Info on Mistral Diamond Head
Sandy Thomson
I have the opportunity to buy a used Mistral Diamond
Head. The board is 7 or 8 years old but looks to be in
good shape. I have a few questions that I wouldn't mind
some feedback on:
- What is its volume and weight? (112L??)
- Being a very old model, how does it compare in terms of
performance?
- How easy is it to gybe and waterstart? (since this would be
my first shortboard)
- How early does it plane? (I am about 5'9" and weigh 145 lbs)
- Any ideas on a fair price for the semi-complete board?
Also, any other info would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Sandy Thomson
Chris W. Bastian
it would be OK to learn shortboard stuff on. Don't pay much more that
$100 or so for it.....
Steve Spielman
is not as fast, light, or floaty as modern boards of the same length, but
it is not bad on a reach if you are well powered. It works much better for me with a 15 or
16" pointer fin. Unfortunately such large fins broke the original fin
box. Once that fin box is replaced, it is a real tough board. I slipped
stepping up onto a retaining wall with my Diamond Head and dropped it
hard on the edge of the concrete wall. A 2" chunk of concrete was
knocked off the wall, but not a scratch on my board. I didn't see the
original post, but if you can get the Diamond Head cheaper considerably
cheaper than other boards and you can replace the fin box, you might
enjoy it until you get a modern board.
--
Steve Spielman spie...@uhunix.uhcc.hawaii.edu
Jaime Cordera
I only know of this by reputation, but it seems to be one of
Mistral weaker shortboard offerings. I wouldn't spend too much money
on it. If you got it for free, it might be ok, but you can get other
used shortboards for only a little more.
Note that you can get older models of classic boards for in the
$400-500 range NEW by mail order. Look for F2 Sunset Slalom,
Fanatic Boa, etc
Good luck,
Jaime
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Jaime Cordera ja...@netcom.com
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Kevin Moore
I would have to agree with Jamie, though I have never ridden one. The
Mistral Diamond Head is a very old design of 8 or 9 years. If you get a
VERY good deal it might be worth buying. However, sailboards like
computers, change very fast and you're looking at something that was
designed at least four major design changes ago. If you can only
afford an inexpensive used board look at Bic Electric Rock, Bic Astro
Rock, Mistral Stinger, or Mistral Screamer. These boards have been
very popular with intermediate sailors in your weight range. User
friendly and they jibe well. For years Bic wanted to retire the
Electric Rock and Mistral wanted to retire the Stinger from their
product lines, but they were just too popular.
Good luck,
Kevin
Whole bunch of boards and sails...
Larkspur / Crissy / Rio
In article <3om1fn$n...@bmerhc5e.bnr.ca>, Sandy Thomson <thom...@bnr.ca> wrote:
>
>I have the opportunity to buy a used Mistral Diamond
>Head. The board is 7 or 8 years old but looks to be in
>good shape. I have a few questions that I wouldn't mind
>some feedback on:
>
>- What is its volume and weight? (112L??)
Probably 20 to 25 pounds.
STJCAJ
board! I don't understand how "experts" can make statements like this
while never had been on the board. It sails a lot like the Shredder. I
would be concerned with the fin box as it is not designed for the new
generation fins. I had to replace mine. The board is a little heavier
than some new boards but a lot more durable. The quality if the epoxy was
good. I would give $200 for one in good shape.
J Kovacik
paid $250 for an '87 model and sold it two years later for $200. If you
could find one in good shape for <$50, you might want to consider buying
it and keeping it for one season (especially if you are just learning to
waterstart). You don't want to spend hundreds of dollars on something
that you are going to beat the hell out of.
Jennifer Barnum
I tried to mail this directly to you, but for some reason the postmaster didn't
like it. Rather than re-type the whole reply I'll be brief.
I also bought a used DiamondHead and I like it so far very much. I can't
really answer any of your questions, though. It's floaty enough for me to
still be able to uphaul (although my brother who is bigger has more problems).
