Board size: Should I buy a board that’s a little to big or a little too small?

Hey guys,

Just wanted to say that I’ve really learnt a lot from all of your previous responses to questions in this forum, there’s clearly a rad community of people here who want to help other boarders regardless of their ability.

So my question: Should I buy a board that’s a little to big or a little too small?

I’m looking for my first board and am really keen on the K2 Raygun, can’t find a negative review and everything about it seems like everything I’m after, plus its about the right price. My problem is the I’m about 95kg, 6’4 and US12 boot which means that in theory I should be riding an 164w for an all mountain board. Problem is that last time I rode a 164 (rental in Japan, can’t remember what it was) it felt a little big and hard to turn on so I’m wondering if I should grab myself a 160w which I’m also worried might be a little small…

I know that there is a range of sizes which will suit a rider, but I’m not sure of what this range is? I’d describe myself as Intermediate, most of my riding will be on Aussie and NZ groomers, natural jumps and pow where I can find it, but given that I can only really afford one board I’m after something versatile that will be able to handle the park too should I decide I want to give it a go…

What do you rekon?

Cheers,
Ben

How old are you Ben? Are you gonna grow out of your board? How many seasons do you expect to get out of it?

The short answer is:
It wont matter as much if your first board is too short as it will if it’s too long.
It will take a few board to work out what is ideal for you and your style.
As mch as you will will have a fond place in your memory of your first board, over the years, you wont go back there - it’s a trial and error life experience.

Mostly what matters is how much you enjoy riding it and how much it makes you want to get on the hill. If you love it, it’s the right board.

Hi Ben, welcome to BoardWorld! Glad you like it

So the deal is, there is no one size of board that fits you.

The 2 things that you must hold above all others are the width of the board and the weight restrictions.

Just like you I am 6"4, but I weigh a little less and my foot size is one bigger (US 13). So I already know you won’t have a huge range to choose from.

First thing you should do is buy your boots. Boots that fit the best.
Once you’ve done that, then you will know exactly how wide a board you need. (You want your toes and heels to overhang the board about 1-2cm).

When you have narrowed down which boards fit your boots, then you can check is you are in the recommended weight zone for the board.

THEN and only then, you can choose the length, various marketing gadgetry and cool graphics.

Your recommended board height is just that, a recommendation. However it’s usually on the mark.
I’ve been riding 159s for ages which is pretty short for me. But they were good to learn on and then I enjoyed the shortness in the park. My next board will be a 163 because I have reached the limit on what I can do on a 159.
You may want to go a little bigger than 159 being that you’ve got 10kg on me. But a shorter than recommended board can be quite good for intermediate riders.

Hope that gives you some ideas bro. I’m here to help, so if you have any more questions, just reply or PM me.
Peace

Hey Ben,

Welcome to Boardworld.

A few things to consider…

The K2 Raygun is a flat/rocker hybrid; flat between the feet and rocker nose and tail. Essentially this board is a rocker, meaning it’s going to be a lot quicker and easier to turn than the 164 rental board. I am assuming the rental board was cambered - do you know? If this is the case, which I suspect it is, the Raygun will feel like a much shorter board anyway.

The Raygun 164W has a huge waist width of 268mm wide. Even with you size 12 boots, this is unnecessarily wide for you. Even the 160W has a 265mm waist, which is more than I would suggest for your size 12 boots.

I don’t think the 160 is too small for you. I agree with spaz, it’s easier to get away with a board on the shorter end of the spectrum than a longer board. Given you are riding in Australia, mainly riding groomers, and the odd bit of pow and park, if you must buy one of these two boards, my suggestion would be the 160. I will however make the suggestion that you should consider the 161. It still has a 253mm waist, which might actually work really well for you (depending on your actual boots). Do you have boots yet? My instincts are telling me the Raygun 161 will be the most suitable size for you.

Thanks so much for the advice guys, to answer the questions:

I’m 26, I don’t ride a huge amount (maybe a week or two a season) so it’d be good to get a few years out of it. Not likely to grow height wise much but might put on 5-10kgs over that time - bit of a gym junkie.

I’ve got a pair of Burton Ruler Boots which I’m pretty happy with as well as some large Burton Mission bindings which I haven’t used yet. The boots measure about 33cm heel to toe, so looking at the k2 size specs I’d have about 6cm overhang total… is this too much?

Rider26: I just read your camber article (awesome btw) and I think you might be right about the 164 rental in Japan being a cambered board. I just dug up some receipts from last year in Aus and found that I was riding a 165 which I had no problems with! All of this gives me a bit more confidence in the bigger board now…

With that boot length/dimension in mind, what do you guys recommend?

Thanks again for all the help!

Cheers,
Ben

Hey Ben,
With boot length and board width, just remember that the boots will be on angles to the width of the board, not straight across it. This is the reason I can’t tell you which board will fit your boots exactly. It depends on the angles of your stance and also how wide you stand too, because the board widens towards the nose and tail.

So the only real test is to bring your boots into a board store and put them on a board, exactly where you would mount the bindings and on the same angles.
Even better than this is to bring the boots and bindings. Because the binding height will also decide the width of board you can use (the higher the binding, the further you can tilt the board before your toes/heels touch the ground.

