The Madness brackets are narrowing. Yesterday I took out the two 14.5wb decks for a head-to-head. The Black Label was the clear winner (more details later this week). For now, the “quick” version of what I did not like about the DLX 8.38 is the following:
-Tail is too short.
-Nose and tail are too rounded off/narrow for me. Combine a shorter tail, with a significantly more rounded (e.g. narrower) shape, and foot placement (on tail) starts to feel really precarious. On tricks like tailslides, blunts, 5-0 to tail (anything to tail, actually), it shook my confidence. No one wants equipment that hinders confidence.
-Ratios. Deck seemed too narrow in relationship to its length. I’ve noticed this on other 8.38 decks, too. The ratios just seem “off” and not balanced out, at least to me.
-Shape Appearance. I just don’t like the way the shape of this deck looked. It reminded me of an oversized suppository. When I look down at my board, I want to be stoked on what I see, not bummed. Looks good, feels good, skates good. I believe in that approach. How your gear looks can impact your mental state, and it should impact you in a positive manner, not a negative one.
-Width. This entire 14.5wb Madness/Project is for the purpose of funding a larger set-up for transition (that may also have some general application uses). The 8.38 felt too narrow for me on bigger transition. Combined that with the shorter/rounder tail, and things just feel…dreadfully wrong. This is not the deck for me. At all. Ever.
The Black Label did not have any of these problems. Quite the opposite, actually.
Here are pics of both.
EDIT: In these pics, at least on the nose, you can see the DLX has a much rounder nose (tail is even “worse”). Whereas the Black Label stays a bit “fuller” out beyond the baseplate before it starts to taper/curve.
