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wood vs. fiberglass


king_kong

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ok so ive never wakeskated and i want to by a board so i can start learning how. also right now the board ive been looking at is one of the new wooden hyperlite boards. so my main question is there any major difference between a wooden and a fiberglass wakeskate, besides the 2 differnt materials. Dontknow.gif wooden boards are ment for more skilled riders, fiberglass is better for beginers, vis-versa, it dosent matter they both basically ride the same, what? Help.gif

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I have been skating on a hyperlight scape wood board that we got last fall. I have had to glue it back together already it has allowed me to find some what of a groove. Just starting to do wake to wake jumps and surface spins. The wood board has been great but I just steeped up to new hyperlight catalyst.

My new glass board weighs at least 2 times as much as the wood board. The concave deck on the glass feels great as well.

I am going out tonight and will let you know how I like it.

Check Ebay I think there is a glass hyperlight going to end real soon this morning.

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Actually there are 3 basic kinds of wakeskates:

Composite: Integrity, Omen. The integrity has a closed cell CNC core with a urethane side wall like a snowboard. Omen's have a wood core that is surrounded by fiberglass and has a p-tex side wall. ( http://integrity-wake.com and http://omenskate.com ) These are high end wakeskates, and generally are liked because they are rider owned and operated. If you're looking for the "best" composite skate these are the two to check out. Also as far as wakeskate design and innovation Integrity and Omen are years ahead of any of the wakeboard companies.

compression molded, built exactly like wakeboards. Made mostly by wakeboard companies over seas in China, LF and HL mostly. Generally regarded as "too light" and also prone to delamination. the LF skates are ok, but the HL skates with foam tops usually cover up any concave (skateboard like concave on the top) that the board may have. If you're really serious about wakeskating, I'd probably put my money elsewhere.

Wood- Some people just love the way wood feels under their feet, wood skates are generally heavier. It's personal preference, when it comes to wood vs composite. Some people don't like wood because well, if there are any cracks in the sealant the wood will get wet and de-lam. Some companies that people have really been diggin' lately have been Oak, Sattalyte and the now defunct Cassette (although it's rumored that they're suppose to be back in business. They've had a lot of problems since splitting with Linear Dist. So hopefully they'll get that figured out...) You can get a brand new Oak out the door at boardstop for $180 shipped using the coupon "Forumuser."

The difference between a so called beginner skate and professional skate usually lies in a few things, beginner skates are usually flat top wood wakeskates. these are great for learning and figuring out if you like wakeskating. Don't get me wrong there are some great flat skates that have come and gone over the years, (the Kampus K39 comes to mind.) but concave wakeskates just feel better under your feet, the boards are more responsive.

So in conclusion, if you're looking for a wakeskate to buy and keep for many years, your best bet is probably Integrity or Omen (I'm not actually sure if Omen's are shipping yet, but if you like the feel of wood and the durability of composite then they're the cats pajamas.)

If you're looking to just start out and get riding look at getting a cheap HL skate or really the cheapest flat deck skate you can find.

Or if you like wood, or don't want to pay the premium for a composite skate then Oak or Sattelyte

I haven't even scratched the surface on this subject, but those are my recomendations. If you have any questions feel free to PM me, or post in this thread.

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The only advantage the wood has is...it's cheaper. The composite boards cut better, have more pop, and seem to stay with my feet better in the air. I rode both before I purchased. Ended up with a Hyperlite Gate 114. My buddy with the wood board (who thought he saved $$) has to buy a new board...he just broke his.

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That seems like good info to me. My son and I are wanting to try wakeskating badly. How about speed or wake setup.....what are we trying to achieve? I also realize that skill level may change that setup but I am curious as to the basics.

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I am by no means an expert...I took up wakeskating after knee surgery because I couldn't use bindings of any type of a while. If the water is smooth I like 17 mph, wind chop...down to 16 mph, rollers from other boats...15 mph. This is slower than the pro's and maybe that's due to riding a 114 (kinda on the larger end of wakeskates), weighing <160#, and the HL Gate is extremely light and bouyant...of course, it could just be the fact that I'm a big chicken. Crazy.gif

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