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2015 Never Summer Ripsaw Review

9K views 18 replies 15 participants last post by  buggravy 
#1 ·
Board: Never Summer Ripsaw

Size: 156 cm
Camber Profile: Camber/Rocker/Camber. Significant camber under foot with rocker between feet
Bindings: GNU Mutants
Boots: Vans Andreas Wig
Stance: 15/-15 Regular
My Weight: 161 lb and dropping slowly (6 lbs to ultimate goal!)
Rider Type: Intermediate, all-mountain who will occasionally hits kickers in the park.
Days on board: 5

Previous rides: Never Summer SL primary board and Rossignol Trickstix (learner)
Demo experience: Arbor Coda, Rossignol Experience Magtek, Never Summer Raptor, Saloman Man's Board

Resort: Holiday Valley, NY and Brandywine, OH :)facepalm3:)
Snow Conditions: Groomed man-made snow turning to a mix of pushed snow and snowment always.

Flex: Mid Stiffness. Certainly stiffer torsionally and laterally than the Never Summer SL that was my primary board. Less stiff than a pure freeride board. I'd call it right between the true midstiff feeling of the SL and the plank feeling of the Raptor.

Stability: No problems. Typical NS damp ride. No problems plowing through mounds at the end of the day or washing out on steeps.

Pop: Coming in hot off cat-track lips and snapping into a jump provided plenty of predictable pop. Dabbling in the park had nice pop off of the jumps. It is a significant increase in pop compared to the SL. Plenty enough energy for ollies and any kicker your want.

Turn Initiation: A little harder to initiate the turn due to a slightly higher torsional stiffness than the SL. It was not so stiff that this ever became a problem even when tired at the end of the day. Much easier than free-ride boards I’ve flexed. It felt as quick edge to edge as my SL. While the torsional flex is stiffer, it was something I stopped noticing after a few runs.

Carving: This is where I really noticed the extra camber. Carving this board is a blast. The Ripsaw easily locks into a line and will shoot you out the other side with a surprising amount of energy. This surprised the hell out of me on my first turn. Short, hard carves are easy to initiate, hold and very powerful. Shallow carves and set-up turns are no problem either. This board wants to go fast. Lay into that carve and go for it!

Edge Hold: I've had plenty of opportunities to test edge hold on areas of exposed snowment. Edge hold was a step up from the SL, likely due to the higher contact pressure created by the profile. Magnetraction boards like those in Rossignol’s or Lib-Techs line-up have the Ripsaw beat on edge hold. I find Magnetraction to grippy for me, especially in soft snow.

Powder: No experience. I’ve had no problems on my SL with powder out west. Conjecture here, but going purely by the profile, I imagine a fully set-back stance and a little more effort to stay on the back foot and the Ripsaw would be OK.

Jibbing: This is not a board for rails and boxes. The Ripsaw will be very stiff for the rails. Jump this board, but don't hit the rails.

Switch: The Ripsaw has a true twin shape. Ride the board whichever direction suits your whim. My switch riding has progressed incredibly through dedicated practice sessions at Brandywine while on this intermediate/advanced level board.

Note: You want to have good technique with this board. Get sloppy and you will do a superman impression. The added camber brings those edges down and will catch if you get lazy. My superman was excellent when I got lazy riding switch one run.

Rider Level: Intermediate to advanced. You need good technique to avoid catching an edge. A performance charger means you can’t fall asleep. I would not recommend this board to someone who can’t make full turns under control on true mountain blacks.

Rider in Mind: An aggressive all-mountain rider or kicker hitter will have an absolute blast on this board. The Ripsaw is about carving, speed, and power in a true twin shape.

Final Thoughts: Please sir, may I have some more? If you like carving, like going fast, like power and pop in your board, and think rails and boxes are a good way to loose teeth, then this board is for you. The Ripsaw is not playful like most boards. It requires an aggressive riding style with good form. Free-ride boards aren’t for me, especially when my primary riding areas offer 700ft of vertical. This was the perfect board for me. The Never Summer Ripsaw is the best board I've ever ridden for my riding style.

I considered the Lib-Tech Darker, or Hot Knife and GNU Billy Goat. Ultimately, I went with the board at the local shop and don't regret my purchase.

Other boards to consider: Lib-Tech Hot Knife, Lib-Tech Darker, GNU Billy Goat, Capita Totally FKn Awesome, Ride Machete GT

2015 Bonus: Bright green base glows off the snow.
 
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#3 ·
Thanks for the details - I'm leaning toward pulling the trigger on a Ripsaw. Do you mind telling me your height and boot size?
Height: 5'9"
Weight: 161 lbs
Shoe Size US: 9.5-10

What does height have to do with snowboard size? I think weight matters far more, which is why I included that in the review along with the length of the board.

Otherwise someone can review a powder board complaining about the terrible float. Then you find out they are 200 lbs riding a 153cm. Or that the Park Slayer 9000 160cm is hard to spin with their 140 lbs.
 
#16 ·
I'm 6'1" and 195lbs so would I be better off with a 157x or 160x never summer ripsaw
depends on shoe size as well if your boot is 12 or better you could go with either depending on how you ride.

I ride smaller mountains so I went with a 156 ripsaw @ 200 lbs
works fine for me and have run it in small powder , noting real deep yet, and every thing else, ice slush ..
 
#18 ·
Been looking at this a wee bit on my quest to find a new board.

Mixed reviews on the flex on this thing how severe is it?

Im coming from a Jamie Lynn in 154 a comparison would be good.

From all the reviews and descriptions ive read this thing sounds perfect for me but then you read odd remark that it will faceplant you at every hit etc. Is it that bad what board would it compare to like a Burton Custom X or something?
 
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