Can't decide which NS board to get!

Hey all!

Well, this last week I've been riding in Vermont, demo'ing various boards. But I really didn't get to try the reverse camber boards until my last two days.

I tried the Burton's Custom (Reverse Camber ones) in 159 and 154.

Personally, I liked the reverse camber because it handled very well in deep pow and just carving. (Or maybe my technique cleaned up as the week went on..)

Anyway, I'm a free-ride, buttering/screw around rider, so I was looking for an all-mountain board. The main points would be: stable for bombing at high speeds and carving.

After reading through a bunch of posts here and seeing the popularity of Never Summer boards, I decided that I wanted to get one, but I haven't had a chance to try ANY of them at all.

I'm leaning towards the SL-R at the moment because it seems to be the "average" board out of all of the NS boards. However, I really don't know how stiff or bouncy they are, and the only board that I can compare them to would be the Burton Custom, because its the only reverse camber I've ever ridden.

So, my question is: Which NS board matches the Custom's flex the most? Would it be the Evo-R.. or the Premier..? And, are these all generally "similar?" As in, the Premier isn't SIGNIFICANTLY more stiff than the Evo? Because the NeverSummer.com's flex/damp meter only compares NS boards.

I plan on demo'ing some eventually, but I wanted to get a heads up in order to save time and money. Personally, I thought the stiffness in the Custom was pretty good, but a bit chattery through high-speed carves.

Also, if there are any other good all-mountain boards that I should try, please let me know! I don't want to just limit my choices to NS.
And, price isn't really a factor, I'm willing to spend a lot for a good set-up that I can practice with.

(This is going to be my first set-up after 4 seasons )

Thx!

[m60g]

NS Heritage
NS SL-R
NS Premier
Arbor Element
Arbor Coda
Arbor Wasteland
Smokin' Super Park
Smokin' M.I.P.
Flow Infinite
Flow Strike
Prior AMF or MFR depending on your taste
Maybe one of the GNU's, Altered Genetics, Danny Krass, Rider's Choice


Check out Nidecker Legacy or Blade

NS and Smokin' have 3 year Warranties
Arbor has a 2 year

Awesome, I think I've tried one of those Arbors before, cuz I remember seeing the graphic.

Anyway, do you think the Premier is too stiff to do any buttering with? My main concern is that I won't be able to have the best of both worlds in terms of carving and a little messing around. Also, would the Evo wash out when I'm going at higher speeds? I don't remember where I found this but someone said that 35+ MPH on the Evo caused chatter, since it was softened.

Also, those Smokin' boards have rocker AND magnetraction? I'm gonna look into that..

But still, I'm leaning towards one of the NS boards, because everyone seems to have a good time with them

[jeri534]

Just got back riding some really fast groomers on my SL-R, today was probably the fastest Ive ridden on my board and the SL-R handled it very well, no chatter or vibrations, held a great edge, there were a few sketch patches of snow and I was able to ride them out...

I still want an F1-R for a total freeride machine but the SL-R does everything I want it to right now

[m60g]

Originally Posted by bonusballer88

Awesome, I think I've tried one of those Arbors before, cuz I remember seeing the graphic.

Anyway, do you think the Premier is too stiff to do any buttering with? My main concern is that I won't be able to have the best of both worlds in terms of carving and a little messing around. Also, would the Evo wash out when I'm going at higher speeds? I don't remember where I found this but someone said that 35+ MPH on the Evo caused chatter, since it was softened.

Also, those Smokin' boards have rocker AND magnetraction? I'm gonna look into that..

But still, I'm leaning towards one of the NS boards, because everyone seems to have a good time with them

The Smokin' Boards have a 3 year warranty also

The Arbor Element is a really good do-it-all board

The NS Premier isn't a buttering board, it's one step down from the Titan. It's a Freeride Charging board. I'd say the Heritage or SL-R is more of what your looking for

Jer:

That's dope! But in terms of an ultimate free-ride machine, what was the SL-R lacking that the Premier had? Just not as stiff?

I'm probably gonna get the Sl-R now haha, I haven't heard a single bad thing about it, and it looks hella fun to ride.

Also Smokin' boards seem to be more of a Colorado local board.. I can't find that many reviews for the '10 models.

Edit: Down to the SL-R or a Smokin'

[Jay29]

Sl-R!....................

[m60g]

Originally Posted by bonusballer88

Jer:

That's dope! But in terms of an ultimate free-ride machine, what was the SL-R lacking that the Premier had? Just not as stiff?

I'm probably gonna get the Sl-R now haha, I haven't heard a single bad thing about it, and it looks hella fun to ride.

Also Smokin' boards seem to be more of a Colorado local board.. I can't find that many reviews for the '10 models.

Edit: Down to the SL-R or a Smokin'

Ask BA(Angry Snowboarder) about them, he's ridden both.

Originally Posted by m60g

Ask BA(Angry Snowboarder) about them, he's ridden both.

Alright, checkin his site out now, thanks for the help by the way!

EDIT: So basically his site, namely this page: http://www.angrysnowboarder.com/?p=4431 completely cleared up all of my questions concerning the NS boards that I'm interested in! Now all that's left to do is to just demo a couple to see which one I'll have the most fun on!

Thanks for all of the help!

[Triple8Sol]

SL-R sounds like the NS for you. Bataleon Goliath & Jam are also worth trying...either one is perfect for what you're looking for.