It also seems to be able to get on a plane fairly quickly (although I don't
have enough experience with other boards to judge well).
The thing I *don't* like about it, however, is the mastbase/extension system.
The mastbase and extension are one piece. This makes it difficult to exchange
rigs with other boards. Also it's hard to get downhaul on the sail because you
have to put your foot on the unstable universal for leverage. It also has a
poor pulley/cleat system. I'd recommend shelling out the extra $100 or so, to
fix this into a standard mast base system.
I think I paid about $400 a year ago for the board plus everything else
(including sail) that I needed to be able to sail it. I thought it was a
pretty good deal even though I finally got fed up enough with the mastbase to
change it.
Anyway, have fun with yours!
Jennifer
Tim Dierauf
board technique on. It is plenty floaty to uphaul, yet will foot steer
nicely. As you get better, you can keep it as your light air board.
There are two shapes (1) pre 1987 and (2) post 1987. I think that the
newer shap was a little shorter and did not have the wings in the tail.
I would see the newer shape often at Chrissey in S.F in the late 80's.
The extra volume would allow the sailors to get out to the wind when it
was light inside.
You did not say how much you weighed. If you are ~160lb, I would
recommend a starter board around 9' in length and 105L in volume. What
ever you decide to buy, if it more then 5 years old, you should be able
to find a deal for less then $150.
Good luck, and welcome to a different paradigm of windsurfing!
Tim Dierauf
Berkeley, CA
Jaime Cordera
Ok, well, I *HAVE* sailed the Shredder, having taught windsurfing for
a Mistral dealer, and it is a piece of sh**. It is slow to plane, slow
once you get it going, gybes like a truck, etc. In short, the board is
a turkey.
If you want more than my opinion, long ago, when I was looking for a giant
slalom board, I closely inspected the reviews of the giant slaloms in
the mags. Shredders were rated among the worst of all the giant slaloms.
I ended up with a (now-classic) Astro Rock. If you are willing to pay
$200 for a Diamond Head, then you should seriously look at an Astro Rock,
either used or at the discount leftover catalogs. I believe I saw some
previous model years available for $300-$400 (NEW!) There are other models
listed in other posts which may also by just a suitable.
Note that you WILL replace the finbox, voluntarily or not, unless you
never jump (even accidentally) AND you use really bad fins that don't
generate much lift. The cost, weight, and hassle of doing this will
chew up a lot of the "savings" you got with buying a lesser board.
Otherwise, you will end up with a heavier board of lesser quality
that cost nearly as much as a brand new (better) board.
It's your money, of course,...
Joseph C. Stanley
IN. I might have a chance to live in IN this summer, and of course I want
to know where to windsurf, and if there is any windsurfing in the summer
months.
Q1: Where is Rose Hulmen College in IN? How many hours from Michigan City?
Q2: If Rose Hulmen College is not close to Michigan City, what
windsurfing is nearby? What are the conditions, etc.
Q3: How is Lake Michigan in the summer in general for windsurfing?
Thank you for any responses . . .
Please respond via REPLY to my email address,
gt0...@prism.gatech.edu
Joseph
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| Joseph Stanley | EMAIL |
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STJCAJ
thought it was bit strange that the previous people had such strong
opinions without ever having sailed the board.
You like the BIC AstroRock !!!! Was it the graphics that convinced you to
buy this board or was it the questionable quality hardware.
Do you own a Yugo or Hyundai!
Chill out! have a great windsurfing day. We all have our different
views.
spielman
I have to agree with the other posters that there are better used
boards to buy than the Diamond Head, but we paid $150 for our Diamond
Head around 1987 and our used Screamer cost $450 this year. If you
are as cheap as I am, I'd go for the Diamond Head and a good sail
until I got waterstarts and jibes down well enough to appreciate a
better, but perhaps more fragile, modern board. If you know you are
gonna stick with short boarding or the price difference isn't so
great, then it might be better to go with a more modern board from the
beginning. Hunt around locally and mail order for good prices.
