Help me Choose which Surf and Skim Board to order...
 

All,

I have a surf boat and no good surf board! I have a 2013 RZR and due to wakeboarding injuries surfed 99% of the time this summer. I have both a 4'8" Hyperlite Broadcast with loose fins and a 5'0" Ronix Koal with multiple chunks out of it. Both were hand me downs from buddies. I can ride both all day but the Ronix is a bit faster and allows me to get a bit more air (not that its that much). I cannot do a 360 on either, no even close. The Ronix has three 2.9" fins on it. I would like an even faster lighter surf style board to allow harder edging and bigger air. I would like to be able to do 360's on this board as well though. Research pointed me to a Ronix Parks Carbon Thruster in either 4'7" or 5' 1" but I couldn't decide on the length so I made this post. I'm 5'10" and 180lbs.

I also would like to get a skim board. The only one I ever rode had ZERO fins and I couldn't keep the thing straight. I think I would like this type of riding too with the right board. Even though I'm a beginner (1 year under my belt) I would like a skim board I can grow into.

I could care less about brand, I just want some serious upgrades. Budget is ~$800 for both if feasible. I found the Carbon Thruster for about ~$450 for a leftover 2014. So what skim to get?

Mike

If you have a chance, try a Phase 5 Danielo Diamond. I did have a 2010 Broadcast and it was slow, then i moved to a coal and that one was nice. Now we have a Phase 5 Danielo Diamond as skim board, its a fast board with enough traction and a Airbaze Next 2 to replace the Koal.

The broadcast is a dog. I had one as my first wakesurf board. It was sold part way through that first season.

I had a koal. it was a decent board but just middle of the road.

I've ridden the parks carbon thruster, it even had custom fins. It was okay, but you pretty much had to be carving on it for it to maintain its stability. it also was just "okay". sure, an improvement from the Koal, but honestly, PLEASE take a look at some better stuff.

For the money, it's hard to beat Doomswell for a surf style board. I really liked both the Doomswell and the Soulcraft boards that I've ridden. But the Doomswell just blew my mind. Fast, tracks awesome, and the tail is loose enough that I can kick the tail out fully sideways at the lip. So much fun. Brock was fantastic to work with and their boards run a bit less than the Soulcrafts too, so that's a bonus. It was only like $20 to add some basic color to the board. My wife took over and had them put custom graphics on mine. haha.

http://www.doomswell.com/wakesurfboards/nubstep



There are a handful of decent skims out there. I have only ridden a couple and I'm more surf style than skim style, but I'll give you my opinion for what it's worth. I've ridden a Ronix One 4'10 and a Ronix One Carbon 4'4. The shorter carbon was much more fun. I recently got to try a Lakewakes Flying Saucer. It was pretty awesome. super fast and intuitive. It's worth a look for sure.

Lakewakes on the left, Doomswell on the right.
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-r...0/GOPR1324.JPG

We have the same boat and also started with a broadcast. We switched to IS Tako and an Obrien Nalu pro. The nalu pro has become everyones favorite skim board and surfs the RZR on both sides really well. Is fast down the line and a ton of fun.

Thanks for the recommendations guys. Keep them coming!

If you pull the middle fin out of the Ronix you will have a LOT more fun with it! It will rotate a lot better and have decent stability.

I rode that board..then graduated to the Soulcraft 4'7 Fang Tail (200 lbs 5'11'')...I love it! So much that our school became a Soulcraft School! Spreading the name far and wide that these boards not only rock out with their fins out...but have an owner and founder that CARES about you and the product! Not to knock doomswell because I hear GREAT things about them too. I had the chance to ride half a dozen doomswell boards out at the Polar Bear event this year and they were very nice! Not my riding style but still well put together boards!

If you need a hand selecting boards let me know. I frequent Kalamazoo, Mi on business and work with The Edge in kalamazoo to broaden their Surf board quiver!

Action Watersports AZ has a fresh round of Soulcraft Custom Surfs!:)
4'8 Fang Tail
4'8 Fang Tail/Diamond Nose
4'10 Fang Tail
4'8 Honu

bump... any further recommendations?

Soulcraft just like Nick we ride nothing but. We have at least one of each model with more on the way.

