 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi,
after many years of walking and climbing around the mountains of Scotland and Europe I was up on the glacier above Saas Fee a couple of summers ago watching the summer skiers whizzing past me. I thought to myself, that's the way to travel around the mountains, so I decided to give this skiing malarkey a bit of a go.
So after dry ski slope lessons back in the UK I got the chance to go on real snow that winter in Switzerland.  Wow it blew my mind, even though I was snowploughing everywhere .
Since that time I have done six weeks' skiing in Europe and as many w/e as I can in Scotland( work and conditions allowing).
I now think it's time to buy my first set of skis, bindings and boots  .
I'm just an ordinary guy who works in a factory and does not have loads of money to throw around, but I am starting from scratch, so I don't have to marry up old bits of skiing kit with new bits.
I am hoping to do ski touring next year, but will also be with my family on the groomed slopes at February half term in Europe.
I can only really afford one set of skis, bindings and boots. Can you recommend any, and what length ?
In the mix are, Scott Mission or Neo, also Movement IKI`s Volki Snow Wolf and Ski Trab Freerando`s. Do you think they would be ok?.
I am 170 cm tall and weigh 70 kg.
Thanks snowheads.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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bargainbill, may I be the first to say get some nice boots fitted before you start thinking about skis..... 
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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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bargainbill, from your biog it sounds like you are a mountain man who skis, rather than a skier who uses the mountains to give you the vertical you need. As such I suspect you will be getting into touring as soon as you can. As such you should get kit that will allow you to tour as well as ski in resort. From your ski selection you're obviously thinking along similar lines. You're a fair bit lighter than me so skis that suit me won't suit you, and I won't make any comments on those you list, but those are the kind os skis that DB uses (IIRC he has/d SnowWolfs), so if he doesn't chip in soon, drop him a PM and ask his advice.
Whatever you get, you should get touring bindings to give you the flexibility to tour. As you've not a huge amount of skiing experience, you're probably best off with Fritschi Freerides. Dynafits are reported to be better for both up- and downhill, but are probably a bit hardcore for someone with still only limited experience. The main downside is that the Freeride does put you quite high above the ski, which not everyone likes. You should also look for some kind of multi-purpose Freerando boots with a Vibram - maybe one with interchangeable flat sole to give you more flexibility if you want to hire a resort-only ski on occasions), and maybe even Dynafit inserts (your boots will probably last you much longer than your first pair of skis and bindings). There are a number of these available now from Scarpa and Garmont (market leaders) and also Black Diamond and Dynafit. What is best will depend on your foot shape.
Unless you get into high performance piste skiing it is possible to get a setup that allows you to do just about everything. There is a downside though - the kit is a bit more niche market and does tend to be a bit pricier. Unless you manage to find a particular eBay deal, www.telemark-pyrenees.com is probably your best friend here.
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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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GrahamN, RPF, Thank you both for all the useful info and taking the trouble to post. That is a good website. I'll probably go for the Scott Neos. 
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Some articles to look at re touring:
http://www.darksummer.co.uk/articles/3
http://pistehors.com/backcountry/wiki/Gear/Ski
http://www.eagleskiclub.org.uk/articles.htm
I'd also advise think about what you want to do over the next few years & buy boots that fit for this. Skis, bindings etc can be bought 2nd hand if you don't want to spend lots of money (here, winterhighland or ebay). Checking boots fit with specific bindings requires research (as GrahamN hints).
winterhighland, highland-instinct & haggis trap have lots of info about touring in Scotland (h-i had the most extensive ref section before the current upgrade, check later this year).
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