Replying to ON3P Magnus, Kartel 98, or Custom?

Hello,

So I am finalizing my decision on a pair of skis for the upcoming season. I rode a pair of Vishnu Wet's 183 this past season and had some serious durability problems and awful customer service from the company. They delammed after 5 days of skiing groomers in Breck. Other tips of skis began delaying and the base began cracking as the season progressed even after riveting them 3 times in each tip and epoxying them every weekend.

I used this as a learning experience and this season am going to go with ON3P because of their good reputation for durable skis and I love the skis in general.

Anyways, I have narrowed my choices down to the Magnus, Kartel 98, or a custom ski of the two. I am having a lot of trouble deciding but am leaning more toward the Magnus, specifically a custom Magnus with the 19 oz fiberglass and the carbon fiber adjustments to soften the flex.

I ski in the midwest, specifically Ohio and will be skiing at Perfect North this upcoming season because I am going to college at UC. I take a two to three trips out west during the season and usually one or two trips out East as well.

Most of the time when I'm skiing my home resort I will do 80 percent rails, 20 percent jumps. In general, roughly 90 percent park, 10 percent everything else. Theres not much else to do in Ohio. When I visit out West or East, I ski 95% all mountain and 5% park.

I love a soft ski. The Vishnu's were really soft and I adjusted to the flex and had no trouble skiing those and hitting jumps with them, both in the Midwest and out west. I had no trouble skiing them out west and east aggressivel, but near the end of the season an entire edge started coming out so I rented a pair of CD 2.0's. Was not that big of a fan of them for jibbing but enjoyed skiing them as they just plowed through the slush.

I butter and press a lot and I like manuevering quickly, also another reason I am leaning toward the Magnus. After riding the CD 2.0's and I have ridden my brothers Line Blends a bit as well, I found I prefer a more narrow ski underfoot. But I've read that you can't really feel that big of a difference between the Kartel 98s and the Magnus.

Also, swing weight is a huge thing for me. The Vishnu's had a ridiculously low swing weight which I really loved. I really would like to have as low of a swing weight as possible. I asked BMack if the difference between the 98s and Magnus swing weight is really significant and he claimed its really minor. Want to hear from others that have ridden either of the Magnus or 98s.

Another option I am leaning toward is getting a custom pair of either 98s or the Magnus and making them as soft as possible. I really liked the flex on the Vishnu's, but I don't mind a bit stiffer. I am well aware that the flex on the Magnus isn't anywhere near the flex on the Vishnu's, and thats fine, but how softer would the 19 oz fiberglass and the carbon fiber thing (don't remember for sure what it is, site is currently not back up) make the skis? I can't stand a ski that just folds over itself. I felt like my brothers Line Blends did that. I like the ski snap back and resist.

To summarize, I love to butter and press. Do it all the time in and out the park. I enjoy skiing fast and aggressively. I prefer a more narrow ski, but loved the stability provided with a bit wider ski. Spend most of the time in the Midwest skiing park, but on vacation out west or east I almost exclusively ski all mountain and spend little time in the park. I like the swing weight to be low on my skis and for them to be very soft, but not fold over. I am looking for a very durable ski with a lot of rocker. I am almost certain I will buy a custom pair of Magnus's but would like to hear some opinions from others on NS.

Sorry for the really long post, but I have been reading and researching skis a lot in the search for the perfect match for my ski style.

Please leave your opinions and if you need anymore info just let me know.