If you are a beginner, you probably feel surprised and overwhelmed by the tons of options that you have. Different stores are offering different surfboard varieties. You feel confused, which is the best board to use.
That is why this Spyder Surfboards review will guide you on some information that you need to know. You will learn about one of the leading surfboard brands in the industry, the Spyder, and find out what makes it one of the best brands.
You will also learn some of the best surfboards that Spyder offers that you might want to consider buying. If you cannot find any of them that you prefer, you will learn the surfboard types and surfboard tails, which are helpful information in choosing the perfect surfboard for your use.
Table of Contents
Top 8 Best Spyder Surfboards Reviewed
Spyder is famous for its various products, which include apparel and accessories. The most popular among them is its surfboard collection.
In this section, you will know some of the best Spyder surfboards that are worth checking.
- Grom Machine Shortboard
- ES BEE Shortboard
- Retro Fish
- Pelican Fish
- Tigertail Funboard
- Stingfish Funboard
- Dominator Series Longboard
- Bevel Nose Longboard
#1. Grom Machine Shortboard
The Grom Machine is highly versatile. It is the next board that you should use after you grow tired using your old grommet board.
It lets you experience a high-performance surfboard and level up by training on it to reach the pro level.
This surfboard is ideal for surfers who are in the intermediate to advanced level. You can use it to ride an ankle-high to overhead waves.
The Grom Machine is 5’8 in length and available in the thumb or squash tails.
#2. ES BEE Shortboard
The ES BEE gives an extraordinary experience that you can use from casual surfing in mush waters to join the world tours.
This product has a contemporary and progressive design. Spyder feels confident that this board sets a new standard for shortboards.
The ES BEE is for surfers who are intermediate to a pro-level. It is versatile enough to handle almost any kind of wave conditions, especially the trestle waves and beach breaks.
This product’s length is 6’1, and it is available in the thumb, squash, diamond, and round pin.
#3. Retro Fish
Surfers typically use the fish surfboard for driving down the line, and it is not ideal for cutting back or setting the rails.
However, Spyder claims that its retro designs focus on performance that enables you to do all these maneuvers. The board loosens the transfer from rail to rail.
It blends vee to the concave through the tail gives a responsive turn because of the curvy outline.
The Retro is for surfers who are in the intermediate to a pro-level. It is ideal to use to ride the knee to head high waves, even for mushy beach breaks.
The Retro is 5’10 in length and available in the deep swallow and twin fins.
#4. Pelican Fish
This board is the only one that can prove that a pelican can be a fish. This surfboard is retro-inspired. Its weight is like a high-performance professional surfboard that uses four ounces of fiberglass with no gloss coat.
This construction reduces the weight of the board, making it ideal for small days.
The extra curve near the tail allows the board to fit in a narrow post to ride the hollow waves.
The Pelican is perfect for intermediate to pro surfers for riding the knee to overhead waves. It is also excellent to use for mushy beach breaks and peaky reefs.
The Pelican is 5’7 in length and available in swallow, quad, twin, and broad, round tail.
#5. Tigertail Funboard
According to Spyder, the TIGERTAIL is its staple and the top seller from the 1990s until now. Spyder claims that this product is not an ordinary funboard because it provides the combined high-performance features of a sleek egg contour and performance rail.
This board does not drive down the line because it flies. This board has a single to double barrel paneled concave.
The TIGERTAIL is the best choice for beginner to advanced-level surfers. With this board, surfers can ride knee-high to overhead waves.
This product is 7’10 in length, and tails are available in round, squash, and tri.
#6. Stingfish Funboard
The STINGFISH is a unique funboard. It has hard wings and beveled rails that make it look like the stringer of the 1970s. This product is a perfect choice for those who love performing and using funboards.
It features a single barrel concave to double-barrel paneled concave, making its name an excellent description of this board,
The STINGFISH is for intermediate to advanced-level surfers. With this board, surfers can ride knee-high to overhead waves. It is also perfect for the beach break.
This surfboard’s length is 8’0 and available in a swallow and 8-inch box with side bites.
#7. Dominator Series Longboard
According to Spyder, the Dominator is a mid-range surfboard that provides extra power for paddling and performance. The fins’ front has sleek curves that eliminate the rail in the water.
It offers an enhanced plane surface at the bottom because of the tucked under edges. Also, the slightly rolled bottom gliding into the paneled concave boosts the tail’s flip-off.
