Fish scaled skis? Also: dumb idea alert.

**~mikey b** · 09-30-2020, 09:36 AM

yeah I carry skinny kicker skins for work - no need to drag around the extra weight, and they’re enough for short bumps - just a tip hook, no tail - I run ‘em just back of the heel

**skizix** · 09-30-2020, 10:03 AM

Originally Posted by galibier_numero_un

Any day spent sliding on snow with skis is a good day.

Unless you're using Snakeskins

**~mikey b** · 09-30-2020, 10:08 AM

oh fuck remember those? crappier than crappy

**TahoeJ** · 09-30-2020, 10:18 AM

Honestly, if you're in it for the workout and a little fun... it might be simpler to just snow shoe with skis on your pack (or your shoulder). Obviously plenty of other good advice here, but may be worth trying at least once.

**XXX-er** · 09-30-2020, 10:26 AM

cutting scales with access to a full machine shop and the ability to use it would probably work

some stoner in his garage with a router and a 6 pak maybe not so much

does anyone know how they get the scales on the ski ?

**old goat** · 09-30-2020, 02:57 PM

Originally Posted by TahoeJ

Honestly, if you're in it for the workout and a little fun... it might be simpler to just snow shoe with skis on your pack (or your shoulder). Obviously plenty of other good advice here, but may be worth trying at least once.

Snow shoes in northern Illinois is overkill.

Originally Posted by XXX-er

cutting scales with access to a full machine shop and the ability to use it would probably work

some stoner in his garage with a router and a 6 pak maybe not so much

does anyone know how they get the scales on the ski ?

I think they just skin the fish and glue them on.

**~mikey b** · 09-30-2020, 04:19 PM

^^^this^^^

**summit** · 09-30-2020, 05:32 PM

I wish Voile (or someone) still made fat scaled skis. They don't make anything fatter than 100 with scales. I like my V6 BCs and have skied some really steep spring stuff on them (50deg) mounted with ATKs.

Going up they depend on the snow conditions. Sometimes they can grab on 20deg, sometimes they even slip on 10deg (icy).

**Laps** · 09-30-2020, 05:33 PM

Originally Posted by Conundrum

Tech talk? I picked up some Chargers with scales on the cheap from a poster here and put some old Dynafits on them. I've been looking for a couple years but it wasn't a priority so I was patient. Point being you can find some scaled skis inexpensively if you look around and have some time to do so.

Haven't tried the scales yet but am looking forward to it. We have a zone of little shots between our resort and XC system that I think they'll be perfect for.

I kind of regret selling those to you, but have a new pair coming my way so I will get over it. Enjoy them!

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**~mikey b** · 09-30-2020, 05:39 PM

Originally Posted by Summit

I wish Voile (or someone) still made fat scaled skis. They don't make anything fatter than 100 with scales. I like my V6 BCs and have skied some really steep spring stuff on them (50deg) mounted with ATKs.

Going up they depend on the snow conditions. Sometimes they can grab on 20deg, sometimes they even slip on 10deg (icy).

and conversely, you can’t find one between 100mm and 70mm - I’d be ok with 90mm or so

**Peruvian** · 09-30-2020, 06:07 PM

Originally Posted by ~mikey b

and conversely, you can’t find one between 100mm and 70mm - I’d be ok with 90mm or so

Huh?

Madshus Annum - 78mm waist
G3 Stinger - 78mm
Voile Objective - 84mm
Rossi BC125 - 90mm
Summitcone Pariah BC - 97mm
Voile Ultravector - 94-98mm (changes with length)

**~mikey b** · 09-30-2020, 06:08 PM

my mistake

thanks

I looked. Missed the Madshus I guess. G3 not available. Rossi not available. Those 2 Voile won't take tele bindings so those were out. Never heard of Summit.

**b0ardski** · 10-01-2020, 07:45 AM

Originally Posted by skizix

Unless you're using Snakeskins

Loved my snakeskins, 201 rossi 7s w/riva's and og terminators getting pnw mank packed inbetween, zero glide= good for snowshoeing downhill, the beauty was I could take'em off w/out getting out of the bindings.
At least I could ski the 7s's un like the 210 x 45 rossi chamios

**Yoyo** · 10-02-2020, 04:04 PM

How I did it:

I kind of studied the pattern on commercially made skis, Voile in particular. I understand that the patterned bases on Voile (and several other brands) are purchased as a strip of extruded base material with the pattern pressed into it. In Voile's case, the base ahead and behind the pattern is regular, sintered material.

Anyway, the pattern it is convenient to cut with a milling machine looks similar but is actually inverted. By inverted, I mean the circular cuts are the low parts of the pattern, where they would be the high points on a Voile ski. Should make little difference to the snow, I wagered.

I trigged out what angles would be needed to create pockets similar in depth and shape to the commercial ones, and came up with a 3˚ tilt needed between the cutter and the ski base, a 1˚ concave relief on the end of the cutter. Pretty sure a factory end mill would have been fine, but I ground the end to 1˚ rather than about 0.6˚, and ground the ends of the flutes with a 0˚ helix angle. The last angle is to keep the cutter from diving into the plastic, a real issue machining soft materials.

On a knee mill- a Bridgeport type machine- I mounted a ski in two vices, parallel to the X axis. Then I tilted the head 3˚ and cut the scales .012" deep, at a chord chosen for overlap. If you start at the heel end of the pattern, each cut will deburr the one you just finished, though burrs were not a problem with a razor sharp cutter.

The process took me around 3 hours to complete.

Again, unless you happen to have access to machine tools, this process would not be practical. Even so, it could only make sense if you want a ski with scales that just isn't available on the market. Bottom line, just buy what you want!

