Jones Storm Chaser
By PTO Ski Team, Based on the official Jones 26/27 catalog specifications, read from the printed pages · Not ridden by us — this is a spec-and-catalog read, not a ride report on this board · Not applicable — desk review of the official catalog
The take
“A swallowtail bought for storm cycles: top of Jones's powder scale, bottom of its freestyle scale, and completely unapologetic about it.”
The Jones Storm Chaser is the specialist end of the 26/27 line — a compact swallowtail graded Powder 10/10, All-Mountain 6/10 and Freestyle 2/10, with nothing in the range scored lower for freestyle. The shape agrees with the grades: short lengths, a heavily tapered outline, a notched tail, and waists of 27.1cm and 27.5cm on the two sizes we stock.
The Storm Chaser gets a Master Core for 26/27 (not the bamboo core older write-ups still describe), biaxial glass, and a Bcomp Carbon Flax stringer — carbon being the stiff, springy fibre and flax the damping one. Float comes from a High 3D Contour Base, which Jones shapes so the nose and tail push snow out from under the board and lift the tip toward the surface, and so the deck rolls onto its edge rather than tipping onto it. Traction Tech — Jones's serrated bite points along the edge — is fitted here at the Low grade, the bottom of the three.
This board's turn is short and quick: 6.6m at the 147 and 6.9m at the 152 are tight radii, which is why it works in trees and pillow lines and why Jones talks about carving potential. What those same numbers do not give you is a long, loaded edge on hard snow. A 3/5 flex, the lowest edge-tech grade in the line and the lowest all-mountain grade of any Jones board we bought all say the same thing: this is a soft-snow tool.
Around it, the Hovercraft 2.0 (7/10/4, High Traction Tech, an 8.7m radius) keeps working after the powder is tracked out; the Mind Expander 2.0 (7/10/5) is the one-board answer for someone who wants a single soft-snow deck; the Flagship (mid-stiff 4/5, 7/10/3) holds a line at speeds this board will not enjoy. The Storm Chaser beats all of them in deep snow and loses to all of them everywhere else — which is precisely what a specialist is. It ships flat, with no bindings; we mount the Mercury FASE and set your stance in the shop.
Bindings we'd pair with it
Mount point: 2x4 insert pattern. Our pick: Jones Mercury FASE.
- Jones Mercury FASEThe catalog pairing for the Storm Chaser — medium-flex freeride response
Jones lists the Mercury FASE as this board's 'works best with' binding for 26/27. Its flex sits with the board's medium 3/5 rather than overpowering it. Sold separately; we mount the discs and set your stance in the shop.
Common Questions
- Can the Jones Storm Chaser be my only snowboard?
- For almost everyone, no. Jones grades it 6/10 for all-mountain use and 2/10 for freestyle, and a board built around a swallowtail and a 27cm-plus waist rides like those numbers. It is a second board, bought on purpose for the days a normal deck struggles. If it has to be your only board, buy something graded higher across the board.
- How do I choose between the 147 and the 152?
- Rider weight and boot size, plus how much of your season it will really see. Jones publishes no weight chart for this board, so this is our call rather than theirs: the 147 turns tighter at 6.6m and is easier to throw around in trees, while the 152 puts more surface area under you and settles down more at speed. Send us both numbers and we will tell you which one we would put you on.
- Does the Jones Storm Chaser come with bindings?
- No — it ships as a bare deck. Jones's catalog pairing for it is the Mercury FASE, bought separately, and our shop mounts the discs and sets your stance before the board leaves with you.
- Does the Storm Chaser have a bamboo Surf Core?
- Not for 26/27. Jones's catalog lists a Master Core for this board. The bamboo core you may have read about belongs to older descriptions of Jones's surf-shaped boards and is out of date for this model year. There is no Koroyd and no basalt in it either.
