K2 Commonwealth Snowboard Review

An Honest Breakdown Of How the K2 Commonwealth Rides Review by The Good Ride

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

How The K2 Commonwealth Was Tested:

I borrowed the K2 Commonwealth for an extended demo and liked it so much we bought it.  Precious Good Ride dollars were spent buying and reviewing this.

Size:157 & 160
Days: 3 but more to come.
Conditions: Pretty good varied spring conditions with a little thick wet late spring pow surprise
Riders: James (Size 9, 5’10”, 185-195lbs). I’ve tested and compared 800+ boards and close to 1,000 if you count different versions of the same Model over the years.
Boots: Nitro Team TLS
Insoles: Footprint Kingfoam Orthotic Elite
Bindings: Union Force
Redundancy: Strapins in case boots or bindings break.
Jacket: Skyline Fuse 3L Jacket, Skyline Fuse Light 3L Jacket
Pant: Burton AK Gore-Tex Pro 3L Hover Pant, Skyline Faze Pant
Helmet: Smith Method, Smith Scout, Smith Maze
Goggle: Smith 4D Mag
Gloves: Burton AK Clutch Mitt, Burton AK Tech Leather Glove, Drop Tahoma Mitt,

James’s Set Up

21.5” Wide. Stance Angles +18/-3, +18/+3, +18/-9. Close to Reference on groomers and Set all the way back in powder.

Similar Boards We Like (but not the same):

Korua Otto, Ride Algorythm, Ride Shadowban, Salomon Highpath, Yes Standard Uninc, Capita Black Snowboard Of Death, Jones Rally Cat, Cardiff Crane, Cardiff Lynx, Nitro Alternator, United Shapes Horizon, Gnu Antigravity, Lib Tech Dynamo

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Construction / Durability / Weight

The top sheet of the K2 Commonwealth is lighter and has good grip one footing but isn’t as durable as the standard K2 top sheets. Still, the rest of the board is pretty durable and for most this won’t be an issue. It’s also not super light but is for sure on the lighter side of medium. (We don’t put in the exact weight because with wood cores, there is no consistency in a board’s weight)

Sizing

K2 doesn’t help you size boards very well and they completely ignore boot sizes even though they have regular and wide sizes. They do have recommended weight ranges which seems to be on point but you don’t have to rigidly follow it.

Sizing is all about balancing what fits your boot size (most important), weight (second most important) and height (third most important) for how you like to ride. If it’s too wide and it’s hard to turn but too narrow and you might boot out which often slams you into the ground.

The Good Ride’s Conservative / Safe Recommendation

146: 5-6 US
149: 5.5-6.5US
151: 7-8
154: 7.5-8.5
157: 9-10
160: 9.5-10.5
163: 10-11
154w: 10-11
157w: 10.5-11.5
159w: 11-12
162w: 11.5-12.5

There are often up to 2 or 3 sizes that will work for your specs. Size down for more control and size up for more speed/stability/carving power. Here are some ideal US boot sizes for these boards. If it comes down to boot size or weight, I would ensure it fits your boot first and then your weight a close second.

Shape

This is tapered and directional  with eight millimeters of taper but It didn’t feel overly tapered. There’s a 20 millimeter setback on sidecut with a 21-inch reference stance, and the setback on board is 1.75 inches back from the center. If you want to set it all the way back for powder, you can get 2.625 inches back at a 21.75-inch stance. That isn’t much for this kind of shape so, overall, the K2 Commonwealth feels pretty centered, landing between freeride and all-mountain.

Camber

There is a healthy bow of camber underfoot that runs pretty much tip to tail. There’s a lot of camber, which drives the personality of this board.

Flex Personality

This 157 K2 Commonwealth  has a medium-to-medium stiff flex with a lot of energy and pop. It isn’t ultra poppy, but it’s definitely on the poppier side. The tail is stiff, between the feet is stiff, and the nose is stiff too—more continuous flex than most boards. There’s just a little more give between the feet than in the nose and tail.

On Snow Feel

The K2 Commonwealth is a very stable board that tracks incredibly well. The full camber and medium stiff flex make this more technical. It’s best for advanced to expert riders. Beginners and intermediates will catch more edges than they would on something with early rise.

Edge Hold

The multi-radius sidecut provides good grip but not amazing grip. It can let go in really hard snow.

Uneven Snow

The K2 Commonwealth’s high-end construction isn’t the best in hard uneven snow compared to K2’s standard builds, but it still did well enough to not be a deal breaker. It does much better in soft uneven snow though and it’s much more competent there. It still couldn’t hammer through like the Sky Pilot or Antidote, but it was still a great all-day ride.

Ollies and Butters

The pop is easy to access. I could Ollie higher on the K2 Commonwealth than with any other K2 board this year, and even compared to many boards across the snowboard industry.

It’s not the easiest to butter in the nose and tail, but it’s doable with some effort.

Switch & Park

The K2 Commonwealth rode switch really well, better than expected for a tapered directional board. It’s not bad in the pipe (could use more grip though), hiting kickers, and can handle side hits with ease. It lines up well for quick turns into tricky side hits. For park laps or big mountain drops, this board handles jumps of any size with confidence.

Turning & Carving

I loved the way the K2 Commonwealth initiated turns. Edge-to-edge response was quick, and once committed, the sidecut felt balanced. It shines in across-the-groomer carves and circle carves. The eight millimeters of taper rarely showed up in a bad way. I could ride front foot, centered, or back foot weighted turns however I pleased. The spring out of turns is the highlight, making this one of the best carving K2 boards I tested this year.

Speed

The K2 Commonwealth can go straight and handle medium-high speeds well. It doesn’t feel twitchy or sketchy at speed, and the sidecut doesn’t fight you when pointing it.

Base Glide

The centered 4001 base absorbs wax well but doesn’t glide as well as other bases at this price point. Still, it doesn’t have any low lows—it’s decent overall.

Powder

I lucked into eight inches of thick, wet, late spring powder. The K2 Commonwealth doesn’t float as well as the Passport because of the full camber profile. I wished it had some early rise before the nose. With K2’s high-end construction, that would make this board almost perfect. The steeper the slope, the better it performed, and I loved the turning experience in powder, even though I had to lean back to keep the nose up. Compared to the Ride Moderator, the Moderator had easier float, but the K2 Commonwealth felt more fun turning in powder.

Final Thoughts

While the K2 Commonwealth isn’t the best for powder float, doesn’t have the fastest base, and doesn’t have the strongest grip, everything else about this board is incredibly fun. I had a blast getting air, turning, riding switch, and feeling the spring out of each carve. It’s a very recommendable board for advanced to expert riders, and it’s one I’d like to own for myself to get out and make some great turns.