Weston Japow 2027 Snowboard Review

An In Depth Breakdown of how the Weston Japow Rides Review by The Good Ride

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Weston Japow Overview

How It Was Tested

Size: 159 and 164
Days: Many
Conditions: I’ve gotten this in just about every condition imaginable, from firm, bordering on hard snow, all the way up to chest-deep powder and everything in between along with some early morning Slackountry pow time on my Drift Boards & Union Rovers
Riders: James (Size 9 E, 5’10”, 185-190lbs). I’ve tested and compared 850+ boards, 200+ bindings, and 120+ boots
Davey (Size 12, 240lbs, 6’4”)
Boots: Nitro Team BOA, Nitro Team TLS
Insoles: F.I.T. Gamechangers
Bindings: Union Force, and many other bindings
Redundancy: Strapins in case boots or bindings break.
Jacket: Skyline Fuse Jacket, Jones Mtn Surf Anorak
Pant: Skyline Fase 3L Bib Pant, Skyline Faze Pant, Jones Mountain Surf Pant
Helmet: Smith Method, Smith Scout
Goggle: Smith 4D Mag Low Bridge Fit
Gloves: Burton AK Clutch Mitt, Burton AK Tech Leather Glove

James’s Set Up: 21.5” Wide. Stance Angles +18/-3, +18/+3, +24/+6, +27/+9 back. Close to Reference on groomers and set all the way back in powder.

Similar Boards We Like (but not the same):

Gentemstick Barracuda, Soul Shift, Nidecker Beta, Nidecker Beta APX, Korua Pintonic, Jones Storm Chaser 2025, Stranda Tree Surfer, Salomon Wolle Nyvelt Fish, Burton Smooth Operator, Korua Pencil, Amplid Time Machine, Amplid Surfari

I also compared this against a lot of boards, and you can see those comparisons for paid members of Patreon and YouTube.

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Sizing

How it Fits Me

This Weston Japow 164 fits me really well.

After getting the 164 and riding it, I had regrets. It would be nice to have the 169 on some of those super deep, thick, low-angle powder days that we have at Bachelor.

But as it stands, I like this better than the 159 for powder and groomers.

I’d only do the 159 if you’re my specs, want something more maneuverable for groomers, and want something really quick in the trees, and you don’t see as much low-angle powder as I do.

How It Might Fit You

Sizing is highly subjective, and many factors come into play when choosing a board. I rarely use “all caps to emphasize something, but NEVER TRUST ANYONE who just references their height and weight. Here are all the factors to consider

Boot Size

You should always start with your boot size first. If your board is too wide for your boot, you can’t turn it; if it’s too narrow, you get the dreaded Toe & Heel Drag.

When sizing a tapered directional board like this Japow, look at the width over the inserts, not just the waist width.

The 164 has a 26.6cm waist width. The Front inserts are 28.2 cm wide, but the back is 26.8 cm wide. So if you’re an 11, you’re going to have overhang on the back foot. This is for size 10 and under, and despite what Weston says, I would not go over size 11 with this board in a 169.

Weight

Your weight determines how the board flexes underfoot, giving you more or less pop, speed, etc. An easier-flexing board can also be easier to turn. Weston is pretty fair with the recommended weight range, but make sure you size for your boot and riding preference first, then for weight.

Height

The board’s length determines swing weight/control. If it’s short, it’s easy to spin, and if it’s longer, it floats better and can help with speed. Most of you will want to ride this Japow at a normal length or longer.

Boots and Bindings Response

Always factor in your boot and binding’s responsiveness to determine how well you will be able to turn/control a board.

Stance Width

Check your stance width against their reference and/or the set-back stance to see if it fits you.

Personal Preference

Some prefer control, so they match the boot size to the board width first, with weight second. Others prefer speed over control, so they size up to a wider/longer ride and have very responsive boots/bindings.

Design

Construction/Base Glide/Durability

I love the construction on Weston boards. They have this castor bean nylon topsheet that’s somewhat coarse, and it’s very rugged, very durable.

The only thing I don’t like is that if you stack another board on top of it, the wax on the base can rub off onto this and get stuck.

And this isn’t bad for a 164 in terms of weight. It does vary greatly from board to board, though. Every brand does.

Shape & Setback

When it comes to shape, the Weston Japow is actually centered on sidecut. However, the setback on board is a different story.

This is very tapered, very directional, and very setback. You’re looking at 25 mm of taper in the tail. That’s massive compared to this big-ass nose.

So this is the kind of board you don’t even need to set back on a powder day. I would just set this up on reference and leave it there.

Camber/On Snow Feel

On-snow feel mostly centers on the camber profile. This has camber basically from the tail going well past the front inserts and then transitioning into just a little bit of early rise before this huge nose.

So even though this is massively tapered, it still tracks pretty well. It feels a little tail-light, but it doesn’t feel hooky or washy. It still one-foots pretty well off the chair. Not amazing, but it flat bases really well once you’re used to this tapered feel.

