 Poster: A snowHead
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I posted earlier in a different part of the forum and someone suggested looking through eBay for my first pair of skis. A lot on there seem to be ex rental ones from Austria, often with brand new bindings on them. One pair in particular that I'm interested in are Head Show 2.0 for £79, and some Head Supershape i. Magnums for £82.
Anyone have any thoughts or experience on buying ex rental skis? These look generally about 2013/2014 model skis.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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What is the sellers feedback like? Some can be perfectly good skis, sure the tops will be a bit battered but the bases sound and well maintained others can be totally shot fit only for the skip. Buy from someone who is selling lots and has been in the second hand ski business for a while and you should be OK.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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I'd usually look to buy ex demo/rentals in person because then you can get a real deal when you find something that's only been rented 1 or 2 days in its life. If I was shooting on eBay I'd go for more esoteric/high end stuff in longer lengths that is unlikely to have been rented as much but that's not much good if that would be too long for you.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Rental skis can be pretty well abused from frequent use by a huge variety of people.
Those prices are really good, but I'd personally say see what kind of bargain you can get in the end of season deals. You should be able to get something brand new, from this or last season, at a bargain price this time of year.
The main thing is that you choose your skis because you like the skis, not because the price is right or the magazine says they're good. Skis are individual, don't just buy blindly because they seem like a bargain, you might hate them and then they become a very expensive thing to put on your wall. Besides being wary about buying rental skis, I'd also just be wary about buying a ski you haven't actually ridden on.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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I bought ex-demo skis. They had hardly been used and were 30% of the price of new. But I was lucky to find what I exactly what I wanted this way. I did have to travel to pick them up.
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@ben.metherell, rental skis are not always the same as retail skis...cheaper construction etc.
Ex-demo is different.
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@ben.metherell, There's some great deals on Ebay with ex-rental skis, but it's really "buyer-beware".
Check out some of these Ebay based EU ski retailers to get an idea of prices, as there are some utter bargains this time of year due to left overs from last season ...... skisport4u ... ski4fun_co ... ski-sport ... global_trade_plus_ltd ... ski-barn ... do an ebay search for these sellers just so as to get an idea of some of the half decent skis they sell and almost next to nothing. My favorite is skisport4u, they have some high value low cost brands including Core and Golden Eagle which are the luxe makes from Fischer for Strolz in Lech.
Do your homework and the ex-demo skis can be excellent bargains. 
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Ex demo yes, ex rental no.....rental skis may have had loads of base grinds and edges may have no life in them.
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| under a new name wrote: |
@ben.metherell, rental skis are not always the same as retail skis...cheaper construction etc.
Ex-demo is different. |
+1
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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personally I would only buy ex-rentals that I could see and touch before I buy
I've bought pairs for the kids from the hire shops at the end of the season - perfect for them because they will grow out of them quickly and rental bindings make them easy to hand down
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Have been looking at some of these what are probably ex rentals on eBay, including shipping are about £76-£80, which is not far off a weeks rental price, for effectively the same ski, however I can make sure they are properly serviced and set up and ready to go and don't lose and hour in the first morning at the ski rental place. Am seriously tempted!
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I would suggest you can get almost as a good a deal on Non ex-rentals and that would invariably be the preferred option.
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You know it makes sense.
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Under £100 for new ones? I'd very much like that, but can't see it happening
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| mikeholmes25 wrote: |
| Under £100 for new ones? I'd very much like that, but can't see it happening |
No one mentioned new did they?
Used ski's from another punter will most likely to have been lightly used and well looked after compared to a rental.
Ex-demo will have limited mileage.
Both are better options than ex-rental which will have most likely have heavy use and been trashed by at least some of the clients. The shop will have kept them well serviced but with no view as to the longetivity of the ski.
New doesn't have to be expensive and if you have the cash, know what you want, can buy at the right time, have the budget and so on.. IIRC I paid ~ £300 for some fairly top end all mountain ski's 3-4 years ago.
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