How's the durability of the new Naish 2015 LE's? I've heard some say great and some say there less durable than last years. What do you guys think?

P.S. If you ride for Naish Id prefer unbiased options

I also have an 2014 LE 14' X26 and it's not only awesome but has no damage at all because I'm so careful with it out of the water.. I think that's where most of the damage occurs on these light weight boards..

In fairness to Naish, many brands and many constructions will get dents on the bottom if carry your board against your hip while wearing a hydration unit with buckles etc at the side. Several boards of mine from various brands have unfortunately acquired these, even the tough heavy AST-type construction ones.

If you are a wham-bam-thankyou-mam type who is rough with gear, and isn't willing to do basic care things like using a bag/cover, not putting down the board on stones, using rack pads and broad rack straps tied carefully, using paddle edge blade protection and/or rail tape, then the solution is simple: don't buy these superlight (and uber-expensive) constructions, or else just accept that you will have an ongoing ding repair bill and your board will be worth next to nothing in a year or two. It's scary when you see one of these kinds of boards cut in half: they look basically like a piece of rather cheap-looking packing-type foam with a splash of paint on it, with little else. But that is not just true of Naish LE boards, but all the superlight boards from all brands coming out of the Cobra factory (ie. most of them).

So, do what DJ does, or don't buy one, or face big bills. The choice is yours.

Agree with Area 10, there are a number of big name boards with carbon construction that are fragile. I have a 2015 LE which I am super happy with overall and I have found to be more durable than I expected (and I'm definitely not a Naish rider!). But I bought it knowing that I was paying for a super light board that I would need to look after more than a heavier construction board and was prepared for some dings and repairs. I've only had one tiny rail crack that a puka patch took care of.

I can't comment directly on the durability compared to the 2014 LE as I've never owned one. But I do have a 2013 LE that seems to be more durable than both of the more recent models, had it for nearly 2 years and no cracks, dings or repairs. I've had beginners play around with it, tried to surf it and it survived the recent 12 Towers race intact (not me riding it!) If only it was 26" instead of 24"!

The 2015 is more robust than the 2014

BrisKites said..
The 2015 is more robust than the 2014

Robust? How so?

AndyR said..
carbon on sup boards suck - end of story.

This statement sucks :-) . The issue is the amount of fibers... the more the heavier and stronger.

You can have bombproof carbon boards or eggshell ones, just like with fiberglass.

light, strong, cheap: pick two.

Andy you are on the money
Im sure my 2015 was from a bad batch