The Dominator Series is advisable for beginners to advanced-level surfers. It is ideal for riding the knee-length to overhead waves.
This product’s length is 8’6, and it is available in squash, round, swallow, and 8-inch box with side bites.
#8. Bevel Nose Longboard
The Bevel Nose is a combination of the features of the noserider and high-performance longboards.
The beveled part serves as the plane that provides effortless water release from the rail through the concave. Its slightly tucked bottom, and crowned deck makes it ideal for riding versatile water conditions.
The Bevel Nose is for intermediate to pro surfers. It is ideal for riding almost all kinds of waves, while it is also the best to use for point breaks.
This longboard is 9’0, and it is available in an 8-inch box with side bites and squash.
About Spyder
Dennis Jarvis, a famous award-winning shaper, director, actor, professional surfer, and producer, founded the Spyder brand.
The story of Spyder began in the late 1970s. According to Jarvis, he is a fan of “Rabbit” Bartholomew, an award-winning surfer. Rabbit had his brand, which was the WB and the Buggs Bunny.
During that time, Jarvis worked for a surf shop and used his skills in shaping his board. He wanted to have a logo as Rabbit had.
One night, Jarvis went to a store to buy a hotdog and pretzel. While waiting for his order, he browsed a MAD magazine. In the margin, he found a spider and a poem. It was where Jarvis got his inspiration to use a spider as a brand.
Jarvis started painting spiders to the boards that he used for competing in the Professional World Tour. His friends and the other brands also wanted him to paint a spider on their boards, and he received pay for it.
It was only in 1983 when Jarvis opened a store that sold his branded surfboards. This store used to be a small shop on the Pacific Coast. Now, this store is enormous.
In 1997, Spyder opened another branch in Hermosa Beach’s Pier Plaza.
If you doubt Dennis Jarvis’s skills, you should know that he has shaped surfboards for several pro surfers. His creations even landed the 1991 mainstream movie, “Point Break.”
Before the movie, Jarvis originally wanted to become a part of the casts, but he failed the audition. However, it led him to another opportunity by creating the surfboards for the film. He even created Patrick Swayze’s surfboard and taught the casts on how to surf.
When Swayze died because of cancer, his wife took her husband’s belongings into an auction, and it included the surfboard that Jarvis created. This board became available at approximately 4,000 to 6,000 USD.
Spyder has been around for over 35 years. According to Jarvis, the secret was providing excellent customer service and always getting it right. The brand proves not to fail on this principle because it gives a 30-day money-back guarantee.
This brand also sponsors other organizations and individuals. It started by sponsoring high school surf teams. It also provides for the Jimmy Miller Foundation.
Aside from surfboards, Spyder also sells apparel, accessories, and products from different brands that cater to men, women, and children.
Considerations When Buying From Spyder
This article will focus on the buying guide that will help you shop successfully in Spyder. You will learn about the different types of surfboards and tails.
Types of Surfboards
Spyder offers different surfboard varieties that fall under shortboard, fish, funboard, and longboard.
There are several types of surfboards, but this review will focus on the common ones, which are what Spyder offers. Here are the different types of surfboards.
Shortboard
By its name, you can already tell that shortboards are short in length. Despite its small size, people also call it a high-performance surfboard because it enables its users to perform various tricks effortlessly because of its responsiveness and agility.
Also, shortboards are lightweight, which makes storing them for vehicle transport, not an issue. It also helps in duck diving.
Most shortboards are epoxy-made, making it durable.
The only problem is that it is not the best board to use if you are a beginner. Shortboards lack in buoyancy and paddling power. Some surfers can use these boards for overhead waves, but the boards are not ideal for the large ones because they are not versatile enough to handle any wave condition.
Fish
The fish is also short in length and comes with a swallowtail. This board’s core provides stability despite its short length.
It is an ideal board to use for riding mush conditions because it helps improve speed. It is also lightweight, making it suitable for transport.
The fish is also perfect for duck diving because of its small size and low volume. The maneuverability is better because of the swallowtail.
However, it is not the best choice for a total beginner because of its lack of volume. Paddling on this board is also challenging, and its tail is fragile.
Funboard
Many surfers also call the funboard a hybrid surfboard. This board is often a combination of features of the other types of board, commonly between a longboard and a shortboard.
