09 watson vs. 09 lyman

(ac88926) · (ac88926) **Join Date: Apr 2005** 09-23-2009, 4:38 PM

Im in between these two boards and i was wondering if anyone has ridden both and would give me feedback on how they were maybe similar and how they were different. Thanks.

(mckenna) · (mckenna) **Join Date: Mar 2008** 09-23-2009, 5:01 PM

vs shane.

(ironj32) · (ironj32) **Join Date: Jan 2007** 09-23-2009, 6:51 PM

i've ridden both in the past two weeks. i started out with the Watson 142. i loved the board...great pop, super light, nice landings, tracks well on edge, but very loose when flat (i rode without the middle fin). it is definitely a unfortunately i have a problem with breaking boards (5'11", 205 lbs, and not very graceful). i snapped it on Krypt on my 3rd set. so i went back to the shop and swapped it out for another one, and again it broke on a Krypt in the middle of it's second set. i was landing pretty evenly and solid, and rode away from both landings.

my shop ran out of Watsons, so took a Lyman 143. i've taken 3 sets on it, and am really diggin' it. it's definitely faster than the Watson and not as loose, has about the same verticle pop, but it does shoot a little further out into the flats. i can tell that it has a little more swing weight when spinning than the Watson (take this comment with a grain of salt, as I can only spin as far as 540 on HS/TS)...better riders might disagree with me. also, the landings seem to be a bit harder, but this is probably due to the fact that you're landing out in the flats more often.

if i could ride just either of them without breaking them, i think i would go with the Watson. since that is not the case, i will stick with the Lyman...it's far more durable, with it's double layer of glass.

i hope this helps. you can't go wrong with either board, in my opinion.

(eternalshadow) · (eternalshadow) **Join Date: Nov 2001** 09-25-2009, 8:47 AM

To add;

I find the Watson and Lyman both edge with similar speed. However the Lyman hooks up quicker and offers more speed through the transition (therefore offering some more speed). The Watson offers a somewhat more predictable up pop, that being said when you find the sweet spot on the Lyman look out!

Both are great boards. I like to carry speed from the transition where as I felt I lost speed in the transition on the Watson. Lyman was the choice board for me because of that.

(bull) · (bull) **Join Date: Jul 2006** 09-28-2009, 11:44 PM

Might be a bit late to chime in on this one but I'll have to agree with Jay - I went through 2 '07 watsons. Both of mine were on toe front rolls though - kinked the board right ahead of my front binding.

I was riding an '08 watson 142 until I saw the '09 lyman 139 on BBB. After reading about the 143 being a beast I took a chance and it was worthwhile. Even though I'm 195 I felt it landed a ton softer. That being said I've got vid of the tip on the 139 flexing like crazy on a rough landing. The tip/tail profile of the lyman is way thinner than a watson.

For other qualifiers my ride is an '03 supra 22 ssv with 750's in the rear ( maybe 550 max) and the 1110 upfront (900 i'm thinking) which is right around 2k w/o peeps. Jay rides around 4k+ and I can verify that he goes big...

Bottom line is going to be your wake and how big you want to go :-)