 Poster: A snowHead
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Which one of the above would you go for? + why
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I would go for the Storm Rages myself... 
You might want to ask a mod to put this query in the equipment review/question section where it belongs
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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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I have a pair of 78's, they're great. Piste carving is great, they're stiff enough to really force out a carve. But they're also pretty good in powder, though I haven't been in anything yet deeper than just above knee height. They're pretty light, so that seems to help.
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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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stoatsbrother, sorry, im sure they will do as they see fits
northy014, are they a very stiff ski?
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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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aldoyle, mate - just a gentle hint that you might actually get more answers if you adhered to forum etiquette 
twit
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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stoatsbrother, dear oh dear. I did apologies to you. And since when did 'a gentle hint' end in an insult such as 'twit'?
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aldoyle, if that is an apology - accepted - but it read to me much more like "sorry - but it is up to them" - the perils of posting in text speak perhaps?
Anyway - the answer is - particularly after your recent well documented experience - that you would be better demoing these skis on the type of piste you intend to ski and making your mind up.
For anyone who missed it aldoyle won the storm rages in the snowHeads competition - tried those park and pipe/off piste twin tips once in a fridge (which is like testing a TV which you haven't bothered to plug in) and then sold them on.
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stoatsbrother, I'm not going to rise to it. We go round in circles.
Thanks for the advice though, and I know that in an ideal world I would demo the skis to decide. However, I do not have the resource / time to be able to do such a thing. I just want to make as good a decision before I go as is possible.
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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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aldoyle, None of them, Fischer Watea 78 or 84.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Higs, Could you tell me what makes the Dynastar Sultan 80 better than those above?
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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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| aldoyle wrote: |
| Higs, Could you tell me what makes the Dynastar Sultan 80 better than those above? |
Well... without getting into the thorny issue of fridge testing again...
I tried both the Tornado Ti and Bandit 80 at the Chill Factore along with several other contenders. I started on the Rossi and felt it was very neutral - like every rental ski I've had in the last few years, probably because a lot of them have been Bandits in one form or another. It wasn't a bad ski. It just didn't excite me. I think I tried the Tornado next. This one felt different. It felt like a precision instrument. It was very responsive to input but to perhaps too much so. It felt like it would have to be actively driven all the time - like you couldn't relax on it.
I also tried at the same time:
Watea 84 - really really not the ski for me (dull and vague, a bit like I'd imagine loose bindings to feel)
K2 Xplorer - liked it a lot.
Then I went on hols and hired a set of Sultan 80s. Used them for a week in varied conditions and felt they were very balanced. Good at everything. Rewarding on piste when I worked them. Confident off-piste - I've never been off-piste on dedicated skis but these were better by far than any of my previous rental (and certainly better than my old Axendo 9s!). But when I was pottering about with the kids after their lessons they were completely invisible.
So not really a fair test but hopefully useful info.
I'm off to Alpe d'Huez in a couple of weeks and hope to test Xplorers (and maybe Recons) in the wild. They may be worth adding to your list too.
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Just to add a bit more info...
I've just had a week in Alpe d'Huez and couldn't find anywhere that hired the K2 Xplorer so I had Dynastar Sultan 85s for the first three days and Salomon Tornado for the last three.
In short I don't think either of these suit me as well as the Sultan 80. By comparison I thought the 85 was a bit better off-piste but markedly more cumbersome on piste. Given the skiing I actually do I have to favour the better piste ski. The Tornado was similar to the 80 and it's hard to describe why I prefer the 80 but I do. If pushed (and I used them in different resorts four weeks apart) I'd say the Sultan 80 was a bit better off-piste but the Tornado was no better on-piste.
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You know it makes sense.
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If you're hiring from Ski Republic, don't go for the Salomons - they only have 5 pairs in Val, and wonder why everyone books them, so you end up with summat else.
The shop staff wonder why everyone asks for them, the answer is, when you email with your 'stats' that's what they recommend!!!!!
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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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Higs, how does the Bandit compare to the Sultan 80?
I have the 78mm waist Bandit (the one with the flame graphics)and find it very stable at speeds, plus it seams to work on a variety of turns conditions, however it is dull to my old Volkls.
I'm after a change and have been thinking of the Sultan 80 as there are some good deals about at the moment. However I can't get to demo them and I'm thinking of taking a chance with them.
Did you find the Sultan 80 stable and good across a variety of turns sizes.
Nick
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Higs wrote: |
| [I think I tried the Tornado next. This one felt different. It felt like a precision instrument. It was very responsive to input but to perhaps too much so. It felt like it would have to be actively driven all the time - like you couldn't relax on it. |
I own a pair of Salomon Tornado Ti 's and love them, I find them very forgiving, great on-piste, I don't think I have as much experience as the above poster but I would recommend the Ti 's.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I can't really compare the Bandit and Sultan directly as I've only used the Bandit in the Chill Factore for fifteen minutes.
