stevelo said...

Thanks for the pics stevelo.............any Dimensions to go with them?

Kite Pom said...

Asian sup boards,asian cars,asian clothes asian furniture,asian holidays,asian people,asian culture,asian imports!! asia asia asia big deal we sell them our raw materials our commodities,minerels,food and much more Then we buy it back as a finished product And first class quality Same as the European Brands imported into oz.
Welcome to the real world of globalization some people have tunnel vision and winge because they can China/Asia the the country's of mystique and quality

take your point however this is off the topic,its about backyard importers of cheap sup,not brand names or retailers

goatman said...

So if you don't start on an Asian pop out, what do you start on? A custom hand made epoxy?

I love the hypocrisy from people condemning Asian made products - what apart from a few niche products - is not made in Asia these days?

The wise "goatman" ... good comment
i have two pop outs one Southpoint and one Kai Mana both excellent well made boards ... i now have a custom Laguna
Score: Imports = 2 Local = 1
Price/Value for Money: Imports win
Value/Service/backup: Local wins
also Kite Pom .... having a view does not make one a whinger ... we are all conscripts of Buy Asia they do it better than us and are cheaper ... lets face it money rules
it is not about protectionism and as a frequent traveller to Asia i find they are more capitalistic than us ... (you buy you buy)
However ... it is not all about price ... support local ... but even backyard entrepreneurs have to make a buck somehow now manufacturing has gone offshore

Like I said previously you don't make buckets of money out of selling boards there are much easier ways to make it in fact this is a fun way to spend. Anything that every does is to make a few dollars, not everyone however can chose what they want to do. It just so happens that I choose to do what I enjoy and that is play around water orientated products.
If I were here for the money I would have left it shares, sunshine SUP you have obviously had a bad experience along the way. Remember competition is good

Everybody is in it to make money !! From the little thai national who tapes up the boxes at cobra before the board gets shipped o/s right through to the good old hardworking aussie shaper in the factory on the goldy. Yep, there is some inferior product out there but our industry is no different to any other and like any other product in any other industry supply will be driven by demand and if the average punter is screaming for sub 1grand boards then you can bet your as# that there will always be someone who can and will supply the demand. Thats just the way it is. If we are going to get all high and mighty about the subject then we perhaps need to be talking to the government about product standards and warranties etc - but do we really want the government to oversee and standardise the product ?? I know its getting off the subject a bit - but who says what is right and wrong and what is good and bad ?
Just to make a point - in the past 12 months on the goldy a certain importer of chinese surfboards had a huge clearance of all their stock and you could pick up a new board for less than $300. Just about everyone I know who bought one of these boards said "yeah I know they are cr#p and will fall apart in no time but they are so cheap and will be fine for the kids or the missus or just a spare" And - most of the people I know who bought these boards are owners of quality australian made surfboards and would never personally purchase an asian popout for their own use - but you see - at the end of the day money talks I'm afraid, and there is a market for cheap boards regardless of their quality. I don't like it either but that's life.