Second thoughts Surfskate 4'10" or 5'0"

[Yann]

I recently ordered a Placebo Surfskate 5'0" but I'm having second thoughts now and might want the 4'10" instead. I'm 80kg but wintertime I'm in my 6'4 wettie which probably adds another 5kg to my weight. I'm thinking I'm going to use up to 24 knots but it would be nice to be able to pump some waves with it as well. Is the 5'0" right for me or should I try to change my order to the 4'10"? I have an incoming 5'7" fish and a regular shortboard 6'3" that I'm going to use for stronger wind and bigger waves. I really want to use the Surfskate for aerial maneuvers like busting off waves going out, backrolls, classic surf style aerials... Which one will be the best?

[chanson]

Wish I could help you Yann...

I've ridden a few surf/skate style boards and really like them...4'9" and a 5'0"....they feel pretty similar to me in those sizes.... A small snub-nose surfy play-board...

i would think the 5'0" should fit the bill, but with the other boards in your quiver, it seems you could go either way..
What size is that Salomon Noseless you got..?
I'm sure some others will post, who have ridden the board...

I deal with the same thing: buyers' remorse is a biaaaaaatch..
good luck, lemme know how you like it... I have been looking at those also..

[q-ball]

I recently ordered a Placebo Surfskate 5'0" but I'm having second thoughts now and might want the 4'10" instead. I'm 80kg but wintertime I'm in my 6'4 wettie which probably adds another 5kg to my weight. I'm thinking I'm going to use up to 24 knots but it would be nice to be able to pump some waves with it as well. Is the 5'0" right for me or should I try to change my order to the 4'10"? I have an incoming 5'7" fish and a regular shortboard 6'3" that I'm going to use for stronger wind and bigger waves. I really want to use the Surfskate for aerial maneuvers like busting off waves going out, backrolls, classic surf style aerials... Which one will be the best?

If your only interested it for the aerial stuff ,get the 4'10 its the only one for that ,its so light.It wont disappoint! Todd

[Yann]

I emailed the shop and said I wanted to change my order to a 4'10". Might be to late and already on it's way from Spain. It will be good either way i guess. The Salomon I have is 5'3".

[JonModica]

I dont think you will regret the 5'0
The only time you might be bumming is when its a little bigger swell, and then your gonna want to switch to a different style board anyway.
LATER!
-Jon

[Yann]

Bummer, it was too late for changing my order. The board will be in the shop i Denmark on Monday. Might go on a roadtrip there to pick it up next weekend instead of having it shipped to Sweden. Anyway, I'll have my board next weekend and I'm really stoked to try it out! If I get the regular westerly wind I could take it back to Sweden on a downwinder

[Bailey]

The 4'10 has a lot of volume for a short board . I have ridden it 10 days and no one can beat me upwind, and very easy to gybe. I have hit a rock with the center fin and pushed the rear plug in, so the board is in the repair shop and I am having all the boxes changed to the fusion 1 pc fcs boxes then I don't have to worry about traveling with it. Has anyone had any delamination/ heel dent/ breakage problems with there placebo's. thanks Brian

[Yann]

Funny, I pretty much think it sucks at upwind but that is compared to my 6'3" performance shortboard but I also put a really small GX fin in the back. Yeah, i got some pretty big dents after 30 minutes on it. Really disappointing for an expensive board like that. The Noseless doesn't even cost half as much and I never got any dent on it. Much heavier though. I put a big front pad on my Surfskate now to cover up the mess and even out the pressure a bit. I won't stop doing aerials with it just because of it being a bit fragile. I can just hope that I won't snap it.

[q-ball]

The 4'10 has a lot of volume for a short board . I have ridden it 10 days and no one can beat me upwind, and very easy to gybe. I have hit a rock with the center fin and pushed the rear plug in, so the board is in the repair shop and I am having all the boxes changed to the fusion 1 pc fcs boxes then I don't have to worry about traveling with it. Has anyone had any delamination/ heel dent/ breakage problems with there placebo's. thanks Brian

The better i get the more damage i do, but only dents that after a while crack.Use a big front pad ,Freak makes a good one for it.It would take alot to brake the board ,Jon's is soft as a grape and still in one piece.I have bin cutting out the damaged section and replacing it with an equal size section of a old wind surf board and glass over it with no weight gain and stronger than before.Fore smaller soft areas i use expanding foam in a can witch works real well . Todd

[mikelet]

Funny, I pretty much think it sucks at upwind but that is compared to my 6'3" performance shortboard but I also put a really small GX fin in the back. Yeah, i got some pretty big dents after 30 minutes on it. Really disappointing for an expensive board like that. The Noseless doesn't even cost half as much and I never got any dent on it. Much heavier though. I put a big front pad on my Surfskate now to cover up the mess and even out the pressure a bit. I won't stop doing aerials with it just because of it being a bit fragile. I can just hope that I won't snap it.

