Didn’t find one, thought it might be a good idea to start one up.
I hadn’t ridden a Mervin deck in years, prior to last season. After a bunch of seasons on nearly every deck in the Korua Shapes lineup (still hanging onto a few shapes in the active quiver), I impulsively grabbed last season’s Jamie Lynn 160w and it was a total blast getting back on a normal-ass popsicle plank again.
So, I traded and sold a bunch of shit and now have a growing Lib/Gnu quiver. I know Mervin’s got its haters like everyone else; the graphics might not be everyone’s cup of tea, there’s reputed issues with the bases, etc., but every Mervin deck I’ve ever ridden brings a certain joy (and reckless aggression) to my day. Reminds me of the time in snowboarding where we gave fewer fucks and didn’t overthink every bit of gear.
Totally with you on this one. Riding the Banked Country at a demo last season had me on some YEEEHAAAWWWW type of vibes that I’ve not felt in years.
I’d never actually owned a Mervin deck, with the exception of buying a Mullair and selling it again without riding it due to you know what. I am kind of kicking myself for not getting the Jamie Lynn ‘96 reissue. One of those boards I really wanted as a kid but couldn’t afford. I’d love to try the JL you have on the right in the pic too.
I’ve also got a Banked Country 60w and it was definitely a surprise standout. I’m generally steering clear of most C2 boards, but I haven’t ridden a dud Mervin, yet. That being said, even my old Lando 160 holds a hardpack carve better than a good number of other boards I own.
Really want to try the Dynamo and Ejack Knife! I think my main reservations are the TNT bases and that they don't have full edge wraps in the nose and tail. Any issues with that?
Banked has a sintered base and felt very fast to me riding back to back with a Nitro and a US. Hard to be objective about the base specifically though as the GNU was simply a very fast snowboard compared to the others.
eleveneightnate wrote: ↑Sun Sep 15, 2024 12:30 pm
Really want to try the Dynamo and Ejack Knife! I think my main reservations are the TNT bases and that they don't have full edge wraps in the nose and tail. Any issues with that?
TNT seems to be mostly a recycle/nice graphics thing. For some, it really doesn't matter much. Never had an issue with edges besides some full wrapped ones. The tips on Mervins are all ptex anyways, so not hard to repair.
eleveneightnate wrote: ↑Sun Sep 15, 2024 12:30 pm
Really want to try the Dynamo and Ejack Knife! I think my main reservations are the TNT bases and that they don't have full edge wraps in the nose and tail. Any issues with that?
I'll be riding the Banked Country as a daily back-to-back with the Cadet, depending mostly on how good or bad the conditions are. For frozen icy hardpack it'll be the BC all day every day. I rode the Dynamo a bunch in the past and that's a good board too, but I rode an E Jack Knife as my daily for about 5 years, and only moved away from it because full mag gets on my nerves. If they made the E Jack with progressive mag, I'd be all over that.
@ad1105's description for riding these decks with "reckless aggression" describes them perfectly.
SJF_NH wrote: ↑Sun Sep 15, 2024 4:47 pm
I'll be riding the Banked Country as a daily back-to-back with the Cadet, depending mostly on how good or bad the conditions are.
Wish the BC came in ~157W. The 160W is a lot of board for me, but the 155 and 159 are too narrow. Guess that's why I've leaned toward the Dynamo with all its size options, but then it has the shitty TNT base.
It was interesting to read all the comments on TNT way back in EZ1.0. I had ridden a couple Libs back in the late 90’s and never had a glide issue, then. And anything I’ve ridden from Mervin recently didn’t have a glide issue, either. I’m wondering if that might’ve been a waxing thing? I’m usually diligent with waxing so it perhaps I’ve never ridden a dry Mervin base?
I’m not sure how I feel about pricing boards that high when they’re sporting extruded bases, but our rep tells me not all extruded bases are created equal. I should look into it
