Is Red Paddle Co. really the #1 Inflatable SUP?

What exactly did you want to know..

I hope it's number one! I just bought a 2014 10' Surfer, but haven't had a chance to try it yet. I haven't found a negative review on a Red Paddle Co board!

Just ensure you are getting the right inflatable for you though.

C4 Waterman pioneered the inflatable SUP many years ago, this is also where the iSup moniker comes from and are still very much at/near the top of the market.

Based on absolutely no knowledge whatsoever, I reckon they all come out of the same factory. All the fittings look the same. All the fin boxes look the same. All the fins look the same. All the valves look the same. All the outlines look similar. All the marketing blurb is the same.

I reckon there's one big factory in China and the brands just choose the colour and panel layout and which end to put the valve and away they go.

Thanks gents for all that. Quality posts there for sure.

Basically, would Red Paddle Co be consider one of the better selling and quality brands?

I know Australia isn't known for inflatables so its probably hard to say. I prefer a rigid/hard board myself but I have been thinking about an inflatable as well for multiple reasons.

Yeah, the marketing and manufacturing are quite similar from brand to brand. Maybe they are all made in the same few factories that make them.

I am looking at adding an inflatable to the quiver for overseas travel purposes and , from what I see, the Red Paddles Boards would have to be near the best on offer. Those who have bought them a few years ago seem to attest to their durability. They also come with the best pump and the best bag as well so that is another factor to consider. This years offerings from Starboard look excellent with 2 manufacturing styles for many models. They have also upgraded their bag - it now has roller wheels. The RRD boards appear to be excellent too and I believe there is someone in Bayside Victoria starting to import them. I love the Naish 12' Air Glide that DJ has , but at over 2 grand is out of the question. I love the Red Paddle 11' sport but ideally would like something longer. The 12'x 31 inch RRD Aircruiser looks good , as does the 2 12' versions of their touring model - one 34" wide (same width as the Naish) , and the other 32" wide. I have decided that, as the Mrs has decided the next trip to Koh Samui won't be until this time next year, I am going to wait to see what is on offer for 2016. The improvements in inflatable technology has rocketed ahead over the last 2 years. 2015's offerings are great but I reckon next years will be awesome. Here is a link to the RRD inflatables. http://www.robertoriccidesigns.com/equipment/product-category/inflatable-sup-boards/

Inflatable construction has come a long way over the last 2-3 years but they still vary a lot in construction. Having tested a number from Naish, Starboard, Hobie, Uli, Fanatic, among others, and as a (very) heavy paddler, RED wins for stiffness. I own a 12'6 RED race with the batten system, I usually regularly inflate mine up to about 28psi (at the servo) - of course it doesn't quite perform like a hard board but it's very very good for a pump up. There is a couple of kg weight penalty for the heavier construction to take the higher pressures but I can live with that.

Thanks Colas, great response. I see Uli and Red are the go to brands. For surf and then cruising would people recommend uli FAQ 9'3 or red surf star?

I am 75kg but would want to throw my daughters on the front sometimes so it would be up to 100kg. I would definately want to take it with me on holidays so weight could be an issue but the extra weight seems to mean better quality. I am starting to expand the search to include the red 10'6" which from all accounts sounds like it is a great all round board as long as you are not expecting to throw it around in the surf or break any speed records. Has anyone surfed the Red 10'6"? All I really want to know is can you turn them or does it just suck onto the wave and track straight down the line.

I (1m80 and 68kgs) have the Red Paddle Surfstar 9'2"- pump it up to 23-24 PSI and with the lateral 3 foot long sail battens it becomes super stiff.
I have used it in waves up to 7 foot.
When rowing into the wave you are positioned between the battens and this makes it fast (faster than other iSUPs - just a little less than hard SUPs). Once on the wave you need to go stand as far back as you dare (I sometimes have my back foot half over the EVA mat) this will improve the bottom turn and the top turn immensely - it feels like a surf long board thanks to the pin-tail. The fins are flexing but due to the far back position you ride it on the 'rail' which is almost 4 inch thick.
It's a great board and I haven't seen any other similar performing iSUP: most (if not all) do bend too much to make rowing speed to get into the wave - and are bending when going down the wave face which slows you down considerably.
For waves you do need a pintail due to the thickness of the iSUPs.
Great board for a good price.
Make sure you get a 3 piece paddle that fits inside the bag - so nothing sticks out for transport.
As the bag (with board, pump, paddle) weighs 14kgs you can add about 6kgs clothes in order to stay under the 20kgs allowed.

