Volkl 100Eight versus VWKatana and 109

[ChowdahRidah]

Hi, I only found one other thread on the 100Eights and it didn't contain much info. so sorry for the new thread.


Has anybody been on the 100eight? There are lots of good reviews out there but not much love here on the forum. How do they ski? They look like a nice shape and weight for a 50/50 ski.


How do they compare to the Vweks Katana and 109?


Thank you very much in advance for any comments!

[COBRI]

I've got the 100eights, really like em for a 1-ski inbounds quiver. Have not skied the vwerks katana- but I don't see that as being as durable for an inbounds ski. The only place the 100eights leave a bit to be desired is if you are on a flat ski on the groomers they are a bit twitchy due to the full rocker. I think they are too heavy for a touring ski but I'm in the camp of having separate inbounds/ touring set up vs. trying to do the 50/50 ting.

[1000-oaks]

Think the early years were known for delamination, but Volkl fixed it in 2018 or 2019?

[tang]

I picked up a used pair of 100eights for my older teenage son. Just set up for inbounds. (Agree with above that too heavy for a bc ski, although may work as a sidecountry do-everything.) He liked em - good float, pretty quick in trees given the full rocker, but obviously lose some carving ability. But to the point of durability above, he totally blew one of them up (broken edge, side completely crushed). He somehow didn't realize it at the time, so claimed that wasn't any big rock... but probably was. We've got the good ski on the half-ski thread if anyone needs! 180cm

[rod9301]

I've got the 100eights, really like em for a 1-ski inbounds quiver. Have not skied the vwerks katana- but I don't see that as being as durable for an inbounds ski. The only place the 100eights leave a bit to be desired is if you are on a flat ski on the groomers they are a bit twitchy due to the full rocker. I think they are too heavy for a touring ski but I'm in the camp of having separate inbounds/ touring set up vs. trying to do the 50/50 ting.

Btw, the katanas are really durable, hard to believe, but they are

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[kid-kapow]

I have only tried / own VW Katanas - and in the 177 mini size as well - but they are really freaking awesome imho. Mine are mounted at +2 and ski crazy well. I should perhaps have gone +3. They are my main touring ski mounted with Tectons (will transition to Vipec heels), but ski so well that they are sure to see a fair bit of resort use as well.

Their first full on outing was in this zone - probably the highlight of the season.


So far I prefer BMT90s over VW Mantras. BMT90s are awesome imho - they are super duper easy to manipulate, predictable yet ski awesomely for how light they are. They handle speed well, but at mach looney their low weight is really quite noticeable - duh. They are my favorite sub 100mm ski so far - they are just awesome. VW Mantras ski well too, but are noticeably more ski requiring a more forward stance.

[ChowdahRidah]

Thank you for all the comments and please keep them coming!

I find it interesting many people say the 100eight is a bit too heavy to tour while it seems lots of people promote the VW Katana as a good touring ski. The 181 100eight and the 184 Katana both weigh about 1950g. At least on the websites that have the weights. I agree neither is a lite touring ski but that’s a decent weight for a 50/50 setup.

[ChowdahRidah]

Anybody use the BMT 109 inbounds regularly or is it too lite/unstable inbounds?

[1000-oaks]

Would assume the BMT would be too light for inbounds, unless your area stays untracked most of the day.

[waxman]

get the 108 while you can it has been replaced by the Blaze series

reviews? the 108 is great in fresh untracked snow especially if it's deep fall line, doesn't like tracked snow as the tip will deflect when hitting the denser tracked stuff, ok on hard pack but there better choices for that as well.
We mounted probably half of ours with touring bindings of some sort. The Katana Vwerks skis great but we ten to see the blown up ones (we never sold them due to delamming)

[stuntmanbo]

I've had the 181 100Eight, 176 BMT 109, 184 Katana VW.
The 100Eight delaminated after 1.5 season, I sold the BMT 109, I bought another pair of 184 Katana VW, one is mounted with Shifts, the other one with ATK R12 2020.

The 181 100Eight (w kingpins, on the line) was a good ski but I had some weird balance issues in pow. I realized after that maybe it was a boot problem though, not sure, I was often getting backseated. On the groomed suff I thought the radius was a bit short. Float was ok and stability was decent. Both skis delamed after 1.5 season. It was quite stable on the groomers and carving was ok.