**SkiLyft** · 10-02-2020, 05:35 PM

Originally Posted by Summit

I wish Voile (or someone) still made fat scaled skis. They don't make anything fatter than 100 with scales. I like my V6 BCs and have skied some really steep spring stuff on them (50deg) mounted with ATKs.

Going up they depend on the snow conditions. Sometimes they can grab on 20deg, sometimes they even slip on 10deg (icy).

Huh?

Powcow - 122 underfoot
Homegrown - 105 underfoot

https://harvestskis.com/skis/

They are made in NS/Icelantics factory.

Tour on the homegrown and dig em!!

Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

**old goat** · 10-02-2020, 06:58 PM

Originally Posted by Yoyo

How I did it:

I kind of studied the pattern on commercially made skis, Voile in particular. I understand that the patterned bases on Voile (and several other brands) are purchased as a strip of extruded base material with the pattern pressed into it. In Voile's case, the base ahead and behind the pattern is regular, sintered material.

Anyway, the pattern it is convenient to cut with a milling machine looks similar but is actually inverted. By inverted, I mean the circular cuts are the low parts of the pattern, where they would be the high points on a Voile ski. Should make little difference to the snow, I wagered.

I trigged out what angles would be needed to create pockets similar in depth and shape to the commercial ones, and came up with a 3˚ tilt needed between the cutter and the ski base, a 1˚ concave relief on the end of the cutter. Pretty sure a factory end mill would have been fine, but I ground the end to 1˚ rather than about 0.6˚, and ground the ends of the flutes with a 0˚ helix angle. The last angle is to keep the cutter from diving into the plastic, a real issue machining soft materials.

On a knee mill- a Bridgeport type machine- I mounted a ski in two vices, parallel to the X axis. Then I tilted the head 3˚ and cut the scales .012" deep, at a chord chosen for overlap. If you start at the heel end of the pattern, each cut will deburr the one you just finished, though burrs were not a problem with a razor sharp cutter.

The process took me around 3 hours to complete.

Again, unless you happen to have access to machine tools, this process would not be practical. Even so, it could only make sense if you want a ski with scales that just isn't available on the market. Bottom line, just buy what you want!

Glad to see that machinists' skills still exist.

**summit** · 10-02-2020, 07:42 PM

Originally Posted by SkiLyft

Huh?

Powcow - 122 underfoot
Homegrown - 105 underfoot

https://harvestskis.com/skis/

They are made in NS/Icelantics factory.

Tour on the homegrown and dig em!!

Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

SICK!

**Peruvian** · 10-02-2020, 08:36 PM

Originally Posted by SkiLyft

Huh?

Powcow - 122 underfoot
Homegrown - 105 underfoot

https://harvestskis.com/skis/

They are made in NS/Icelantics factory.

Tour on the homegrown and dig em!!

Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

Very cool. I wish they made that 105 in the 187.

**SkiLyft** · 10-02-2020, 09:13 PM

Originally Posted by Peruvian

Very cool. I wish they made that 105 in the 187.

I’m sure they could, they press it without the traction bases.

Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

**OldMil** · 10-04-2020, 10:41 AM

Back in the 90's, I used to meadow skip in the Mt Hood/Adams area all the time on fat XC skis with scales, light plastic tele boots (Scarpa T3, etc) and Voile 3-pin cable bindings. This was a great combo as you could remove the cables and just use the 3-pin toe for kick and glide with very little binding resistance. Lots of lower elevation (~5000 ft) clear cuts offered great powder/corn turns on that type of gear and most of the time no skins required to get back up. Many of these spots were only skied by me and GF at the time and were so much fun. Sadly, most of these spots are no longer ski-able due to climate change and those pesky trees growing back.

Here are the skis I used in order of lightness:

Karhu Catamount
Fischer Boundless Crown
Karhu Guide (great ski)

I picked up a pair of brand new Voile Charger BC's for super cheap a couple years ago but haven't used them yet. Plan to break them out this season, especially if resort skiing doesn't pan out due to covid. I am going to mount them with Voile 3-pin hardwires and ski them with Scarpa T2X's. Should make a great beefier meadow skiing setup while still being relatively light. Just have to seek out some new spots.

**new yabyum** · 10-04-2020, 11:10 AM

Thumbs up on the Karhu guide, still have my Karhu 10th mountains. Another good pair were the Rossi BCs, fatter than most and climbed well for a scaled ski. Mounting up a new pair of Voile Vectors this month. Meadows will be skipped.

**VTskibum** · 10-05-2020, 10:31 AM

I'm a big fan of the idea of Hok/Marquette Backcountry (which I own) for this kind of use. Use my Mqt BC skis w/ 3 pin binding to ski off of a few relatively steep but very short areas near mountain bike trails in my area. Probably only get to use them a few times a year, but is far more fun than snowshoes, but would really struggle to call this skiing.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BA8Sz6Gs..._web_copy_link

**XXX-er** · 10-05-2020, 11:38 AM

sometmes you are skiing and sometimes you are just traveling on skis

**Laps** · 10-05-2020, 05:10 PM

I have a pair of marquettes I would part with for shipping+beer money if someone wants them. Scratched to shit, but that is what they are made for. I think they glide better now. In VT if anyone nearby wants to check em out.

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**jhyatt** · 10-05-2020, 05:36 PM

I would love to check those out, try them and if I like them get myself a pair and then pass them on.
I could pick up not this weekend but the following depending where you are in VT.
sending pm

Originally Posted by Laps

I have a pair of marquettes I would part with for shipping+beer money if someone wants them. Scratched to shit, but that is what they are made for. I think they glide better now. In VT if anyone nearby wants to check em out.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk