Skins - The good, the bad and the ugly...

[Grassi21]

I just took delivery of my Black Diamond Glidelite Mix STS skins. I was wondering if the AT group can give me some heads up and pointers for a AT noob.

Tips on cutting?
Storing?
Maintenance?
How does the glue effect the base of skis? Residual glue build up?
Does a tune and wax strip off old glue and restore a clean base?
Anything else I should know?

 

[TheBEast]

bump, want to see what others come back with as I'd be curious. This year was my first year earning turns so would be curious to see what others say.

 

[snowmonster]

Congrats on your new skins!

Cutting - your skins should have arrived with a small device (looks like an envelope opener) and directions for cutting. Just follow the directions. It'll be better than any advice that we can give you on the net. The best cutting directions I have found was in a book: "Backcountry Skiing" by Volken et.al. You may want to pick this up as a guide to backcountry skills if you decide to go in that direction.

Storing and maintenance - Keep them clean and dry. Use the cheat sheets that came along with them (the plastic strips that you can fold your skins around for easy unpeeling). Make sure that no leaves, pine needles, rocks and mud stick to your glue side. Store it in the bag it came in. When you're in the field, there's almost no way around sticking the glue side against each other (e.g., folding the skin over itself for storage in the pack). However, it's a PITA to separate them from each other.

Ski base - The glue should not affect the ski's base. I have never had glue build up on my skis but that's not to say it can't happen. However, do not store the skins on the skis. When you're done, take the skins off and store with the cheat sheets. I think the glue pulls some of the wax off the ski.

Waxing - I always give my skis a good waxing after I use skins just to replenish the wax and clean out any glue that may have adhered to the bases. You don't have to do it all the time but I can get finicky with my gear.

Anything else - Don't lift your skis off the snow. Just slide them along in front of each other. Keep your back straight and your weight on your heels.

Enjoy! I'll be at Magic on Saturday. PM me if you'll be there.

 

[Grassi21]

Congrats on your new skins!

Cutting - your skins should have arrived with a small device (looks like an envelope opener) and directions for cutting. Just follow the directions. It'll be better than any advice that we can give you on the net. The best cutting directions I have found was in a book: "Backcountry Skiing" by Volken et.al. You may want to pick this up as a guide to backcountry skills if you decide to go in that direction.

Storing and maintenance - Keep them clean and dry. Use the cheat sheets that came along with them (the plastic strips that you can fold your skins around for easy unpeeling). Make sure that no leaves, pine needles, rocks and mud stick to your glue side. Store it in the bag it came in. When you're in the field, there's almost no way around sticking the glue side against each other (e.g., folding the skin over itself for storage in the pack). However, it's a PITA to separate them from each other.

Ski base - The glue should not affect the ski's base. I have never had glue build up on my skis but that's not to say it can't happen. However, do not store the skins on the skis. When you're done, take the skins off and store with the cheat sheets. I think the glue pulls some of the wax off the ski.

Waxing - I always give my skis a good waxing after I use skins just to replenish the wax and clean out any glue that may have adhered to the bases. You don't have to do it all the time but I can get finicky with my gear.

Anything else - Don't lift your skis off the snow. Just slide them along in front of each other. Keep your back straight and your weight on your heels.

Enjoy! I'll be at Magic on Saturday. PM me if you'll be there.

As always great info. The reason I ask about glue build up is remembering a TR from Austin where he complained about it.

I would love to hit Magic this weekend but I am skiing with a beginner/low intermediate on Saturday. But I did notice a couple of cross country skiers at the golf course around the corner from my house. I might get out one morning this week and test out the skins and touring mode on the Barons.

 

[mondeo]

As always great info. The reason I ask about glue build up is remembering a TR from Austin where he complained about it.

I would love to hit Magic this weekend but I am skiing with a beginner/low intermediate on Saturday. But I did notice a couple of cross country skiers at the golf course around the corner from my house. I might get out one morning this week and test out the skins and touring mode on the Barons.

Cutting - just follow the directions. I did mine last night, seemed to work fine. You might want to use a utility knife (with care!) rather than the included cutter, that seemed like a little bit of a piece of crap and stopped working fairly quickly.

Leaving skins on skis can cause the glue to cure on the base, especially when warm. I skied with Austin the second opening day at Killington, when he had that issue. He was comically slow.