Longtime longboarder here.

Been riding a custom 9'2" from Warren Thompson for the past 10 years or more and am thinking of replacing it soon. Going to Bali in July

Does anyone out there have an opinion on the SouthPoint boards good or bad?

Just been checking out this one http://www.southpointepoxy.com/index.php?cccpage=kalama92

I usually surf small reef and beach breaks with the odd trip to Yallingup/Margaret River.

Hi airhead.

I ride a southpoint epoxy and think its great.
http://www.southpointepoxy.com/index.php?cccpage=bonga91

its pretty light to ride, easy to manoeuvre, and even though i'm not very good yet, i know the board will respond to me as i progress through my surfing. The only thing I was unsure of was the spray - but its grown on me.



I have to a say it was pretty expensive, but it's decked out with decent fins, and it's tough as nails due to the epoxy of course.

I'd say go for it - you won't be disappointed.
spr

The Bonga and Kalama are supposed to be great boards - good think about the Southpoint range there pretty tough and stand up to a bit more of a beating then the regular glass ones.

Have just spoken to a local dealer who is arranging a demo of the Bonga Perkins 9'1" Mark II for me

Airhead did ya get the Bonga ?
If so what's it like , Happy Jan
Fester

Select to expand quote

fester said...

Airhead did ya get the Bonga ?
If so what's it like , Happy Jan
Fester

No not yet, financial issues at the moment unfortunately.

Have checked out the board though and it looks sweet. Am still keen to try but must put $500 on the table before I can demo.

Hey airhead have a chat to toby at ocean style in nth freo. He has a bit of knowledge and an unbiased view.

Well now that I've secured the deal (picking my 9'1" Bonga Mk II up this afternoon ) I can "let the cat out of the bag"

www.mwrc.net/?status=unconfigured

Plenty more bargins there too...

Big thanx to Fester for the tip off

Hi Airhead
Typical new board onshore all week or no swell.
crack a beer on the Bonga's nose for me tonight.

Fester

Longboards Scarborough have been matching the GSI clearance prices when the boards are available. There is $30 extra for freight on top of the prices quoted. The GSI guy's will usually refer you to your nearest dealer anyway. Happy surfing and grab a bargain.

Enjoy the ride,I was at a well respected shop/manufacture a couple of weeks ago and noticed a snapped South Point Bonga model board.I asked the sales dude how did the owner snap the board? His reply was a little alarming IMO, he snapped two in the past two weeks I was thinking the owner must be a charger,but the sales dude informed me that they snapped in two foot surf Maybe this guy jumps on them on the beach,who would really know, SouthPoint are a respected brand and Bonga charges hard!
I purchased a McTavish surftech for my trip to indo last July,it handled 6 to 8 foot grinders,the only damage was from the airline handlers on our return!

mac

Select to expand quote

62mac said...
His reply was a little alarming IMO, he snapped two in the past two weeks I was thinking the owner must be a charger,but the sales dude informed me that they snapped in two foot surf Maybe this guy jumps on them on the beach,who would really know, SouthPoint are a respected brand and Bonga charges hard!

I'm always warry of when guys say they snapped it when it was 2' never know what the boards seen before - and you know if there trying to get a deal on the next one there not going to look at the guy and go I was HUGE.

True cRAZY,I was thinking the same!

mac

I know this is a long time after the original post but someone may still be interested.
I have surfed and been around a lot of southpoint mals and I have to be straight up with you and say that the southpoint bonga mk11 (the latest one) is one of the most amazing boards I have ever ridden - BUT - I have personally seen more bonga boards snapped and creased than any other board on the market. Some of these boards were snapped by mates in conditions that a board should never have broken in and I believe it is possibly due to the layer of wood veneer in the construction that once damaged by a minor hit or ding quickly goes very bad. I am no expert in the construction of these boards but it's just my personal thoughts and I would personally not buy another one. HOWEVER if you look at another g.s.i board - the NSP 9'2 longboard - WOW what a sick board. Designed to be a good all round board for all levels but it is one hell of a tough and mad surfing mal. Mates and I have surfed these boards in some very heavy and nasty conditions and we have never ever creased or barely dinged them. Not even sure if they are still on the market but if they are, for the money they are probably the best mal on the market.

Ive had three bonga 9'1 southpoints in the last three years got my first when they first came out.

Problem Ive creased two out of the three and taken them back to the dealer who said because of construction of earlier models they were prone to creasing "if not looked after properly" . Any way they changed the board twice in about a years interval. The first time was slightly over a year but I blagged anyway.

So how did they crease. The first crease admittedly was getiing on for six foot but not heavy, I guess it might have been an unlucky slam from a lip bang in the middle anyway I asked around and people there were saying that the board shouldnt have done that in the conditions, so because it was mas produced I took it back and hey presto they gave me a brand new one no questions....!

