Never Summer Proto Slinger Review: Freestyle Snowboard Review

* 2022 model drops the 146, 151 & 159 sizes that the 2021 model had 

Who is the Proto Slinger Suited To?

The Proto Slinger is a great option for those looking for a freestyle oriented deck to hit the park on, but that can also do pretty well on the rest of the mountain, particularly if you're using the mountain like a park. It's soft and buttery but also has a good dose of camber, which helps with carving. 

Not great for powder and not quite for a beginner, just because of all that camber, but low intermediate and up should be good on this board.  

Bindings angles: +15/-15

Stance width: 545mm (21.5″)

Stance Setback: Centered

Width at Inserts: 263mm (10.35") 

Rider Height: 6'0"

Rider Weight: 175lbs

Rider Boot Size: US10 Salomon Lo-Fi

Bindings Used: Burton Malavita M 

Weight: 2800grams (6lbs 3oz)

Weight per cm: 17.95 grams/cm

Average Weight per cm: 18.36 grams/cm*

*based on a small sample size of around 80 models that I’ve weighed in 2019, 2020 & 2021 models. The Proto Slinger a little lighter than average. Feels about normal on snow. 

Note: The Proto Slinger replaces the Funslinger. The Proto Slinger is quite similar to the old Funslinger. The only real change is the new "Shock Wave Rocker Camber" camber profile, which adds more camber. Otherwise it's very similar to the old Funslinger. 

Powder

Had a bit to test in. Though not super deep, it was moderate. Any board is fun in powder, IMO, and the Proto Slinger is no exception. But I could feel from the brief time I had it in there that if it was deeper and you were in it for a longer period of time, then keeping the nose floating would become quite a back leg burning effort. But in 20cm (8") for brief amounts of time, was fine.  

It's true twin and centered and whilst it has a little rocker in the profile, it's not a whole lot, so not really designed for powder. 

Carving & Turning

Carving: Fun board for short sharp carves. Certainly not worlds better than the old Funslinger for carving, but just that little bit more carvy, with that extra camber. Not as suited to big, long carves, but fun for short sharp ones.  

Turning: General turning is really fun on this board. It feels snappy and it's easy to initiate turns on. 

Maneuverability at Slow Speeds: Really easy to maneuver at slow speeds. Quick and easy edge to edge transition, without having to put much effort in.  

Skidded Turns: Given all that camber, it's surprisingly forgiving of skidded turns. Not like a beginner board with lots of rocker, but still pretty forgiving of them. 

Speed

Given it's flex, being a centered twin and all that, it's never going to be a bomber, but it can handle a fair bit of speed well enough. 

Uneven Terrain

Nice and maneuverable for slow speed weaving through bumps and going over top of bumps is good. Not a crud crusher - you get bounced around a bit in it, but not terrible either. 

Jumps

So much fun for jumps! Great pop and so easy to access, and just everything about this board for jumps. The only reason I didn't give it 5/5 is that it's not quite as suited to really large jumps, in terms of speed of approach you need and stability of landing, but for small to medium jumps and side hits, it would be hard to think of a board I preferred more than this one.  

Pop: Great pop and so easy to access. Effortless and snappy pop. 

Approach: It's not an ultra stable feel for larger jumps, but it's stable enough for those approaches to most size jumps and has great maneuverability for trickier approaches. 

Landing: A great balance of solid and forgiving. 

Side-hits: Perfection. So maneuverable for trickier approaches and great pop that's super easy to access. Landing and setting up switch is awesome too. 

Small jumps/Big Jumps: Best suited to small to medium jumps, IMO, but can handle larger jumps too. 

Switch

As good as it gets, IMO.

Spins

Pretty much perfect for spins. The only reason, again, that this didn't get 5/5, is that it's not as suited to large tricks. But for anything else - you know for those of use mere mortals that typically don't send it massive - it's amazing. Easy to get the spin around, great for setting up and landing switch and great/effortless pop. 

Jibbing

Great for jibs. Felt confident hitting them. The setup is great, the pop on and off great and felt good on the jib too. 

Butters

Super buttery. I wondered if it would become less butterable with the new "Shock Wave" camber profile, but it's still super easy and fun to butter with. 

Like buttering, jumps, sidehits, jibs, treating the mountain like a park, when not in the park - and just like a springy, snappy, playful yet explosive ride, in general? Then the Proto Slinger is a board you should get excited about. One of those boards that I just felt buzzed from after unstrapping. This one might have to be added to the quiver this year!