Kastle MX89 delamination - Help

[dbq]

Christmas Day and I took my MX89s out to ski and noticed one of them had delaminated near the tip.

I currently have a BMX 105 HP and an MX84. I have also previously owned the BMX 88, BMX 98, FX 84 and the CPM 82 and never experienced any issues. The quality has always been top notch, which is one of the reasons I love Kastle skis.

These MX 89s have only had 20-25 days on them and they have not seen heavy use so this seems to me to be a build quality issue.

Has anyone had anything like that happen to them ? Will some gorilla glue and a couple of clamps fix the problem ?

thanks

 

[Philpug]

Bring them into your/a dealer and have them send them back to Kastle...or at least pictures and see what Kastle can do. The area looks pretty chewed up but that shouldn't cause a delamination. But I would start warranty protocol.

 

[Swiss Toni]

It looks like the bond between the Titanal and the top layer of fiberglass has failed. If this is the case it’s likely to be due to a manufacturing fault. It isn’t easy to bond aluminum alloys so they are usually anodized in phosphoric acid before bonding in order to give them a mechanical key https://www.materialstoday.com/metal-finishing/features/anodizing-for-aerospace-101/. The anodizing is carried out by AMAG, the manufacturer https://www.amag-al4u.com/en/our-aluminium/sporting-goods.html Unfortunately the resulting surface isn’t very durable so if the Titanal isn’t stored correctly its ability to bond will be compromised.

 

[Wendy]

This reminds me of this: https://www.pugski.com/threads/kastle-mx84-problem-solved.9542/

 

[dbq]

Thanks all for your feedback and suggestions. I have contacted KÄSTLE's warranty department and waiting to see what they say.

Will see what happens, worse case I guess, some expoxy and clamps might do the trick.

Thanks

 

[Erik Timmerman]

I'd kind of expect them to say you should widen your stance a little. Who knows, maybe they will throw you a bone and warranty them.

 

[James]

Clearly defective. Not the usual Mx syndrome problem.
No stance issue, they're Austrian skis.

 

[Tony S]

Okay, I am never letting epic look at my skis.

 

[James]

Mine are way worse. But, I clean them up with a file. I may be banned from a certain group testing program.
Most who ski moguls with feet together will trash the tips and some of the shovel.

 

[Shawn C.]

Okay, I am never letting epic look at my skis.

And I'm never clicking on another video that James has posted.

 

[KingGrump]

And I'm never clicking on another video that James has posted.

That video belongs on the "Cheese" thread.

 

[bbinder]

And I'm never clicking on another video that James has posted.

I found it very instructional

 

[James]

That's good for Hansi. His skiing demo has improved.
He won like six worldcup races in slalom and gs. More than anyone on the current American Men's team, except Ligety.

Hansi in 1974.

 

[Swiss Toni]

Hansi is not only a very successful racer (he won 6 world cup races in the 1970s, 3 in GS and 3 in SL and the GS world cup in 1972/73. In 1974 he won the silver medal in GS at the world championships in St. Moritz, and was also professional world champion in 1981 and 1982. After ending his skiing career in 1984 he was employed as a ski racing co-commentator by Austrian TV) he has also had a very successful second career as a folk singer. He’s a big star in Austria, Germany and Switzerland and at 64 still looks pretty good!


To get back dbq’s issue, hopefully Kästle will replace them as a diy fix won’t return the damaged ski to its original condition, the oxide coating formed during phosphoric acid anodization will have probably hydrated so there won’t be much for the epoxy to bond to. Kästle skis are sold as premium skis, but most don’t have a premium construction.

 

[dbq]

I am happy to report that the Kastle Warranty department agreed to replace the skis. Credit to them, they were great to deal with and very responsive.

Received the replacement skis today and they have asked that I ship the defective skis back to them which is fair enough.

 

[Andy Mink]

I am happy to report that the Kastle Warranty department agreed to replace the skis. Credit to them, they were great to deal with and very responsive.

Received the replacement skis today and they have asked that I ship the defective skis back to them which is fair enough.

Years ago (ok, decades) I had a pair of Kneissl Whitestars that started to delaminate. They sent me a new pair. It's nice when a company stands behind their product.

 

[markojp]

NIce of them to do a hot swap. It's generally their practice in my experience. Not every manufacturer will do that for you.

 

[Crosby]

Another victim here, but this time FX 95s. I have had an entirely different experience, as I have gone back and forth (or rather, mostly asked them to respond), for months. I spoke with the guy at [email protected] (name withheld), sent him the pictures he requested, and.... crickets.

@dbq - Do you have the contact information for the guy who helped you out so awesomely? Thanks!

 

[jsl94109]

Christmas Day and I took my MX89s out to ski and noticed one of them had delaminated near the tip.

I currently have a BMX 105 HP and an MX84. I have also previously owned the BMX 88, BMX 98, FX 84 and the CPM 82 and never experienced any issues. The quality has always been top notch, which is one of the reasons I love Kastle skis.

These MX 89s have only had 20-25 days on them and they have not seen heavy use so this seems to me to be a build quality issue.

Has anyone had anything like that happen to them ? Will some gorilla glue and a couple of clamps fix the problem ?

thanks



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It's not you, it's the ski. I had a pair of MX88's which de-laminated after one season of normal use. I sent pictures to Kastle and they replied basically saying it was my fault, that I needed to use a wider stance, and that the delamination was the result of exceptionally hard ski to ski impact. After some dialog, they agreed to replace the skis with a new pair of MX89's. Again, after one season of normal use (I've been skiing for 40 years, have had numerous different skis, and have never had this problem aside from the Kastle's), the MX89's are severely delaminating on the edges. Every day I take them out, there's a new section of the top sheet that's peeled back. Although I really like the ski, the sad truth is that Kastle skis, at least the MX series, just aren't built to hold up. They can and did place blame on the skier, but these skis are poorly built, period.

 

[jsl94109]

Thanks all for your feedback and suggestions. I have contacted KÄSTLE's warranty department and waiting to see what they say.

Will see what happens, worse case I guess, some expoxy and clamps might do the trick.

Thanks

They'll start by telling you that it's your fault. They'll say you're abusing the ski with excessive ski to ski impacts. If you push the issue with them, they may replace the skis. But you'll find that the new pair suffers the exact same fate. This was my experience. I love the ski but can't accept the poor build quality. I won't be dropping the premium price for a pair of skis that can't stand up to normal use.