My wife preferrs learning waterstarts on the Diamond Head because it's
easier to uphaul if the waterstarts aren't working. 112 liters is
what we crudely determined the volume to be. Our's probably weighs a
little more than 26 lbs with straps and fin.
Learning jibes requires getting planing, which is should be easier on
modern boards of similar volume. However I notice a bigger difference
in fins than between jibing the Diamond Head or Screamer as long as I'm
well powered. The Screamer is supposed to be one of the easiest
boards to jibe. Unfortunately, the fin box in the Diamond Head was
not strong enough to use longer fins.
Steve Spielman
Mark 'Cecil' DeFriest
Kovacik) wrote:
Here! Here!
I still have my Diamond Head (9'2" though - maybe it shrank with time?)
and I use it in high wind conditions ('cause I can't afford a new fancy
high wind board) and although heavy I'm jumping a bit with it - and it's
very forgiving in the chop (very rounded rails... and thus a little harder
to get going upwind).
I dont' know how it made its way down here to Australia, but I'm glad it
did... I love the board.
--
Mark 'Cecil' DeFriest
ce...@netspace.net.au
Melbourne Australia
Jaime Cordera
>I welcome your opinion knowing that you have sailed the Shredder. I
>thought it was bit strange that the previous people had such strong
>opinions without ever having sailed the board.
>
>You like the BIC AstroRock !!!! Was it the graphics that convinced you to
>buy this board or was it the questionable quality hardware.
Do you mean the hardware I finally threw out this spring after 4 years
of storing it ? Are you refering to the crappy fin, or the lame
cup/universal/starfoot ? Yeah, the hardware is junk. I bought
mine a while ago, before they came out with the new (ugly) graphics.
The question was about the board, not the hardware.
>
>Do you own a Yugo or Hyundai!
Nope. Don't own a Mistral either (except an old longboard I never sail).
>
>Chill out! have a great windsurfing day. We all have our different
>views.
How can I not chill out ? I sail in Northern California :-)
WDiLibero
"If you can onlyafford an inexpensive used board look at Bic Electric
Rock, Bic Astro Rock, Mistral Stinger, or Mistral Screamer. These boards
have been
very popular with intermediate sailors in your weight range. "
With the exception of the Astro Rock, I would put all of these boards in
the category of a good second short board - the board you buy after you
are comfortable sailing a short board. The reason being is the volume,
they are all in the 100L range where the Diamond Head is 120+Liters and
about 6 inches longer. The Astro Rock is about the same size but does not
handle as well.
I bought a Seatreand (same size and volume) as my first shortboard in
1988, $225 used. Compared to my other small boards which are all shorter
and lighter, it is like driving a station wagon. I still sail it at the
begining of the season as it is an easy board to sail.
If you decide to buy it, it is probably worth about $200.00. Have fun!
Wave2sail
Bill Prinzmetal
Has a new Mistral Mast Track system, etc.
It is an excellend board for someone who has just got water starts
and is getting into short boarding.
It is a good board for SF Bay, where I mostly sail.
wpr...@garnet.berkeley.edu
leon...@hotmail.com
Ross Herrin
leon...@hotmail.com
> Great to read that there are still fans of the Diamond Head to this day. It is easily my favourite board despite being 30 years old. It is fast and reliable in conditions of 20 knots plus and for bigger guys (100 kilos plus) it an ideal slalom board. I have managed to crack the fin box just recently and the football fin that came with it is was useless and the original mast track/carriage was dodgy but all these things came be remedied.
fransb...@gmail.com
I still have my Diamond Head from 87 and also sailing still sailing it. It’s in a very good condition, I only replaced the mastfoot with a europin baseplate. Still have the original footstraps. At this moment I am looking for a freestyle board. I want to do more tricks and looking forward to get me one. I was searching for the volume from my Diamond Head, that’s why i came here.
Frans (from Holland)