The "I need to brag about a gear purchase" thread

[KevinF]

In the days before my injury I was demoing some skis and settled on the Stockli Stormrider 88's. @dawgcatching offered me a great price, so I bought them from him.

As luck would have it, UPS tried delivering my skis three times during the three days I was recuperating in Vermont. I came home to a note saying that I could pick them up at a UPS holding center that I couldn't drive to because of my injury. A few calls to UPS begging them to make one more delivery attempt didn't work.

So, since I didn't pick up my skis in a timely fashion, UPS delivered them back to dawgcatching's shop -- in Oregon. I'm in Massachusetts. I called dawgcatching to let him know that the skis were on their way back, and he said "no problem, just let us know when to ship them out again".

Now that I'm well on my way to full recovery, I called dawgcatching the other day to have my skis shipped out again. And today they finally arrived. Yay! They've been across the country three times now, but the skis look great. They have the flattest bases I've ever seen on fresh-out-of-the-wrapper skis.

dawgcatching, thanks for some great customer service! Now I only have to wait another six, seven months before I can use them.

 

[Monique]

In the days before my injury I was demoing some skis and settled on the Stockli Stormrider 88's. @dawgcatching offered me a great price, so I bought them from him.

As luck would have it, UPS tried delivering my skis three times during the three days I was recuperating in Vermont. I came home to a note saying that I could pick them up at a UPS holding center that I couldn't drive to because of my injury. A few calls to UPS begging them to make one more delivery attempt didn't work.

So, since I didn't pick up my skis in a timely fashion, UPS delivered them back to dawgcatching's shop -- in Oregon. I'm in Massachusetts. I called dawgcatching to let him know that the skis were on their way back, and he said "no problem, just let us know when to ship them out again".

Now that I'm well on my way to full recovery, I called dawgcatching the other day to have my skis shipped out again. And today they finally arrived. Yay! They've been across the country three times now, but the skis look great. They have the flattest bases I've ever seen on fresh-out-of-the-wrapper skis.

dawgcatching, thanks for some great customer service! Now I only have to wait another six, seven months before I can use them.

Jeez! I've had nightmares of that sort of scenario. I can't believe UPS wouldn't work with you.

 

[Brian Likes Pow]

My ski maker guy is currently in the process of making my new customs. Last pair were honestly the most perfect ski ive ever experienced but the wood where the bindings screwed in was too soft for me.

Next pair is just a little bit skinnier for versatility, black locust where the bindings screw in but many of the specs from the first model will carry over.

Everytime he works on them he sends me a pic and the stoke builds. These will be my daily driver for the next two winters. I like the idea of giving my money to someone who gets excited about making skis. Overall the cost is similar to a new pair of skis on sale. Maybe im totally biased but the last skis performed beautifully.

 

[Monique]

My ski maker guy is currently in the process of making my new customs. Last pair were honestly the most perfect ski ive ever experienced but the wood where the bindings screwed in was too soft for me.

Next pair is just a little bit skinnier for versatility, black locust where the bindings screw in but many of the specs from the first model will carry over.

Everytime he works on them he sends me a pic and the stoke builds. These will be my daily driver for the next two winters. I like the idea of giving my money to someone who gets excited about making skis. Overall the cost is similar to a new pair of skis on sale. Maybe im totally biased but the last skis performed beautifully.

How do you know what makes the perfect ski for you? I've thought about trying something custom, but I don't have confidence I'd know what to ask for.

 

[Monique]

REI clearance sales on Arc'teryx - I should avoid them. Got a nice sort of heavy rain jacket shell .. hrm. I just looked it up and it is "weather resistant" but not a rain jacket. I mean, I do already have Marmot and Patagonia rain jackets .. so pretty much I can now state that it's filling a niche in my outerwear. So there.

So anyway I got this jacket that is a little warmer and less packable than a typical lightweight rain coat, maybe more of a toasty wind breaker, for $120 instead of MSRP which is $175. It fits me great, as Arc'teryx tends to do. I figure it's REI, so I can ponder the purchase for a bit in case I change my mind.

Text conversation with husband, who was in the airport lobby. For context, often when I buy myself a new toy, I claim it is my upcoming Christmas or birthday present.

Me: Mind if I buy an arcteryx rain jacket for 119? original 175
<two minutes pass>
Me: I will buy and we can argue later
Him: <irrelevant comment>
Me: jacket? almost in line
Him: Jacket is fine. Happy birthday 2019!
Me: lol. Eventually I'll die at like 88 and you'll shake your fist and say, you can't die, you have had presents for 20 more birthdays!
Him: haha

Hmm ... maybe you had to be there.


http://www.arcteryx.com/product.aspx?language=EN&gender=Womens&model=Tenquille-Hoody-W

 

[crgildart]

Picked up some REI Switchback pants that match my scout uniform for $3.99 at a thrift. They were a tad long. Rather than taking them to REI and making up some gift wrong size story I just got out the sewing machine and hemmed them up 2". Love REI stuff, but rarely get anything there that isn't hugely marked down.