It has that same consistent feel in all conditions. It never changes or gets weird.

Because of its size, it’s not as easy to skid a turn as you might expect with this mellower camber profile.

So if you’re a committed intermediate, you know you’re into snowsurf, and you see a lot of powder, if you size down a little bit, maybe that could work for you.

But it’s more for advanced to expert riders who really understand bigger, longer boards and know how to handle them when they get off their game.

Edge Hold

I don’t know what Weston’s doing here, but this multi-radius sidecut grips well in firm snow.

It’s not a full-on ice specialist. An East Coast rider might not truly enjoy it, but it can hang in hard snow much better than you’d expect for how this board is marketed.

Flex Personality

Let’s talk Weston Japow 164 flex.

First off, very stiff right between the feet. Here down in the tail, for a swallowtail, it’s pretty stiff.

And when I just flex one swallowtail, it’s definitely softer. That’s how it’ll be when you’re on a turn.

Then you look at the nose, and it’s nice and soft, really soft. So when I do an overall flex, you’ll see most of it coming from the nose area.

But this has pretty good pop, and I wouldn’t say lively, but definitely easy to access. There is some good return from here when you flex it.

On Snow Performance

Butters/Ollies/Air

It’s a really long board, so it’s a little difficult to butter, but I love leaning back into the tail and wheeling up on those deep days.

For ollie power, this is pretty good, but it’s not the kind of board you want to get air with just because the tail is so light.

On groomers, I’m not comfortable tracking into complicated side hits that might have a difficult path to launch off.

But if you see something that has an easy trajectory, this can pop off it really well. It’s just a little weird in the air because you’re so far back.

Uneven Snow

When it comes to uneven snow, the Weston Japow absorbs chatter really well in hard, uneven snow. I think it’s a very quiet ride for this kind of shape and this kind of flex personality.

It can buck and feel a little unstable and set you off your line in really thick, uneven snow. I felt this tail engage and pop too much, throwing me off my line.

But you could do a lot worse for a swallowtail like this.

Turning/Carving

Turn Initiation

When it comes to turning, I felt like the 159 could go quick edge to edge, and so can the 164.

It’s a little slower, obviously, because it’s a little wider, but it was still very manageable.

And that’s where it shines: real quick turns back and forth.

Carving/Committed Turns

When you commit that edge and really engage in a harder carving turn on groomers, you get a lot more spring out of the turn than you would think.

It has a very unique turning personality. I felt it did across-the-groomer carves reasonably well, but it wasn’t the best circle carver, and I really didn’t expect that coming in.

But what I loved were those medium-radius turns, really leaning into those, and those longer down-the-line turns.

Turning Experience/Sidecut

Surprisingly, I could front-foot, center-weight, and back-foot weight these turns.

If I was set up with a really positive stance, it could really drive through any kind of turn.

I loved picking up speed with this, going down the line, and making those longer, narrower S-turns at much higher speeds.

Speed

You often don’t think speed when you think of a swallowtail, and in good conditions, this thing can mach.

It’s no full-on straight-liner, but it’s much more competent than its shape suggests.

Base Glide

When it comes to base glide, I’ve compared this to a lot of bases, and the Weston Japow has very, very good glide. Definitely in the top tier.

Maybe not the best of the best, but very good.

This base is hard. It’s durable. It has excellent wax retention and near-excellent glide.

I haven’t felt many bases that are faster than this.

I’ve never been a fan of die-cut, but at least there’s only one Weston logo here in white, and the rest is black. So that part, at least, will be easy to repair.

Powder

Now let’s talk powder. This thing floats.

I’ve had the 159 in all kinds of powder, from waist-deep to chest-deep in some places.

Then I’ve gotten the 164 in a few crappy inches, all the way up to waist- to chest-deep powder again as well. That was very thick, and this thing handled it like a champ.

This is one of my favorite low-angle powder boards.

My only regret is not getting the 169 because at Mount Bachelor, when it’s deep, we have a lot of low-angle powder. And the longer, the better when it comes to that kind of low-angle powder.

This is an excellent board for medium-angle powder too. It’s not the best in steep-angle powder just because you’re riding so far back on the tail but it’s not bad for this kind of board. If you have a boot that allows you to size down, it could be a little better, though, if you go with a smaller size.

Now, if you’re somebody like me spec-wise and you want to ride in the trees a lot and have really quick turn initiation, you can size down.

But what I found is in the mostly spaced tree lines we have at Bachelor, there’s usually ample room to turn. This did really well.

Final Thoughts

Overall, this Weston Japow is special.

I’ve had it in my quiver for years, and aside from a little bucky in the tail in certain uneven pow conditions, this is an exceptional board.

I highly recommend it when anybody’s asking for something for the deep, deep.

But it’s also something that doesn’t need to sit on the shelves when there’s a groomer day.