Buying a board can be pretty confusing, specially if we don’t know what to look out for. Be it in a shop, surf centre, garage sale or some guy on the internet, there will always be a gap between our knowledge on what we need and the seller who wants to get rid of his board. Let’s try to close that gap a little today.
Here I have compiled a checklist for you to know what to take into account when going to buy a new or second hand board.
Buying a new windsurf board
Where are you going to sail?
This is the first question you need to ask yourself. The answer will have a very big impact on what you need to look for. If you are going to windsurf in El M̩dano you will not be needing the same kind of gear as if you usually sail on Lake Garda. In El M̩dano we usually have 20-25 knots (and more in the summer) which for my 75 kg means 80 Р100 litres waves board whereas in Torbole (Lake Garda) the average is 15-17 knots where I would need a freestyle or free-ride board in the 100 Р115 litre range.
Volume
As mentioned before, the wind conditions will determine the size of the board. The second factor to take into account is your weight. A larger person will need a bigger board than a lighter person to get the same planing opportunities (OK, and they will need a bigger sail; but more on that in another article). Remember that a bigger board will make it easier to start planing but that the maximum speed will be more limited due to more board surface touching the water (more friction).
Also, your level will play a role in how small a board you want to commit yourself to. A smaller board will mean less stability and a more nervous board. With this I mean to say that it is harder to balance on a small board when you are not planing, having to rely on the buoyancy of the board. Staying on in these cases is pretty exhausting as it involves having to keep your body stiff to keep the board on course or risk falling in backwards slowly because of the board luffing up which results in having to water-start again. Here is an article by SurferToday on the volume/windsurfer-weight ratio.
Board type
Again, this is related to where you will sail. Usually the best option for your first purchase is a freeride board. They are the general purpose option that works in nearly all conditions. Especially if you have not yet experimented with specific windsurfing disciplines, a freeride board is the way to go.
Once you have a little more experience under your belt you can think about getting a wave board for riding waves (or at least play around with thr chop more), a freestyle board for jumping on flat water or a slalom board if you’re a speed junkie.
Weight
One of the key aspects to look out for in a board is the weight. A heavy board will be a huge setback if you are learning how to plane. A light board will be easier to get out of the water and start to glide over it.
Only during the pre-planing steps is a heavier board only a nuisance but not an impediment to our windsurfing progress. I say nuisance mainly because we will have to carry/transport it and there a lighter board is more practical than a heavy board (especially if we are getting on a plane).
Sail compatibility
A board is not usually too big for any given sail. The problem comes when we try to sail a too big sail on a board. For example: a 6.0 m2 sail will still work fine on 100 litres, maybe even on 90 litres if  you are careful not to put too much pressure on the back foot. However an 80 litre board will be really uncomfortable to sail with such a big sail for various reasons.
Firstly, if the wind is so light as that we have to use such a big sail, it will probably sink when we are at a standstill. The exception is if you are really light.
Secondly, a small board will have the tendency to luff up into the wind with a big sail. This is due to a big sail having the pressure point further back from the mast-foot than a smaller sail. On a big (longer) board this doesn’t matter, but on a small board, the fin is further forward with regards to the pressure point of the sail causing it to luff up into the wind. It is the same problem people face when switching from old windsurf gear to new equipment.
Buying a second hand board
Up until now were the general things to look out for when buying a windsurf board. There are a few extra details you should know however if you are going to buy one second hand.
Dings
Dings are essentially holes in the board. Normally, when you have a ding in the board you will wee the splinters of the fibreglass and possibly the wood sandwich or foam. If this occurred on dry land (falling on the curb, etc.) all you have to do is put some ding repair on it. If it happened in the water (on the reef, etc.) you want to make sure the water is extracted before closing the hole. Simply putting it in the sun for a few hours will do the trick.
