Hello and welcome to my Jones Flagship review.
In this review, I will take a look at the Flagship as a Freeride snowboard.
As per tradition here at SnowboardingProfiles.com I will give the Flagship a score out of 100 (based on several factors) and see how it compares with other freeride snowboards.
Overall Rating
Board: Jones Flagship
Price: $599 (USD recommended retail)
Style: Freeride
Flex Rating: Stiff (8/10)
Flex Feel on Snow: Stiff (8/10)
Rating Score: 86.4/100
Compared to other Men’s Freeride Boards
Out of the 20 men’s freeride snowboards that I rated:
- The average price was $599 (USD)
- The average score was 82.1/100
- The highest score was 91.8/100
- The lowest score was 57.1/100
- The Flagship ranked 4th out of 20
Overview of the Flagship’s Specs
Check out the tables for the Flagship’s specs and available sizes.
Specs
| Style | Freeride |
| Price | $599 (USD) |
| Ability Level: |  |
| Flex: |  |
| Feel: |  |
| Edge-hold up to: |  |
| Turn Initiation | Medium-Fast |
| Weight | Normal |
| Camber Profile | Hybrid Camber |
| Shape | Tapered Directional |
| Stance Setback | Setback 30mm (1 1/4") |
| Base | Sintered 9900 |
Sizing
| Size (Length) | 154 | 158 | 159W | 161 | 162W | 164 | 165W | 166 | 169W | 172 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Waist Width (mm) | 246 | 249 | 263 | 252 | 263 | 254 | 266 | 258 | 270 | 263 |
| Weight Range (lbs) | 120-170 | 130-180 | 140-190 | 140-190 | 160-210 | 160-210 | 160-210 | 160-210 | 170-220 | 170-220 |
| Weight Range (kgs) | 54-77 | 59-82 | 64-86 | 64-86 | 73-95 | 73-95 | 73-95 | 73-95 | 77-100 | 77-100 |
Who is the Flagship Most Suited to?
The Flagship is for anyone who likes to bomb the mountain, be it on the groomers, in the trees or in the backcountry. This thing is built for speed and floats really well in powder. And if you’re on the groomers it loves to carve.
So, if you like to charge and like to do it in or out of the resort, then the Flagship is a great option.
Definitely not for the park. Definitely not for freestyle and definitely not for beginners. This is an advanced and up board for those that like it steep and deep.
The Flagship in More Detail
O.k. let’s take a more detailed look at what the Flagship is capable of.
Demo Info
Board: Jones Flagship, 162W (263mm waist width)
Date: March 8, 2017
Conditions: Good amount of fresh powder yet again (got a lot of that during the 2016-17 season). Conditions were medium speed wise – not too slow but not super quick either. Even though it was a weekday everything was a bit chundery on the groomers – a bit slack with the grooming that day. But off groomer was where the real fun was to be had, with all that fresh stuff!
Bindings angles: +15/-6
Stance width: 600mm (23.6“)
Powder
I rode the 162W which was a little wide for me. The 161 would be the best size for me for this board. But having the 162W made it even better for floating in pow than it would have been on the 161. But this board is made for pow and even on the narrower, slightly shorter version, it would have floated great.
And it’s really not surprising that it’s great in pow. It has a 30mm setback. But remember that the setback is measured along the effective edge. I measured a 105mm setback along the overall length of the board – and that’s due to it’s long nose (295mm) and short tail (190mm). That, plus a small amount of taper (wider nose than tail) and Jones’ scoop tech, make this a great pow floater.
Carving & Turning
This board was nice to carve on. A really nice carving sensation with decent spring out of a turn. It wants to go fast and straight most of the time – nice for wide arcing carves.
Edge-to-edge it was quicker than I expected, given that it was a little wide for me, but still not something as quick as I would like it for trees, especially in that length. The 161 or even 159 would be much more fun in the trees for me.
It was surprisingly good at skidding turns – didn’t feel catchy at all and you could definitely get away with skidded turns.
Speed
The Flagship was super fast, even on a relatively slow snow day – and it felt unbelievably stable at speed. I felt like I could just really open it out and it felt damp and, did I mention, stable as hell!
Let’s Break up this text with a Video
Uneven Terrain
It felt like it was better than previous Flasghips in the chunder. It’s made in a new factory now and it’s better in that respect. It’s still not great in that area but it can handle busy Saturday afternoon resort snow better than before.
Jumps
Personally, it’s too stiff for me to really like it for jumps – but it does stomp a landing – so it’s good in that sense – it’s super stable on landings – so landing jumps in the backcountry no problem – just not something I really liked for park jumps, spins or finding tricky little side-hits.
But that’s not what it’s made for either.
Switch
Did I mention that it’s setback 105mm over the overall length – o.k. in reality you only really feel the 30mm setback on the effective edge when riding on groomers, so maybe there’s something a little psychological going on there – but yeah overall, not something that I enjoyed riding switch – would be particularly difficult if you were just starting to learn to ride switch.
Jibbing
Didn’t go there. Not at all what this board is made for.
Changes from the 2017 Model
The 2017 model was quite different from the 2016 model (introduced spoon tech, was made in a different factory and was just a more forgiving and damper ride overall). But the 2018 model is very similar to the 2017 model.
Probably the only change as far as I can tell is that they’ve tweaked the core between the feet – with the intention of increasing torsional response (as they have done for the whole Jones line).
Score Breakdown and Final Verdict
Check out the breakdown of the score in the table below.
| FACTOR | RATING (OUT OF 5) | CONTRIBUTION TO FINAL SCORE |
|---|---|---|
| Carving: | 4.0 | 24/30 |
| Powder: | 5.0 | 20/20 |
| Speed: | 5.0 | 20/20 |
| Uneven Terrain: | 2.5 | 7.5/15 |
| Jumps: | 3.0 | 6/10 |
| Switch: | 2.0 | 2/5 |
| TOTAL after normalizing | 86.4/100 |
Overall, the Flagship is a speed machine (looking back over my notes for this board, I mentioned speed a lot in those notes!) that loves the steep and deep. It carves nicely and is an improvement in uneven terrain.
A great freeride option that can actually skid turns ok – so could be an option for high level intermediate riders as well as advanced and expert riders – so long as your style suited the board and you could handle the 8/10 flex.
More Info, Current Prices and Where to Buy Online
If you’re interested in learning more about the Flagship, are ready to buy or want to research prices and availability, check out the links below.
If you want to see how the Flagship compared to other freeride boards or want to check out some other options, check out the next link.
>>My Top 5 Men’s Freeride Snowboards
Hey Nick!
Just got this board in 162w length on a crazy discount.
However I am 87kg and started doubting if it will be too short for mny 87 – 90 kg. What is your weight?
Hi Vlad
Thanks for your message.
I was roughly 84kg when i rode this board. The width was too wide for me on the 162W but th length was doable. I’ve since ridden the 2019 model in the 158 and I liked that size. Though I’d say the 161 would be the best fit for me (for what I would be using this board for).
I think 162 should be fine for your weight. It would be more about your boot size, whether they’re suitable for the width. If you could let me know your boot size and also your height too, that would help to make a more informed recommendation
Hi,
It’s 12 US feet (30 cm) and 192 cm
Hi Vlad
Thanks for the extra info.
The width should definitely be good for you, wide is the way to go for your boot size.
In terms of the length, overall, I think it’s good. You could have also ridden the 165W with your specs (particularly if you’re an advanced rider and mostly ride fast and spend a fair bit of time in powder), but the 162W will work with your specs too, IMO.