 

[Brian Likes Pow]

How do you know what makes the perfect ski for you? I've thought about trying something custom, but I don't have confidence I'd know what to ask for.

Trial and error. Im far from a technical minded person but have been on enough skis to know the stiffness, length and sidecut that i want. I leave the rest to him. We've skied together enough times that he had alot of ideas of his own.

Other than that its as simple as me saying what sort of ski i want, what i expect from it and let him geek out on the details. Hoping this set is as fun as the last.

 

[cantunamunch]

Tell us more about the binding area being too soft - how did you determine this, as in what were the symptoms and severity?

 

[Brian Likes Pow]

Bindings kept ripped out twice over the course of 100 or so days so i retired them. To be fair ive ripped bindings out of skis in the past.

 

[cantunamunch]

'K.

One project that's on the bench right now is a pair of Elans with binding tearout; I haven't decided if I want to do a urethane/metal/ABS sandwich or urethane/CF. The metal/ABS would be something like $80 cheaper.

 

[skibob]

'K.

One project that's on the bench right now is a pair of Elans with binding tearout; I haven't decided if I want to do a urethane/metal/ABS sandwich or urethane/CF. The metal/ABS would be something like $80 cheaper.

I wouldn't bother with the CF in this application. What do you expect the ABS to do that metal alone won't?

 

[skibob]

My ski maker guy is currently in the process of making my new customs. Last pair were honestly the most perfect ski ive ever experienced but the wood where the bindings screwed in was too soft for me.

Next pair is just a little bit skinnier for versatility, black locust where the bindings screw in but many of the specs from the first model will carry over.

Everytime he works on them he sends me a pic and the stoke builds. These will be my daily driver for the next two winters. I like the idea of giving my money to someone who gets excited about making skis. Overall the cost is similar to a new pair of skis on sale. Maybe im totally biased but the last skis performed beautifully.

Can you tell us who is making them and the approximate cost?

 

[cantunamunch]

I wouldn't bother with the CF in this application. What do you expect the ABS to do that metal alone won't?

- expansion rate matching to the ski toplayers, especially if I choose to pin the front of the plates with 2 screws into the ski each
- damping
- added binding-screw hold without too much ski stiffening.

(yes, I'm completely aware I could just use fiberglass mat for all of that )

 

[skibob]

- expansion rate matching to the ski toplayers, especially if I choose to pin the front of the plates with 2 screws into the ski each
- damping
- added binding-screw hold without too much ski stiffening.

(yes, I'm completely aware I could just use fiberglass mat for all of that )

That's what I was thinking. I've never used it on skis, but I've used it to reinforce fiberglass tanks and found it easy to work with (cosmetically atrocious, but practical).

Another approach might be to use a small metal plate, separate one for each screw, with an abs spacer between them to support the binding. Leave a little gap between metal and abs to accommodate flex. A mm or two ought to do it I would think, and would not be so much as to destabilize the binding base. That spacer could even be bound to the bottom of the binding instead of the ski, so as to further reduce interference with ski flex.

I have 0 experience with this repair, just coming at it from a structural/materials perspective.

 

[cantunamunch]

Another approach might be to use a small metal plate, separate one for each screw, with an abs spacer between them to support the binding. Leave a little gap between metal and abs to accommodate flex. A mm or two ought to do it I would think, and would not be so much as to destabilize the binding base. That spacer could even be bound to the bottom of the binding instead of the ski, so as to further reduce interference with ski flex.

I have 0 experience with this repair, just coming at it from a structural/materials perspective.

Yeh, I've used a variant of that idea before, essentially embedding washers into ABS sheet, to do the 6mm lifters under my 75mm Rottefella Super Mountains. Really worked well for that, actually.

 

[Brian Likes Pow]

Can you tell us who is making them and the approximate cost?

Mad russian custom skis. He has a Facebook page but really isnt on there all that much.

There a thread on alpinezone " my new skis" under the gear forum that starts from the beginning...mad russian he is as it sounds...a little crazy lol. As far as price i want answer for him but not overly expensive imo

 

[mishka]

Trial and error. Im far from a technical minded person but have been on enough skis to know the stiffness, length and sidecut that i want. I leave the rest to him. We've skied together enough times that he had alot of ideas of his own.

Other than that its as simple as me saying what sort of ski i want, what i expect from it and let him geek out on the details. Hoping this set is as fun as the last.

I couldn't put it better myself process of how Brian's skis was designed

 

[mishka]

Can you tell us who is making them and the approximate cost?

I am the MadRussian ....I'm not doing volume production/models skis and each pair made individually ....difficult to give just a number

How do you know what makes the perfect ski for you? I've thought about trying something custom, but I don't have confidence I'd know what to ask for.

you don't. Design first skis is like "box of chocolates you never know what you gonna get". however I can tell you it possible.… give me one hour and I can tell you what most likely perfect ski for you. Give me one ski day and YOU will know what is perfect skis for you. by 6 PM you will have the design

 

[cantunamunch]

@mishka I heard you bring your stuff out to Wawa?

 

[crgildart]

Welcome to the forum Mishka Mad Russian!