PSA: Mount your own fucking skis.

[phatboy64]

I have a question that I am sure has been asked but I can’t find the answer to.

How many times can I remove a binding and reinstall in the same holes before the mount becomes compromised?

I have a ski that I removed and reinstalled the heal once (pivot). Now I want to swap the heal again but with a different brake width. Is two times too many?

[Falcon3]

I have a question that I am sure has been asked but I can’t find the answer to.

How many times can I remove a binding and reinstall in the same holes before the mount becomes compromised?

I have a ski that I removed and reinstalled the heal once (pivot). Now I want to swap the heal again but with a different brake width. Is two times too many?

As long as you’re not getting spinners you can do it indefinitely. If they all torque down fine you’re golden. If any spin, that’s too many. Could happen on the second time, could happen on the 100th time.

[rfconroy]

I have a question that I am sure has been asked but I can’t find the answer to.

How many times can I remove a binding and reinstall in the same holes before the mount becomes compromised?

I have a ski that I removed and reinstalled the heal once (pivot). Now I want to swap the heal again but with a different brake width. Is two times too many?

Oh man so many different factors in this: are the holes mangled, are you using the same screws, layup of the ski. If you have doubts throw in an insert/helicoil - or at the very least use epoxy with some sort of binder: fiberglass, steel wool, or kevlar.

[tgapp]

Oh man so many different factors in this: are the holes mangled, are you using the same screws, layup of the ski. If you have doubts throw in an insert/helicoil - or at the very least use epoxy with some sort of binder: fiberglass, steel wool, or kevlar.

What about a mount that would effectively be right on top (less than a few mm) of an existing hole set? Is using slow set epoxy and fiberglass strong enough to drill into an old mount hole?

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[rfconroy]

What about a mount that would effectively be right on top (less than a few mm) of an existing hole set? Is using slow set epoxy and fiberglass strong enough to drill into an old mount hole?

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When I've done it in the past I've used kevlar pulp, with a solid wood plug, then redrill. However I've only done it once, and it was for a ski with inserts, so it already had larger surface area to work with.

[stealurface831]

What about a mount that would effectively be right on top (less than a few mm) of an existing hole set? Is using slow set epoxy and fiberglass strong enough to drill into an old mount hole?

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I've done this more times than I'd like to admit. G-Flex and solid oak dowel has served me well. If you go that route, get a good dovetail saw. Makes for a flush repair every time.

[Westcoaster]

What about a mount that would effectively be right on top (less than a few mm) of an existing hole set? Is using slow set epoxy and fiberglass strong enough to drill into an old mount hole?

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G10 dowel + gflex for those close holes next to new inserts.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/SpdCn9PL7UtnSmhf9

[phatboy64]

Oh man so many different factors in this: are the holes mangled, are you using the same screws, layup of the ski. If you have doubts throw in an insert/helicoil - or at the very least use epoxy with some sort of binder: fiberglass, steel wool, or kevlar.

I haven’t taken it off yet but when I remounted the heal the first time the screws went in tight with no issues. Yes, I can use the same screws or new ones if that was better.

There is no metal in this ski…

It sounds like epoxy with some sort of a binder is the way to go.

Question on the helicoil, I put one in once on a ski and had some issues. I put the helicoil in and then test mounted the binding to make sure all the holes lined up. Whe I backed out the binding screw the helicoil came off with the screw. It was only one screw so I put it back in with some wood glue and mounted the binding.

I am I missing something? Should the helicoil be able to come out that easy?

[ctsmith]

I’ll pile on to the previous advice, G Flex and solid wood hasn’t failed me yet on many swiss cheesed skis. Or epoxy inserts in, better long term than helicoils.

[rfconroy]

I haven’t taken it off yet but when I remounted the heal the first time the screws went in tight with no issues. Yes, I can use the same screws or new ones if that was better.

There is no metal in this ski…

It sounds like epoxy with some sort of a binder is the way to go.

Question on the helicoil, I put one in once on a ski and had some issues. I put the helicoil in and then test mounted the binding to make sure all the holes lined up. Whe I backed out the binding screw the helicoil came off with the screw. It was only one screw so I put it back in with some wood glue and mounted the binding.

I am I missing something? Should the helicoil be able to come out that easy?

I've never used a helicoil insert before just read about them in the past. Similarly to a BF/QK insert its increasing the surface area for your male/femal thread interface and in theory increasing your pullout strength.

Personally - if the ski doesnt have metal, you're doing all four screws on the pivot multiple times, and your not totally sure about how mangled the threads are - I'd go with a full threaded interface. Definitely more piece of mind than winging it and having you rip out of your bindings at a very inopportune time.

[XXX-er]

Quote Originally Posted by phatboy64 View Post

" I have a question that I am sure has been asked but I can’t find the answer to.

How many times can I remove a binding and reinstall in the same holes before the mount becomes compromised?

