Hi all. I am after info on the Starboard 10'2" wedge. Very hard to find info on this board. I'm wanting to know if it has to much rocker meaning it would be hard to catch waves/ Minimal glide !! Plus being 32" width with a narrow tail for turning, is the board stable for paddling / catching waves. I've owned the 10' Starboard Whopper but found this to be great on the wave but not the best for catching waves. Simply to much rocker. Then had the "Sonova One" which catches waves so easy but isn't as good in bigger waves.
Require some genuine info on the 10'2" Wedge. I weigh 94 kilo.
Hey Jeff
The 10'2 Wedge is incredibly stable.
I'm also 94 kgs and have absolutely zero issues with stability.
Don't worry at all about the rocker - as it's really only the nose that has an exaggerated rocker (Aladdin's boot).
I'm based in Darwin, so our waves are often very feeble, messy and gutless. But, we do get days where the stars align and score quality waves.
So I look for boards that have good glide qualities and that I can still get a few carves / turns on. I also need boards that are stable in strong winds and sub-cyclonic conditions - which is when we tend to get the best swells.
When you're standing out the back in a howling westerly trying to pick off a few big ones, you need a board that's stable and gives you confidence that you're gonna catch the waves you're paddling into.
The Wedge has been a revelation. I think of the 10'2 Wedge as shortboard performance with longboard benefits - stability, glide and manoeuvrability. It's by no means a 'longboard' in the traditional sense though - there's no parallel rails on the Wedge.
The Wedge has slightly stepped rails, so it sits 'in' the water not on it. There's nothing corky about it.
It surfs a lot shorter than its length suggests and is a comfortable board when paddling out to the line-up or on flat water in general. You can easily take the 10'2 Wedge for a cruisy paddle on the flat stuff for a bit of a zen-bliss-out sesh. Which I'm incredibly partial of doing also.
The 10'2 Wedge has its wide-point further toward the nose. From there the rails draw back into a rounded/area-type pin tail. The shape means it's incredibly easy to turn from the centre and the tail.
It's also super fast. I paddled into a ripper a few weeks back from out the back and managed to work it into the shorey which then kinda stood up for me and the Wedge just accelerated - I paddled in after that one totally psyched.
The other thing I would say about the Wedge is that, without a shadow of a doubt it will improve your surfing. Hundred per cent. I've surfed on and off pretty much since I was in my teens, and go alright, and I have to say the Wedge gives me the confidence to throw the tail just that bit further and you pretty much know that you'll be able to bring it back round without losing control.
Lastly, the construction is sick. It's such a beautiful board to look at and is really solid and totally uncompromising. It's the first Starboard I've owned and I'm incredibly impressed with it.
What sort of waves are you getting into Jeff? Are you getting into beachies, points, reefs? Are you highly experienced or just starting to get into the waves? My view is that, if I can get a board to glide in to waves with the conditions that I get up here no worries, then, for most crew on the east coast of Oz, you're not gonna have any issues at all. Just remember, even though it's 10'2, it's not a 'longboard', as such, so if you're after something that totally glides above all else with lovely parallel rails, then definitely check out more traditional log-style boards (of which there's heaps of options around).
But if you're after something that's gonna get you in to waves no worries and give you a pretty high degree of performance in a (longer) board and is plenty stable enough, then the Wedge won't disappoint by a very long margin.
Hope this helps man!
Cheers and let us know how you go!
MD
Thanks MD for your input. I did ask the same questions on your original info you did. Surfing/ Double island, Noosa, and Bulcock beach bar. 66 years old so yes I've been surfing for a long time but don,t want to make it hard to catch waves. Enjoy drawing out a line and going for it. I've ordered the board but now it's a 4-6 week wait for delivery.
Forums I never do but could find no other way to get any info.From your comments it sounds to be ok. Thanks again.
I did not try 10'2 but I had a chance to compare Wedge 9'2 and Starboard Longboard 10x29 on the same day in the same conditions - small, waist size waves. No difference in wave catching abilities, but performance and fun on a wave no comparison. The longboard is in a different universe - 10x more fun. I don't own either. I paddle another brand (I do own one Starboard - 2019 Pro, which is a keeper) but If you are looking for a board which works very well in small conditions but can also be comfortable used when it gets bigger I would choose a Starboard longboard over Wedge. For reference I am 106 kg.
Thanks BZ I do appreciate your input. Starboard do seem to have a good name. May be the 10'6" starboard may be better. Less volume than the 10,2" but a longer water line could be better. It's gets so confusing.
I've recently got a SB long board, 10ft by 29inch. Heaps of fun in guttless to punchy 1-4 ft waves. It took me 2-3 surfs to dial foot placement and not trying to ride it like a short board. They are expensive, but well made, light. I don't really like the graffix's, the red tail pad will fade. I prefer the infinity style, than a blue blob with red and white. I've been running with both boards, infinity 8'5" blur V2 and starboard long board. They have me covered in all conditions. Both fit in my troopy.The SB is super fun and playful, turns beautifully, in 1-4 ft waves. Great for summer weak waves.
So far extremely stoked with it !
