Burton Counterbalance Camber Snowboard

The Burton Counterbalance Camber makes its clearest case on firm snow; its deep-snow case rests on shape. The independent reviews behind that reading rode the 25/26 board, whose core model, bend, glass, base, taper, sliders and size-chart numbers the 26/27 page repeats: a two-tester review on spring snow, a single tester on an icy 158, a two-tester demo review and a one-rider retailer-magazine note.

Edge hold is the point three of those four reviews single out. In the spring review, one tester found it held hard patches better than the five other Burtons he named, though the same tester still called it far from an ice specialist. A demo tester said it held an edge incredibly well on groomers without feeling twitchy, and the icy-day reviewer found its speed limit generous. That reviewer also measured 264.5 mm and 266 mm at the front and back inserts, which fits another tester's remark that it doesn't ride with a tapered feel.

The Counterbalance splits reviewers on stiffness and liveliness. Against Burton's Happy Medium rating, independent scales run from medium (6.5/10) through mid-stiff to 7/10, and one tester placed it on the softer side for a freeride board. The icy-day reviewer, who calls it the replacement for the Deep Thinker and Story Board, found it damper and less snappy than the Deep Thinker, while a spring tester called it lightweight and poppy without chatter. Pop itself draws praise in four of four reviews, with one noting it takes some effort to load.

In deep snow the reviewers speak in expectations: three of them expect it to float well, from good to great, and two tie that to the 8 mm taper. Speed has a ceiling too: one review calls it not a full-on bomber, and another says it wasn't bulletproof for high-speed carves. At the other end, one reviewer detected some catch-threat in the tail at slower speeds. Park laps are not its brief; one reviewer doubts it is the pick for lapping a kicker line, though it pops side hits and rides switch without fuss. Reviewers also split on The Channel itself, and one would rather have four screws.

Sizing the Counterbalance comes down to weight band and boot. The 150 and 154 share one Burton weight band, so between those two the call is boot size and how much board you want at speed; the 146 sits one band lighter. Its W lengths are not on this listing. We check your boot on the board, and we mount bindings on The Channel for boards bought here.