Even if that store doesn’t have a board you want, after you have done this, you will then know roughly what width board you can have. (The side cut will vary the width just a little also, so where possible testing against the actual board you want is always best).

BTW I just realised we have exactly the same boot lol!

I have Burton Ruler Size 12s and I am currently on a board with a waist width of 26.1. And I ride with the widest stance possible because it’s a 159.

But again, if your change the board, the length and the sidecut are the different. So that’s just a guideline for you, not a statement that all 26.1 waist boards will fit you. Always best to check it yourself for each board.

Andy, generally speaking you wouldn’t step up to a board with a 268m waist with size 12 boots, would you? It seems excessive to me. That’s something you would see if the rider had size 14 boots or something. I feel he could get away with the 161 (with a 253mm waist), depending on his stance.

Ben, as Andy mentioned, your stance does come into play. Do you have any idea of your preferred angles or stance width?

rider26 - 01 May 2013 10:20 AM

I feel he could get away with the 161 (with a 253mm waist), depending on his stance.

THIS.

Hey,

I haven’t really played around with stance much, mostly just what the rental shop sets it up with. I think off the top of my head they were doing close to straight back and around 15° front, does that sound about right? I haven’t had a problem with this setup but wouldn’t mind having the space to try different arrangements.

I like the Idea of the 161 as it seems to have a few advantages over the wide model - am I going to have enough room to mess about with different angles on it though?

Thanks again,
Ben

+15, 0 is pretty standard for boards coming out of rentals. It’s generally how you set up a board for a beginner. I’m guessing it was fairly narrow stance as well.

Have you started riding switch at all? If not, now is a good time to start learning.

With 0 degrees on the back foot, this gives you the least amount of clearance before your heels or toes hit the snow. So yes, the more you play around with your angles, the more room you will have actually. Additionally, the narrower your stance, the less clearance you will have as well (the board is narrowest in the middle and gradually gets wider towards the nose and tail).

You might have already seen this thread on stance. If not, it’s worth reading: https://www.boardworld.com.au/forums/viewthread/2597/

I would suggest playing around with your angles and stance width. Start with small adjustments and go from there. Eventually, you will probably find yourself enjoying a wider stance with negative angles on your rear binding (referred to as “duck stance”). This will also make it easier (and more suitable) to be riding a narrower board.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Thanks for the article rider, hadn’t seen that yet. Gives me plenty to think about =)

Looks like the 161 is the way to go! One last question (I promise): Am I going to have too much overhang with my 330mm boots if I keep the bindings at 0-15° with a narrow on the 161 board? I’m guessing I’ll end up with somewhere around 25mm overhang on both heel and toe, that should be cool yeah?

Only ask as this is what I’m used to so I’ll prolly start with that while i get used to the board then experiment with angles from there…

Cheers,
Ben

It’s hard to say for sure. Generally speaking, you should be able to get away with size 12 boots on a 253 width board. If you go super narrow, with zero degrees on your back binding, and you’re laying down big edge angles (when carving for example), you might run into some problems. Overall, I think you will be fine.

Is the board at your local store by any chance? One thing you could do is take your boots into the store, attach the bindings you will be using/buying onto the board, then strap your boots in nice and tight. Tip the board over on the side gradually to see how much angle you can generate before the toes/heel of your boots hit the ground. That will give you a good indication of what stance/angles you can get away with.

You can ask as many questions as you want. That’s what Boardworld is here for.

Just an FYI, with a 10.5 boot, I rode a 246 waist width board while I was learning / intermediate. I can still ride that board now with no problems.

Personally you should change up that back foot from 0. Most rental companies setup that way to push you into going forwards and not switch. This makes it feel easier but can quite often not help you as a rider. When you are riding, most of your weight should be on your front foot and therefore your back foot doesn’t matter as much for it’s angle. But when you turn switch, that foot matters about 80% and your normal front foot does bugger all.

This is why so many people like a Duck stance of 12 / 12 to 15 / 15

Thanks for all your help guys - I’m gonna grab the 161.

I’ve tested out a similar size board and it looks like I’ll have about 27mm overhang each side on my back foot at 0°, with around 25mm each side on the front front foot at 15°. I’ll prolly go straight to a ducked stance (as suggested) and as I’m fairly broad I’ll also go slightly wider than the 230mm so it should be all good!

Will let you know how I go, thanks again so much for all the help fellas!

Cheers,
Ben

Ben, I’m a bit over 6’2” and when I started riding again at about 28 I think it may have been I was probably a little too much into the gym and topping the scales around 116kgs with size 12 boots.  I walked into a snowboard store and walked out with a 163 cambered board with a waist width of 263mm.  The next season I jumped on a full rockered 159 board with a waist width of 255mm and it made a huge difference to my riding.  I also went +15 -15 angles with the widest stance I could.  I’ve never had any overhang drama and am looking to grab some Burton Hail or Ambushes that have the shrinkage tech, would be interested to borrow an even narrower board to see how that goes.

My current board is a 157 with a waist of 257mm but it’s pretty stiff and also hybrid rocker so it rides a bit longer than it actually is and it hasn’t given me any issues.