Splitboard.com Forums

So I had a revelation today. I decided I'd buy a pair of Bluehouse Maestros 189 cm. When I got them home I saw that they are actually a smidgen longer than my Scott 191cm. So I busted out the tape measure to see what my entire arsenal measured out to be. These are the results:
Skis:
Scott Punisher 191cm = 188cm
Bluehouse Maestro 189 = 188.5cm
Black Diamond Velvet (Wife's) 165 = 165cm

Snowboards:
Burton Malolo 166 = 163cm
O-sin 4807 168cm = 171.25cm
Burton Johan 163 = 160cm
Sims Quest 160 = 157cm

So it seems as though it varies by manufacturer. I began modeling my skis and boards length by the distance from tip-to-tip. From the measurements above only Black Diamond models their skis this way. Everyone else with the exception of O-sin appears to use the flattened length or the ski template length to determine the length of the ski. So once the ski/board is pressed to the desired curvature, the ski/board is shorter by a few cm.

Do most manufacturers measure ski/board length this way? What do your boards measure out to be? Is it what the manufacturer says it is? I realize now that choosing a length of ski/snowboard is arbitrary. You can't go by the numbers the manufacturer tells you. You have to measure for yourself.

Should be tip to tip along the base, but like everything, manufacturers like to skew the numbers...

My experience is that most boards are spec'd by material length.

I think to really compare two boards in terms of length there are two ways, to measure the float you should measure on the base side from the tip of the nose to the point in the tail where the tail dramatically lifts up and away from the base area. I know it gets fuzzy on some shapes as to where the tail stops providing lift.

Then to compare swing weight, measure the material length from tip to tip above the board in a straight line.

This has been an issue for as long as ski's have been manufactured. Some builders use cord length ( a string from tip to tail held taught above the topsheet would measure this). Others use running length (at least this is what they used to say in the ski magazines...but i've never seen skis sold this way). And finally there is the method of the material length before pressing (or the length along the base, tip to tail).
It would be helpful if the manufacturers would call out which method they use.
gary