Well I've had my new 2013 8'5" Pro for a few weeks now, but after being overseas when it arrived, i've been back at work most of the time since (and the surf hasn't been so great) so I hadn't had a chance to get it out in some good waves until this weekend.

When ordering the board, I was a little tentative about the volume... at 106L it's the lowest volume board I've ever owned (17L less than last years 8'5" Pro and 4L less than last years 8'0") and I wasn't sure whether i'd bitten off more than I could chew.

But I had no real reason to worry... although the volume is down, the stability feels just as good as last years model. I'm guessing due to the combination of the move to a square tail and flattening off the deck, but i'm sure someone with more technical expertise than me can explain this better!

As far as performance goes, i'm no expert on all the technical aspects of a board, so i'll keep it short. The board feels really stable when taking the drop, and turning feels faster and more responsive than last year's board. Not sure whether its the square tail or the difference in the stock centre fin or a bit of both? (I'm sure our resident fin expert, LL, can fill me in on this). The 2012 is an awesome and super-fun board to surf but I'm looking forward to seeing where the new 2013 model can take my surfing and really enjoying it already.

Anyway enough of the boring stuff about me, here's the difference in the specs and some pics of the 2 boards to follow.

First up here's the specs:

Length:
2012: 8'5" / 2013: 8'5"

Width:
2012: 29" / 2013: 29"

Thickness:
2012: 4.5" / 2013: 3.8"

Volume:
2012: 123L / 2013: 106L

Weight (Carbon, incl. stock fins):
2012: 7.1kg / 2013 6.7kg

Stock fins:
Side: 2012: m4.5's / 2013: m4.5's
Centre: 2012: 170cm / 2013: 140cm

And here's some pics:

Cool - many thanks for sharing :) - Ali I just wondered what weight are you please ?

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fm1 said...
Cool - many thanks for sharing :) - Ali I just wondered what weight are you please ?

78kg

thanks for sharing the info and pics.
The 2013 boards look amazing and are so light!

Would you consider a deckpad?

Its interesting about the stability being similar. Must be hard to get out on bigger days? In what would be ideal sized waves for this size, before you look to a smaller or larger board? Im looking at getting the SB 9' 2013 118ltrs for a bit more glide. Have you tried this? I wonder if that is beyond my skill level compared to other boards like JP 9' around 135ltrs. im 80kgs

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Ali Cat said...

fm1 said...
Cool - many thanks for sharing :) - Ali I just wondered what weight are you please ?

78kg

Many thanks Ali - im 85kgs so just a bit worried about a 106l board :)
I have the 2012 8'5 - i switched to a much smaller centre fin @ 14 cms or so and it really loosened the board up :) - thanks again for the review

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suppose said...
Would you consider a deckpad?

I was originally going to put a deckpad on my 2012 board, but once I got used to the startouch, I found it did the job fine. It's quite a different feeling when you're used to having a deckgrip under foot but after using it for a while you get used to it. After jumping on the 2013 though i did notice that it was more grippy than my old one, so the Startouch must a have worn down a little (but after 6 months its by no means slippery).

I will most likely just add a tailpad on the new board as I like having the extra grip under my back foot to pivot on, but leave the rest of the board as-is. This keeps the weight down too.

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Its interesting about the stability being similar. Must be hard to get out on bigger days? In what would be ideal sized waves for this size, before you look to a smaller or larger board? Im looking at getting the SB 9' 2013 118ltrs for a bit more glide. Have you tried this? I wonder if that is beyond my skill level compared to other boards like JP 9' around 135ltrs. im 80kgs

Well I generally don't go out much over 4ft unless there's an easier paddle out around the break. I haven't tried the new 9'0 yet, but if the performance is anything like the 8'5" and your looking for something a little bigger, but with great performance in the surf, then i'm pretty sure the 9'0" Pro would be a great board to try.

In terms of skill level, i'm not sure where you're at so it's hard for me to comment, but I would classify myself as intermediate level (I'm definitely not a pro) and generally enjoy surfing a board that offers good performance but isn't too much hard work paddling at the same time (after all i'm out there to have fun, not spend my day struggling to stand up).

For me, every surf sup I've had over the last 3.5 years has been around the 8'5"-8'10" mark, and I prefer under 9ft boards as I find them easier to handle and more responsive in the waves, but this is just a personal preference! (When I want to surf a bigger board i take out my 12'6" race board).

If possible, I recommend jumping on a demo board an seeing how it feels, there's no better judge of whether a board is right for you than having a go.

I have had about 6 seshions on my SB Pro 8 5", and really like it

the first sesh though was on a demo board without deck grip, i felt it was less grippier ( no surprise ) with out it but also a lot more abrasive - if you happened to come in to contact with the deck mainly on the arms and legs,

when i did get my board with the full grip, i was much happier with it and now would go with the full deck grip every time.

the 8 5" has a suprising amount of glide, i was out yesterday and found it paddled in waves really well

Picked up my new AST silver one today. Can't believe how good it looks. The rails aren't quite as fine as my LSD but overall the shape looks fantastic.

And finally a decent looking set of fins with a board... instead of crappy plastic stuff.

Will add to the thread as soon as I can get it on the water.

Too bad
I love the shape and looks of the board, but it just got too small for me.
I,m 91kg, ad a couple of kgs because of 5mm wetsuits and booties and the 2012 8.5 is just the smallest I can paddle without falling in all the time (we don,t have channels etc).
I was considdering a pro8.5 to replace my Hokua but The volume drop "pushes" me to a Pro9.8 /PR8.5 or a WP8.2 wich are completely different rockers and shapes as the 2012pro.

