Nidecker Thruster 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.

A Breakdown Of How It Rides And Who Its For

How This Review Happened:

Borrowed this for an extended demo and sent it back.
Size: 159
Days: 5+
Conditions: Ok pow, better pow and varied spring conditions
Rider: James (Size 9, 5’10” 185-190lbs)
Boots: Burton Kendo, Nidecker Rift APX
Insoles: F.I.T. Gamechangers
Bindings: Union Atlas, Nidecker Supermatic
Jacket: Burton AK Gore-Tex Pro 3L Tusk Jacket, Burton Gore-Tex 3L Treeline Jacket, Jones Peak Bagger 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, Lib Tech Terrain Wrecker, Capita Mercury,YES NSB, Endeavor Pioneer, Jones Mountain Twin, 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/-9 in pow, +15/-15 on groomer. Close to Reference on groomers and Set as far back as possible for the stance width in pow.

How It Was Tested

I got to know the board by riding it a good bit. Then I compared it to the Escape, Escape Plus, Capita BSOD, YES Basic Uninc and YES Standard Uninc.

Approximate Weight

The Nidecker Thruster felt pretty normal bordering on light for it’s length and width. (I don’t put in the exact weight because with wood cores there is no consistency in a boards weight)

Sizing

The 159 Nidecker Thruster felt a little wide and big for my size 9 boots but pretty good for my 185.bs. I would love to try the 156 and think it might be a better fit even though I’m a little heavy for the recommended weight.

Here are some ideal US boot sizes for the Nidecker Thruster. You can of course go bigger or smaller depending on your riding style and boot’s footprint, but these work best for not turning the board slower than it should be and not having the dreaded Toe & Heel Drag.
147: 6.5-7.5
150: 7.5-8.5
153: 8-9
156: 8.5-9.5
159: 9.5-10.5
163w: 11-12

For weight I think Nidecker went pretty conservative with recommended weight ranges so it is ok to . If it comes down to boot size or weight, I would make sure it fits your boot first and then your weight second.

Shape/Camber/On Snow Feel/Ability Level

The Nidecker Thruster has a tapered directional shape but doesn’t feel that way. It is only a somewhat directional shape with minimal taper so it has a very all mountain feel to it. I found that you can turn this board any way you like without it washing out on you but it does favor center weighted to back foot weighted turns a touch better due to the lifted sides.

The Nidecker Thruster has lifted sides in the nose that travel down a bit into the effective edge but id didn’t feel edgeless and washy in harder snow. It’s a little more forgiving in the nose than full camber but still not super forgiving. Best for advanced to expert riders because it does not skid a turn super easy.

Flex Personality

The Nidecker Thruster has a soft nose, medium/stiff middle and medium tail. So it is easy to butter and easy to ollie but still pretty damp between the feet. The lifted sides didn’t wash out much on a nose butter because there is only a little lift on the sides with a lot of flat in the middle. There is a lot of pop on an ollie and spring out of a turn.

Uneven Terrain

The Nidecker Thruster is pretty stable and damp between the feet but the nose can clown shoe around and give some chatter. It wasn’t super distracting for me.

Edge Hold

The Nidecker Thruster isn’t an ice specialist but it is very competent in firm snow.

Speed

The Nidecker Thruster isn’t super damp in the nose but the rest of the board can handle a decent straight line.

There is also near top tier base glide which is always great to have.

Turning Experience/Carving

The lifted sides of the Nidecker Thruster have a very smooth easy turning experience in softer snow but still stays smooth and quick in harder snow. Even though the 159 felt a little wide/slow for my size 9’s I could tell the 156 (size I would probably prefer) would turn medium/fast.

The spring out of the turn is dynamic and lively and the turning experience pretty balanced. I could make any kind of radius turn without the Nidecker Thruster fighting me. It did feel a touch on the turny side but overall it’s pretty balanced.

Powder

So I got a pretty good day with about 1-1.5 feet of pow. The Nidecker Thruster turns really well in pow but I was expecting more directional float for a -3” setback on board with a 22.5” stance width. The Yes Basic Uninc and Standard Uninc, with -2.5” setbacks on board floated a good bit better. It might be because of the early rise before the nose/tail along with some other factors. I think the lifted sides don’t provide a lot of float but mainly just improve the way the Thruster turns in pow. So it’s better than full on camber but not as good as many boards with early rise.

Switch/Pipe/Jumps

The Nidecker Thruster is very doable switch when set up on reference stance. I didn’t hit the pipe with this in any way that’s worthy but it rode it well. Again, I didn’t hit any big kickers but it’s pretty easy to see how this could hit kickers of about any size.

Conclusion

So other than float pow compared to some of it’s hybrid shaped competitors, the Nidecker Thruster has a lot of good things going for it. If you want to carve, get air and still be able to butter the Nidecker Thruster could be a good fit.

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