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Naish Raptor (& Keiki)

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Created by Coastie > 9 months ago, 8 Jan 2015
Coastie
NSW, 76 posts
8 Jan 2015 6:16PM
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From WindSurfnSnow's Instagram,

http://instagram.com/p/xgtdMlxJ6w/

"New Naish goodies! The biggest in the pic is the 7' x 31" Raptor. The one I want is the 7'x 28"! Sweet!! Naish are also pushing it with the super groms Keiki range. 6'2", 6'6" & 6'10" should get the hyper groms frothing!"

Cant find any other info anywhere. Has anyone seen/ridden them?

BrisKites
QLD, 1292 posts
9 Jan 2015 11:52AM
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Select to expand quote
Coastie said..

Cant find any other info anywhere. Has anyone seen/ridden them?


That's because they haven't been released yet. Seems NAISH in the UK aren't so good at keeping a secret..

Just quietly there might be a couple in Aus though

DavidJohn
VIC, 17569 posts
9 Jan 2015 4:07PM
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I heard there's been some secret testing going on here..

OceanAddicts
QLD, 357 posts
Site Sponsor
9 Jan 2015 4:29PM
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Demo board just in on the Sunshine Coast - 7'0" x 28". Come and take it for a spin!








Nose rocker-

Tail Rocker -





Double through the centre -

Single in the Nose -

Solid glass honeycomb fins -



Slightly rounded deck

Tail -

Nose -




WINDSURFnSNOW
NSW, 1613 posts
Site Sponsor
9 Jan 2015 7:01PM
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BrisKites said...
Coastie said..

Cant find any other info anywhere. Has anyone seen/ridden them?


That's because they haven't been released yet. Seems NAISH in the UK aren't so good at keeping a secret..

Just quietly there might be a couple in Aus though


UK?
7'x28" in store and on demo this weekend in Collaroy Sydney.

WA Surf
WA, 336 posts
11 Jan 2015 9:04PM
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Secret? In the world of internet? HAHAAHAAAAAAAAA. Classic.

Looking forward to getting one and see how it rides.

JB
NSW, 2232 posts
Site Sponsor
15 Jan 2015 11:26AM
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Ok yes I am me and do what I do, But thought I'd put my feed back after riding the boards for a few sessions now as these are only samples there are not many in the country yet.

I have been riding the Small (7'0" x 28" @95ltrs) and the Medium (7'0" x 31" @115ltrs).
Both boards are amazingly fast, somewhat mind blowing even in real junky surf. The Small is definitely noticeably more lively, but at my weight (at this time was 98-101kgs) was pretty difficult to paddle and wait out the back, so I have spend most of my time on the Medium (i would say slightly easier than the Hokua 7'8").

The Medium took me a while to get my head around, as my shortboard style of riding did not really seem to work smoothly on it. Standy seemed more comfortable on it first up than me.

Both board have a ridiculous turning circle and allow you to pull full blown powered 180+ degree turns under the lip and come out with tonnes of speed even on mushy crappy waves.

The Medium is super easy to stand on for stability and waiting around out the back (comparable to the 8'3" X32). When I finally got my head around relaxing and leaning back into the rail the board came alive, and I mean really alive.

I rode both boards with the FCS HI-1 Quad set which in hind sight now may be a little too big, but as my favorite fin setup, I felt it best for testing. This morning for the first time ever I got the fins whistling the board was moving so fast. A real fun, fast and exciting ride.

Tricky bits, I do find the board will continue straight when you try to turn if you don't engage the rail, feels a bit like trying to ride a Mal from the middle of the board, but when you get the style sorted out, the board never wants to stop turning.

All up and amazing board especially for beachies, every ride I am getting more and more out of the board. For me definitely not a board you'll have sorted on the first few sessions, but one that will entice you to ride it again and again as you start to uncover it's potential. At the rate my experience is changing on this board, it will be my favorite board by next week.

Stock will be in stores around Easter. I hope to get a video up soon.

Ride safe,

JB - Naish Australia

Jradedmondo
NSW, 637 posts
15 Jan 2015 1:46PM
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JB said..
Ok yes I am me and do what I do, But thought I'd put my feed back after riding the boards for a few sessions now as these are only samples there are not many in the country yet.

I have been riding the Small (7'0" x 28" @95ltrs) and the Medium (7'0" x 31" @115ltrs).
Both boards are amazingly fast, somewhat mind blowing even in real junky surf. The Small is definitely noticeably more lively, but at my weight (at this time was 98-101kgs) was pretty difficult to paddle and wait out the back, so I have spend most of my time on the Medium (i would say slightly easier than the Hokua 7'8").




so JB you say small and medium, is there a large coming for us slightly larger guys

Jarryd

Windgenuity
NSW, 674 posts
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15 Jan 2015 5:00PM
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Hey Jarryd,

Yes there is 3 sizes at this point. We have not seen the large yet (the ones we have are all samples), but I believe it is 7'0" x 33" @128ltrs.

