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Keep skiis on same feet or change them?

Sibhusky

Whitefish, MT
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hmm, I just put the skis on the ground were they lay and stomp in and ski.
This. For all I know, being a creature of habit, that means the skis are always on the same feet. But they get tuned regularly, so I'm not sure it makes a difference. I used to have left and right skis (Dynastars? Salomon's?) so i didn't switch often. People would tell me my skis were on the wrong feet occasionally. But that was a way to save an edge for days I really needed a fresh edge. Nowadays if I'm noticing edge inadequacy, I'll swap hoping for an improvement.
 

James

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Sounds like this belongs in the convex/concave base tuning discussion.How do you set base angles when one side is twisted a different direction than the other?
The base is still flat, -hopefully, it's supposed to be. So it should be a flat twist from one side to the other. Afaik.
 

Marker

Making fresh tracks
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Sounds like this belongs in the convex/concave base tuning discussion.How do you set base angles when one side is twisted a different direction than the other?
I'll admit I don't set the base angles. I have the skis base ground about once a year at the shop and set at 1 degree with the edges at 3 degrees. It's a reputable Killington shop that handles Elans, so I assume they know what they are doing. I then maintain the 3 degree edge and just use a Arkansas stone to deburr the base edge. If the base edge needs more touch up, I have a Swix WC guide and diamond stone to smooth things out. I've read here too many times about messing with the base edges to feel very comfortable doing it myself.
The base is still flat, -hopefully, it's supposed to be. So it should be a flat twist from one side to the other. Afaik.

Mine are an older model where the base is presumably flat, but twisted to introduce the rocker at the tip and tail, but more recent Amphibio 4D models have concave/convex bases. I copied from the 2019 Elan Amphibio 88 XTi Fusion:

A convex front will help you initiate a turn with precision, while the concave rear will make you exit the turn in a dynamic fashion.
 

NE1

Getting on the lift
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I switch skis because I want to use them evenly. Keeping them on the same foot is a throw back to old equipment, with today's equipment you don't need to do it.
Not sure what old equipment you are referring to; can you elaborate please?
 

James

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Mine are an older model where the base is presumably flat, but twisted to introduce the rocker at the tip and tail, but more recent Amphibio 4D models have concave/convex bases. I copied from the 2019 Elan Amphibio 88 XTi Fusion:

A convex front will help you initiate a turn with precision, while the concave rear will make you exit the turn in a dynamic fashion.
Aha! Wow. Tuning nightmare.
Never a fan of the Amphibio thing. Some things that make sense, don't
 

pchewn

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Not sure what old equipment you are referring to; can you elaborate please?

Could be referring to the old ski equipment before ski brakes were invented. A safety strap was used to keep the skis from running away. The older design consisted of a long leather strap and a short strap with a buckle. The buckle side was attached to the outside cable of the cable binding. The strap went on the inside cable. That way, the buckles would not snag on each other while skiing, or more drastically, snag on your partner's buckle when riding tandem on the T-bar.

See the image below. (But the straps are on the WRONG side ....)

old-cable-drum-ski-binding-nostalgic-ski-race-sella-ronda-passo-gardena-BGBT02.jpg
 

Marker

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Aha! Wow. Tuning nightmare.
Never a fan of the Amphibio thing. Some things that make sense, don't
At the time, I liked them because they were stiff, damp, and had a full camber on the inside edge, but the rocker made turn initiation easier for me as an intermediate. At 6'6", 230 lb, I wanted the reassurance that they wouldn't give up on me. That said, they encourage me to ski rather fast and aren't that great in shorter turns. I'll probably go shorter in length and radius in my next all mtn ski. Also, one that can switch feet in the middle of the day...
 

Bad Bob

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Could be referring to the old ski equipment before ski brakes were invented. A safety strap was used to keep the skis from running away. The older design consisted of a long leather strap and a short strap with a buckle. The buckle side was attached to the outside cable of the cable binding. The strap went on the inside cable. That way, the buckles would not snag on each other while skiing, or more drastically, snag on your partner's buckle when riding tandem on the T-bar.