We work with Red Paddle Co in NZ, where they are by far and away the best selling inflatable brand. We've been working with them for 5 years now, and using them in our SUP school throughout, where kit takes a lot of abuse, and they never cease to amaze me with their robustness, but also their performance.

Over the last 5 years I have learned a great deal about inflatable SUP construction. And I can offer a few definites, as well as a few opinions.

1. The RSS system (the battens that slide into the side pockets on the more performance-orientated Red models) do indeed set RED apart. No other brand has this, it is patented. And it makes a HUGE difference in performance. Red modestly claim it makes the boards 40% stiffer, from our own measurements it's nearly 60%. And stiffness is everything in inflatable paddleboards. So, in pure simple terms - a Red inflatable board with RSS is more than 50% stiffer than any other inflatable board of the same size. And that is pure performance.

What this means in practise is that Red can make inflatables that are 100mm thick, but are as stiff as the inflatables from other brands that are 120mm or even 150mm thick. Because this is the trick that many inflatable brands are using nowadays - if you make an inflatable thicker (from top to bottom) it increases the stiffness. But, making a board thicker also increases the windage, decreases the grip, makes you more top heavy, and massively decreases the surfing potential. You don't find solid board manufacturers making boards super thick, (except in specific race designs), especially around the rail area. So it's not a great thing for inflatables either.

So if you're looking for an inflatable to surf on, Red are way out in front, because they can produce relatively thin boards that are still stiff.

Likewise, in racing terms, the Red Elite raceboards, with the extra stiffness from the RSS battens are seriously fast. We just had the NZ National race champs here. Lots of people entered on Reds, competing directly against other 12'6s in the 12'6 class. There were Reds in all the races; the 4k, 8k, and 15k distances, and the technical (BoP) racing, and many placed really well. No inflatable from any other brand even raced - they would have been nowhere.

So, just because of RSS, Red do clearly stand out from the rest. But also when you look at what else you get in the package. Red were the first to offer a decent bag, and their bag is stilll way out better than any of the others. And then the new Titan pump - again, just soooo far ahead of any of the other brands. Especially if you're pumping up one of the bigger boards, like a raceboard.

There are significant differences in construction too. There are indeed only a few factories producing inflatables, and some are producing boards for literally dozens of different brands, and it is indeed pretty much the same board coming out each time, just with different graphics. However, Red pretty much have their own factory now, a purpose-built new plant in China. And as far as I'm aware, they're the only brand that actually has full time staff on site (in China) the whole time - other brands simply place their order as an OEM process, and don't oversee it at all.

Each inflatable SUP factory has a signature way of building their boards. Once you've been in the inflatable game for a while you can instantly tell which factory a board comes from, because of various signature aspects, one of the most important being the way the rails are built. The 'woosung rail' is different to the 'leewards rail', is different to the 'infla rail'. And the rail is pretty critical, as it's where the vast majority of inflatable construction is going on. The infla rail construction technique, as used by Red, Fanatic and RRD, is way more sophisticated than the other methods, and gives a whole lot more reinforcing too.

I could go on and on. But ultimately I think it all largely comes down to one 'cultural' difference, above everything else. Red only make inflatables, and are just totally focussed (indeed, I would say obsessed!), with producing inflatables that are as good, if not better than solid boards. Whereas brands that make solid boards AND inflatable boards are fundamentally compromised - if they make their inflatables better than their solid boards then they won't sell any solid boards! And because Red essentially have their own factory, and are now very much the biggest inflatable brand in terms of global sales, they have the infrastructure and funds to develop and improve each aspect of the process on a bespoke basis. Other brands have to simply take off-the-shelf components when it comes to valves, fittings, pumps, etc. Red are doing enough volume to be able to develop their own, which just increases the gap between them and the rest even further.

It was quite funny this year, watching a whole lot of the relatively new inflatable brands, proudly talking up their new double-action pumps. Whereas the likes of Red, Uli and C4, who have been in the inflatable game since the beginning, had all been there, done that, several years ago, and knew just fine that double action pumps are really not the answer for inflatable boards at all. Which is why Red have spent the last 2 years developing the Titan pump, a completely new (and genius) way of looking at inflatable pumps.

If anyone wants a bunch more info on inflatable construction, the different types dropstitch, rail manufacture and stuff, check out the construction pages on www.inflatable-paddleboards.co.nz . Yes, it is a Red promo site, but it's all hard info, and hopefully of use to anyone looking for an inflatable, whatever brand they're considering.