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k2 hardside - SZK, Haggis... opinions please

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Having missed out on the Kung Fujas deal, my attentions have been drawn onto the K2 Hardside with Duke.

Opinions on suitability for my one ski quiver for Scotland/Alps please?

Looking to order today Puzzled
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Never skied the Hardside... but I know 2 very good skiers who will be using them in Scotland next year. And also heard many good things from people I trust.
Assuming you dont need to go backwards its *probably* a better ski than the Fujas (which seemed very soft to me)
Guess that your looking at the Sport Conrad deal ? Its a belter with barons / dukes.
For what its worth I reckon 90-100mm is optimal for Scottish off piste (generally wind swept harder snow).
100mm-110mm is better for the alps (deeper powder & crud).

Hardside is a good option...
Suspect that SZK may even agree with me on this one Very Happy Wink

Quote:
with Duke.


Baron DIN now goes to a leg snapping 13.
That is way plenty for most normal peeps (including myself).


Last edited by Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person on Mon 18-10-10 11:42; edited 1 time in total
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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?
thanks for your input... i'll be ordering now i think.

shame the graphics suck Very Happy
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Quote:
shame the graphics suck


not compared to the Sidestash / Fujas they dont...

the red / blue old school K2 looks pretty good to me ?
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
i'm 6'4' - 15 stone with gear on...

188cm?
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188cm ? sounds right to me, your very tall.

Though a few disclaimers.

- I have never seen you ski (so take all advice with pinch of salt!).
- K2 measure effective edge length. So a K2 188cm is actually a little longer than you might think... For example 188cm Coomba was same length as 194cm Dynastar XXL.
- But... the rocker will make them ski shorter than the size suggests.
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Haggis_Trap wrote:

Though a few disclaimers.

- I have never seen you ski (so take all advice with pinch of salt!).


lol... there's maybe a few folk that would say that wink

ordered Very Happy

ski and binding for what works out at £410!

skins etc for christmas from the wife and i'll get myself on a backcountry course asap as well. Yeeehaaaaah!
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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!
That's really annoying. I thought I shopped around for good deals, but I should have looked abroad! I've got K2 Hardsides with Salomon STH 12 bindings for about the same price... but since buying, I'm wishing I'd bought them with Dukes! Maybe I should try and sell these and buy the same as you did...
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I went with the Baron option... especially on the back of Haggis_Trap saying they're more than enough for him, having seen some of the lines he takes.

I've read a couple of places about people setting the rear binding one or two notches up from the front... any take on that?
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shoogly, i have the heels turned up a little on my Dukes but I'd suggest starting with your usual settings and only changing if you feel you need to
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shoogly, I've got about 200 days on dukes. I've not yet had a prerelease. As Arno says I'd run them at your usual settings and then tweak if you need to.

Have fun with the skis. I've not skied them but the reports I've heard say fat GS ski with tip rocker. Sounds like fun.
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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.
nice set up
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I ordered Hardsides with dynafits from Conrad Sports. They are currently sitting in my front room and I am very much looking forward to taking them out for a spin, hopefully soon if the scottish forecasts are to be believed.... My only real concern is if the skis are that good, why are they so easy to get hold of at sale prices....?

On the subject of Dukes, I have a pair mounted on Scott Crusades. Have had heaps of prereleases (despite cranking up DINs, and as far as I am aware they are adjusted OK for my boots) and actually feel much safer riding on my older Fritschis.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
motatapu, maybe they had just ordered more than enough and people don't like the colour of them... not our problem though Very Happy

how long did they take to arrive after ordering?

do you have the K2 skins for them?
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
shoogly, I think they arrived within a week or so. I've not bothered buying the special K2 skins as I have another pair that seem to fit OK - and rather alarmingly, I seem to get through pairs of skis faster than I do pairs of skins!
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Quote:
if the skis are that good, why are they so easy to get hold of at sale prices....?


Probably because K2 made way to many skis...
They need to dump last years stock to justify charging full whack for this years models (same ski / different graphic).
Conrad (which is basically a warehouse in Germany) will still be making a profit even at those prices.

