Been surfkiting since early 2008. First with straps then, fairly quickly, strapless. I was initially more focussed on surfing, then I decided to do some progress on airs and jumping. My first surfboard was a SS SST 6'2. Good shape, light and fast but a weak construction. Then I bought a WH 6'1 (Jimmy Lewis shape). Good board, good construction. But too much volume for me now and dead heavy. So I got my SS 6'2 fixed by a shaper (cracks under front foot). Was pleased with it for... 10 sessions max, then boom, snapped in 2 pieces after some good jumps over waves. Went back to the WH 6'1. Way too heavy for jumping strapless IMHO and the board shows some signs of weakness........
I know I should buy a new board, but I winder if I should go for a production one, a custom board by a local shaper or even go for some 2nd hand boards for cheap price...
Question: do you guys break your boards quite often? When I see pro-riders on video (alldredge, keahi) doing massive airs landing pretty flat, I guess these guys break their boards every 2-3 sessions, don't they?
By the end, strapless surfkiting can turn costly...

Strapless air is the most damaging to boards.

The boards will snap. The naish skater has a layer of pvc under the wood that makes the board much stronger...but there is no guarantee. My buddy is a board snap machine and the skater has held up for him. Mine is going strong.

Eventually it will snap.

Firewires on the second market. They are the strongest surfboards ive found, but they will still snap. In my area,So. Cal, you see all kinds on Craigslist. I try to find them for 250 or less. The surftechs(tuflites) are very strong, but have a corky feel when your on a wave. Maybe just have a thrasher board for jumping.

Aviso carbon boards. I have a SS with strap slots but never use the straps. Bomber.

Had the same experience with buckling boards doing strapless airs. Well made boards like Firewire and Tuflite are good choices, but you will break those down over time too. They will either crack, snap or turn to mush.

New Naish Skater is really strong and a fun board. So far it has held up well. To be fair it also feels a bit heavier than Firewire and Tuflites.

It is good to connect with a good board repair guy who is experienced with the new tech board construction.

Good luck.

Yup it is a little heavier than the tuflites, but not heavy IMO. Make sure when you get surftech it is tuflites...they have other constructions that are way too fragile. For me the tuflights held up way better than firewire.

There is mention of the Firewire surfboards snapping, and yes the surf models will.

Guarantee the kite shapes won't snap though...unless you thrash it into a boulder. Airs, jumps, you name it...the newest construction is bomb proof. I have yet to snap one...and I've tried.

Real surfboards give an indie car ride and are light and flexible.
They are optimized for wave riding, not for jumping.

Adding durability and making a bullet proof surfboard will cost you dearly.
To prevent it from heel denting or snapping in half, requires additional reinforcing layers.
This will gernerally make the board heavy, stiff, and without flex. (a $700 kitesurf board)

I prefer the real surfboard feel.
This means I ride strapless on a Firewire or regular polyester surfboard.
Used surfboards are only $250, so I don't mind dealing with repairs.
But I do have a kitesurf board with straps for those big gnarly days.

Take your pick. Optimal ride quality or Durability.
I don't think you can have your cake and eat it too. WW

For sure you can have your cake and at least taste it too.

Once you really figure out what shape you want and ride it till it snaps, take the wreckage to a good shaper with a clue about kiteboarding. They can make em nice and light, to your specs and way tougher than you think. The craftsman will never do you wrong. You often pay less than you might think. Certainly on par with a lot of new surfboard pricing out there, and often less than the exotics.

I have a lot of hope for the industry tho. There are people out there working on it and the newer vacume techniques and materials are making progress. Simple and strong with all the feel. Saw a few boards that were pretty sweet on my last trip to the banks. Featherlight will always come at the cost of durability or just big bucks, but light and fun is available and soon will make it to a beach near you in numbers. Even in traditional materials, using 6 oz glass will make a board last way way longer without making it a brick.

Firewire Taj is a killer board and hold up well. The Firewires (kite construction) I have never snapped, but the deck totally delamed from very harsh landings. The later boards held up longer. Maybe it is my fat ass that is the problem?

No board lasts forever. If it does it would probably ride like sh%#.