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Sharpen without base level?

musicmatters

Getting on the lift
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I brought my skis to a place to get sharpened and waxed and they said they only do sharpening with a base leveling. They wouldnt just sharpen them.


What’s the deal with that? I’ve have them just sharpened before at other shops. Is it bad to sharpen and not base level? Or does that shop just not perform that basic service for some reason?

I know you can only base level a limited number of times. What is the ballpark number that you can do before you run out of base material?

Thanks in advance for the advice
 

James

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You don't sharpen the base bevel without regrinding. You'd only be able to increase it.
You could just sharpen the side edge, which is usual. Not sure why they won't do that.

The edge can get to the point where it's not sharpenable without doing the base edge. Which requires a grind.

If you need a grind you need it. Not that big a deal.
 

CalG

Out on the slopes
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Hmm " Base Level"?. i.e. Grind out the concavity/convexity? or base bevel?

There must be a difference.
 

Jacques

Workin' It on Skis Best I Can
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I brought my skis to a place to get sharpened and waxed and they said they only do sharpening with a base leveling. They wouldnt just sharpen them.


What’s the deal with that? I’ve have them just sharpened before at other shops. Is it bad to sharpen and not base level? Or does that shop just not perform that basic service for some reason?

I know you can only base level a limited number of times. What is the ballpark number that you can do before you run out of base material?

Thanks in advance for the advice

Although making the base a bit flatter is a good thing most of the time, the ski edges can still be tuned (sharpened) without that.
So in some ways bad, in some ways good for shop advice.
Most edge tuning results depend on the base being mostly flat. Some machines, don't matter. By hand always matters. Same with hand machines.
Anyway, the base shape will affect the edge tune in lots of cases.
In that case, it's not the end of the world. The shape will affect the way the ski handles. That way can be good or not so good, depending on the way a skier likes a ski to handle.
Good luck if you are using a shop that not in a ski town. Atlanta? IDK
 

Doug Briggs

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A good tuner can grind just enough to make sure the base is flat and the base edges are sufficiently exposed to set a base bevel without significantly reducing the life of the skis. This would allow for multiple grinds and base edge setting during the life of a ski.

It isn't necessary to set the base bevel in conjunction with resetting the side bevel. Hand tuning (both with hand held machines and guides) references off the base to set the side bevel so flat is important for accuracy, but not essential if the base is reasonably flat and perfect side bevels aren't demanded.
 

Sibhusky

Whitefish, MT
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Oct 26, 2016
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Actually unsure here if we've got an autocorrect of the word "bevel" to "level" or we are talking about FLATTENING the base? OP? Did the guy say your bases weren't flat?
 

Wilhelmson

Making fresh tracks
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Just for the fun of it, now that you've had the base and edges done give them a call and ask if they can just sharpen the edges.
 

Tom K.

Skier Ordinaire
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False. Run away from this shop! Buy a few tools, watch a few of @Jacques videos, and do it yourself. It's not rocket science.
 

Jacques

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False. Run away from this shop! Buy a few tools, watch a few of @Jacques videos, and do it yourself. It's not rocket science.

Yea, if your not racing, things don't need to be "perfect". (maybe not even then) I am anal about my work, yet not so much at the same time.
Once in a while I take a pair for a stone grind. Other than that I do all my own work.
I feel it has paid off big time over the years.
Through time I have learned some folks need a really flat base for the better part of the ski, but some don't.
It all depends what one likes in the way a ski handles.
By doing the work yourself, over time one will learn from feedback from those others that one might tune for.
I have learned over time that eventually some skis will loose their torsional strength. In those cases, no matter how well tuned, the ski won't hold edge like it should under other than "hero snow" conditions.
Bla bla bla.
If you plan on skiing a lot, learning to do your own work and buying all that "stuff" to do it, will be a good thing. It may take quite some time, but the journey starts with the first step.
Get a true bar! Learn how to use it. Then you will know.
 

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