Cracks
These are more subtle than dings. They usually come from the mast hitting the board nose during catapults or a too hard hit on the floor on the rails. If you spot one of these, make sure the cracked area and the area around it is not soft. If it is, it will require opening up the board and repairing the foam to set it right. Not doing so will cause a lot of damage and delimitation to the board in the long run.
If the area is not soft, it may be that it is only chipped paint. In any case, I would get that looked at and repaired if necessary.
Dings and cracks are not necessarily deal breakers but I personally would have the seller get them fixed before I bought the board or reduce the price by the reparation cost.
Weight
In this case you not only want to avoid buying a heavy board just because it is made of heavy materials. There is another reason for which it might be heavy.
If a board has a crack in it, it will absorb water. The foam below the wood, epoxy, carbon fibre (or whatever the layers of that particular board are) will soak up the water which makes the board heavier. Aside from the downside of making it harder to plane and transport, it also means that the board has a hole somewhere. This means that it will only get heavier.
The hole is not always evident. It can be a small crack on the rail, a ding on the nose or harder yet, a crack under the footpads coming from trampling on the deck too much. This usually causes the board to delaminate and go soft in the area between the foot straps.
Get a feel of what a new board or (some well kept used boards) usually weighs so that you can notice if the board you want to buy feels a little bit too heavy.
Soft deck
When water gets into the board it is soaked up by the foam. However, when we finish our session, we leave the board in a warm environment. This will cause the water in the foam to evaporate, which means that it expands, causing the fiberglass to separate from the foam. It may even cause the foam to go soft if it continues over a long time period. This is how a board delaminates.
A delaminated board is a hard fix, specially if it is in the foot pad area. I would avoid buying such a board simply because it reduces sailing quality and it will very likely get heavier over time.
I hope I have given you a helpful guide to buying a windsurf board both new and second hand. If you have anything else which you consider should be on this list or any bad surprises during a board buy, please let me know in the comments.
Hi Arne
If i was you i would put a video on showing yourself in full action so that people can see potentially what they would be able to do on a windsurfer , and perhaps a video of what a person that you taught looked like the first time on a windsurfer and then later when the same person is advanced , and then have something about that all can do windsurfing e.g. young,old,male, female – because at first one thinks it is about strength!
Then also tips on buying equipment because i found the windsurfing shop here very unhelpful and only by studying the neil pryde website did i learn about sail,boom,board sizes that go with each other , and i bought the wrong equipment at first and was really put off by the shop.
But wow this is really brilliant , i was studying youtube videos all the time and nothing shows like this academy you developed and the lessons i received from an instructor does not come near this – i never saw him ever windsurf,he gave instructions from a sailboat! I was searching how long for this!!
Thanks so much!!!!
Regards
Nigel
Hey Nigel! Thanks for the awesome feedback! Reading comments like these give me the confirmation to keep creating more videos and articles to make the learning process easier for people around the world. THANK YOU!!!
As to the video of me, there is one on my About page http://howtowindsurf101.com/about-me/ which is from 2013-2014. I hope you like it.
Also, the videos I have on the blog are from the initial stages when my wife was learning. When you go through the videos you can see the gradual improvement of her technique. I am currently working on editing the videos for planing, beachstart and waterstart for the blog articles where you can see the progress she has made. I might create one video of her entire journey until now. Thanks for the idea!
I have written a few articles regarding purchasing tips here http://howtowindsurf101.com/category/tips-n-tricks/purchasing-tips/ but one of my future projects is to compile enough for an ebook Purchase and Rigging/trimming Guide and create the videos for the Academy. Lots of plans for the future 🙂
Again, thank you so much for the great feedback! Looking forward to hearing about your progress 😉
Arne
Hi Arne , windsurfing going well and cannot believe how difficult it looks when one sees somebody else learning now , i find one has to watch the same videos over and over again because so many little points one misses , but one big thing i learnt when gybing and tacking is KEEP WIND IN THE SAIL AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE and nothing like time on the water concentrating and thinking , suddenly it all comes right , just need MUCH MORE WIND here now , have to travel far to find wind , what a fabulous sport!
