Positives

  • Excellent Pop
  • Not Too Chattery For a Plus
  • Forgiving for having all that camber

Negatives

  • Spoon Nose is Hard To Butter

Summary

The Nidecker Alpha APX is a versatile directional daily driver without the trappings that a lot of high end versions of the regular models do.

Update 2024: The Nidecker Alpha APX did not change for 2024 so the 2023 Review still stands. 

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Riding Style All Mountain
Riding Level Intermediate - Expert
Fits Boot size (US) 8-10, 10-12
Manufactured in
Shape Tapered Directional
Camber Profile Directional Camber
Stance Setback -20mm
Approx. Weight Feels Normal
Split No
Powder Good
Base Glide Great
Carving Great
Speed Good
Uneven Terrain Good
Switch Good
Jumps Great
Jibbing Average
Pipe Good
On Snow Feel

Stable

Turn Initiation

Medium/Fast

Skidded Turns

Moderate

Flex

Medium

Buttering

Moderate

Edge Hold

Hard Snow

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Nidecker Alpha APX Written Review Review by The Good Ride

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.

Nidecker Alpha APX Review

How This Review Happened:

Borrowed this for an extended demo and sent it back.
Size: 158
Days: 3+
Conditions:  and an early morning slackountry time with Drift Boards & Union Rovers
Riders:
 James (Size 9, 5’10” 185-190lbs),
Boots: Burton Kendo
Insoles: F.I.T. Gamechangers
Bindings: Union Atlas
Jacket: Burton AK Gore-Tex Pro 3L Tusk Jacket, Volcom Guide Jacket, Burton Gore-Tex 3L Treeline Jacket, Jones Peak Bagger Jacket. Burton AK Helitak 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
Goggle: Smith 4D Mag
Gloves: Burton AK Clutch Mitt, Burton AK Clutch Glove, Burton AK Tech Leather Glove, CG Habitats Work Glove, Drop Tahoma Mitt,

Similar Boards (but not the same): Korua Otto, ,YES NSB, Endeavor Pioneer, Endeavor Ranger, K2 Manifest, Yes Typo, Jones Frontier, Ride Algorythm, Ride Wild Life, Borealis Tundra, Tahoe Labs Directional Twin, Yes Basic Uninc, Cardiff Lynx,

James’s Set Up: 21.5” Wide. Sance Angles +18/-3, +18/-9. Close to Reference and Set all the way back.

Approximate Weight

(We don’t put in the exact weight because with wood cores there is no consistency in a boards weight)

Sizing

Here are some ideal US boot sizes for the Nidecker Alpha APX boards. You can of course go bigger or smaller depending on your riding style, your boot’s footprint, and how hard you carve. But these work best for not turning the board slower than it should be and not having the dreaded Toe & Heel Drag.
153: 8-9
160- 9-10
162w- 11-12

For weight I would stay close to what Nidecker recommends weight ranges. If it comes down to boot size or weight, I would make sure it fits your boot first and then your weight a close second.

Shape/Camber/On Snow Feel/Ability Level

The Nidecker Alpha APX has that shape that is less tapered but more importantly also feels less tapered too on snow. It is that shape that sits on the directional side of all mountain. You want to drive your turns centered to back footed because driving too hard on the front foot can engage that spoon tech and make it feel a little washy. After I got used to how to weight the turn into the area before the spoon it became easier to front foot drive but it’s not the boards strong point.

Shape

When it comes to camber the Nidecker Alpha APX has a lot of camber from tail to just a little before the nose when it transitions to rocker and spoon at the same time. The spoon/rocker definitely reduces the catchy nature but it doesn’t feel as forgiving in the tail.

Flex Personality

You definitely get a little stiffer and poppier flex than the regular Alpha. It’s a little more work to access the pop but not to the point where it would tax you. I personally liked the easier flex of the Alpha for buttering and ollies. However, I liked the flex of the Alpha APX better when turning.

Flex

Uneven Terrain

So the Nidecker Alpha APX is not bad for a plus/ultra/APX type of board. It is very manageable in most conditions. The regular Alpha is better in hard micro bumpy snow and messier snow but the Alpha APX shines a little brighter in good conditions.

Edge Hold

Pretty competent but not ideal for those that see a lot of hard to icy snow.

Speed/base glide

The Nidecker Alpha APX has a pretty fast base with an easy glide to it. Neither the Alpha APX or Alpha are ideal for those that like to straight line and want a damp board to do so. That being said its fine for moderate mountain speed.

Base Glide

Turning Experience/Carving

The Nidecker Alpha APX initates a turn pretty quickly. Once you get the side cut engaged the overall experience with the Nidecker Alpha APX is pretty balanced to a touch on the turny side. I felt I could make any kind of turn with this and there was definitely more pop out of the turn with the APX vs. the regular model. Both are very poppy but you get a little more spring out of the turn with the APX.

Nidecker Alpha APX Carve

Powder

So I found that the Nidecker Alpha APX and the Alpha did not live up to their 9 out of 10 rating. Coming off the Beta in knee high pow to the Alpha’s felt like a lot more work to stay afloat. They both floated well in comparison to most all mountain boards though and the spoon nose had a very good turning experience in powder. Not sure if it helped with float but sure did make the board turn easy in pow.

With a 22” stance width set all the way back you can get -3.25” back from center of board which is really good for an all mountain board and on par with many freeride boards.

Nidecker Alpha APX Pow Set Back

Switch/Pipe/Jumps

The Nidecker Alpha APX is pretty doable switch but man I’d rather be on the Gamma APX (currently testing) for that.

Conclusion

So overall I found the Nidecker Alpha APX to be a very poppy dynamic directional daily driver. Usually when there is a regular model like the Alpha I usually prefer that over the plus/ultra/APX type of model. However, this time I felt each board really had their own places to shine and both are recommendable/shine in different areas.

If this review helped, we’d appreciate if you:

 
Nidecker Alpha APX Specs

 
Nidecker Alpha APX Images

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2023

Nidecker Alpha APX User Reviews

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