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Should i base grind?

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Hi everyone, just back from 2 weeks in la clusaz. Took my new atomic nomad blackeye ti's with me which were great, however the snow is not the best at the moment and the base's of my new skis are looking a little sorry for themselves! Quite a few gouges/scrapes etc. We did p-tex them ourselves and get a shop wax only after the first week but with more and more crud poking through they are still looking tatty.

Is a base grind recommended or would i be best of p-texing and then waxing myself first to see what they come out like?

I will try to get pics today.

Hugh
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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hugh_b, pics would be good, are you sure you cant sort the prob with a few runs of something like the Kunzmann Base Planer/True Bar to take off the high spots and then a good wax?

I would avoid a base grind if possible as your skis are new and unless they are truely trashed you dont want to be thinning your bases quite so quickly if you dont have to.

new skis are like new cars, the first few 'dings' allways seem more important than they are Very Happy
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Some of the p-tex repairs done by a friend have started to come away but from looking at spyderjons website this morning it would appear he didn't do them correctly anyway!!

here's a pic to give you an idea:

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No, I wouldn't basegrind, just service
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Fill the deeper gouge, flatbar/plane the bumps out and a good hot wax scrape clean before rewaxing should be ok
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hugh_b, Was there ANY snow where you skiied? Puzzled
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Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Just out of interest

I don't know much about ski bases ; the damage/scratches to base of skis in Pic, what effect would this kind of damage have on a skis performance , would they slow down significantly, affect turning ability etc ? Would it be fairly noticeable ?
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interesting thread. Will be watching with interest what the experts have to say - not that my skis look anything like as bad as that. the photos are good - maybe some more for comparison?
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kendub, it would have almost no effect at all. If you were skiing at the top of your game on the downhill championship circuit, it might lose you a second over a couple of minutes. When skiing, gravity is a far, far stronger force than friction.

What's in the pictures is end of season ptex work at most but personally I wouldn't bother until there was much more damage than that. I can't imagine why someone would consider a base grind to do anything other than start again with base edge angles.
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kendub, mostly not noticeable.

I did notice somthing odd happening to my ski last month - but that had a very deep gouge with raised displaced base material - right up to the inside edge under the foot. Ouch.
I ran it on the outside for the rest of the week, and didnt notice it (I havn't got back onto riding the outside edges since my knee repair and as theese are super-wide Gotamas, it is quite a commitment to get out there on the 'wrong' edge).

It is currently drying out and waiting for a proper repair.
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lampbus wrote:

I did notice somthing odd happening to my ski last month - but that had a very deep gouge with raised displaced base material


A ridge of base is *much* more noticeable than a gouge, and should be taken off at the first opportunity: I've been known to take my penknife to my skis after a particular bad run.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
RobW, yes, i did use my swiss army knife to remove the ridge.
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Thanks for the info everyone, i'll purchase a few new tools and repair everything that needs it then give them a good hot wax and hopefully they will be good to go!

The snow in La clusaz was mainly good on the runs, some very icy but good in the morning. The issue was a run that got us home everyday from the very top! It was basically sheet ice on every corner and loads of small rocks were spread everywhere.

Wasn't very happy with the condition of the bases as they cost me lots of dosh but nothing that can't be fixed by the looks of it!

Thanks

Hugh
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
My new K2 Rictors look pretty similar having just come back from Les Arcs. Seemed to be hwoever hard you tried to avoid them, you always found a small stone.
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Sounding more and more like the only place to go if you dont want to trash your bases on stones and rocks is .....SCOTLAND.... Laughing Laughing
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
The long scratches should no more than add to the structure in the base, if you're not a ski racer then it shouldn't be an issue.
However, if you want to make your ski's look 'pretty' again then a service should do just that. We have just paid to have our skis to be repaired after an 'interesting' week in Les Arcs. More damage was done in one day in Les Arcs than in both of last years trips. Sad
I can do my own repairs but the thought of spending many hours taking the marks out didn't appeal. Plenty of scratches and a few gouges, now gone. I'll just concentrate on the wax jobs for our trip to Val Thorens in April.
IMHO, providing you don't have them 'ground' after every weeks trip I would not expect it to be an issue. Just be careful when and where you have it done.
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Interesting response.
I find that any scratches on my bases cause my skis to 'track' and become unpleasantly 'squirrely'. That may however be because of my old school technique of feet close together and weight evenly distributed rather than new school edge to edge Laughing
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hugh_b, get your gear from spyderjon, he will make sure you get what you need and no more, he also does a dvd, which is good, or splash out and spend a half day with him.

As has been said no need for a base grind, don't forget the edges.
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Interesting...

I'd get a base grind on those skis, myself. I tend to get one or two grinds a year, one at the beginning of the season, one if I get those kinds of messes on my bases. Then, I keep them in good shape with my own tuning every day (yes, every day).

But, I like my bases to look pretty much like a pair of racing skis, even though they aren't, and I like my edges sharp all the time--even here in Colorado where the snow is usually soft.
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ssh, I'm guessing here that you are on real good terms with your ski tech.Some of the base grinds I've seen would give you two/three,at the most,and you'd be looking at new skis!
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snowskisnow wrote:
ssh, I'm guessing here that you are on real good terms with your ski tech.Some of the base grinds I've seen would give you two/three,at the most,and you'd be looking at new skis!
WHAT?!?!?!?! Shocked

I am still using the same skis I had at the EoSB in 2007, so they have seen 4+ seasons of 20-40 days/season. I imagine that they have had at least 10 base grinds each at 3 different shops in Boulder and Summit County, Colorado, and will likely have another 2 or 3 done before I sell them.

I just can't imagine anyone with a clue about how to use a modern ski tuning machine not taking off the minimal amount necessary for a nice tune.

But, if that's the kind of expertise typical at your local shops, then never mind! Shocked
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4+ seasons so lets say - 5 seasons x 2 grinds a season +3 more seasons = 16 base grinds then sell them.

Hmm remind me not to buy skis from you Toofy Grin Toofy Grin
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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!
I think a key point here is just how much metal/plastic/whatever is removed. If a base-grind in no more than a few microns skim, then why not. On the other hand, if large amounts of ski are being gobbled up forever, then I can't see skis lasting very long before they become tissue-thin.

I had a conversation about this with a ski-tech in Chatel. He was aghast that I repaired my own skis ("That's a €30 job.") and said he had a wonderful machine that would put everything right without taking much ski away. Anyone know the details of this?

snowHead
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We can't see the condition of the edges.
If you don't use the edges, follow the general advice here.
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kevindonkleywood wrote:
4+ seasons so lets say - 5 seasons x 2 grinds a season +3 more seasons = 16 base grinds then sell them.

Hmm remind me not to buy skis from you Toofy Grin Toofy Grin
I always show photos of the sidewalls, including the amount of edge material left... I also clearly communicate how frequently they have been tuned by me and by machine...

Chris Bish wrote:
I think a key point here is just how much metal/plastic/whatever is removed. If a base-grind in no more than a few microns skim, then why not. On the other hand, if large amounts of ski are being gobbled up forever, then I can't see skis lasting very long before they become tissue-thin.

I had a conversation about this with a ski-tech in Chatel. He was aghast that I repaired my own skis ("That's a €30 job.") and said he had a wonderful machine that would put everything right without taking much ski away. Anyone know the details of this?
Exactly! I feel the same way.
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