Haha, that is great to hear. It is true, once you know what it is supposed to look like, it is easy to spot when other don’t do it correctly because they make it look very difficult. I am sorry to have helped to get you hooked on a sport that makes you have to travel to enjoy to the fullest hehehe. I hope you get all that wind! 😉
Hi arne.you are doing a Great job! Could you make a comment about board manufacturers? Wich ones made his own boards and wich ones ask for an external company to do it whith his own desings? I try to always look for the ones that are most durable. I think actual boards are really delicated. And we are seeing to much fashion every year and prices were rising a lot ftom past years. For me is imposible to think in a brand new board.
Thanks agains.
Hey Demian! Thanks for the kind feedback. With regards to your question: as far as I know there is no major board manufacturer that make their boards in house aside from the custom boards at the individual spots. The major players all design, test and tweak prototypes for the next season but once they have decided on the construction of a specific model they outsource the mass production to countries like China and Thailand.
Boards are indeed getting more and more delicate. It is the trade off to make them lighter. Also, lighter materials are also more expensive. However the increasing cost of boards (and sails) is usually related to oil prices, taxes and production costs such as materials and wages. So if a brand is producing in China and China increases the minimum wage of factory workers then that will affect the production cost and ultimately the retail price. Also, if the oil price rises then transporting the boards from Asia to the various distributors around the globe will be more expensive which will also ultimately be paid by the windsurfers.
As for the need of the latest equipment, I would say it is not that important. You can still sail perfectly well with boards from as much as 10 years ago. The only reason you would need to go with newer bards is if you want to keep up with the latest moves and tricks which require kit that is optimised for that.
I hope I have been able to clear up your questions 🙂
Hola Arne,
Me dejan una tabla que ha sido usada para un anuncion promocional de fanatic bien de precio, el que la vende me ha dicho lo siguiente: “the bottom has ripples from jumping, the kid jumped it pretty hard” que opinas? Merece la pena?
Gracias,
Ernesto
Hola Ernesto. Yo no creo que sea buena idea. Si le ha dado tanta caña como para dejarla blanda está bastante delaminada y eso cada vez irá a peor y reparar algo asà es bastante costoso.
Yo no lo harÃa 😉
Hola Arne, muchas gracias por el consejo! He mirado lo que he podido sobre delaminación, y creo que tienes razón. No sabÃa que las ondas en la parte de abajo eran eso, delaminación, supongo que deben haber saltado con la tabla y caÃdo con la tabla plana en el agua. Gracias, Ernesto
Hi Arne!
Very helpfull info!
I recently bought a used rrd xfire V4 114 lt board and found it great.
Except its weight.It is 7.4 kg (bare)while factory says 6,3 +- 6%.
I did not found any dings or cracks ,neither signs of water in the air vent.
Is it possible that an extra epoxy ,due to a well hidden repair,is the point?
Sheller accepts return of the board or a reduced price.
Can you help me to decide?
Thanks in advance!
Yiannis
Greece
We have had the problem of some of our boards being heavier after a large repair so it is definitely a possibility.
Have you sailed with it? If you don’t find it reduces the sailing experience I wouldn’t be too worried. However it you have to carry it around a lot or have a lomg way to walk with it to the waterline you might have a less enjoyable experience every time you sail.
Test the board before you buy it and see if you an get planing OK. If so then a reduced price may be in order. If you have trouble sailing with it, find another board.
Hope this helps 😉
Thanks a lot for the rapid response.
I ‘ve sailed the board and found it excellent in stability and ease of use.May be the early planning and top speed are not matching the score of one with the original weight but this is only a hupothesis.
I will propose the seller to keep it for a reduced price.
Thanks again!!!
Good atuff. I am happy I could help. Have fun on the water!
Amazing.. !! this is a real good reference for my upcoming projects!