I work at a shop in Breckenridge. As you know, our snow pack is kind of thin so I've been getting to do a lot of repair work. Mostly core shots that are easy to fix with MetalGrip and P-Tex.
This Armada came in earlier this week.
I removed some of the base material using a patch pattern and utility knife. The construction of the ski was layered in such a was as to make the use of a patch later dubious. I needed top open up the ski to see how extensive the damage was to the core and to provide clean, unaffected material to work with. Note the mud and road debris on the ski. The edges were rusty. As was said elsewhere 'we aren't a car wash'.(Would you go to a doctor's appointment covered in grime from a workout?) I didn't clean the ski before cutting as I wanted to avoid possibly moistening the core, etc. which would hinder adhesive bonding.
I cut out a part of the edge using a dremel. I angled the cuts so that the replacement piece wouldn't be able to pull out through the opening in the original edges. It is more obvious in other photos. Here I've laid the edge in and epoxied it. There was space below the replacement piece so the edge was in the epoxy top, bottom and base side. I used screws to hold it in place, but the core was so wimpy and spongy, I removed them as they weren't providing and strength and were just going to be in the way of the remaining repair. I had deliberately roughed up the core and exposed innards of the ski to permit the epoxy to flow into nooks and crannies for a mechanical connection as well as to hopefully reinforce the core. I also used a Dremel abrasive cone to remove epoxy once it had set to make room for the MetalGrip and P-Tex. When the ski came in you could push things around, there was not firmness to the damaged area.
Here you can sort of see the void between the top of the edge and the sidewall that filled with epoxy. The replacement edge was coated black. I did also fix the delamination between the topsheet and the ski, but that was a minor and pretty obvious process.
I then used a panser file to rough match the replacement edge to the original. I had set the edge in place so it was a little bold compared to the original edge. This let me remove material from the replacement edge so that it would be flush on both side and base portions of the edge.
MetalGrip applied. This stuff is pretty cool. You apply it with a soldering iron in a thin layer to form a layer that bonds to the ski and edge (hence the name) and bonds to P-Tex nicely. Here you can see the slant of the cuts in the original and replacement edge.
I then P-Texed using a gun. I eschewed a patch as the space I had to work with was very thin and irregular. I didn't think I'd get a good bond and the removal of all the excess material (thickness) was going to be dicey. I applied on excess P-Tex, scraped it close to level with a sharp cabinet scraper (metal scraper), then I put the ski through the belt sander. This is the result at this point.
This shows the repair after the TrimJet edging and base stone grinding.
Any critique would be appreciated. I'll start:
Edit: I am particularly interested to hear from people about if and how I could have strengthened the core. Putting screws through the edge into the core that close to the edge and having it hold is a challenge even with a solid, healthy core.
This Armada came in earlier this week.
I removed some of the base material using a patch pattern and utility knife. The construction of the ski was layered in such a was as to make the use of a patch later dubious. I needed top open up the ski to see how extensive the damage was to the core and to provide clean, unaffected material to work with. Note the mud and road debris on the ski. The edges were rusty. As was said elsewhere 'we aren't a car wash'.(Would you go to a doctor's appointment covered in grime from a workout?) I didn't clean the ski before cutting as I wanted to avoid possibly moistening the core, etc. which would hinder adhesive bonding.
I cut out a part of the edge using a dremel. I angled the cuts so that the replacement piece wouldn't be able to pull out through the opening in the original edges. It is more obvious in other photos. Here I've laid the edge in and epoxied it. There was space below the replacement piece so the edge was in the epoxy top, bottom and base side. I used screws to hold it in place, but the core was so wimpy and spongy, I removed them as they weren't providing and strength and were just going to be in the way of the remaining repair. I had deliberately roughed up the core and exposed innards of the ski to permit the epoxy to flow into nooks and crannies for a mechanical connection as well as to hopefully reinforce the core. I also used a Dremel abrasive cone to remove epoxy once it had set to make room for the MetalGrip and P-Tex. When the ski came in you could push things around, there was not firmness to the damaged area.
Here you can sort of see the void between the top of the edge and the sidewall that filled with epoxy. The replacement edge was coated black. I did also fix the delamination between the topsheet and the ski, but that was a minor and pretty obvious process.
I then used a panser file to rough match the replacement edge to the original. I had set the edge in place so it was a little bold compared to the original edge. This let me remove material from the replacement edge so that it would be flush on both side and base portions of the edge.
MetalGrip applied. This stuff is pretty cool. You apply it with a soldering iron in a thin layer to form a layer that bonds to the ski and edge (hence the name) and bonds to P-Tex nicely. Here you can see the slant of the cuts in the original and replacement edge.
I then P-Texed using a gun. I eschewed a patch as the space I had to work with was very thin and irregular. I didn't think I'd get a good bond and the removal of all the excess material (thickness) was going to be dicey. I applied on excess P-Tex, scraped it close to level with a sharp cabinet scraper (metal scraper), then I put the ski through the belt sander. This is the result at this point.
This shows the repair after the TrimJet edging and base stone grinding.
Any critique would be appreciated. I'll start:
- better fit between the original and replacement edge; less gap. as it is, epoxy filled any void and made for a smooth transition between new and old edge.
- let the edge match inside edge, not the outside. that means more edge material to remove, but a cleaner, single straight line on the inside edge which would have made a patch easier to make, if I'd gone the route of a patch.
Edit: I am particularly interested to hear from people about if and how I could have strengthened the core. Putting screws through the edge into the core that close to the edge and having it hold is a challenge even with a solid, healthy core.
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