Jones Mind Expander Twin Written Review Review by The Good Ride

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Ethics Statement: We don’t get paid by the manufacturer to write these reviews and this is our unfiltered opinion. 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.

How it rides and who it is for

How This Review Happened:

We borrowed this for an extended demo and sent it back. And a big thank you to Chris for letting me ride his 154.
Size: 158 & 154
Days: 10+
Conditions: Got about 1 foot of pretty good pow, some wet pow and some in between pow. With the 2022 model I got on Hard groomers, some dust on crust and a little more than dust on crust but still not a pow day along with an early morning Drift Before the Lifts with Drift Boards.
Riders: James (Size 9, 5’10” 185-190lbs)
Boots: Burton Kendo
Insoles: F.I.T. Gamechangers, F.I.T. Gameghangers LP
Bindings: Union Atlas
Jacket: Burton AK Gore-Tex Pro 3L Tusk Jacket, Volcom TDF Infuse 3L Gore-Tex Jacket, Burton Banshee Gore-Tex Jacket
Pant: Burton AK Gore-Tex Pro 3L Hover Pant, Burton AK Gore-Tex 2L Swash Pant, Burton Gore-Tex Ballast Pant
Helmet: Smith Maze, Smith Vantage
Goggle: Smith IO Mag, Smith 4D Mag
Gloves: Burton AK Clutch Mitt, Burton AK Clutch Glove, CG Habitats Work Glove, Drop Tahoma Mitt

Similar Boards (but not the same): YES 20/20, Capita Spring Break Powder

Set-Up: 21.5” Wide. 15 front -15 back. Close to Reference. In powder +18/-9 and set as far back as I could.

Approximate Weight:

The Jones Mind Expander Twin felt on the light side of normal.  (We don’t put in the exact weight because with wood cores there is no consistency in a boards weight)

Sizing

The Jones Mind Expander Twin 158 felt better overall for me than the 154. The 154 was a little more fun on groomers for my specs but the 158 felt way better in powder. Not 100% sure here but the Jones Mind Expander Twin seems to want to be ridden a little wider than you normally would to get more float from a close to centered stance in powder. It seems better for 8-10 boots and not for 10+ like it’s width might suggest.

Here are some ideal US boot sizes for the Jones Mind Expander Twins if you want a pow first and groomer second board.

146: 6-7
150: 7-8
154: 8-9
158: 9-10
162: 10-11

Shape/Camber/On Snow Feel/Ability Level

The Jones Mind Expander Twin has a directional twin shape like the Jones Mountain twin but with a longer nose/tail and less camber. Like the JMT it’s just a little longer in the nose than the tail but overall very double ender.

The camber is really mellow to increase float in powder but not totally shit the bed on groomers either. It is very mellow and forgiving when it comes to skidding a turn.

Flex Personality

The Jones Mind Expander Twin has a pretty medium/stiff flex underfoot but more of a medium flex in the nose and something in-between that in the tail. It didn’t have the pop of the newer Jones Mountain Twin but I found myself always wanting to be in the air off piste in softer snow. It was pretty easy to butter too.

Speed/Base Glide

Such a fast easy gliding base. Love Jones bases.  The Jones Mind Expander Twin has a lot of rocker and a big nose/tail that definely clown shoes around but it doesn’t let the chatter get to your joints in an annoying way. You can make a short straight line or two into a kicker with confidence.

Uneven Terrain

The Jones Mind Expander Twin can get a little more cranky and chattery in harder micro bumpy snow than the Jones Mountain Twin but it isn’t bad at all. It’s nothing like the Stratos or other ultra-light boards. It turned rather well in the bumps too. Not a bad all day resort ride and it’s pretty good in tracked up messy snow like you might see on a crowded pow day.

Edge Hold

Very competent edge hold. Grips well in hard snow.

Turning Experience/Carving

So what I fortot to mention in the video above was how turny the Jones Mind Expander Twin was off piste in softer snow. Even though it’s a twin it has a pretty surfy/slashy feel underfoot off the groomers regular or switch. It has that same turning magic as my Mind Expander but of course in a twin shape. I really liked the off piste turning experience. Groomer carves are passable but not as much fun as the Jones Mountain Twin. Of course, this isn’t what the Mind Expander Twin is about but I’m glad they made some effort to put in some camber to help. The real treat is the long spoon nose/tail. It has such a fun turning experience in softer snow.

Powder

So I did get more time in pow with the Jones Mind Expander Twin. That is mainly what it’s for and it does a very good job for a directional twin. I think the Spring Break Powder Twin and YES 2020 have a little more centered float but this is now slouch. What I personally liked was the little bit of set back on board though for a directional twin. I also liked the JME better on groomers than the 2020 and SB Pow Twin. If you like to ride pow more centered/switch this is a very good choice. I really enjoyed how the spoon nose and tail made the turning experience so smooth and fluid. It’s really a fun experience.

There is the same setback on board as the Jones Mountain Twin of 1.75” back from center of board with a 22.75” stance width. So not much set back on board but this is meant to be ridden more centered. If you like to land and ride switch in powder this is a great choice.

Switch/Pipe/Jumps

Almost as easy as a true twin and a very confidence inspiring switch rider. This isn’t really a park board but it sure will kill it treating the slackcountry like a park. If you want a more park friendly ride go with the Jones Tweaker. Or go Jones Mountain Twin if you like the mountain but want a more park friendly ride.

Conclusion

So if you want a mountain freestyle powder board the Jones Mountain Twin is a great choice. Having this and the Jones Mountain Twin would make for a great 2 board mountain freestyle quiver.

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Here is the 2022 Review of the Jones Mind Expander Twin if you want to geek more on it.