Funboards make catching waves effortlessly. It provides excellent progression for quick pop-ups and bottom turns. It is also small in size, making it ideal for vehicle transport.
Duck diving is smooth because of the low volume. However, funboards are expensive, and most of them are not an excellent choice for riding hollow waves.
Longboard
Longboards, as the name entails, is a surfboard with a generous length that can reach up to 12 feet. It is the oldest type of surfboard that is still famous today.
Longboards offer tons of volume because of the full surface area. Because of its length, paddling and gliding are effortless.
Generally, these boards are the ideal ones to use when you are still learning to perform tricks. These boards enable you to do the basic ones like the drop-knee turns and hang fives.
The only issue about this board is its bulkiness that makes its transport challenging. Although it is ideal for beginners, it is not budget-friendly. Also, its generous volume compromises the board’s maneuverability.
Types of Surfboard Tail Designs
There are many types of surfboard tail design. You can identify it quickly by looking at the shape of the tail.
In this article, you will learn about the ones that you can find in Spyder.
Diamond
The diamond type is ideal for having smooth and responsive turns.
Round
The round tail provides plane speed.
Square
Surfers also call it a chopped tail, and it is where the other designs originated.
The square type provides volume and stability, making it ideal for riding mushy and slow-paced waves. Its shape adds to the responsiveness of the board for making turns.
Squash
Some surfers also call it a rounded square tail, which is the typical type among surfboards. It provides stability and maneuverability because of the combined features of the round and square tails.
It is a versatile choice that provides control and holds almost any kind of waves from small to overhead.
Swallow
The swallow is the best selection for riding the small wave. It is not the best choice for barrelling, although it is perfect for providing stability and speed for riding the steep waves. You can use it on steep faced waves too.
This type makes turning and transitioning from rail to rail effortless, adding to its high-performance feature.
Thumb
This type corrects the failed features of both the round and squash tails.
Conclusion
There are tons of surfboards on the market nowadays, and all manufacturers claim that their products are the best. Although you can find many high-quality surfboards in several shops, it does not mean that they are automatically suitable for your use.
If you are a beginner, you should know that surfboards come in different varieties, and every model offers different kinds of features. To make surfboard shopping more comfortable, you should look for the best brands first and start searching.
This review focuses on Spyder Surfboards. This brand is a small shop with two branches. Although it is a small business, its founder is the legendary shaper and surfer Dennis Jarvis. That is why you can trust the quality of the surfboards.
This Spyder Surfboards review tackles some of the best products of this brand. Hopefully, you found the one that will provide you the best experience. If not, at least you now know some info in buying the right type of surfboard and choosing the right tail shape, which is useful for shopping even from other brands.
FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)
Q: How Do Spyder Deliver My Order?
A: According to Spyder, brands ship the customers’ orders directly. You will receive a confirmation message to let you know where your purchase originated. Spyder encourages these brands to dispatch products immediately by giving a leeway of two business days from the receipt of order. Spyder says that it will send you an email with tracking information when the brand has already shipped your items. According to Spyder, orders below 75 dollars, have a flat rate of 5 dollars. If it is above 75, the shipping fee is free, because the brand can only offer ground shipping for now.
Q: Can I Return the Item If I Change My Mind?
A: Spyder offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, and it includes the change of mind and dissatisfaction with the product. You only need to return the item within 30 days, and Spyder will refund you. However, you have to shoulder the delivery fee, and this promo excludes individual products. It is essential to check the product’s description when you purchase an item from Spyder.
Q: Can I Return a Defective Item?
A: If you did not cause this damage or defect, Spyder encourages you to send an email, and it will assist you in returning your product. According to the company, if you see the visible damage upon delivery, refuse the item. However, if you have accepted it before seeing the shipment damage, you need to call the exchange collective. Spyder will shoulder the delivery fees for the defective or damaged item as long as it is not your fault. You will receive your refund from 5 to 10 days.
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G’day, my name is Luke and I’m the proud Founder of Surf Hungry. I am a former xxx athlete. I’ve worked in the surf industry and lived at many of xxx’s best surf spots, sparking a life-long love of the ocean and a passion for surf sports which also rubbed off on my two young sons! I am also lucky to spend a lot of ocean-time in my favorite second home,xxx. In addition to SurfHungry I have founded several other websites in my areas of passion, namely xxx and am also a regular xxx.
