Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Do Skis Get Blunt?

brooker.co.za

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

161–170 of 196 posts

Re: Do Skis Get Blunt?

#161

Post by jcgrillo »

thereisnospork wrote: post #157
jcgrillo wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A uniform surface is actually not ideal, as it causes a lot of suction between the base and the snow, that's why ski and snowboard bases have "structure" ground into them with a stone grinder--that's what getting a base grind does, it restores the base's structure. Hot waxing permeates the pores in the ptex with oils from the wax, but you really want to scrape and brush it all off--there shouldn't be any residual wax…

>but you really want to scrape and brush it all off--there shouldn't be any residual wax remaining after. I for one have always been a proponent of the lazy-man approach of letting the mountain do the scraping. Avoids the messiest part of the job. Sure the first run or two will be a touch slower, but unless you are serious enough to have a dedicated pair of race skis to schlep to the start, you aren't going to have a…

I used to just scrape (no brushing) and let the first few runs do the work but then at some point I started brushing and realized that it made a big difference. I think what was happening (could be checked with the author's microscope) was the snow was wearing off the wax on the lands of the base structure but the grooves still had at least some wax--so it was essentially forming a less sharply structured base.

Re: Do Skis Get Blunt?

#162

Post by AtlasBarfed »

creato wrote: post #29
djtango wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Other people are reporting that they can feel it with ice. Do you ski much on ice?

I’ve certainly skied ice and all kinds of crust. In my experience true ice isn’t that bad in terms of grip, it’s rarely so smooth that edges can’t easily grip on surface imperfections. It’s not fun to ski because it’s very high impact. I think what most people talk about as icy and slippery that seems to form on skied off groomers is actually some kind of crust that is hard to get edge hold in because the snow is som…

Yeah the East Coast is often nothing but the base ice pack with some snow on top to make it more slippery.

Re: Do Skis Get Blunt?

#163

Post by paddy_m »

I'm in a ski share house in the northeast. Last winter I organized a ski tuning clinic put on by the local ski shop that does race tunes. I thought that only the expert nerdy skiers in the house would be interested, but everyone was fascinated. Most of the attendees won't tune their own skis, but they will know what to look for in their skis, and when to take them in.

Also, in the north east, tuned skis absolutely matter, whatever level you are. My wife has been learning to ski and had trouble with ice. So I put on her beginner skis, and said, ahh no wonder, went back and tuned them. Then I put her on my slalom skis because she didn't trust her skis to initiate a turn (slalom skis are famously quick to initiate), and she could turn them quickly. Then I tuned one edge of each slalom ski with a more aggressive tune, but she could swap back to regular if she wanted. Finally, she was skidding her turns too much, so I put her on my GS skis, which forced her to patiently start the turn then follow it through. She now has a good idea of when she's having trouble with the ski shape, the conditions or the ski tune after 35 total days of skiing.

If you put a beginner or intermediate on race skis, make sure the tune is mellow enough. Slalom skis at 0.5 and 86, will hunt when not turning, and can grab an edge throwing you to the ground. At the steeper angles (86/87 vs 88/89) it is much harder to skid the ski for speed control. When you head out with a beginner, you can always bring a diamond stone and detune the tip/tail, on the mountain even. They will notice the difference and appreciate it.

Re: Do Skis Get Blunt?

#164

Post by oldandboring »

swader999 wrote: post #145
oldandboring wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's why I said "closer to 50/50". Also, that's awesome that you competed WC moguls. I probably saw you compete depending on when you were active, and we almost definitely know some of the same people.

Awesome! I might be even older and boring though. 92 was my last cup year.

Oh boy, yeah pretty old :) There is one person I know (but not very well) who you likely encountered (Canadian, in fact) but they didn't make it to the WC until 94 I believe.

Re: Do Skis Get Blunt?

#165

Post by Kon-Peki »

svl7 wrote: post #37
_huayra_ wrote: post #7

My rule of thumb is to get the edges tuned once a season (I clock ~40 days), usually after the last of the rocks is covered up by the initial snow. If one skis less than that, it's possible to get away with every other season, but keep a gummy stone to deburr the edges as needed. If anyone has any methods to reliably grind edges at home, I'd be interested. I have one of the edge tools and a bunch of files, but I basi…

A local shop might as well make things worse if they do not care too much and give your skis the standard treatment (e.g. different angle than before). Once you have a good edge, it's kind of similar as keeping a knife sharpened. No need to really grind every time, a fine polishing after skiing for a day is more than sufficient and makes your edges last a long time. Been using tools from here for 10+ years, they also…

> kind of similar as keeping a knife sharpened.

