Burton Modified Fish 2017 - 2016 Review by The Good Ride

• User Reviews
• Product Specs
• Product Images
• Questions?

Ethics Statement: We don’t get paid by the manufacturer to write these reviews.  We do make money from the “Where To Buy” links, but this is our best attempt at an honest and objective review from an average riders’ perspective.

Size: 156
Days:  2
Conditions: 1.5-2.5 feet of pretty good Sierra Powder. Really good groomers
Riders: James, and Jack
Boots: Burton Imperial
Bindings: Burton Diode
Set Up: Set mostly back, 23″ Wide 15 front -3 back

Approximate Weight: Feels normal

On Snow Feel: The flat from the tail to a little past the front binding transitioning to the rocker and a big nose feels pretty stable. It’s got that same flat to rocker feel as the Burton Fish.  It’s easy to one foot and flat base and provides a stable catch free ride.  It’s a cruiser that’s pretty much for powder but doable on groomers.

Powder: This is really what this board is all about and it does feel like a fish does in the water. It’s a little slower turning than the Burton Branch Manager or Landlord but it’s still very doable in the trees. If you want more slashy and quick the Branch Manager or Landlord is the call but if you want more of a cruiser that has a little more drawn out turns this could work.  It plains well above the snow just like a fish surfboard sits higher on the water so it’s got all the float you need. So all in all very surfy. My only complaint is the flat in the tail is a little dead and doesn’t have as much snap as the Barracuda. Because of that most of our crew prefers the directional camber boards like the Landlord and especially the Branch Manager better.

Turn Initiation: Not as slow as the Fish but not as fast as the barracuda. It can slash in the trees but we had more fun making more drawn out turns in wide open faces.  It felt more cruisy than powerful and snappy.  For those that surf the Barracuda felt like a shortboard and the Mod-Fish felt like its name.

Carving: Pretty boring here.  It’s doable but just doesn’t provide much spring out of the turn.  You can cruise around after the powder is done but it’s not really the kind of board that enhances turning on groomers.

Speed: Yeah pretty fast and for a 156 it can provide a good bit of speed.

Uneven Terrain: Pretty good here and pretty damp slapping through some tracks but when it’s tracked out bumpy snow it’s a little bouncy but not that bad at all. It can weave in and out of bumps well enough.

Edge Hold: Not much here and mainly for powder to good snow.

Flex:  Med/Stiff but you can butter off the tail.

Switch: Doable but not great.

So all in all this is a good board for getting an easy surfy float.  Jack really liked this board because he’s a cruiser so it’s really about is this right for your riding style. If you are cruiser who likes to ride very set back and aren’t that concerned about pop off the tail for an ollie or spring out of a turn then this could really work.  Especially if you are normal size boot. Yeah, the Standard Burton Fish can be ridden by riders like me with size 9 boots but it’s much more for mid/wide Riders. Of the Fish vs. Modified Fish, I really preferred the 25.4 cm waist of the Mod Fish compared to the 26.0cm waist of the Fish for my specs and I think if your boots are size 10 and under you probably will too.