech. Being an Ice Coast rider, magnetraction absolutely rocks for me. I love the tech on ice. However, there are situations where I found it to be a little too grippy. Not enough of a concern for me to forgo the benefits of magnetraction. Being able to mach down an icey steep without loss of control is a plus in my book.

Next issue, the Raygun comment... Stiff??? You must have been riding a size that was too big for you. The Raygun is an excellent board for the price and I highly recommend it to the all-mountain rider on a budget. However, it's not the greatest board on ice.

The Turbo Dream is the Raygun's big brother. It handles ice just fine and is very fast. I mean FAST! I took it to Tahoe with factory wax and it ripped. I'll admit that I was caught off guard with the speed of this thing. The one I demoed wasn't as fast, but that's expected because who knows if that board was ever waxed between demo days.

I won't lie though, Burton's frostbite edges work better in ice than the Turbo Dream. I also hear NS's Variogrip is excellent. It's hard to believe that anything works better than magnetraction on ice though.
 
#11 ·
Hey everyone.

Thanks for all of the advice. While I'd like to go with the Burton Process V Rocker with Frostbite, I don't like that I'd have to purchase new bindings just to ride it.

I think I am settled on the Gnu Riders Choice. I believe it is almost identical to the Lib Tech TRS, but has a sintered base instead of an extruded base. I really think the Magne-traction will work best for me here in Ohio.

Next thing I need to consider is board size. I was told I could get anywhere from 154.5 - 157.5 - 161.5. I'm leaning towards the 157.5 because I am 6' and 180lbs. Would the 154.5 make much sense?

Thanks,
 
#17 ·
Generally speaking, people that don't like the ICS/EST system fall into two categories:

1) They don't trust the two bolt mounting system

2) They think there is no benefit and is strictly a proprietary invention by Burton to force people to buy their bindings too

Personally speaking, I rather like the ICS/EST combo. I haven't had any issues out of all the ones I demoed (about half of their 2011 lineup and several bindings). I can't really explain it, but the flex of the board feels smoother when you are using this combo. However, it is not enough to be the purchase reason for me. The biggest benefit in my eyes is the dampening. There is no plastic between your feet and the board which equals comfort and dampness. The ease of setup is also a plus, but in all honestly isn't much quicker. However, the stance options are infinite as you can dial it down to less than 1 degree rather than the traditional three degree increments. Same goes for stance width and positioning.

The only reason that I didn't get a Burton board this year is because my personal dislike towards their bindings. I just like other bindings much better for the price ie. Rome 390 Boss. And I just didn't feel like buying an ICS board if I knew I wasn't going to use EST bindings. The board I was considering just wasn't good enough for me to forgo the bosses for EST bindings.

Could be a different case for other people though. The Process is a good little board for the price. However, I honestly do feel like the Rider's Choice will be a better board for you especially in icey conditions.
 
#18 ·
Generally speaking, people that don't like the ICS/EST system fall into two categories:

1) They don't trust the two bolt mounting system

2) They think there is no benefit and is strictly a proprietary invention by Burton to force people to buy their bindings too

Personally speaking, I rather like the ICS/EST combo. I haven't had any issues out of all the ones I demoed (about half of their 2011 lineup and several bindings). I can't really explain it, but the flex of the board feels smoother when you are using this combo. However, it is not enough to be the purchase reason for me. The biggest benefit in my eyes is the dampening. There is no plastic between your feet and the board which equals comfort and dampness. The ease of setup is also a plus, but in all honestly isn't much quicker. However, the stance options are infinite as you can dial it down to less than 1 degree rather than the traditional three degree increments. Same goes for stance width and positioning.

The only reason that I didn't get a Burton board this year is because my personal dislike towards their bindings. I just like other bindings much better for the price ie. Rome 390 Boss. And I just didn't feel like buying an ICS board if I knew I wasn't going to use EST bindings. The board I was considering just wasn't good enough for me to forgo the bosses for EST bindings.

Could be a different case for other people though. The Process is a good little board for the price. However, I honestly do feel like the Rider's Choice will be a better board for you especially in icy conditions.
I think the only thing holding me back from the Riders choice is I am worried it is too much board for my skill level. A girl at the board shop today, told me to get a park pickle even though I'll never be in the park. I'd like to eventually hit jumps along the trail, but that is about as freestyle as I'll get. I keep coming back to the riders choice which probably means it's the one for me. The reason I'm looking at the Riders Choice instead of TRS is the base. Should I be looking at the TRS instead?
 
#23 ·
Hey fellas,

I finally made a purchase. I was going to wait until the end of the season, but was able to get a great deal on a k2 raygun. I know it's not top of the line, but I'm going to invest in some great bindings and boots with the extra case. I'll hopefully progress on this for the next couple of years, and then jump into a more advanced board.

Thanks for all of the help. This is such a great place to get first hand info.

P.
 
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