# Kids board - should I detune



## pezman38 (Dec 12, 2010)

Absolutely I would detune them. You want your kids to love it, that way you get out more. A simple detune will allow them to make more mistakes and pull out of it, without falling on their face/butt. The less that happens the more they will enjoy it. Once they can get down the slope with control start adding the edge back in. Just my opinion on this.


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## Dozer (Dec 12, 2010)

thanks for reply

Do I do the complete edge or just the tail and front, the video also said to lay board on concrete and mark the touch points and go from there to the tail or front. 

thanks for help -


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## pezman38 (Dec 12, 2010)

Well any board should be detuned on the front and tail at the curves, check it and detune if necessary. Mount your board to a bench with a couple clamps. Run your finger across the edge and note how sharp it is..very carefully. If you had a board sharpened recently don't do this with much pressure or you will cut urself. (I am saying this because if you can't tell if it is sharp, do nothing, pretty detuned now)

Using a finishing flat file, take the edge off with 2-3 strokes of the file. Use your finger again to verify the edge has been reduced. If it feels pretty sharp still repeat the process with the file. You don't want to take off much because you will want to put it back eventually. 
I found this video on youtube to give you a visual. He goes nuts on the front and tail with a file because you want them dull. I wouldn't be that aggressive on the edges of the board, you want them not sharp, not completely dull like front and tail.
YouTube - Snowboard Tuning Part 1 - Detuning Edges


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## KIRKRIDER (Mar 18, 2008)

Dozer said:


> I am helping my kids with snowboarding and reading as much as possible but would like to ask if I should de-tune my kids new boards. Have never heard of de-tune until this weeked but looks like it might help them. I watched a video on snowprofessor
> 
> my kids are 9 & 11 - weight 84 and 80 -
> 
> ...


what lenght board did you get? My somn is 11, and 89


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## Dozer (Dec 12, 2010)

We have plenty of ice, about everything we have is man made and a very small hill with flats. 

My son is on a Burton TWC 136, I just looked at it from the first run and it has quite a few marks right at the contact point on the edges at the back of the board. look like chatter marks 

I have his bindings at 15 and negative 6

realize we just started last year and I have never snowboarded so trying to help them with everything

My daughter who is much taller is on a Rossignol Harmony 145

Just talked to the local shop and bringing both boards in tomorrow for the 3 degree grind and detune. he said I could watch also and learn


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

Maybe only detune the contact points, however, I didn't with my kids. It might be a bit easier to learn but in the longer run, the kids will develop better skills by forcing them to be more precise; besides they don't know any better. When my daughter was learning at 7, we did alot incorrectly...like she learned switch and rode that way for the first 2 years then actually we figured out she was really goofy. Then 9-11 she had this insanely big ass stiff board...option bella 148, came up to the top of her head, she was a good 15-20 lbs under-weight; and then I made some 20mm risers so that she could edge the thing...which only made it worse...she really had to learn how to precisely work the edges. The first year that bella kicked her ass, the second year she learned to make it work and the third year (it actually fit her) she was throwing it around like a park board, straight line bombs and eventually retired it due to delaming the tail. Anyway all this forced her to become confident, smooth and frickin fast.


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## rasmasyean (Jan 26, 2008)

Snowolf said:


> The *contact points* of a board are where it is at the *widest width* and where it would make contact if laid on a table on edge.


That apparently is not always true. Those are 2 different measurements. I think I also remeber noticing this one time when inspecting some boards. And they board type seemed to follow the snip below.

_*Effective Edge*"Effective edge is the widest point on the board, including the sidecut. It is the difference between the blend radius [the shape where the sidecut turns into the nose/tail shape] and the contact length [the part that is on the snow]. If you have a greater difference between the effective edge and the contact length, it will make the board feel more forgiving; less difference and the board will feel edgy. Freeride boards, generally, have a bigger difference between the contact length and effective edge, giving a slower, smoother response. Freestyle boards have less of a difference, giving a quicker turn response and allowing the board to ‘stand up’ more, which helps with landing spins so you don't keep spinning after you land." 

Tucker Fransen
Head of Product Development
MLY/M3 

Snowboarding-Online.com | Snowboard Life Magazine | Breaking Down A Snowboard: Explaining the Terms_


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## Dozer (Dec 12, 2010)

Our start last year with my son was very comical, we had no idea what we were doing. found a couple instructors who helped but after reading on this forum I feel that in my area we are lacking with qualified instructors


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