Regards,

JB

Rossall
WA, 726 posts
18 Jan 2015 4:31PM
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JB are they being made in just LE and any idea on RRP ?

colas
5364 posts
18 Jan 2015 7:09PM
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Sizing seems very good: keep the same length while enlarging width & volume seems the right way to design a rang of this kind of boards... Interesting!

Rossall
WA, 726 posts
18 Jan 2015 11:02PM
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I can see these boards being quite a challenge for the Naish board bag designer ;-)

JB
NSW, 2232 posts
Site Sponsor
19 Jan 2015 9:44AM
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Hey Rossall,

RRP at this point (hopefully the dollar stay stable til we pay the bill!!)$2,499.00 With honey comb quad fins and a board bag. The board bag is actually probably the best fitting one out of all the HOKUA boards. Yes the boards are all in the same 2015 LE construction with Carbon honeycomb sandwich deck for the lightest, stiffest, taughtest boards.

First shipment expected round Easter, Most larger dealers have already pre-ordered boards, so get in quick if you want to be the first on a new HOKUA RAPTOR LE, as the next shipment is not until June.

Colas, having not ridden the Large yet, can;t comment on the full range, but the Small to Medium changes are perfect and the design of the boards really works well staying at the same length. After spending more time on the medium, I think this board is going to be a must for east coast beach breaks, it continues to excite me!

Ride safe,

JB

windara
QLD, 256 posts
19 Jan 2015 9:15AM
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Windgenuity said..
Hey Jarryd,

Yes there is 3 sizes at this point. We have not seen the large yet (the ones we have are all samples), but I believe it is 7'0" x 33" @128ltrs.

Regards,

JB


I demoed the 7.0 x 33 but it doesn't have the litres written on it but we were guessing around the 108-110 . I had a paddle in some junky 2-3 foot waves and is a lot of fun. Picks up speed quickly and feels loose. Im 93 ish kilo and floated me ok

JB
NSW, 2232 posts
Site Sponsor
19 Jan 2015 1:33PM
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Hey Windara,

There are no Larges in the counrty yet, so must have been the 7' x 31" which Surf FX has at the moment. Supposed to be 116ltrs. And yes, it does pick up speed really quickly!!

Ride safe,

JB

windara
QLD, 256 posts
19 Jan 2015 2:14PM
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JB said..
Hey Windara,

There are no Larges in the counrty yet, so must have been the 7' x 31" which Surf FX has at the moment. Supposed to be 116ltrs. And yes, it does pick up speed really quickly!!

Ride safe,

JB


Oh yeh that's the one JB. Cheers

Antho
VIC, 516 posts
20 Jan 2015 11:06AM
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Hay JB
Any information about the weight of these boards?
Thanks in advance

RRK
61 posts
20 Jan 2015 10:00AM
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Already things are mixing up. Same "minion" like parallel rails but a classic double concave bottom rather than the single concave with channels.
Correct me please but the theory of the planning hull gets a bit lost in the Naish??? How interesting it would be to ride these 2 different takes on a concept side by side.
I am actually looking for a mush wave board. another choice to add. so far the only one is the airborne really.

flowmaster
354 posts
20 Jan 2015 6:39PM
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R&D going on

JB
NSW, 2232 posts
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21 Jan 2015 9:47AM
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Hey Antho, from memory the spec'd weight that was on the box net was 5.1kg for the Meduim (7'0" x 31' @116ltrs).

Hey RRK, Naish have definitely delivered something different to what is already on the market. And it is pretty exciting to ride. I have to admit, it has taken me some sessions to really work it out, but now I think it is becoming my favourite beach break board. It catches waves so easily, it's amazing for it's size. And when I say say easy, I mean like a 10' board, really impressive.

Here is a little vid I popped together in some really ugly conditions, 10+kts dead onshore and mushy closeout knee high slop. I was more playing with a new GoPro mount (which didn't really work yet! Mark II will be on it's way soon) and stuffed around with some fast frame changing editing (which also didn't really work, but is watchable). Always good to play around and experiment

This doesn;t really showcase the boards potential, but in some ways it does. If you saw the waves from the beach, you most likely wouldn't have gone out.



Ride safe,

JB

Antho
VIC, 516 posts
21 Jan 2015 11:29AM
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Looks great JB as you said considering the quality of the waves. I'm really looking forward to demoing the 7' x 33 Large,

gregbuydts
63 posts
22 Jan 2015 7:13PM
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JB said..
Hey Antho, from memory the spec'd weight that was on the box net was 5.1kg for the Meduim (7'0" x 31' @116ltrs).

Hey RRK, Naish have definitely delivered something different to what is already on the market. And it is pretty exciting to ride. I have to admit, it has taken me some sessions to really work it out, but now I think it is becoming my favourite beach break board. It catches waves so easily, it's amazing for it's size. And when I say say easy, I mean like a 10' board, really impressive.