Check out Doomswell. They are hard to beat. Best board on the market in my opinion. Everything built in thier shop in Texas from the Block of foam to the final pads getting put on. Brock and Bryan are stand up guys give them a call and they will set you up with the best product out there.

409 692 6363

If you're looking for a skim style. I definitely second the Lakewakes Flying Saucer. That one posted is mine. It is very fast, loose, and controllable. Not too bad on the wallet either @ under $500 for a custom done board.

It rides just as well, if not better, than the Soulcraft Skimmer (which is amazing btw) for a few hundred bucks less. It's in the same price range as the Ronix one and some other compression molded skimmers, but performs much better.

I absolutely love it.

I haven't ridden the surf styles yet, but out of all the surf styles I've ridden, the best have been a Doomswell Nubstep and a Soulcraft Parabolic (not made anymore) or Da Honu (currently available).

thanks guys!

Can you elaborate on "not your style"?

Gladly,

I rode a bigstep and I found it was...well just a bit too big for me, the fin configuration made the board feel incredibly locked in. It was almost like riding a long board for me. Still a great intermediate board for people who want a little bit more out of their board and want a step up from the big box store boards.

The nub step was a nice improvement and I enjoyed riding the board. It had a much looser feel to it but the rail to rail response was quite muted...

The drone was a really quick and fun board to ride. It had great floatation and super super quick in the carves and rotations. I did however have a hard time keeping the rails in as I carving in for some air.

All of these boards had something great to offer different rider levels. I like a surf board to handle like its on rails when required and has the ability to be Pushed and fan the tail or rotate into when required. Just my personal preference that's all.

Hope this answered your question.

5' BigStep
Rider 160lbs 5'9

Just Sayin

Did these board have a soft rail or a hard rail? Just wondering.That makes a big differance in the way the board rides. \

An also where you riding quad on the Bigstep or Twin? huge factor when talking about a board bieng to locked in.

Hard Rail -hard rail provides better traction but will catch an edge easier then a soft rail.
Sorf Rail- •The softer and rounder the rail, the slower and more neutral-handling it’ll be.

here is a good link talking about the rails on a Board. To me rails mean everything.
http://www.tidalpush.com/surfboard/surfboard-rail/

What's Doomswells default, go to rail style? Hard, Soft, Full, Tapered, 50/50, 60/40, 80/20? I assumed it would be a mix of softer up front and getting harder towards the fin area...

Thanks for the reply Micah,

Every rider has his style. That guy seems to love is bigstep.

The big step was a twin, but i removed 2 fins and found similar findings. It was a hard rail but I didn't like the fin placement for my style

The nub and drone were a 60/40 style from what I remember.

I don't want anyone getting upset or think I'm downplaying Doomswell. Because Im not! I think its a quality product. I guess I didn't get to ride something that I was used to and or preferred to ride.

Hows that F21 treating you?

Cool thanks for the feed back. Yeah every one for sure has different takes on different boards. Its all about finding that one board that hits the spot.

The F21 is all winterized and put up for winter sad to say. but we put about 190hrs on it this summer.

looks good man, we put around 125 on our F21 this summer as well. Shes tucked away patiently waiting for the spring...

So I think the Lakewakes flying saucer is at the top of the list for skim style. I plan to pick up a Phase 5 Scamp for the kids as well. I read a lot on the Danielo Diamond and Ronix One Skimmer but see those as more of hybrid boards that may not be as easy to spin. I'm getting a surf style too but maybe I just need one board? Wanted carbon fiber too to make it lighter and stiffer but the Lakewakes skim is not. Still researching surf style. Thoughts?

Maybe the Ronix One Carbon Skimmer 52" (4'4") with a smaller back fin? What about this vs. the Lakewakes Flying saucer 53"? Would the carbon fiber really make a difference? Thoughts?

carbon will make the the board stiffer but generally not lighter, I would say if lakewakes is vacuum bagging his boards they are probably as light as you are going to get...

if i where you i would stick to a wakesurf specific company over any of the major wakeboard brand companys. Better quality and they are going to hold up better and ride better.

