Quote-start

My nose, my nose, its broken.

Quote-end

3 Sep 11th, 2001 

25 Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful

Advantages:
Nice when planing .

Disadvantages:
Nose breaks off too easily & BIC customer relations are very poor .

Recommendable No:

Detailed rating:

Value for money

Durability

How does it compare to similar products?

margyle

margyle

About me:

I like to surf, sing, windsurf and travel, I love mellow people and can`t stand stress !

Member since:28.08.2001

Reviews:14

Members who trust:2

I am an intermediate windsurfer who is hoping, within the next 12 months to make the leap from boards that float me to sinkers. I bought a Techno 273 in August 2000 and I have been blessed with good winds since then. I have been sailing it with a 6.8 BIC Logic freeride sail and a 5.5 Tushingham Storm sail in winds up to force 5.

It's an OK board as soon as you get it planing, its responsive and you can throw it into aggressive moves and it is quite forgiving. In winds that are not strong enough to get the board planing it is slow, it would be better to find a board with more volume for these conditions.

My major problem, with this otherwise pretty good board, is that the nose on mine has split and it has cost me £90 ($140 approx) to get it fixed. I thought that it was my fault as a progressing windsurfer going out in stronger winds but I have met at least 10 other windsurfers who have had the same problem with the 273 and the other Techno's. It was the end of the boom hitting the board that did it, and yes, I was using a maui magic boom protector. It appears the nose is not strong enough to stand up to the standard kind of beating that a progressing windsurfer will give it, and the board was less than one month old at the time.

I took the board back to my retailer (Shore Water Sports, East Wittering, UK) and they say BIC are not accepting any responsibility for what is in essense a bad design fault, worse than that, the shop owner had just come back from a windsurfing trade show where BIC retailers were asking the company what they are going to do about the problem. BIC acknowledged the fault but said they are not admitting liability and next years models are using the same nose design !

The moral of the story is : the Techno 273 is an OK board, but only buy one if you are sure the end of your boom will never hit the nose. My advise - try one of StarBoards windsurfer boards (the "GO" is excellent) instead.

***********************************************************
Update : Sept 2001

After breaking the nose for the fourth time I finally had enough and part exchanged the techno in for a Mistral Flow which is a much better board - look out for my review on it.
***********************************************************

 

How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines

exceptional

very helpful

helpful

somewhat helpful

not helpful

off topic

Products you might be interested in »

Al Merrick Bic 72"
Beach Beat Surfboards

Beach Beat Surfboards

(+) speed, looks and pure surfability
(-) cost, at 340 quid this is quite an expensive board

User reviews (1)

Buy Now

HOT BUTTERED Surfboards

HOT BUTTERED Surfboards

(+) fast, light, excellent grip, everything is possible. uited for prone riders
(-) not good for drop knee riding but is possible

User reviews (2)

Buy Now

Local Hero Surfboards

Local Hero Surfboards

(+) hand shape and personalized
(-) none noticeable

User reviews (1)

Buy Now

Bunty Surfboards

Bunty Surfboards

(+) It's a good solid board. Ideal for intermediate to expert. Beautifully made. Recommend the 6'10" for Uk waves
(-) None

User reviews (1)

Buy Now

Comments about this review »

blue2smiler 04.10.2001 22:52

good op. sorry to hear about you breaking your nose several times. I think i would have given up the first time i broke my nose. Good luck. :O. leannex

emu128 16.09.2001 22:01

Great op as per usual, thanks for the info, I thought you had broken your nose from your title! Anyways I'd love to learn to windsurf, is it hard? ~ I'll have to take it up when I'm older and live near the sea! Cheers ~M~ :0)

Connoisseur_Haggler 13.09.2001 17:53

Very enjoyable to read, Ive always loved wtching people surf, dont do it myself! or live near enough a coast to do so. Love the name of the surf wasnt sure if that was a type of music, a piece of audio/Hi-Fi equipemnt or plain surfing!! I do now! So you surf online and in the waves, awesome stuff -CH





Are you the manufacturer / provider of Bic Techno 273? Click here