A year or so later I was surfing in 3 to four foot kicked out and the board went in the mush ( not heavy) got back on and a crease 3/4 way up. So now Im like these boards are bad, so I took it back, again over the year ,so really no warranty. I spoke to the manager quoting what the guy told me last year " any problems with it any more creasing bring it back and well change it"..

The manager didnt agree with this anyway after a bit of haggling he admitted to me that the Bonga 91 and all south point longboards of similar construction were prone to crease and snap, but now the new construction of the 2008 model means they shouldnt do this any more . He said that the layer of wood gives them more dynamic flex. So he gave me a new 2008 Bonga /shaper 9'1 and said if this one breaks its my fault and he wont change it again. So maybe I ride em hard or maybe i just ride it when its perhaps to big for me and lose the board and it gets munched by the lip too often who knows, I know I always ride this board in everything unless its super clean then the short board come out. But saying this I dont ride waves that are that heavy , I dont think Iv even seen a tube. Im from the UK

Any way thats the story of my Bonga 9'1 so far Ive had the 2008 model for about a year and so far no creases. But when I saw the post on this forum about Bongas creasing, if this one goes for sure Im taking it back, obviouly there is a construction problem the boards are not up to task so Ill get a new one. Im sure they dealers just get back to the manufacturers and they are replaced.

Saying that The bonga in a great longboard easy to throw around and tough against dings, so if yours doesnt crease then its a good board , but if it does crease then your gonna be pissed off unless the dealer will change it..

Good luck

Well it certainly pays to do your research first hence the reason for my original post, but when the 40% off RRP offer came up I just went for it.

Here's the story so far...

First surf I'm paddling out, haven't even ridden a wave yet, and I attempt to duck under the lip of a 4 footer. Misjudged it a bit (would not have been a problem on my old mal) and come up to find a nice old crease through the deck with both rails either side broken through.

Straight back to place of purchase 48 hours later I have a replacement.

Now I'm super cautious and surf it only in very small stuff a few times. This board seems very fast and so easy to get onto fattish waves really, really early. Nose riding is a dream and I can tell it would come alive on something with a bit more punch.

3 weeks later I'm in Lembongan and only packed the Bonga at the last minute before leaving. As luck would have it we have a 2 day flat spell so I take it out to Shipwreck and surf 2-3' quickish rights. The Bonga comes alive and I'm getting long nose rides, throwing in some floaters and crouching into small barrels. I'm even attempting 360's for some reason? Maybe because the board is just so light and fast.

So for me the board is a 5 star performer in the surf but I'm ever so cautious about selecting the right waves (no late take offs) and avoiding being caught in the impact zone which is a bit of a bummer. Anyway the board has only 6 or 7 surfs under it's belt so still early days.

Now that story has ALARM bells all over it.
Sorry,but sence when do you buy a board
and be concerned about the boards best
interest? I don't need any more fear factor
when I paddle out.I know my gear can handle
anything,its just the rider(me) lol

mac

I can appreciate the fact that the boards probably work well but geezus, they're some real horror stories about breaking boards.

They wouldn't last 2 seconds with my fat arse on them

Select to expand quote

62mac said...

Now that story has ALARM bells all over it.
Sorry,but sence when do you buy a board
and be concerned about the boards best
interest? I don't need any more fear factor
when I paddle out.I know my gear can handle
anything,its just the rider(me) lol

mac

I hear ya but I've parted with the cash now so for the time being I'm going to stick with it. I only longboard when conditions don't suit my 6'3" Rusty or 6' Fish so for the moment it is managable and I really love the feel of the board. Time will tell tho!!!

Anyway it's a heads up for anyone else considering a purchase as I was. Unfortunately for me the information I was after came in too late to make a well informed decision.

Not to worry airhead,just make sure you enjoy it.

mac

Hi Airhead
I'm really happy with my Bonga.
Had some good size beaches no problems yet.
See GSI has taken all schapers of their w/site.
I heard they were dropping the range(I smell a rat)

Fester

Select to expand quote

fester said...

Hi Airhead
I'm really happy with my Bonga.
Had some good size beaches no problems yet.
See GSI has taken all schapers of their w/site.
I heard they were dropping the range(I smell a rat)

Fester

Yeap I smell one too!

As I said, I rode mine at Shipwrecks recently and was absolutely having a ball on it.

I've got a bonga 9'1 aswell, I've copped some big beachies on the head where I shouldnt have been out and no probs with board damage, it even handled PNG baggage handlers without any drama.

The Southpoint website is still running and has just recently been updated by the looks www.southpointepoxy.com

Yer thats a yank site.
GSI are not importing Southpoints to Aus any more.
Hope someone picks them up.

Fester