Quote:
Have had heaps of prereleases


Eeek! Have bought some Barons for this year. On the assumption that a DIN of 13 will be way plenty...
Most bindings will pre-release when not adjusted correctly for boot sole length.
Even if the heel piece is 5mm too far forward the spring can be become pre-tensioned (and actually reduce the DIN even though binding seems to be set up too tightly).
Or maybe height of toe friction box is perhaps set too low ? Should be just tight enough that you can pull a piece of paper out without tearing.
Hopefully it is one of those... (as there isnt much else to adjust).


Last edited by Poster: A snowHead on Mon 18-10-10 15:44; edited 1 time in total
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
IME you do need to be especially careful to get all the snow off the sole of your boot - once i had worked that out, i have found Dukes to be very good. you do also need to set the bindings up with a surprising amount of forward pressure
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
motatapu, I'd get them checked again. Word is once set up properly you shouldn't have any trouble with them, it could even be a warranty job...
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I read a couple of threads about this over on epicski and TGR. the outcome was that 99% of people don't get pre-releasing and the 1% that do is because they hadn't set them up properly. Once they had taken them to a reputable ski shop to set them up for them things were sorted.

Having used the recent Marker MX12 binding on my Xplorers, I'll be trusting the baron. Very Happy
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zero pre-release on my Dukes, even taking on some small kickers last Easter at Rendl......as parlor said, get them checked out by someone who has experience of them..
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Which is the real lenght of the K2 hardside 09-10?? I'm thinking in buying a pair of them bith barons, but I'm confused at this point. I know k2 skis are longer than the "official" lenght,..so I'm 174cm (sorry, don't know about british units xDDD),

What size?? 174 o 181?? The rocker gives less effective edge on groomers,...I don't know what size I have to pick.

Any suggestions??
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
well, mine are 188s and i measured them last night and they are... yep... you guessed it...

188cm from tip to tail!

don't know where the myth of wrong measurement came from?
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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!
mm, ok.

Your skis are the 09/10 Hardside or 10/11?

If the measure is exact, then I will choose 181!

Thanks wink wink
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09/10... but it's the same ski this season with changed top sheet.
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ok wink
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Quote:
don't know where the myth of wrong measurement came from?


Well there is no standard for measuring ski length....

Most ski companies measure the length of the edges, which are then curved up the way at tip and tail once a ski is pressed.
K2 measure effective length of the ski - which can result in the 5cm or so difference.

So for example a 188cm K2 Coomba is actually almost exactly the same size of ski as a 194cm Dynastar XXL.
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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.
Just got the Hardsides 181cm with Barons from Sport Konrad - physical length of the ski is more or less bang on 181cm.
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 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
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Another Sport Conrad fan here. I bought Sidestashes with Dynafits primarily for the Alps but also for the occasional big dump day here in Scotland. I have visions of Haggis_Trap and Motatapu and me all rocking up with our K2 gear at some point in the season Happy

I ended up skiing on my Coombacks/Freeride Plus set up most of last winter in Scotland and they were surprisingly versatile in most conditions (with the exception of very firm conditions which they don't like) This winter the Coombacks will be my standard Scottish ski. I agree with Haggis_Trap that 90-100mm is optimal for most off piste Scottish conditions.

Sport Conrad even mounted the Dynafit binding for me for free once I sent over one of my boots. Generally they do not mount Dynafits without a boot as the Dynafit fixings can vary slightly from boot to boot. Cost to ship one boot was £16, which was cheaper(and less hassle) than getting the binding mounted here. I've bought a few pairs of skis from them now and cannot fault them for service and price.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
I've had two short days skiing at Cairngorm on 181cm Hardsides this season. Am pleased to say that I can't really comment yet on whether or not they're any good on hardpack or ice! However they ride beautifully (with reassuring stability at speed) in soft snow. They feel pretty quick edge to edge and to me turn much shorter than I had expected them to (on the basis of their turn radius); however they still have plenty of pop into the next turn. For comparison, so far I find them as easy to handle as my old pair of Scott Missions, but they're substantially better than the Missions in soft snow. At the moment I am certainly very happy to use them as an all day ski but until I've tried them on ice I can't really comment on suitability as a one ski quiver.
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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motatapu, thanks for the quick mini-review... i'll be testing mine thoroughly at Cairngorm on Sunday.

