Shinn Jackson Sunburner 128 x 45cm 2020
Reviews / Hydrofoil Boards
10,413
At A Glance
The Shinn Jackson Sunburner is a low volume hydrofoil board that is perfect for strapped or strapless riding. Mark Shinn has been a fan of foiling for some time, and this is his latest board to hit the shelves. Previous versions have been incredibly popular, and it is easy to see why.
At its heart, it is a simple looking board, but when you get under the hood, there is so much more going on. New for this year is the Trim Track foil connection system that allows you to quickly attach the foil and also select the perfect position for it too.
For 2020 it’s been made lighter and stiffer, and while that is what everyone says these days it’s worthy of note. 40% stiffer is thanks to the new V-Tech mould which puts two large strips into the base of the board. Combining this shape with unidirectional carbon fibre makes it incredibly stiff. Lighter, well when you pick it up, you’ll be impressed! It’s one of the lightest foil boards we’ve picked up in a while, and that makes a difference when you carry it to the beach.
The full deck pad follows the same contours as previous years, with raised sides that help protect the board, but also encourage correct foot placement when tacking and gybing too. Featuring a full wood core and twin tip style construction, it’s an exceedingly durable set up that will stand the test of time.
On The Water
This board is light, getting it to the beach was a breeze compared with other boards, so Shinn are already ticking a box there. Having a light board counts when you have already mounted a foil to it, especially if there is a bit of a hike involved. Once on the water, you will instantly notice the low volume.
We tested ours with the new K2 wing, and the board sat right on the waterline when left alone. This makes it very easy to water start strapless, although a good tip is to keep your knees bent until it’s moving. The temptation to straighten your legs will send the Sunburner into the depths, making things tricky. With straps, it’s a breeze to water start as it’s so easy to set the rail. Strapless it is definitely one of the easiest boards out there -we enjoyed it!
Once up and riding the improvement in stiffness is instantly noticeable. The foil will react to every input through the board instantly. This is critically important for good control on the water. We loved the raised footpad on the rails as this helped with foot placement.
When you touchdown the nose has plenty of rocker to help you back up and the edges are good at cutting through the chop when that hits too. Some boards on offer can stall a bit, but we had no such issues with the Jackson Sunburner, it behaved impeccably throughout the test!
The Trim Track system works well, once you have it dialled in it’s a breeze to loosen the bolts and remove the mast, making transportation easy.
Overall
If you are looking for a great strapless board to attach a foil to, then the Jackson Sunburner has to be in contention. The new V-Tech moulding adds loads of stiffness, giving you plenty of control on the water and it’s an incredibly easy board to water start - with or without straps. Mark Shinn will have to wrestle this one back from us, we really loved it!
Videos
This review was in Issue 76 of IKSURFMAG.
For more information visit ShinnRelated
By Rou Chater
Rou has been kiting since the sports inception and has been working as an editor and tester for magazines since 2004. He started IKSURFMAG with his brother in 2006 and has tested hundreds of different kites and travelled all over the world to kitesurf. He's a walking encyclopedia of all things kite and is just as passionate about the sport today as he was when he first started!