I have a ski that I removed and reinstalled the heal once (pivot). Now I want to swap the heal again but with a different brake width. Is two times too many?
As long as you’re not getting spinners you can do it indefinitely. If they all torque down fine you’re golden. If any spin, that’s too many. Could happen on the second time, could happen on the 100th time. "




This^^ it works until it doesnt so you can do it until you get a spinner then you will be heli-coiling or moving the binding 1/2" or rebuilding the hole with epoxy & a filler ( FG, steelwool, wood )

you can't treat the threads in a wooden ski like the machined threads in a piece of metal forever, what you can do is on re-instal is gently turn the screws backwards in the hole and you will feel the beginning of the thread so you aren't cutting new threads every time and use epoxy

My take on wooden dowels is they work unless they don't work, lots of people do it but its not best practises, moving 1/2 " into fresh ski top is best practises and nobody can feel it, thats what I normaly do

[mr_pretzel]

Installed my first heel coil yesterday after getting a spinner on an sth heel. Gosh that was easy, highly recommended having a tognar kit around.

[XXX-er]

I have never done a helicoil, I am certainly not against them, l can see why a shop does helicoil and all the things they do in a shop, I would too if i was pumping jobs out of a fully equip ed shop to make money for the owner.

But for the one off spinner fix at home on a dark and stormy night, as as opposed to ordering a helicoil kit which would be a couple weeks or go to a shop with a 2 week backlog I did the epoxy FG cuz it was instant and I had the materials, it worked/ has always worked so I just kept doing the epoxy/ FG fix,

others have also done the fix with success, there were some skeptics for sure, so they can go order a helicoil kit or take it to a shop

[gwat]

How many times can I remove a binding and reinstall in the same holes before the mount becomes compromised?

I mount with epoxy (not glue), gives me much more confidence when swapping bindings around.

[XXX-er]

I mount with epoxy (not glue), gives me much more confidence when swapping bindings around.

Exactly and ^^ if the screws don't wana budge just hit em with a soldering iron for 20 sec to break the glue bond,

the glue will let go but the threads will still be in the ski

so if you wana reuse those holes ... reinstal with more epoxy

[skifishbum]

if ya huffs enough toluene
all 275 posts might seem to say the same thing
over and over again

[XXX-er]

if ya huffs enough toluene
all 275 posts might seem to say the same thing
over and over again

yup after 213 pages pretty much all the same regurgitated shit, tolulene or not

so as a purfesional and i use the term loosely, thro-ing out the odd nugget of ... something to the dental community

why do you bother ?

[phatboy64]

After reading all the responses (thanks for the feed back) I think my plan is as follows

Remove the heals, use a two part epoxy, gently try and find the starting point of the existing threads by rotating the screw backwards, then slowly tighten until tight.

Hopefully I don’t get a spinner, I looked at the helicoil kits and they are like $150.00 and come with 100 helicoils, which is over kill for me.

Is there an “official” binding torq spec? On first mounts I usually tighten to the point that it feels good, however I don’t want to risk over/under tightening in this case.

On a side note. The reason I am going through all this is that I have a new ski that is 102mm under foot and I have a spare set of pivots that I plan to put on them but the brake is 115mm. So I am going to take the heals from another pair of skis that have 95mm on them and eventually replace them. Everything I read and looking the the 115s sitting on the ski tells me that they are too big. Am I wrong? Could I use the 115s and bend them in?

[skifishbum]

bother with what
obviously you haz

and why you have 3x the posts of anyone else in the thread

[jackattack]

Is there an “official” binding torq spec? On first mounts I usually tighten to the point that it feels good, however I don’t want to risk over/under tightening in this case.

yes, in some cases the torque spec is printed on the topsheet. But do you use a torque limiting device of any precision to drive the screw? Can you feel the torque you’re applying with your tool and quantify it?

I usually tighten them until the binding is flush with the ski. such that I can’t see any light pass between them when I hold the ski up to a source of light.

[XXX-er]

and why you have 3x the posts of anyone else in the thread

I'm a tech geek & people keep asking the same questions

and I havent had a job in 16yars

in any case

[HAB]

Picked up a pair of used Billy Goats on here and I'm trying to figure out WTF the holes in them are for. One set is for a STH at ~332 mm BSL but I'm lost on everything else.

The other six toe holes are spaced at 36 mm width-wise, and 46 and 22 mm along the ski length. And then there's one at the center of the ski, on the line. Four of those six toe holes, plus the center one are close to being an OG Duke mount but the spacing is a little bit off both between the main holes, and from them to the one at ski center. And then the heel holes don't match a Duke setup at all.

There are 8 heel holes once the STH ones are taken out. The front two are spaced 36 mm apart, and the other six are in pairs at 42 mm spacing. The first set is 21 mm behind then 36 mm spaced ones, and then the remaining pairs are 80 and 25 mm back.

What the hell am I looking at?

[kid-kapow]

Kingpin and Pivot with some holes having been used across several mounts?

Knut Pohl's template drive

[HAB]

Kingpin and Pivot with some holes having been used across several mounts?

Knut Pohl's template drive

Good call on the Look — there's a PX mount in there, sharing the front two toe holes with the STH.

That leaves one more full mount for something that has a hole at ski center, but a Kingpin isn't quite right either.

[NW_SKIER]

Hole at ski center could be a duke mount