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Plus and minuses about line afterbang

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TrystanKing95
Posts: 9 - Karma: 11
wondering if these would actually hold up to be a good jib ski for screwing around on
Jan 18 2012 1:40AM
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rudager
Posts: 11335 - Karma: 4,622
That's what they're made for. It's a ski that you can thrash around, built to take the abuse.
Jan 18 2012 1:56AM
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Montana_Hoodrat
Posts: 1953 - Karma: 1,481
the bases are super deep. I took a deep 3mm gouge with them, and didn't even reach the core. my rossignols on the other hand have core shots that i swear are 2mm deep.

on the other hand, those bases are slow as fuck. They are basically urban/ rail park skis
Jan 18 2012 2:27AM
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VT_scratch
Posts: 8781 - Karma: 6,212
yeah they get reaaaalllllyyyyy slow and if you want them to be slick you have to constantly wax them. they also end up becoming slightly tail rockered after a seasons use. mine did anyways but I always did lots of butters and presses and probably landed backseat a good amount. wish I had a pic to show how rockered they got.
Jan 18 2012 4:38AM
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Montana_Hoodrat
Posts: 1953 - Karma: 1,481
Haha yeah. i forgot about that. My friend has 2011 stepups, and they are fully rockered now. there is no more camber at all. I'll have to get some pics of it.
Jan 18 2012 9:29AM
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Blurst
Posts: 13577 - Karma: 10,169
Good jib ski. Slow base, not extremely responsive not a great ski for carving etc...
Jan 18 2012 10:49AM
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ShredAZ
Posts: 1054 - Karma: 641
I have 8 days on mine this season. Brand new 2010 177s.

PROS:
- Super soft, playful ski (could be a con to some)
- Butter zones
- Fully symmetrical (makes riding switch awesome)
- Swing weight is very low
- Pops nicely (Carbon ollie bands)
- As mentioned, really deep/tough base. I'v taken a lot of deep pre-season shots and it just keeps coming back for more.
- Edges are tough as nails.

CONS:
- Heavy. Let's be real, they are not the lightest skis, but as mentioned the swing weight is very low so you'll have no problem bringing the skis around for rotations or switch-ups. Combined weight I believe is 9.5lbs. Whether they get "heavier" because they "absorb" moisture is still tbd. They weight still feels the same for me since day 1.
- They rocker out in the tip and tail for either presses or landing backseat. Because the ski's flex pattern is so dang soft, they really don't maintain camber for a full season. My tips are already starting to rocker slightly.
- They splinter. Top sheet damage is normal for any ski, and I would argue these hide it well. However, when you do start to get scratches, the wood actually splinters. Make sure you keep some sandpaper on you and just give it a light rub down where the splinters are. Your hands will thank you.

NEUTRAL:
- Many people will tell you the bases are slow. I would argue the exact opposite. Invest in an iron from Goodwill, a bar of all-temp wax, a scraper, and a brilla pad and wax every other day or so depending upon conditions (total cost is like 20 bucks). I keep these suckers nice and waxed and they really do fly down the mountain. When we are just hotdogging, I'm typically the fastest one in the pack. Are there faster skis? Yes, absolutely. Are these as slow as molasses? No.
I did have a chance to use these ski in the pre-season at Big Bear in Cali in 60 degree weather. Essentially water skiing. Towards the end of the day, after the slush stripped the wax, they did start to get sticky, I'll admit to that.


Bottom line, these skis are PARK skis. They are meant to be abused and thrashed. Are they as fun as fuck? Hell yes. They make the entire mountain trickable. Tail tapping rocks, bonking stumps, nollieing over whatever you want, truly a fun ski.
They are decent carvers and will get the job done on the groomers if you are looking to cruise those as well.
DO NOT buy these skis thinking you are purchasing an awesome all mountain ski with characteristics in the flex pattern that would favor in any condition. These are not that ski.

Sparknotes:
Cheap, playful, FUN, and disposable.
Jan 18 2012 12:02PM
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timperrett
Posts: 8 - Karma: 10
Awesome first hand report. Out of interest, what were you skiing in the park before and how does it compare?
Jan 18 2012 12:09PM
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doitbig
Posts: 4818 - Karma: 315
I agree about the bases.  They are NOT slow.  The only time I've had an issue with speed (granted I wax often) was early season when the man-made stripped the wax.  I've moved to a bit harder wax and had no problems all weekend.
Jan 18 2012 12:13PM
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ShredAZ
Posts: 1054 - Karma: 641
Last season I had a pair of '08 Invaders.
Nearly the exact same ski. ONLY difference I noticed is the weight. Invaders were about 1.5lbs lighter.
Before that I was rocking a pair of '08 Rossi Scratch Sprayer FS. A much stiffer ski with more of an "all mountain" orientation.
Mounted 1cm back from center. Bases took core shots much easier then the A-Bangs. Edges cracked MUCH easier. The bases were faster and the ski was more responsive, but as I said, the A-Bang is a true park ski. It was also a lot harder to stay switch (not symmetrical; granted I was new to park and skiing switch).

IDK how kids these days (or their parents for that matter) can justify spending 300-400 bucks on a pair of Armada Thalls they are just going to destroy in the park. Ridiculous.
Buy the A-Bangs, and the money you saved, invest in an awesome pair of all-mountains like the Kung Fujas or Lizzies and keep them away from rails. Problem solved.
Jan 18 2012 12:24PM
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Pudge
Posts: 3718 - Karma: 3,117
DO NOT WANT. Although as a few of the above statements have said, the edges ARE tough as nails. After two seasons I have maybe 3 edge cracks, BUT my skis (both of them) are on their way to nose to tail edge ripout.

Last seaon when mounting them, I mounted one backwards for the sake of mounting one of them backwards. The edge meets at the end of the ski, so essentially in the nose of one of my skis and the tail of the other. Of course my nose took some damage so eventually big problems.

Where the edge met on the nose of one ski had collapsed in. Each side folded in and it looked like an M. The folding in pancaked and folded the base up, cracking and splitting it. The edges needed to be removed and the base cut off, had sealant put in but is still a problem I am aware of.

Then just last week I had tapped a feature, in the lift line I looked at the tail of the other ski and a similar problem. The base had just cracked and flew off like cheap plastic and the edges had been folded and mangled. But other than these two edges creeping around and coming out further and further with each ride, the edges had held up well.

Would I recommend them? No. If you need a really cheap ski and aren't afraid of urban condition, then go right ahead. Wish I had made a smarter purchase though.

Good luck!

There are also pics of of the first ski in my problem. Haven't taken pictures of the other though
Jan 18 2012 12:55PM
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