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Custom Kartel 108 Questions - Mounting etc.

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milo-mcsenderson
Posts: 604 - Karma: 7,671
Hi Guys,

Posted a while back about some skis I was looking at and I've pretty much (ARV106s are still on my mind) decided on the Kartel 108, 186cm. I am a strong skier who loves big mountain, trees, steeps, drops etc. Will a recent love affair with freestyle (current park ski is the AR7 181cm)

Having chosen the K108 I want to know where you guys think I should mount it. This is going to be my everyday ripper but I want it to be solid in the park and off natty feature, I believe the recommended is -4.5 (I've also heard -5 so correct me if I'm wrong). My natural instinct is to mount them at -2.5 like the PB&J recommends for an all mountain jibber ski and from what I've read from the rest of the forum. Does anyone have any reasons to mount anywhere else, i.e recommended or -3 or wherever.
I'm also thinking of getting a custom purple topsheet. Big fan. And considering getting further custom to make it a little more flexy, I want an all mountain charger but something also buttery and playful (hence the interest in the ARV as well, price too). You can soften it with different carbon fibre or different fibreglass, what's the difference between the two? Or both? And will this make them significantly less solid as an all mountain ski. Should I just stick with the stock build?

An additional question on bindings. How much movement do Pivots offer for a change in BSL? I'm thinking of new boots and don't want to mount and get screwed if I end up with a drastically different BSL, although I might just get new liners and hope that fixes my existing boot issues.
The other binding option would be Jesters/Jester pros (red if jester pros would mke me go with regulr topsheet for colour coordination) and this gives me more flexibility.

My other option is the ARV106 as I understand it's more playful than the stock K108s, Pivots would also look better than markers on these...

My main question is where to mount K108s, the difference between customisation to increase softness of the skis, and whether this will greatly effect the day to day shredding, these will mostly be an all mountain ski but I quite enjoy something soft, and how much adjustment do Pivots offer in terms of boot sole length.

Bonus points for convincing me the ARV106s are better, I love my AR7s so staying in the AR family is tempting but it's hard to ignore the stellar reviews of ON3P and how much fun they look.

Apologies for the long post, I have read other posts but I'm nearing decision time and it's very hard to narrow down.
Aug 27 2017 8:11PM
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Crispy.
Posts: 6107 - Karma: 7,657
Sorry on mobile so I'm not able to help a ton; however, this is what ON3P says for carbon vs fiberglass:

"The stock layup for a 176 Kartel 98 is 22oz fiberglass with 2in carbon. Frankly, we do not recommend softening both the fiberglass and carbon to 19oz/1in because it becomes so soft that performance and durability become compromised. That leaves you with two options: 19oz + 2in, or 22oz +1in. Though they will be nearly identical in their flex, they will have different characteristics. 19oz + 2in is lighter, has more pop, and is more playful. 22oz + 1in is heavier, has less pop, and will be more damp/stable. Our recommendation for this particular ski is to go with 19oz fiberglass and 2in carbon. Hope that helps, thanks for your interest and support!"
Aug 28 2017 8:10AM
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BDevil17
Posts: 93 - Karma: 168
Unfortunately, pivots do not offer any adjustment range. Once they're drilled, that's it. Before I got my pivots on my kartels (which are awesome skis), I tried some demos out to see where I liked them. And I ended up liking them the best on the factory like (4.5 behind center). ON3P's factory setup is excellent, and it would take a lot to convince me to change it.

Sounds like an awesome setup! I hope this helps.
Sep 3 2017 12:33PM
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PowTron
Posts: 226 - Karma: 404
If you like something a little softer but still able to ski all mountain, you would want to go with the 19oz glass on the K108.

You are also correct on the mounting position recommeded line being what we almost always recommend to our customers. We do extensive testing and building of protos (pretty awesome when you can walk out of the office and onto the factory floor 10 feet away and make what you want) so you don't have to worry a ton about where to mount your skis.

A lot of our team that takes the K108 in the park, but also ski it all over the place (Meeks, LSM) tend to mount at -2 to -2.5 from center (or in other words, +2 from the current line on the ski). If you are going to ride 50/50 park and all mountain or just like a super jibby feel, I would mount at that point. If you want it to ski exactly how we intended it...go on the line and enjoy.

And purple? Yes. Purple. I have two pairs of purps in my personal quiver ;)

Hope that helps and contact us if you have any more questions on the custom process or any of our skis (call or email).
Sep 7 2017 7:31PM
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milo-mcsenderson
Posts: 604 - Karma: 7,671
PowTronIf you like something a little softer but still able to ski all mountain, you would want to go with the 19oz glass on the K108.

You are also correct on the mounting position recommeded line being what we almost always recommend to our customers. We do extensive testing and building of protos (pretty awesome when you can walk out of the office and onto the factory floor 10 feet away and make what you want) so you don't have to worry a ton about where to mount your skis.

A lot of our team that takes the K108 in the park, but also ski it all over the place (Meeks, LSM) tend to mount at -2 to -2.5 from center (or in other words, +2 from the current line on the ski). If you are going to ride 50/50 park and all mountain or just like a super jibby feel, I would mount at that point. If you want it to ski exactly how we intended it...go on the line and enjoy.

And purple? Yes. Purple. I have two pairs of purps in my personal quiver ;)

Hope that helps and contact us if you have any more questions on the custom process or any of our skis (call or email).


Thanks for the pointers. I'm going for the 186 and I don't think it's worth mounting away from the line as I'll be skiing ben more 70/30 all mountain/park. I want to be able to make the most of the elliptical rocker on groomers and for carving and I think with lighter glass and all the tail that a 186 offers they'll be plenty playful on the line.
Thanks man
Sep 9 2017 7:27AM
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PowTron
Posts: 226 - Karma: 404
MF-HARPThanks for the pointers. I'm going for the 186 and I don't think it's worth mounting away from the line as I'll be skiing ben more 70/30 all mountain/park. I want to be able to make the most of the elliptical rocker on groomers and for carving and I think with lighter glass and all the tail that a 186 offers they'll be plenty playful on the line.
Thanks man


Good choice. Let us know if you have any other questions!
Sep 9 2017 1:13PM
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