Having said that I did get a first impression that it was very neutral - is that the same as your 'dull'?
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| Did you find the Sultan 80 stable and good across a variety of turns sizes? |
In a word, yes. My preference is for bigger, sweeping turns but it responded when I asked it to go shorter. This is all highly subjective but what I think I like about the Sultan 80 is that it's neutral when just cruising around but more engaging when you start to work it harder.
As a complete aside - the pisteurs in Alpe d'Huez all had Bandit 80s. There's obviously a number of ways to view that... either they've come to the conclusion that they're the single best do-it-all ski or... they could clearly out ski me on a pair of fence posts and got a good deal from Rossignol to use them.
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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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Hiya
I demoed the Peak 78 and Sultan 85 in St. Anton a few weeks ago. Being the successor of the Monsters (which is what i had wanted to test) i had high hopes for the Peak, but i gotta say it was a very bland ski, very sluggish from edge to edge. It didnt seem comfortable or stable on its edges...uninspiring, and thats being generous.
On to the Sultan...wow, what a ski. If you think they look cool, wait till you ski them. Theyre chomping at the bit to carve and when you do, theyre like a hot knife through butter, rock solid, aggressive and quick. Even at my girly stats (5'9, 72kg) the 85mm underfoot didnt seem to matter one bit, transition from edge to edge was an effortless joy.
My offpiste style is dodgy at best, but on the Sultans i enjoyed my best off piste experiences by far...they seemed to say "ok mate,youre off piste skiing sucks,but im gonna help ya %110!"...i got on these at about 8:30, and i enjoyed them so much i didnt even think about stopping for lunch until 2:30pm!
Dont know about the Salomons or Rossis (epicski.com is good for user reviews) but on my experiences the Sultan puts the Peak to shame. Ok i did test the 85 not the 80, which im guessing would deliver a similar ride but more geared to piste skiing, but if the 85 is anythin to go by, the 80 would be an awesome pair of skis too.
Hope this helps!
Cheers
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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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| saintstephen wrote: |
| Higs wrote: |
| [I think I tried the Tornado next. This one felt different. It felt like a precision instrument. It was very responsive to input but to perhaps too much so. It felt like it would have to be actively driven all the time - like you couldn't relax on it. |
I own a pair of Salomon Tornado Ti 's and love them, I find them very forgiving, great on-piste, I don't think I have as much experience as the above poster but I would recommend the Ti 's. |
I wouldn't say I've got a huge amount of experience but I do enjoy the analytical thing. I've owned my own skis before and know their strnegths and weaknesses. Similarly with hire skis I've had in the past. This is the first year I've set out deliberately to test a load of different skis though. Initially because I was going for three weeks skiing this winter and three weeks rental knocks a big hole in the cost of skis. However I've done two of those three weeks now and still not bought.
Back to the Tornados... the non-Ti ones I had for three days in Alpe d'Huez definitely felt more forgiving than the Ti ones I had for 20minutes in the Chill Factore. Whether that was down to the Ti layer, the snow or the tune of the individual ski I'll never know.
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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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| Higs wrote: |
| saintstephen wrote: |
| Higs wrote: |
| [I think I tried the Tornado next. This one felt different. It felt like a precision instrument. It was very responsive to input but to perhaps too much so. It felt like it would have to be actively driven all the time - like you couldn't relax on it. |
I own a pair of Salomon Tornado Ti 's and love them, I find them very forgiving, great on-piste, I don't think I have as much experience as the above poster but I would recommend the Ti 's. |
I wouldn't say I've got a huge amount of experience but I do enjoy the analytical thing. I've owned my own skis before and know their strnegths and weaknesses. Similarly with hire skis I've had in the past. This is the first year I've set out deliberately to test a load of different skis though. Initially because I was going for three weeks skiing this winter and three weeks rental knocks a big hole in the cost of skis. However I've done two of those three weeks now and still not bought.
Back to the Tornados... the non-Ti ones I had for three days in Alpe d'Huez definitely felt more forgiving than the Ti ones I had for 20minutes in the Chill Factore. Whether that was down to the Ti layer, the snow or the tune of the individual ski I'll never know. |
Get the Salomon Tornados (not the Ti).
Very good on everything, from ice and moguls to semideep pow.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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go for the Sultan 85.
Upside - I skied a set for 4 days and found they were good all over the place. They are easy enough to use whilst snow ploughing for up to 8 hours a day but also (when not working) they are a blast through the trees - and quick to turn, V important there, even with an 85mm base - quite stiff so they are solid all the way through the turn but not too stiff for the bumps. Basically a good all rounder. Good fun in powder with the bonus that you can get back to the cafe (on piste) on em as well.
Dowside - cost loads even with discount and the stupid graphics
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Another vote for the K2 Explorer.
Superb all around the mountain in all conditions.
I'm 188cm and skied the 170cm. More than enough ski.
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