Please help: Why are my brand-new skis "peeling" after one use?!?!

Hi:

After some great help & input from folks on this site about buying new skis, I recently bought a pair of brand new (2009 model) Watea 78 skis from a reputable shop owner I have known for many years.

I finally got to try 'em out today--only for a half-day of skiing, a grand total of 9 runs over well-groomed hardpack. I was very pleased with them, did not ding them, and took it pretty easy.

Now I am at home & wiping them down before storing them until next time. I looked them over, and was unpleasantly surprised to see one of the tips has several strands of dental floss-like "thread" peeling off from between the top layer and the middle core.

It looks like if I started to peel this loose strand off, it would continue to come off all around the top layer of the ski. Where it has already come off (about 1/2 inch), I can insert my fingernail slightly into the groove that is left. (photos attached)

I'd like to know whether I should be alarmed by this, ignore it, or keep an eye on it.

At the very least I'd like to be armed with something intelligent to say if I have to bring 'em back into the shop.

Thanks in advance for any help!

Tim

Bring them back to the store if they are that new. Let them determine if it is a defect. Edges get trashed even when skiing easy.

It's hard to tell what's going on from the pictures. If it bothers you then bring them back and see what the shop says.

were you skiing bumps? I've never had 'frays' like that, but overall it does look like normal tip wear from ski to ski rub while skiing in a tight stance.

My Watea 84s have done the same thing, from crossing my tips on occasion or bumping the edge against the top sheet in some other fashion...

It's nothing to worry about.

I had a couple like that the first day out on them... but I skied them pretty hard all last season and this season, and it never got any worse than that.

-w

Mine did that too, nothing to worry about.

trim it off with a razor blade if you don't want to peel it off.

Have the shop call Fischer ski. They had an issue with topskin bonding on some models. I have 101's with the same issue and have seen others as well. The topskins are soft and will make strings from tip contact, especially if the shop didn't round off the edges from the contact points to the tip. Good luck.

So Tim, what happened?

I've decided to take the wait-and-see approach.

Sliced off the "string" with a razor blade as suggested. Skied on 'em again on Friday at Widlcat with no issues.

If it's a known problem as suggested, I can wait to deal with it at the end of the season.

The last thing I want to do approaching the best six weeks of the season is to be without skis while the shop hashes things out with the manufacturer.

Tim from the North Shore said:

If it's a known problem as suggested, I can wait to deal with it at the end of the season.

The last thing I want to do approaching the best NINE weeks of the season is to be without skis while the shop hashes things out with the manufacturer.

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Fixed it for ya.

I stand corrected. Haven't skied into May for many moons, but maybe the new skis will keep me from slacking this season.

Tim from the North Shore said:

I stand corrected. Haven't skied into May for many moons, but maybe the new skis will keep me from slacking this season.

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rest of this week (I counted as 1), plus a 5 week March, plus 3 weeks in April = how I got to 9.

My ski math doesn't include school vacation weeks--I surrender 'em to the masses and don't even think of going.

In the same spirit, I also haven't skied a Saturday or Sunday since 1996.

Tim from the North Shore said:

My ski math doesn't include school vacation weeks--I surrender 'em to the masses and don't even think of going.

In the same spirit, I also haven't skied a Saturday or Sunday since 1996.

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That is impressive! What do you do for a living?