Interesting comment about the turn radius. Is this possibly because turn radius is worked out from the overall dimensions of the ski and the tip rocker moves the front contact point back so there is actually a secondary turn radius based on the tip measurement at the front contact point - hope that makes sense???

Bring on the (snowy) weekend - never been skiing in November before Very Happy
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Sounds like a home run!

The main benefit of rocker is that it becomes impossible to sink tips of the ski.
This results in lots of flotation. (and no submarine of the tips ever)

Tip rocker also makes the ski feel a little shorter.
Basically there is less edge in contact with snow, until you put weight on the ski, so initiation of the turn is easier.
K2 marketing blurb claims this is also better on hard snow...

I always though Hardside was a strange name for that ski.
As its really an off piste, soft snow, tool that can also ski piste well.


Last edited by Poster: A snowHead on Thu 25-11-10 12:04; edited 1 time in total
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
shoogly, will be interested to hear back with your thoughts. How are they weight wise?
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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?
shoogly wrote:
motatapu, thanks for the quick mini-review... i'll be testing mine thoroughly at Cairngorm on Sunday.

Interesting comment about the turn radius. Is this possibly because turn radius is worked out from the overall dimensions of the ski and the tip rocker moves the front contact point back so there is actually a secondary turn radius based on the tip measurement at the front contact point - hope that makes sense???

Bring on the (snowy) weekend - never been skiing in November before Very Happy


Quote:
Progressive Sidecut
Progressive sidecut is a combination of two different radii, or sidecuts, that enhances the versatility of wider waisted skis. Standard sidecut theory is based on using a single radius. This works great on narrower skis, but becomes overpowering on wider skis, especially in variable conditions. The use of progressive sidecut on wider-waist skis guarantees improved turn initiation and hard-snow performance. All of our women’s skis are built with the sidecut shifted two centimeters forward relative to the standard sidecut for a men’s ski. This accommodates the anatomical fact that the center of mass for a woman is generally much lower than that of a man. Shifting the sidecut forward places the center of mass of the average woman in an optimum position over the ski for more control and easier turn initiation


http://k2skis.com/skis/adventure/hardside

Quote:
If you put a true reverse camber or fully
rockered ski on the floor you will see why the
term rocker has been applied. The tip and tail
are up in the air, and there is a limited (maybe
75cm) flat spot where the binding goes that
actually contacts the ground. It turns out that
when the tip and tail are permanently bent in
a flexed position, the overall ski flex can be
made stiffer, helping with the edge hold. Also,
by moving the contact point back from the
shovel, turn initiation comes from a narrower
part of the ski, reducing the turn radius.


http://offpistemag.com/themag/pdfs/offpistemag_rocker101.pdf
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scotia wrote:
shoogly, will be interested to hear back with your thoughts. How are they weight wise?


i reckon they're probably slightly heavier than my old, but shorter, Xplorers. Probably due to the binding. When i ski i don't travel light though (camera and now shovel/probe etc when i'm off piste) so don't think an extra few grams will make all that much difference. The Xplorers were great skis and i'm really hoping that these are just as much fun to ski... from everything i've read about them (though there's not that many reviews) they will suit me perfectly.
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well. had my first brief outing on the skis today.

touring mode on the skis is fantastic. actually not too heavy at all and pretty solid feeling as well.

managed a few runs down narrow "urban" couloirs Very Happy in my home town (about 2ft of snow in places) and they were a delight. nice and nimble feeling despite their size, and they like to carve medium turns, which is the radius i like Very Happy The run was about the same pitch as an indoor slope, steeper in places, but with tonnes of fresh powder Cool and about 3 times as long.

can't wait to get up to the mountains at the weekend and into next week as i have the whole week off work.

First impressions are that they are the ski i was looking for... actually beginning to like the stinking top sheet graphics as well Very Happy
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