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The weight of skis

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
I've come across skis of varying weights i.e. some are heavier than others to carry. Why is this ? I know it is something to do with the ski construction, but why are different skis made differently? I understand this gives them a different feel and they'll do different things. The Dynastar Legend Fluid last year was a lightweight ski and great over mogully snow and variable conditions but not so great at speed and edge hold on piste. Contra this with Nordica's Jet Fuel that felt tank like but once up to speed, there was no stopping them - anywhere/everywhere and great edge hold. I like the lightness of the Legend but the stability of the Jet Fuel. Can I have both in one ski?
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Its to do with construction, materials and design. On a most basic level its a bit like a car more power and stiffness or dampness in transmission generally come at the price of more weight. The lightest stiff skis genrally use a lot more carbon and less metal (again similar to cars) e.g. Goode skis. Ill leave the rest to the techy types on here as their knowledge is better than mine.
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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?
erica2004,

I know where you are coming from on this.

I have had a couple of pairs of Atomic b5.s over the years and absolutely love them for charging around the pistes ,the margins and occasional forays off piste. For me they do everything well enough to only have to take one pair of skis when I am skiing en Famille,when I am on a lads ski trip I usually take something for out and out pwder days as well.

HOWEVER weight is an issue both for ski carriage and convenience.

They are probably the heaviest ski ever made when in a ski bag and on your shoulder Evil or Very Mad

Ive yet to come accross a lighter ski with the bombproof edge hold and versatility of the b5 that isnt flappy and wishywashy.

I need to try a few skis that sit nicely between my powder skis and an out and out piste ski but are RIGID and light.
any suggestions snowHead
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It looks like Fischer use carbon fibre and produce a range of lighter weight skis. The women's KOA My Style 84 is getting rave reviews.
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
erica2004, I have tested heavier skis than my own, which are sort of medium in weight. I've personally found that a heavier ski seems to crash through lumps, crud and slushy snow better than my own (though this has probably been helped by them being wider as well), but the heavier ski does seem to have more, I don't know, err....almost 'momentum' to it when you get it running. It's also been more stable underfoot, though this needn't be down to weight alone, as written above skis can be stiffer, yet still not be heavy. I visited Spyderjon's and he had a number of skis there that I had a look at. Those that I thought would be the heaviest - looking to be wider, heavier, more stonking looking skis were actually lighter than my own, though he also had a pair that did match up to my weight expectation when I hefted them, being stonking skis in looks and weight. I haven't skied a huge number, but my preference at the moment seems to be for skis that are both stiffer and heavier than the ones I have. Though they are a pain to carry any distance!!
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erica2004, I tend to choose a ski that I can physically lift around. I remember being off-piste once in a pair of heavy atomics which I was demoing and they were so hefty I couldn't jump in them or flick my skis round. Therefore I simply have to cruise around slowly on piste in my lightish skis...

It would be great to have skis that did everything though. I keep telling my husband to invent me a pair. It'd be good to have a ski with a switch on top for on-piste/off-piste modes and change the properties of the ski accordingly (weight, stiffness, width). Madeye-Smiley
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
As others have said it is due to construction mostly how much metal is in them. Race skis tend to have a fair bit so they are very heavy, my dads Fischer wc sc's were over 9kg when they were checked in and those at 165! My Volkls are almost as bad. The weight of piste skis doesn't bother me since they only get carried from the car to the lift but any ski that is used off piste where I will be hiking and even skinning with it then weight is a high priority.

I often wonder whether ski weight has some effect on crud busting performance.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Megamum, It's like riding an Arabian as opposed to riding a cob. The heavy skis bust through everything and once up to speed, take a bit of manhandling. The lightweight skis are a bit flighty but a lot of fun. Toofy Grin
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erica2004, tell me about it - I've got two half shire crosses, and when the larger gelding is up to speed and decides a sudden change of direction is in order it's best not to argue!!
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Snowy, There have been some skis in recent years with just that sort of idea - I've seen ones where flicking the switch extends two arms to increase the ridigity of the ski in order to get different performance.
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