Help...Walden Magic Epoxy?

[rbfactor]

I spent last summer on a 9'6" Surftech and am looking to upgrade. I am thinking about a new 9' Walden Magic Epoxy for about $750. I have been told it is a very forgiving all-around board. The new ones are being made by Global Surf Industries.

Any opinions would be much appreciated!

[surfsc77]

buy it. the most fun ive ever had on a surfboard was my friends brothers 9 foot walden magic longboard. the thing was like 15 years old, he left it outside all the time and it still rode like.. well.. magic. its all waterlogged now, but ill buy my own one day.

[justloafing]

How long ago did Global Surf Industries take over making the epoxy boards? I was actually looking at an epoxy board made by Walden. I talked to my brother about them and he asked me who made the epoxy boards. I can't remember the name I gave him but he told me "no way". He said the company used to make epoxy sailboards and they delaminated like crazy. I would find someone that has had one for a couple of years and see what they say. I do like the Walden glass boards.

[boco rio]

The new Walden boards are China boards and entirely different than the old hand shaped poly southern CA boards. I've read the new ones (epoxy) are alright, but they ride and feel much different.

[rbfactor]

Global Surf Industries boards are not from China. Like Surftech boards, they are manufactured in Thailand but have added PVC stringers to the design.

The deal with GSI has been in the works for a while, but the local surf shops are just now carrying the new epoxy models. The shop owner told me that the new models are a little heavier and supposedly surf more like traditional glass. He also said the graphics are underneath glass so are not as prone to chipping off.

Here's a review I found at GSI's site:

http://www.surfindustries.com/ratings/r ... agic_model

I would like to hear some non-biased reviews...

[surfsc77]

GSI doesnt make its NSP's and south points in China? im pretty sure i saw an NSP with a made in china sticker right on it.

[rbfactor]

Here's the info I received directly from one of GSI's top guys:

GSI makes all of our boards at our joint Venture partner Cobra International's plant in Thailand. The boards come with a year's guarantee against things like delamination, faulty materials or poor workmanship.

Cheers,

Kel
Life is better when you surf

[boco rio]

Dude read the last post on the thread. The devil is in the details.

http://jamboards.com/view_topic.php?id=4312&forum_id=1

[surfsc77]

i dont know how much i trust that post, but i know GSI probably cares more about making money than surfboards, so it makes since they would out-source to china. if they really cared about surfing they wouldnt make such shitty boards.

[rbfactor]

Does anyone have an opinion as to whether the Walden Magic is too much of a performance longboard for an advanced beginner/intermediate like myself? I did well on my 9'6" Surftech Softop last summer and now I want a board that I can grow into but still be able to ride. Do you think the hard rails, double concaves etc. would be too difficult for me to get into?

What do you think I should get? I'm 5'8" 145 lbs. and want to use it near Crystal Pier and at Tourmaline.

Thanks for your opinion...

[bluesnowcone]

i think the walden would be fine, im not saying the first wave you have your gunu rip it up, its gunu be alot different from your soft top, but if you take it easy, it sould be fine

[justloafing]

No I don't think it is to much for you.

As far as size you are 5'8" 145lbs. I am 5'8" 160lbs and learned on a Infinity 9'0" Nose Rider. It is a thinner board probably by an inch and I have no problem paddling it out or to catch a wave. I don't know how old you are but I would look at maybe 9'0" board.

Crystal Pier and at Tourmaline. I have no idea what the waves are like. You are in such a great surfing area that I would go to some surf shops (more than one) and ask about what they think about the Walden board. Tell them your just starting out and that you want a board that you can keep and have fun on your whole life. Take a good look at the boards rocker, tail what kind of rails and dimensions. Then go compare that to the Walden. You should be able see if the Walden compares to what you need. Have fun

[Otter]

Hey RB,
Go for it. I've got a 9'6" CF Magic, and it is a blast to ride. The rails stick into the wave really well, and the concave helps stick the tail to the wave to help with noseriding. I think you'll have a good time, it's good for intermediate to advanced IMHO.

[justloafing]

Do what Otter says............... He is "The Old Man Of The Sea" He lives out there and has been doing it for a long time.

[Otter]

Instead of , may I suggest a ?

[justloafing]

Instead of , may I suggest a ?

Or

[twizzly]

My buddy was dead set on picking up one of these boards, so this weekend, he and I drove up to Ventura to the shop. I was actually excited for the trip so I could side-by-side compare a handshaped poly vs handshaped EPS vs boardworks vs GSI walden.

Not too much traffic and we managed to get there pretty fast. Before I got in the car, I lifted and sorta scoped each of the longboards I had laying around to keep my perspective in check. Anyway, at the Walden shop I was able to pull a 9'6" handshaped EPS w/ standard glassing Magic vs a GSI 9'6" Magic out of the racks. Apparently the shop was sold out of the Boardworks models and I am actually now not sure if they do a handshaped EPS.

The salesguy told me that the glass schedule on the poly was 6 on the bottom w/ a top schedule of 6+4 on the nose & tail and 6+6 on the deck.

The salesguy had ridden both boards extensively and noted that aside from durability benefits, there was limited difference in weight and ride characteristics. I was a bit surprised about this given my experience in the past on Surftechs versus heavier glassed boards -- as I have really noticed the "corkyness" in the past. Anyway, I studied the shape of both boards and to the eye (and per the dimensions written on the stringer) the shape of both boards was identical. The sales guy stated that both boards were shaped identically. Regarding weight, I must've lifted each board 20 times trying to get a good gauge on weight, going back and forth, etc etc... and to my very rough estimate, the GSI weighed slightly less -- although candidly, it was very hard to tell. My guess is that it was on the order of 1-2 lbs at most, but I would want to check it on a scale.

Anyway, my buddy grabbed the GSI Magic model (mostly because of the durability). By the way, both the GSI & poly Magics in 9'6" were right around $750. When we got back to LA, I compared the weight of the Magic relative to a lightly glassed sand finish 9'6" Anderson HPLB that I picked up a week or two ago. The weights (per my bathroom scale and rough approximation) were almost identical -- except the 9'6" Anderson has an 18" nose and is about 2 7/8" thick, wheras the GSI is a 9'6" has a 19" nose and is 3" or 3 1/8" thick (note, I'm at work so I can't confirm the exact dimensions, but these are close). For reference, the Anderson is a 2+1 w/ a 7" Greenough 4a center, the Walden is a 2+1 w/ a 7" Walden center.

So early this AM, we headed out in some super low tide hollowy beach break conditions around waist to shoulder+ during the sets. I had my Anderson and he had the Magic. We swapped boards about half way through the session and I really noticed a the difference -- the Anderson (being smaller in the nose) felt a bit loose -- the Magic was a bette wave catcher and had some better trim / down the line characteristics. Having ridden hand shaped for a while now, I was very impressed by the GSI board. It rode a heck of a lot better than any popouts I've ridden in the past and had a lot more weight/drive characteristics than I was used to on those corky things. In summary, if I was really a shredder, the Anderson felt (oddly) lighter in the water and more manuverable and the Magic felt a bit more versatile. I think if the size dropped down, the Magic would've been the call for the day.

[Otter]

Instead of , may I suggest a ?

Or

Much better, thanks Brah!

[rbfactor]

Great review...many thanks!!