Sorry to hear that Yann,i was interested on the surfskate too but they were trying to charge me 640 Euro for the board here in Spain,pretty expensive to get heel dents on the first ride,even when the board it's supposed to be pvc wrapped,but that doesn't mean the board will hold up well...
Noticed my hollow S.core Salomon get dents too,hope it will last,but i feel this board lacks a bit of flex to be more responssive and get more comfortable ride on chopier wave conditions,also it's a bit o mess nor having option to change fins due to special fin boxes (Found NSP to FCS fin adaptors at MagicSeaWeed that maybe it seems to do the job but i'm not sure)
Trying to improve my strapless quiver now with an UG freewave now,does anyone have a review of this board for strapless stuff ??,what size 5.4 or 5.8 ??

Cheers
Miguel

[Yann]

Mikelet my Spanish kite twin! We seem to ride all the same gear. Yes, I found the NSP-FCS adapters too and wanted to try them out last session I had. Couldn't push them inside the boxes far enough for the screws that came with the adapters to get a grip on the other side. I'm going to give it another try with the screws from the original fins. Maybe they are a bit longer or I'm able to push them in a bit further when I have the right tools for it. Hmm, maybe I turned them the wrong way last time. Got to give it another try and I'll get back to you

Yes, I have the Underground Freewave 5'4". Some pics of me riding it here. It has really sharp rails so it feels like a mix of a directional and a twintip. It has a tendency to catch rail on top turns which I hate It's built like a brick wall (and flexes like one too). I've landed some pretty big kiteloops with it and there is just no way that you can get any dents in it. I'm sure you can snap it but I think you will snap something in your knees first. I don't use it that often anymore. Only when it's +40 knots and then with the straps on. I prefer boards that feels like a surfboard but I'm keeping it for the really windy days.

If I were you I would look into the Airush Choptop 2009 instead. I haven't seen it in person but it looks like a better board than the Freewave 5'4". Just promise me to lose the skyhooks that it comes with

[mikelet]

Heheheheh ,can't belive it you thought on the fin adaptors too!!,let me know if it works for FCS's when you tweak them.
Thanks for the info, i heared before something about the catchy rails of the UG,bad for them not to improve the board softing the rails in newer versions,just planning use it strapless in our summer light winds and strapped for some higher winds conditions cause i find myself sometimes boosting off the waves when i'm tired of surfing sets in the middle of a session ,Doing that i feel i'm abusing of my beloved stubby DC quad 5.5*18,5 (very similar shape to 2009 choptop,except for a swallow tail) and i want this board last for me as far as possible.
Think i will wait till i get a good price on a second hand UG,difficult cause seems not to be very popular here..
Cheers dude!!

PD: Awsome action shots at guinxo

[Yann]

F*****ck!!!! (sorry about that Lonny)

I had a look on my Surfskate today up close because I was at work when I wrote my earlier post so I thought i should really check the board after last session. There are cracks in it!! I can't believe I paid over 900 USD, rode it for two session and now it has some serious heel dents and small cracks along the rail. I'm going to give it to my ding repair guy and ask him to reinforce the whole deck and maybe fill up the dents with foam too. He is really expensive but the job he does is incredible!

For your reference, the black in front is my front pad and the red in the back is a Budweiser cap. There are a couple of these cracks but only on the heel side. I'm putting myself on a diet now to get super lightweight I guess I'm close to 90kg now with a wet winterwettie on...

[Bailey]

When mine gets beat up to bad I will send it off to a custom builder and have him shape one the same, because it fits in a golf bag with my TT and 2 kites

[Lonny]

F*****ck!!!! (sorry about that Lonny)

That is well worth an F-Bomb. That really blows that the board is cracked already. I mean for $900 that should come with a free surf chick for the day. I would not be pleased either. So far it would appear the Placebos definitely have durabilty issues when it comes to kiting.