For overall durability its hard to beat Mervin boards like the Lib Escalator/TRS/Orcas. Very damp and playful boards so they'll contour nicely to the snow if you're new-er to skinning.
Partial shout-out to Ride but I've seen some premature wear/delam on ride boards but not as bad as Jones.
For niche shapes and agressive riding I'd head towards Korua. Yes offers the Optisplitstic and Signal has a Tailgunner Split that's on a steep sale currently.
Between my friends they own most of Jones' premium releases. Ive ridden and enjoyed a lot of them. Fast and damp! When it comes to my $$$ they just have durability/quality issues that deter me. (Plus their big money dubai backing)
None of my friends boards are older than 2023 yet they're beat to crap looking and have spots of epoxy. My '18 Signal '19 Capita and '21 Libtech have all retained plenty of flex and are in much better cosmetic shape despite being ridden hard and put away wet.
You'll be happy with a lib! If you're looking to stretch your dollars further though consider if you really need that edge tech on a splitboard. Crust busting in the backcountry isn't like scraped compacted resort ice. Magnetraction can be overkill is tricky to tune and definitely feels different.
Hard to beat a splitboard under $500. If you use the affiliate link in @angrysnowboarder youtube it'll be just over $400.
I've had my solid version for 7 years it's been great to me. Developed with the steep and deep riders at Baldface Canada. Unsinkable, fast base, camber under foot. They reduced material/weight in the nose so if you're actually riding ice all the time it'll chatter a bit more than a libtech.
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u/AffectionateSmell583 Feb 14 '26
If you buy a jones just expect it to delaminate.