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1, 2 or 3 Ski Quiver? Six Options - Atomic X9 WB, Brahma 82 / 88, Rustler 9 / 10

Rebound Hound

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Saalbach, Austria
So I've found 2 skis that I love - Blizzard Brahma 82 and the Atomic X9 WB - Now I just need to think of this in terms of a quiver and what is going to work best without too much overlap.

Piste - Atomic Redster X9 WB 75mm / Stockli Laser SC 72mm
All Mountain - Blizzard Brahma 82mm / 88mm
Off Piste - Blizzard Rustler 9 93mm / Rustler 10 102mm

A few options are to drop the piste ski and keep take the narrow all mountain 82mm Brahma and then choose a Ruster 9 or 10 as my off piste ski.

1) Forget the dedicated off piste ski as the Brahma can handle it but might not be as easy or fun as something like the Rustler - it would be nice to have something that was even easier to float and especially release the tail edge for short turns off piste though. I know I like the Brahma though and haven't tested any of the rustler series and I'm more used to narrow skis.

2) I could get the X9 WB and bump up the Brahma to the 88mm version which I haven't tested but should be similar to the 82mm. The reason being they are quite similar in width even though they are quite different skis. I'd e happy to own the X9 and Brahma 82mm though.

3) I could get the X9 WB Brahma 88 and Rustler 93 - I got the 88mm Brahma I'm not sure how much I would gain buying the rustler 9 as well even though they are quite different skis according to the reviews.
Can the Rustler 9 be a dedicated off piste powder ski?


4) Get the X9 WB and the Rustler 9 as the Rustler is supposed to be quite like the Brahma but more dedicated for off piste. Then I have 2 very different skis that are 20mm apart in terms of width. Whether I will like the Rustler is an unknown though.

5) Get the X9 WB, Brahma 88 and Rustler 10 to cover all bases (but i'm not convinced I particularly like wide skis).

6) Just get the Brahma 82mm as it has proven to cope with everything i've thrown at it pretty damn well so far - Can easily cover piste duties as well as being flexible enough for nearly all off piste conditions. Could also just get the Brahma 88mm which will probably be even more flexible but may sacrifice on piste and mogul performance.
 
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Rebound Hound

Rebound Hound

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I spend seasons in the Austrian Alps. I tend to like to rip aggressive short and medium turns with a lot of energy and speed and get lots of rebound from the ski on piste. GS turns too. Off piste I tend to take it much more easy and tend to like to have fun and explore the environment at slower speeds - I'm still growing in confidence off piste and in powder. I want something more forgiving and easy to release out of turns and not get hooked into long turns or traverses I don't necessarily want on steeper choppy terrain - something more playful and less of a charger but stable in soft chop and tracked out powder.
 

EmperorMA

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I spend seasons in the Austrian Alps. I tend to like to rip aggressive short and medium turns with a lot of energy and speed and get lots of rebound from the ski on piste. GS turns too. Off piste I tend to take it much more easy and tend to like to have fun and explore the environment at slower speeds - I'm still growing in confidence off piste and in powder. I want something more forgiving and easy to release out of turns and not get hooked into long turns or traverses I don't necessarily want on steeper choppy terrain - something more playful and less of a charger but stable in soft chop and tracked out powder.
#5
 

Jilly

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Belleville, Ontario,/ Mont Tremblant, Quebec
I demo'd the Brahma 82 last fall in Lake Louise. I just loved it. I have the Atomic 95C in my quiver and will gladly make it gone for the 82. Much easier on my old knees. On piste I too have a true carver, Nordica Dobermann SLC. Haven't tried any of the Blizzard Rustlers or Sheeva's. I don't need anything over 100mm. The 95C's kill me every time I use them.

So I'm voting for the Brahma 82 for you.
 

trailtrimmer

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How tall/heavy are you?

My personal take would be the Laser SC, Brahma 82, Rustler 10. I'm 6' 185lbs (83 kilos) and advanced in skill. If I weighed 10 kilos less, I'd opt for the Rustler 9 instead as there would be less mass to float and more knee friendly. 10-15cm of fresh is no big deal for the B82.

Option 2 would be Brahma 82 and one of the Rustlers above if you aren't into full on hip dragging performance.
 
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Rebound Hound

Rebound Hound

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180cm and about 90kg quite advanced. I do like to try and get as dynamic and low as I can in turns. My feeling was that the Brahma 82 did such a good job off piste that either the 88 or the rustler 9 would more than cover me for that. It's quite tempting to bump up to the 88 Brahma for versatility but perhaps I wouldn't like it a much as the 82. I do hear the 10s have awesome float though so that could be fun although I'm very much used to narrow skis so have a bias towards them.
 

trailtrimmer

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180cm and about 90kg quite advanced. I do like to try and get as dynamic and low as I can in turns. My feeling was that the Brahma 82 did such a good job off piste that either the 88 or the rustler 9 would more than cover me for that. It's quite tempting to bump up to the 88 Brahma for versatility but perhaps I wouldn't like it a much as the 82. I do hear the 10s have awesome float though so that could be fun although I'm very much used to narrow skis so have a bias towards them.

The B82 is a better bump ski than the 88, and the Rustler 9 or 10 will both be more playful than the Brahma 88. If you will be doing powder skiing within the resort, the 9 will certainly work fine. I hate being stuck on hardpack getting to the lift with really wide skis so I'm with you on not going too wide. If you were going to be using them outside of a resort and never hitting groomed, wider is better.
 
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Rebound Hound

Rebound Hound

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I demo'd the Brahma 82 last fall in Lake Louise. I just loved it. I have the Atomic 95C in my quiver and will gladly make it gone for the 82. Much easier on my old knees. On piste I too have a true carver, Nordica Dobermann SLC. Haven't tried any of the Blizzard Rustlers or Sheeva's. I don't need anything over 100mm. The 95C's kill me every time I use them.

So I'm voting for the Brahma 82 for you.

I did really love the Brahma 82 on and off the piste. Buying it isn't really a risk as I know what i'm getting and I like it. I'm a bit torn whether to go for the 88 though. I haven't tested it unfortunately so I'm unsure of the carving performance but the 88 would make more sense if I were to buy a dedicated piste ski (which I probably will). There is a chance I might find the 88 a bit wide for piste which would kind of kill it's versatility for me though. At the moment I see the Brahma 82 as a ski that can go anywhere and do anything well. Hardpack, Moguls, Off piste, and powder. I could be missing out though on a bit more performance in the off piste and powder though. If I could stretch to the 88 perhaps I could forgo a dedicated off piste ski / powder ski even though the Bhrama 82 will do it.
 

Daves not here

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I have the Brahma 82 as my narrow ski. I had the 2015 Bonafide prior (my favorite ski ever). not much overlap and love them both. Now looking for the top end ski.

go for the Brahma 82 and have fun!
 
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Rebound Hound

Rebound Hound

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Yes I bought the 2021 Brahma 82 - it's just been delivered in store from the Blizzard factory. Pick it up in the next few days. Such beautiful graphics this year and I enjoyed the ski on every terrain I tried it (although I skied the SP version) so the performance should be even better with the retail version. I also have a bit of a side plan to also buy the rustler 9 as a dedicated off piste powder ski. Seems like a really fun ski that will float plenty and have plenty of rocker and rounded tails to make different kinds of turns easy. I'll see how it goes with the Brahma's anyway. I might decide I don't even need a race style ski after a few weeks on them.
 
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Rebound Hound

Rebound Hound

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The 6th Pair from the right hand side.
 

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