Here is a little vid I popped together in some really ugly conditions, 10+kts dead onshore and mushy closeout knee high slop. I was more playing with a new GoPro mount (which didn't really work yet! Mark II will be on it's way soon) and stuffed around with some fast frame changing editing (which also didn't really work, but is watchable). Always good to play around and experiment

This doesn;t really showcase the boards potential, but in some ways it does. If you saw the waves from the beach, you most likely wouldn't have gone out.



Ride safe,

JB


JB, if you got a choice to make what would you prefer? the X32 or the Raptor? greetz

JB
NSW, 2232 posts
Site Sponsor
23 Jan 2015 7:59AM
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Hey Gregbuydts,

This is a tricky one as I have been riding the X32 for a long time now and only just got the Raptor dialed. They are different boards and suit different styles and expectations.

PROS.
- The Raptor is amazingly fast and catches waves super easy, like riding a longboard, it's amazing. It also has an unbelievable turning circle. Being so small, it's super light and responsive. The really parralell rails and super wide tail keep the speed going all the time. The boards really have the keeled twin/mini simmons feel.
- The X32 is such an intuitive board, it really is a big guys shortboard and surf's amazing. The rail, tail, rocker and bottom shape give it surfboard like characteristics unlike any other SUP of that volume. I can ride the X32 in any condition and it gouges turns like a weapon, gives you dreamy bottom turns and handles hairy drops without flinching. This board essentially surf's like a shortboard.

NOT SO PRO's - (JB's opinion).
- The Raptor isn't a shortboard, it is really it's own thing, and I still get caught out from time to time when my instinct tells me to smack the lip. You really have to adopt a different style to bring this board a live. That given the style is really relaxed and fun. I really surfs more like a twin.
- The X32 has an awesome shortboard rocker, but this also results in yawing and slower paddling. The performance is awesome on a wave but like a shortboard you have to work for it.

So in conclusion, these boards are different, and I would probably have both in my quiver (cause I can), but I would put it down to where I am surfing majority of the time and the style of surfing I do most as to the decision. And given the conditions i regularly surf here at Palmy (smallish beachies), I think the Raptor will be a welcome addition to my everyday quiver.

I hope this helps a bit, you really have to try the Raptor, and a few time to to get an idea of what it is about. I have found each surf the board just keeps getting better and better as I work it out more. And in the small stuff, there is not much that is as fun as this board.

Ride safe,

JB

RRK
61 posts
23 Jan 2015 7:56AM
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thanks JB!!!
That was a great showcase. Seems to work well of the back foot. Wide tails means you can put your foot back, put weight on it without it sinking due to lack of speed I guess. That is my usual problem on my current board. It needs bigger swell to come alive.
May be too wide for big stuff but where I live we seldomly get that anyway.

gregbuydts
63 posts
23 Jan 2015 4:41PM
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Thx JB !

I've got the X 32 8'3 and was wondering to swap it for the Raptor but i quess it would be better to just ad it to my quiver.
I mostly surf crappy beachbreak but in summer it is south of France with quality swell so maybe a Raptor for crappy beachbreaks and the x32 for more powerfull swell, thx again fot the help !

gregbuydts
63 posts
23 Jan 2015 4:43PM
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the only thing that holds me back is the volume.
i'm 1.93 tall and weigh 93 kg, could be a problem?

colas
5364 posts
23 Jan 2015 5:17PM
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93kg for 116l should OK with some practice on such a shape.

my 100kg on a 120l "egg" shape, not even a rectangle, were super stable. A 120l board with lesser OFOs is noticeably harder for me.

The issue could be: are the announced volumes the actual ones? Some brands ofthen misdjudge them...

JB
NSW, 2232 posts
Site Sponsor
26 Jan 2015 12:40AM
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Hey Gregbuydts, I am 192 and 95+kgs. Medium is perfect.

JB

supit
22 posts
7 Feb 2015 6:57PM
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Hello everybody,

here's a few snapshots taken during my second session with the Naish Raptor S in very windy and choppy conditions. For me the Raptor S was a plug&play thing and I haven't ridden a decent wave with this toy yet!!

www.standuppaddling.it/phoca-gallery/category/18-naish-raptor-second-windy-choppy-session.html

Cheers,
Marco

PS I weight 65 Kg plus ... wetsuit!

breezeout
WA, 10 posts
8 Feb 2015 4:09AM
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Gents,
what is very windy in your opinons? 5-6 Bft or even more?
If that raptor is portable and surfable in high winds, this should open new opportunities for areas with waves only occuring in high winds.
And presently you cannot even get to the beach here with bigger boards in times where the wind waves arrive (6-7 Bft.)
Regards,
Jens

Stev0
422 posts
8 Feb 2015 6:25AM
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I reckon 15 knots is the wind limit for SUP surfing depending on the angle and if it is a beach break, reef or point break. The main thing is your skills and the stability of your board. But high wind sucks for SUP surfing as either too mushy onshore, too choppy side shore or too hard to catch waves offshore. I go wave sailing when it is windy so enjoy windsurfing as my high wind sport and SUP surf on my 7'4 Minion when conditions are good. Saying this I want a bigger board for choppy windy sessions.



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"Naish Raptor (& Keiki)" started by Coastie