We have tried a mix of rail designs in the last couple of years. Some people like the hard and some people like the softer surf style rails. Some people that are transitioning from skim to surf style, so we will give them a harder rail further up to make them more comfortable. However, we are now defaulting to a "60/40" rail. More surf style through out our line unless specified differently.
Nikolas, I really appreciate your honestly. We try hard to make a great product and need feedback like yours to make it better. It can take time to get used to boards after surfing something that you're comfortable on, but thank you for being honest.
Def give me a shout if you have any other questions. Where did you ride all those boards? Polar Bear?

So how important is stiffness in a skim board?

I've ridden both the Ronix one carbon skimmer 4'4 and the lakewakes flying saucer. It's a tough call as I rode them a month or two apart and on different boats. I wouldn't say it's a night and day difference in my memory of one vs. the other. But I think if it was me and my money, I'd give the edge to the Flying Saucer. I felt a lot more condifent on the Lakewakes.

The Ronix one carbon was a "friend of a friend's" so not something I'm likely to get out on very much, otherwise it'd be fun to do a side-by-side compare.

Stiffness is extremely important in a skim board. Skim is about planing and riding the edge not the fins. Surfing is about riding the fins, not the edge, and the rails do not makes as big of a difference as you all think in wakesurfing. All wakesurfs have hard, boxier rails, compared to surfboards. We are seeing a trend for more tuck and 'softer' rails particular up front as wakes get bigger and steeper and somewhat more like the ocean. Softer rails up front tend to rotate better and get hung up less in the wash for 180 and air reverses, etc, but those maneuvers are beyond the typical rider. Skim riders are not pushing for big steep wakes. That push comes from surf style aerial artists.

Stiffness becomes important when you start doing air tricks.. or if you are a heavier rider to begin with. When you flex out a board you create drag and that results in a slower/less responsive board.

Thats why Victoria offers the the Factor and Factor PCX, same boards just the PCX is wrapped in carbon both top and bottom sheets. For just the casual rider who wants a skim they can start with and grow into but isnt focused on air tricks at the moment the Factor is a great all around skimboard. And considering you can get them brand new with custom colors/art work starting at $530 they are very well priced.

If you are looking at skimboards I'd stick with Victoria or Phase 5. The Daniello Pro carbon is a great skim especially if you can find an older one that still has a true pintail. The newer models have a snub design that is just a smaller version of the diamond tail. It gives you more surface area in the rear giving you a more stable platform but you sacrifice some rail to rail to responsiveness.

I've yet to see/ride a Lakeswakes myself but having ridden the Ronix One Carbon I dont recommend that board. It feels too much like a hybrid board and not an actual skimboard. The nose fin to me is a gimmick, if you are hitting tricks where you need to ride the board backwards you should have the balance to not need that. Its a nice all around board for anyone to ride but not what I would call a performance skimboard.

For kids, the Scamp is a great skim and hard to beat.. but Victoria might have just done it with their new Debut Grom board.

3/4" birch/fiberglass layup coming in at 48" with rails designed to keep the board locked in helps young riders learn proper edging and not to rely on added fins for stability. Its also priced at $174.99, well below the Scamp even when they are on closeout pricing.

http://calmarinesports.com/wakesurf-...ebut-grom.html

http://calmarinesports.com/media/cat...3957_web_1.jpg

Thanks for the offer, I may take you up on that offer. Yes, I rode all your boards at Polar Bear this year.

Birch plywood, makes a nice end table when you decide you want a real board.

Considering the board is designed for a first time person who has never been on a wakesurf board and will get them up and riding ropeless to there first 360 its a great deal.

All too often we have people come into the shop complaining how they were unable to get there kids/smaller riders up on their compression molded or foam boards because the rider couldnt get the board flipped up to there feet. Or there buddies skimboard was too loose/big for a kid. Or frankly their jaw drops and they laugh at the prices of some of these boards.

Telling a new family of beginners just trying to get in the sport and to see if they like it that they will need to drop $330 on an entry level board (Broadcast) can be hard for some people. This board would take care of all of that by giving you a price point board that does everything a beginner needs to develop the fundamentals before investing in something that will take there riding where they want.

It is not a jab at the board, it is the concept that it is a product that can be re-purposed. It is not new, we have seen plywood entry level boards many times.

Anyboard and every board will get a rider from getting up to a 360. That is all instruction, boat driving, and the will and drive to do it. Youth can have trouble popping up buoyant boards but with proper instruction and driving this is not a problem.