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Jeroensurf said...
Too bad
I love the shape and looks of the board, but it just got too small for me.
I,m 91kg, ad a couple of kgs because of 5mm wetsuits and booties and the 2012 8.5 is just the smallest I can paddle without falling in all the time (we don,t have channels etc).
I was considdering a pro8.5 to replace my Hokua but The volume drop "pushes" me to a Pro9.8 /PR8.5 or a WP8.2 wich are completely different rockers and shapes as the 2012pro.

Hey Jeroen, do you have a chance to demo any of the boards? I was expecting the drop in volume to result in less floatation and stability but was surprised with how stable and easy the new 8'5" is to paddle. I know i'm a bit lighter than you, but have you considered the new 9'0" Pro? It's probably enough of a step up in size from the 8'5" that it might work well for you, and give you a fun and high performance board. I guess i'm saying don't rely on the volume specs alone, and demo the boards first if you can.

Mate, great review and the photos are fantastic. Your photos trully show all the differances between the two boards.
A mate of mine just got the 2012 modle and i got to have a ride. I ride a 8'9" PSH hull ripper and i could not believe how light the SB Pro was. The surf on the day was only 1-2ft so not the best for testing such a board. I loved it thou but i feel i would much prefer the 2013 with the roll taken out of the deck. The 2012 SB Pro did feel a little corky and with its super light weight seemed to stop in the turns on these small waves.
i just loved the way it turned on a dime. It was like ridding a short board again. I hope that my mate willlet me have a crack when the surf is pumping??? I can see why they are popping air's on these things!!

I would love to get my hands on the 2013 modle for a test run thats for sure..

Thanks again for such a great review and photos.

Scottakasid

Have had my 2013 8'5 for a few weeks as well, unfortunately no decent waves yet to test its full potential.
Was very pleasantly surprised by how well it paddled , gets into the waves sooner than I expected and despite being a lot less stable than my last board (9'8x29) it was better than I had hoped for when I heard it was only 106L
Once on the wave it is all worth the little bit of hardship to get there, this board is fast and is really loose .
I am no pro rider but this board has definitely lifted my riding already

How much you weigh MikeN?
Im with Jeroen, at a boarding weight of 96kg the drop in volume seems unmanageable unless SB really had a tech breakthru.

I wouldn't be put off too much by volume drop... I'm not 96kg so can't advise of whether the new 8'5" board will float you. I'm also not really close to the weight limit on the 8'5" so both models are realtively easy for me to paddle.

But as a comparison on the rest of the pro range, I've found the smaller boards (where at 78kg i'm pushing the weight limit) in this years range are actually easier to paddle and more stable than last years.

I've spent a bit of time on last year's 8'0" and found it hard work in anything less than ideal conditions. Last week I tried the new 8'0" (14L less than last years model) and actually found it much easier and more stable than the old model and very easy paddle on to a wave and back out through the surf.

After being impressed by the ease and stability of the 8'0", I took the new 7'7" out for 2 hours - it was more challenging and towards the end of the session when my legs were getting tired, I started falling in a bit, but i had already surfed for over 6 hours that day and the first 1.5hrs on the 7'7" I was fine. In comparison, I couldn't even stand up on last year's 7'7" which had 6L more volume!

Thanks Ali. Great info and great pictures! I'll have to give her a try when she arrives in my neck of the woods. Were you comparing Carbon to Carbon on the other models like you were with the 8'5?
I understand some people feel Carbon gives a little extra float

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Ehukai said...
Thanks Ali. Great info and great pictures! I'll have to give her a try when she arrives in my neck of the woods. Were you comparing Carbon to Carbon on the other models like you were with the 8'5?
I understand some people feel Carbon gives a little extra float

Yes all carbon boards, so probably slightly floatier than the same models in wood/ast.

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Ali Cat said...

Ehukai said...
Thanks Ali. Great info and great pictures! I'll have to give her a try when she arrives in my neck of the woods. Were you comparing Carbon to Carbon on the other models like you were with the 8'5?
I understand some people feel Carbon gives a little extra float

Yes all carbon boards, so probably slightly floatier than the same models in wood/ast.

In saying that I am around 86Kg give or take a kg or two, and am riding the 8'5" AST without too much issue. Took a couple of sessions to get used to, but that had more to do with a different volume distribution to my LSD. I think anyone with half decent balance could use this board up to 90kg.

Still haven't had mine in great surf, but pretty happy with how it has been going in the tiny waves I have had it out in recently.

I am also very tempted by the 2013 8'5"pro.

I will be going from 130 to 106 liters and from 8'0" to 8'5" at stay at the same with.
A little gamble as I have no chance to try.

I will have to choose between wood and AST silver, I also have to get a board for my daughter...
I like the wood having no windsurfinginserts ,I have about 7 windsurfboards in my garage.
But is there any difference in weight/durability/price/performance/???? between the wood and the silver?

On the boards I've seen there is minimal weight diff - silver v wood - though weights are always production dependent - strength/stiffness didnt feel too different but I would imagine wood is bit better - one thing for sure is the wood looks sick and the red is super bright so the board looks super trick in wood ....resale though i think with a windsup option youve doubled your potential customer base maybe

Also if you get to ding a wood SUP board, the repair is probably going to look like sh#T, even if it will cost a lot more...

Walk around of the 2013 Starboard 8'5" Pro.