Voile – Revelator Splitboard Review

You can’t talk about Splitboarding without the name Voile being mentioned.  From their proven splitboard interface that has been virtually unchanged for years, or their bomber boards they are an industry staple.

With their factory just down the road from us in Salt Lake City, Utah USA, we were able to swing by the shop and get a demo Revolution Splitboard to test in the backcountry of the Utah’s greatest snow on earth.

First Impressions

As we always mention, reviewing snowboards and splitboards is a difficult thing to do.  There are so many subjective components to a splitboard that a lot of it comes down to personal decisions and preference, the terrain you plan to ride, your budget, and ability level. We will always try to give an unbiased opinion providing the pro’s and cons of a board, what we liked and disliked about a board, and the reasons this board may or may-not be a good splitboard for you.

We picked up the Voile Revelator directly from Voile set up completely with Voile Skins and Voile bindings.  I was immediately drawn to the cap construction around each ski. This is not something we are use to seeing on a Splitboard. This included the inside of the ski too.  I wondered how it would go together for ride mode with less surface for the skis to but up against each other.

While cap construction has it’s advantages and dis-advantages, i wasn’t sure it had it’s place in a full wrap of each ski, other than possibly saving some weight.

Aside from that, the next major feature is the channel system.  If you have ever struggled aligning pucks with plates and bindings, and still can’t seem to get the stance right, you NEED the channel system.  We though this was a nice feature on normal snowboards, but this is AMAZING on splitboards.

The Revelator is a has a standard Voile style graphics, which we would like to see them step out and try something new soon.

The overall weight, feel and flex felt very standard for a splitboard, and it’s worth pointing out that Voile has been doing this a long time and the splitboard came straight out of the press and shop looking perfect. There were no imperfections in the construction, top sheet, or base.

On the mountain:

Touring

Touring was a dream on the Revelator.  The ski have a great shape that allow for variable conditions and great ski to snow traction. With a very slightly larger side cut than typical boards, you may notice some hooking edges on the climb.

Touring is also made simple by using all Voile hardware and skins.  The system just transitions perfectly.  On steep approachs you can feel the early in the nose reduce the drag and the grip really takes hold under foot and out to the tail of the board.  The Revelator shape is great for deep snow and first tracks.

Binding and motion were pretty standard, kick turns were slightly more difficult with the early rise in the nose of the ski, but hardly worth mentioning.

Riding

The Revelator really rises to the occasion, no pun intended. This board loves the pow, but can handle it all.  By offering traditional camber, the benefits of excellent traction and approach capabilities combine with a strong stable platform for charging big lines no matter what gets in the way makes the Revelator a awesome all mountain splitboard for any condition.  The early rise nose providing the benefits of a rocker snowboard for float and fun in the pow.

We rode the board in about 18 inch (45 cm) of new snow one day, and it was a dream. The float was perfect and didn’t sacrifice fun. It fairly easily rode switch in the deep powder without too much fighting the long nose.

Another day we rode on a fairly warm day with soft corn like conditions.  It felt much like a traditional snowboard on the loose soft corn snow.  The edges held well in both the powder and mashed potatoes snow.

We would like to have had a chance to ride the board in less than ideal conditions such as crud or iced over sections to see how it would perform but didn’t get a chance to.

Features:

• Channel Puck System
• Includes Channel Pucks (Canted Pucks) and screws
• Directional Shape
• Carbon Glass
• Proven Voile cowboy hooks (Hooks and clips)
• Full cap with 2mm metal edge for all around protection

Awards:

• Editors Choice Backcountry Magazine

Review Points:

1. Weight: Average
2. Riding Style: Freeride/ All Mountain
3. Riding Level: Intermediate, Advanced
4. Manufactured in: Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
5. Shape: Directional Twin, Early Rise Nose
6. Camber Profile: Camber with Early Rise Nose
7. Flex: 7/10 by our standards
8. Construction: Paulownia
9. Warranty: Lifetime (Unconfirmed)

Conclusion:

The Voile Splitboard has the traditional graphics and base that we have grown use to with Voile.  They are nothing special, but the board speaks for itself.  The stand out points are definatly the early rise nose, channel system and value because the board includes the clips and pucks.

The Revelator thrives on breaking trail to the top with the rising nose, and camber it’s a very solid platform for the accent. The all around cap construction offers a somewhat lighter board than a sidewall.  Also the flex pattern is a bit more inconsistent with the cap construction, and can feel a couple softer spots in the flex.

The Revelator is a great choice for someone planning on going on long outings and touring a lot.  If you plan to ride your splitboard more from lift access terrain, you might find that you like a sidewall constructed flex over the cap.

 http://www.voile.com/

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