The price is education, and the dealer conundrum. Boards would be less, if dealers where not part of the equation. And, if you are dropping 50-150K on a boat, a few hundred for a quality board shouldn't be an issue. The board will work, whereas you will be lucky if your new boat works for more than a month, without needing some sort of warranty repair.

There are very few sports or leisure activities that do not have considerable buy in costs. The benefit of wakesurfing versus johnny's or addison's soccer, t-ball, gymnastics, or whatever, is the whole family can enjoy and interact, not just sit on the sidelines.

Again, this is not a jab at anyone or any part of the industry, but simple facts.

Nick, the "buy in" to wakesurfing is usually going through 3+ boats before you land the one you are satisfied with. 1st family boat is the usually the typical runabout (Bayliner, Stingray, Larson, etc). Then the family sees wakesurfing on their local lake and decide to sell the runabout for a used v-drive. 3rd is getting a new v-drive or a 1yr old used v-drive. There's not many first time boat owners that started at the the top of the boat game.

AJ, yes no maybe. In the past that was probably true and maybe still true in some areas, but in my experience in the past few years most getting into it jump into new or fairly new boat. They are sold the newer boats and told they need the newest technology to wakesurf. Not entirely true, but most people do not want to spend the time getting an older boat set up properly to wake surf. I've been doing this for decades, and work with dealer and distributors all over the world so my view is probably different than yours. Not necessary right or the only view.

I rarely even see stingrays, cobalts, bayliners, and larsons, much less see them attempting to wakesurf. Most boat brands are very regional and reflective of the average activities on the waterways and what is sold in the area. Some waterways are still dominated by skiing, of course most ski lakes are club lakes with a single ski boat.

Doomswell Neo on order... yahh

You will not be disapointed. Doomswell makes great boards.

...and a Lakewakes Skim! 53" for the skim. 4'6" for the Doomswell. Pics to follow.

Here is what the skim will look like. Should match the boat well!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...pse7fed2a0.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...psfac54a53.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...psf1fcdce1.jpg

You will definitely not be disapointed with tr Lakewakes Flying Saucer.
That skim is crazy good. Swap the Neo out for a Nubstep and those are the two main boards we run, one for surf, one for skim.
Excellent choices. I love the color. It's very toight, toight like a Tigé

Here are some progress pics from Brock and a different board showing the traction pads lying on it that I went with. I must say Brock was super easy to work with.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...ps2d1ff85d.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...psd329c29f.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...ps392ebec5.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...ps1294ffe1.jpg

Mike

My next boat will be green, planning ahead. Honestly it looked so nice in pictures that I had to go with it. The Nubstep and Neo are the same from my understanding except for the blunt nose.

Lakewakes skim and a Doomswell surf? I think yes.

And agreed, Brock is the man!

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-e...40456965_n.jpg

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-r...0/GOPR1324.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-l...08_151402.jpeg

So Lakewakes needs me to pick the size of the flying saucer I ordered. I'm 5'10 180lbs wet. I'm on the fence about a 51.5"x20" or 53"x21.5". Anyone care to comment or could explain the pros and cons of having a skim larger or smaller then recommended? I'm right on the fence. Our wake seems to have quite a bit of push. I expect the skim to be the 360 board that we goof around on. I don't ever expect to be doing any air tricks.

I just went out to my shed, as I have Surf Addict's Lakewakes flying saucer at my place. It's a 53".
He is weighing in *I think* at like 210-215 and seemed very comfortable on the board. He tend to favor boards that are "too small" for him, and I am pretty confident that he hasn't been wishing he had the shorter model.

I've ridden it a handful of times and I'm 5'10 and was weighing in at 169 at the end of the summer. I didn't feel like it was too big for me. It was quick and agile. I don't think the extra inch and a half was holding me back from agility on the water...

I'd say that since you're right in the range of both of us that you'd be fine on the 53. Smaller people should be able to ride it fine, and friends that are heavier than you will likely need that extra 1.5", so I'd say if it was me, I'd go 53.

We'll see if Surf Addict chimes in, but that's my 2 cents coming from someone that's ridden it.

Thanks guys! 53" it is

Laminated bottom side today, color next week., blueTek finish with gray/black Agenda propad traction set

Mikes ,
2015 Lakewakes Flying Saucer in size 53 is ready to ship.