Very different from the wedge in hindsight, 123 L, performance shape and rocker for a long board, but handles the weak waves surprisingly well. I'm 90-95 kgs depending, super stable for my level even in windy /choppy conditions. But a performance long board that is obtainable for average heavy weight surfers to progress on.
Colours are fine. Interesting shape as well. ST boards are world wide so they know what there doing. Is the bottom concave or flat. I recon the concave gives you extra stability. Surf board warehouse boards have a lot of concave but the mates is really easy to balance. What's on yours?
Vee from nose to tail with double concave through the mid section through to fins. The 10ft length gives plenty of stability and glide even with proper wave rocker, and tail kick to turn. I paddle around the headland to river mouth points to surf, can't do it with a short board, but perfect with the SB 10ft than fun with the waves when you get to the spot.
Had the 10'2 Wedge out in some clean, knee high runners today.
Scored a heap of waves and had an absolute ball. It still blows me out how loose it is. I'm running it with large C-drives on the sides and a 7" Wayne Rich Power (True Ames) centre which gives it heaps of squirt. Even with the C-drives (which can tend to hold) , the Wedge is so easy to throw around if you put your weight behind it and give it a bit of curry.
Managed to link up a few sections and get into the inside section which is more wally and stands up a bit better and came away grinning. One of the crew was asking about it and saying it looks like it goes good - even in knee high waves it's so easy to throw around.Definitely another fun machine in the quiver. Will put up some photos of fin set up tomoz.
As mentioned a few days back - photo of the current fin set up on the Wedge. The power generated from the C drives and the 7" Wayne Rich centre works really well. The Wedge is such a loose beast that the bit of extra (marginal) hold from the C drives actually complements the board really well. It's still loose - just with the added benefit of more drive.
I have the 10"2 in carbon. It was a log in starlite but the Carbon is amazing Definitely worth the extra coin. Stable, good glide picking up waves and surfs amazing. Highly recommended. The 10 x 31 longboard in carbon is also incredible
Well fellow surfers, I finally received my Starboard Wedge 10'2" . Negative was I ordered the Starlight construction but could only buy the Full Carbon. Really expensive but I though well being carbon it will be lighter. I was wrong. I'm told the Starlight wedge with the fins in is 11 kilo & now I've found the carbon with the fins in is also 11 kilo.. Disappointing at the least.
How ever as per MD's comments, "Mango Dingo", interesting name :-) the performance of the board is amazing. I've had the Starboard Whopper , and the Sonova One, both of which were good boards also weighing 11 kilo complete. I was concerned the 10'2" Wedge may be hard to catch the waves especially at Noosa, but no. This board catches waist height waves so easy it is amazing and I weigh 93 kilo. Performance on the wave was also great. I can turn down the face / bottom turn and drive the board out through the wave with ease. On the wave face it was great. Being a 66 year old surfer I need as much help as I can get and the board does this so well.
Only disappointment is the weight subject to me being an old fella.
Select to expand quoteSydneySUP81 said..
I have the 10"2 in carbon. It was a log in starlite but the Carbon is amazing Definitely worth the extra coin. Stable, good glide picking up waves and surfs amazing. Highly recommended. The 10 x 31 longboard in carbon is also incredible
Yep I have a mate at Happy Valley ( Surf beach in Qld ) that has the 10 x 31 longboard and truely he seems to be every wave and all over the wave as well. Just confuses me when you buy anything in carbon it is usually very light. ( push bikes, tennis rackets, and so on ). Can't really see why a carbon sup weigh's the same as any other board. It wasn't what I had ordered but they sent the carbon in stead of the Starlight construction. Expensive and I feel no real advantage.
With carbon the flex in the board will feel better and more alive, you probably have to ride them back to back to notice it .
with the naish carbon boards i use to have the difference was huge, enjoy guys .
Select to expand quoteJeff R said..
Just confuses me when you buy anything in carbon it is usually very light.
If you replace the fiberglass by carbon in a board, you won't save significant weight, they are about the same weight.
You gain overall strength (resistance to breakage in half) and stiffness. Then you can decide to reduce the materials (lighter foam blank, less cloth layers, ...) to gain weight while reducing strength to about the fiberglass construction, at the expense of impact strength. So basically brands can choose to have their carbon versions either:
- about the same weight, but stronger and a more dynamic response on the water: what you have now in Starboard, JL, Gong, ... and all the surfboards with strips of carbon strategically placed.
- significantly lighter, but less impact resistant (Gong in the second half of 2019): boards chip more easily with paddle hits.
But, as Gong found out, and I guess other brands, is that customers that buy production boards expect a minimal impact resistance, so do not want the second option. I was lucky to be able to quickly redo my quiver with 2019 Gong boards when they were available: I'd rather add a 3' x 1" helicopter tape strip as a rail saver, and fix paddle chips from time to time to save 20% weight on a board with thus "ugly rails", but 99% of customers will not tolerate it.
And also, true PVC fiberglass sandwich boards are also quite strong by the sandwich effect, so the amount of material in them has already been quite reduced to a bare minimum, and these boards are already light. It is hard to reduce again when replacing by carbon for any weight saving without dramatically reducing the impact resistance (or exploding the costs by adding lots of manpower). This is not at play in carbon bikes, rackets, masts, ... non-sandwich fiberglass parts.