Professional chefs get their knives sharpened once or twice a year, depending on how often they use them. They hone their knives before every use. The honing rod that comes with your knife set is there to realign the steel molecules along the blade edge. Sharpening your knife removes metal and creates a new blade edge, which you have to hone frequently for it to stay as sharp as you want it.

I wonder if the ski tech person was using terminology correctly but the skier/blogger didn't quite understand.

Re: Do Skis Get Blunt?

#166

Post by snowwrestler »

IsTom wrote: post #73

> Snow and ice are quite abrasive stuff Per wiki ice has mohs hardness of 2 to 4 depending on temperature and if it has fallen out of the sky I guess it shouldn't be mixed with sand or other abrasives. How is it abrasive then?

Moh's scale is useful for field identification of minerals. It's not really useful as an all-purpose predictor of durability.

Pressure is a huge variable. In a typical Moh's test, there is very little: just a person rubbing two stones together by hand. But with enough pressure, liquid water (hardness: none) can cut steel. Lead can damage steel or quartz if fired out of a gun. Etc.

And as others have mentioned, snow might have particles of other materials in it as well. But just to be clear: Moh's scale does not mean that pure ice could never abrade steel.

Re: Do Skis Get Blunt?

#167

Post by jajko »

JumpCrisscross wrote: post #81
jajko wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Edges makes bigger difference in ski touring or more appropriately ski alpinism. Meaning tricky steep slopes where you sometimes switch skis for crampons and ice axe and put them on backpack, wildly varying conditions on the slopes. Or using ski crampons when its less extreme. There, any advantage is very important, ie how precisely you put skins on skis to leave that little bit of edge for... edging, at least thats…

> Edges makes bigger difference in ski touring or more appropriately ski alpinism East Coast? I’m a Rocky Mountain skinner and I can’t remember the last time I edged off piste.

More like Mont Blanc ski ascent in my case... no room for mistakes on steeper slopes

Re: Do Skis Get Blunt?

#168

Post by matsemann »

swader999 wrote: post #131
strstr wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You could also sharpen just one edge of each ski (opposite edges across the pair), then put the skis on random feet. Then see if they can tell which edges are sharp! Most of a typical skier’s weight is supported by the inside edge of the downhill ski while carving. Youth racers tend to ski with one set of edges on the inside for training, and the other edges inside for racing (under the theory that the inside edges t…

In a race, my kids race edge is marked on each ski and he only has those two edges close to his big toes on his race runs. If you don't ski, your a genius if you can figure out how and why this would work I'd imagine.

I used to paint an arrow pointing to the left on one ski and the right on the other. Then I would for instance ski during the day, and -><- during the race.

Re: Do Skis Get Blunt?

#169

Post by erikpukinskis »

SkyPuncher wrote: post #141
oldandboring wrote: post #93

Former junior and Masters racer here. Glad to see there's some very qualified voices in these comments, including a few who are currently involved (as racing parents). I very much appreciate the level of technical detail and accuracy in those comments. I'll talk base bevels all day. Pretty much agree with everything those folks have written. Most definitely sharp edges, and your bevels, matter when you are really pus…

One thing the conversation seems to be missing is rocks and handling. Rocks are mostly an off-piste issue, but I have seen it happen on piste. Especially early and last season when cover can be low. Will occasionally also happen near the lift when a spot gets warn low. When I get rock gashes, it's always easier to just send them to the shop's machine. Handling also introduces a fair amount of nicks. In theory, the ed…

> Rocks are mostly an off-piste issue

*laughs in East Coast*

Re: Do Skis Get Blunt?

#170

Post by FredFS456 »

SkyPuncher wrote: post #141
oldandboring wrote: post #93

Former junior and Masters racer here. Glad to see there's some very qualified voices in these comments, including a few who are currently involved (as racing parents). I very much appreciate the level of technical detail and accuracy in those comments. I'll talk base bevels all day. Pretty much agree with everything those folks have written. Most definitely sharp edges, and your bevels, matter when you are really pus…

One thing the conversation seems to be missing is rocks and handling. Rocks are mostly an off-piste issue, but I have seen it happen on piste. Especially early and last season when cover can be low. Will occasionally also happen near the lift when a spot gets warn low. When I get rock gashes, it's always easier to just send them to the shop's machine. Handling also introduces a fair amount of nicks. In theory, the ed…

Use ski straps, especially the type which has a rubber end that you can stick in between the skis. It prevents them from scissoring, which is harmful for both the edges and the base.
Post reply on HN