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Z-Flex Surfskate with Waterborne Surf Adapter Review
Considering a Z-Flex surfskate? Let me do my best to help you make the decision.
Z-Flex is an old school skateboard brand that has been around since 1975. They partnered with Waterborne to make surfskates using a Waterborne surf adapter on front.
Z-Flex surfskates come in a handful of models.
Watch My Z-Flex Surfskate Review on YouTube
Bottom Line Up Front
Z-Flex surfskates with Waterborne Surf Adapter work well as basic cruisers for beginners. However, they are limited to that, and I believe they’re overpriced for what you get.
The deck has low concave, a narrow rear foot placement, and no kicktail, which means you can’t use it for performance riding. The wheels are small and hard, which means you can’t ride it for long distances and over rough surfaces.
If Z-Flex surfskates were to be priced at $179 or less, I think they would be a solid option for beginners. But with them being priced over that, I believe you have better options.
I like how the Waterborne surf adapter feels and performs, and I include it in my list of the best surfskates.
However, one of my challenges with it is that it can be difficult to put together your own customized set-up. This is especially true for beginners.
For that reason, I think Z-Flex and Waterborne were smart to partner up and create complete surfskates under the Z-Flex brand, using a Waterborne surf adapter on the front truck.
(Penny and Waterborne did the same thing with the Penny High-Line Surfskate.)
I find the Z-Flex surfskate with Waterborne surf adapter to be a great complete surfskate for beginners. It’s very functional and it rides very well. It’s both stable and carvey.
However, I also find it to be limited in functionality and overpriced for what it is.
Z-Flex offers a few different surfskate models. I bought the 31” Bamboo Fish.
On the rear of a Z-Flex surfskate you’ll find a riser instead of the Waterborne rail adapter. The difference is that a riser is much more stable for beginners, while the Waterborne rail adapter offers even deeper lean than you can get from the surf adapter alone.
I personally prefer to use the rail adapter, rather than a riser, with the Waterborne surf adapter. Reason being, it enables tighter carving by keeping all four wheels on the ground through deep carves.
The effect of the riser pad is that it makes Z-Flex surfskates a lot more stable for beginners.
The deck on the Z-Flex surfskate Bamboo Fish model is 9.5” at the widest point, where your front foot is placed. At the back, it tapers down to 5.5”. It’s about 8” wide where your back foot is placed.
The Z-Flex surfskate deck does not have much concave at all.
Z-Flex surfskate wheels are just 63 millimeters in diameter. This is relatively small for surfskate wheels, which are typically between 65 and 70 millimeters. Their 35 millimeter contact patch is also relatively narrow for surfskate wheels (in comparison, Carver Roundhouse wheels have a 48 millimeter contact patch).
Z-Flex surfskate wheels are also 83a durometer. This is relatively hard for surfskate wheels, which are typically between 78a and 81a.
Is a Z-Flex Surfskate for You?
When you put all the aspects of this Z-Flex surfskate together, what you have is a basic cruiser surfskate for beginners, and that’s pretty much it. It’s a surfskate that you would ride barefoot down the Strand.
The narrow rear foot placement and lack of concave on the Z-Flex xurfskate mean it’s not built for performance riding or advanced maneuvers, like snaps, slides, or surfskate bowl riding.
Given that the wheels are small and hard, it means they’re not versatile. They’re good for one terrain only: smooth concrete. And you wouldn’t want to travel long distances on them.
I don’t recommend the Z-Flex surfskate for intermediate or advanced riders because there are so many other options within the same price range that will work better for you.
So my bottom line on Z-Flex surfskates is that they work well, but their functionality is limited and they are overpriced for what they offer.
If you’re looking for a budget surfskate option, then my recommendation is the Carver Triton series with Carver CX trucks. A Carver Triton surfskate is cheaper than a Z-Flex surfskate and is much more versatile and higher quality.