Then I thought I'll get something lighter so I took the 176 BMT 109 with ATK R12 (old ones, front bakes), on the line. It's a real reverse camber and not just flat, a bit like a 4FRNT Raven, not as much a banana like a Hoji. So the float is really great for the surface, I'd say it floated better than the 100Eight even though it was 5cm shorter. Maneuverability is excellent. On the groomers carving sucks (because it's a real RC with not much sidecut) and stability is meh. Traction uphill on hard snow sucks due to the real reverse camber. And grip is not so great on hard snow on steep stuff.

Finally I ordered a VW Katana 184. Mounted at +2. It's better than the 100Eight everywhere. The pair I have with shift I used it for 2 seasons, hit some rocks at high speeds, no delam, the bases are pretty strong, so til now pretty happy with that. It carves super well for a 112mm ski and it's stable. In pow it's great. Vs the BMT 109, it's not "magic" in pow but good enough and better everywhere. Traction uphill is ok, it's flat and not a true RC. It a bit heavy with the shifts so I took another pair with some ATK R12 2020 (mount +1.5)

Yes, the 181 100Eight and the 184 Katana VW are approx the same weight.

So yeah basically for me the Katana VW wins.

I wish they made these in a heavy but not too heavy version around 2100g.
The 2014 metal Katana was too much ski for me, but the Katana VW is a bit too much of a carbon feel to be used as a pure resort ski.

[ChowdahRidah]

Thank you! This is the details I was looking for.

I know what you mean by carbon feel. Does the 100eight have a less harsh ride in the resort compared to the Katana or are they fairly similar? Like on firmer roughed up snow or end of groomers. And you think the Katana is the better carver?

Thanks again!

[stuntmanbo]

Hmm yes the 100Eight has maybe a touch less harsh ride compared to the Katana but not by much.
I dont know if the Katana is a better carver than the 100Eight but it's not worse except maybe for shorter turns and turn initiation is a bit faster on the 100Eight if I recall correctly.

[ChowdahRidah]

Uggg! I keep going around in circles on this. Totally over=thinking it. All 3 of these skis have good deals on them at the moment.

I think I’ve eliminated the BMT 109 because this truly will be a 50/50 ski in my quiver and I want stability and ability to handle rough/firm conditions over light weight.

The Katana seems like the obvious choice but I really don’t need to go that wide and maybe the 100eight construction is a bit more damp as it doesn’t have carbon?

Any other comments on the 100eight out there, especially the more recent version?

[rod9301]

Get the katana. It's pretty damp.

And it's the best ski I've been on, for the Backcountry and almost for resort skiing.

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[stuntmanbo]

If you don’t need that wide and want more stability you could try the Black Crows Corvus (non feeebird). I got one at the end of the season to complement the Katana VW as something narrower, less harsh, and better for shit snow. However I didn’t tried it yet and got a faulty pair at first, they changed it but it’s still not perfect, seems that BC has a lots of quality control issues :-/ You can check the « black crows corvus bueller » thread.

It’s around 2000g per ski in a 183 (when you get a « good » pair).

Well now you’re even more confused :-D

[ChowdahRidah]

Yeah, I looked at the Corvus, it’s a similar weight to the 100eight. I crossed it off because it looks totally flat, where the 100eight and Katana both have the slight reverse camber, which is what I want.

[rod9301]

If you don’t need that wide and want more stability you could try the Black Crows Corvus (non feeebird). I got one at the end of the season to complement the Katana VW as something narrower, less harsh, and better for shit snow. However I didn’t tried it yet and got a faulty pair at first, they changed it but it’s still not perfect, seems that BC has a lots of quality control issues :-/ You can check the « black crows corvus bueller » thread.

It’s around 2000g per ski in a 183 (when you get a « good » pair).

Well now you’re even more confused :-D

Actually, i find the vwerks katanas great in shit snow, wind affected, breakable crust, mank.

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[ChowdahRidah]

I have no doubt the Katana is pretty good in bad snow but I guess my main question is if the 100eight is better in shit conditions (Gets bounced around less / better suspension) as it is very slightly heavier and more fiberglass versus carbon.

I'm slotting this ski in a funky spot in the quiver, which I guess is why I'm spinning my wheels a bit. I have a light weight 100mm touring ski and a light weight 120mm pow-hunting, touring ski that's also surprisingly manageable in the resort. So I'm looking for this ski to be a jack-of-all-trades 50/50 ski that I'll take on trips where I know I'll do a bit of touring and also be in the resort where conditions can be very firm and roughed-up.

[ChowdahRidah]

How have the BC Corvus been working out?