Big Kahuna Stick Road Blade Replacement ~ SUP the Streets!

First - if you're new to this sport, is an excellent idea. The sport is a much better workout than skateboarding. In fact, I'm finding this is better exercise than actual SUP'ing. If you're a beginner skater, it will give you a lot of confidence. If you're an experienced skater, it'll add a new dimension to something that you already do. I find there are a lot of neat places to skate where I want speed, but I don't put my foot down to push. And it works your core and arms.You don't want to drag it and use it as a break while you bomb down a hill - BUT you can do that if you get into trouble and you may find you do it a lot while you're learning. After you get better, you'll find that you can use it to help you take deep carves to control your speed and use it for the occasional brace or some quick drags around corners to control speed. Still - if you're coming up on an intersection with too much speed, it's great to know that you can brace it behind you and come to a stop - you'll just burn through the rubber faster than you'd like.Ok - This piece is very well made and easy to attach. It has a bit of flex and it's pretty grippy.It will fit on a closet-rod-sized piece of pine if you want to try this out without investing in the whole stick. Just cut the wood to length and wrap it with hockey tape. Long term, you'll want the real stick. It has more strength and flex.You can extend it's life and make it more grippy by attaching a 8-10 inch piece of mountain bike tire to the bottom with zip ties.I really appreciate that Big Kahuna makes the replacement easy to buy.

1 star might be a bit dismal but I'm definitely disappointed with this product. They took a good product and made it worse, it actually does the opposite of their promised improvements.First of all you can see 3 holes in the blade. My old blade (I don't know what generation it would be but it was still "patent pending" then) had 5 holes in it. That matters because the 3 hole blade doesn't compress as well against the ground, this means less surface area is making contact and therefore less grip and a higher likelihood of slipping. It's especially worse at the edges of the blade which, surprise surprise, are where you get most of your contact. That slipping becomes problematic because their softer rubber formula deteriorates for a stiff breeze. I had the last blade for a couple years of intermittent use and then still put it through about a good 6 months of almost daily use, for miles of riding.The blade I bought in march has almost no tread left on it. I imagine it'll be worn to the holes by the end of the year if not sooner. That's sad. It's a waste of money, it's a waste of resources and it's a waste of materials. Intentionally making an inferior product is a bad idea. I just hope I can find a better solution than throwing money at a company that doesn't understand their own product.

I use the product every week, sometimes up to 5-days in a row. Typically, I'll skate 6 miles (3 up and 3 back). Been using the Kahuna for over 1-year. Awesomely fun product, really provides a core work out while providing that fun glide you get on a board. Only downfall - the rubber on the bottom of the stick wears out at the tips pretty fast if you use it a lot. I've tried internet suggestions such as using a bike tire over it but, kind of clumsy and slips. My suggestion - have the company contruct the blade with a harder rubber that lasts longer.

The blade replacement pictured here isn't the one you receive. You actually get Kahuna's new "Road Blade II." I love Kahuna products, have three sticks, and paddle very frequently, but this new blade is thinner and wears through in weeks, vs. the old design that would last almost all season. I rarely drag my paddle, so it's wearing down almost entirely from pushing. I felt the old design gave you plenty of grip, and didn't result in you having to shell out $20/month to replace blades.

Nicely thought through with good construction. For us in salty coastal areas a touch of Neverseize on the cap-screw/nut will make life easier at next replacement if your stick gets sandy or dipped in water.(hey, i used it to catch a snake....my doing for sure!)

They last about 30 miles worth of use. The rubber compound is very soft, but that does provide some shock absorption during use.

The locking button for height button broke and fell inside the first time we adjusted it. I ended up drilling a set screw to lock it so my kid could use it rather than send it back and do without for a long time. Besides the next one might break fall inside also. She wasn't very impressed with it and in a few days she put it in the closet where it collects dust now.

Bought this to replace my last tip as I had to use it to slow down my Hamboard and while it stopped me it wore though it...as expected...if it was more wear resistant, it wouldn't grip as well. They have the right design going on here!