See the image below. (But the straps are on the WRONG side ....)

old-cable-drum-ski-binding-nostalgic-ski-race-sella-ronda-passo-gardena-BGBT02.jpg

Being a nerd here.

Those skis are a lot older than those boots. Ridged solid wood skis with bear trap bindings very 30's and 40's. Buckle boots with a molded sole 60's. Those skis are an old setup, don't even see metal edges. Left and right ski for sure!
 

Ken_R

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hmm, I just put the skis on the ground were they lay and stomp in and ski.

Exactly, let the skis fall where they may :D
 

Uncle-A

In the words of Paul Simon "You can call me Al"
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Not sure what old equipment you are referring to; can you elaborate please?
When ski boots were not made in molds made by tool and die makers the sole (BSL) of one boot mite be different from the the sole of the mate boot. So when they were mounted the left boot would always have to be on the same ski as it was mounted and the right boot would always have to be on the same ski as it was mounted. Second is when tuning older straight skis they would de-tune the tip and tail of the ski and some people like myself would de-tune the outside edge of the ski farther back from the tip than the inside edge. So you would have to use the same ski on the same foot because of the way it was de-tuned.
 

Johnny V.

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When I race, I ski to the top of the course on one set of edges then switch for the actual run (I have slip skis for warmup and inspection). Gotta keep at the top of my beer league age group......................ogsmile

Yeah, I know I could take the race pair up to the top of the course, but that's a little extreme!
 

zircon

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I can’t believe it’s not England!
My gross motor skills are better left handed, so I always end up putting the left ski with the brakes outside when hooking them together and also pulling them apart left handed. So, unless I'm paying attention and make a point to switch them up, my skis are always on the same feet. They definitely wear more evenly if you swap them though.
 

crgildart

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At the time, I liked them because they were stiff, damp, and had a full camber on the inside edge, but the rocker made turn initiation easier for me as an intermediate. At 6'6", 230 lb, I wanted the reassurance that they wouldn't give up on me. That said, they encourage me to ski rather fast and aren't that great in shorter turns. I'll probably go shorter in length and radius in my next all mtn ski. Also, one that can switch feet in the middle of the day...
They must be even more interesting to ride switch!
 

Big J

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I have always kept my skis separated with the right going on the right and the left on the left. Perhaps this was to make the graphics line up. Have no idea why I always do this. Perhaps I should start switching to get more consistant edge wear. I supposed you can teach an old dog new tricks.
 

crgildart

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When I race, I ski to the top of the course on one set of edges then switch for the actual run (I have slip skis for warmup and inspection). Gotta keep at the top of my beer league age group......................ogsmile

Yeah, I know I could take the race pair up to the top of the course, but that's a little extreme!
I switch mine in the middle of the course during my actual run so as to have the absolute sharpest edges for the bottom half of the course. Can't figure out why I still always finish last???
 

Jacob

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My gross motor skills are better left handed, so I always end up putting the left ski with the brakes outside when hooking them together and also pulling them apart left handed. So, unless I'm paying attention and make a point to switch them up, my skis are always on the same feet. They definitely wear more evenly if you swap them though.

Same for me, but right handed. I didn’t realise I was always putting the same ski on the same foot until I got skis with asymmetrical topsheets. Eventually, I noticed and then worked out that it was because I always put them together and slide them apart the same way due to right hand dominance.

So to mix things up, at the start of the day I always swap them around one time.

I tend to hit rocks and such skiing off piste in Europe, so I swap my skis to try to even out the damage.
 

Guy in Shorts

Tree Psycho
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Killington
Switch skis until my ski tuner assigns a specific ski. My M5's have 90 days on them and the tech assigned a left ski to the board with the core shot on the edge under the boot after my last tune. Wish my skis would last more than couple of seasons.
 

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