Best All around gears.

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HGC
Posts: 5
Joined: Sun Dec 02, 2018 10:43 am
Location: Vinland
Ski style: Nordic backcountry touring
Favorite Skis: Fischer SB98 179 - Alta ski Hok 145
Favorite boots: Alico-Ski march boots
Occupation: Millwright/Machinist\Carpenter

Best All around gears.

Post by HGC » Sun Dec 16, 2018 11:40 am

Hi guys! I am looking to improve my backcountry ski equipment which is currently the Hok ski with the universal binding and the Salomon XADV89 ski with XA binding and the XADV8 shoes, I measure 1m75 for 83kg and I wear 9.5 US for the majority of brands. I ski 2 or 3 time a week around 10k each times mainly in conditions of fresh snow and off-track in the proportions 1/3 flat 1/3 uphill and 1/3 downhill, so I need a ski and shoes very versatile and will last in the time while being reasonably priced with a very good grip so the Madshus Epoch 68 175cm with the Alfa Guard Advance GTX would be interesting. Asnes Nansen Waxless or the Fischer S-Bound 98 are very interesting too but i don't know..I already try a fix Voile 75mm on my Hok with a Libero and for the descents the combo is very good but on uphill and on the flat I like it much less so I still wonder if a boot a little more supple but still have good ankle support would be the good choice of combo with the 75 mm for all my skis to have only one pair of boots, finally these the goal! But the fact that the 75mm does not let go when have falls leans me more towards a change for the NNN-BC and also I would like someone to tell me with certainty what size to order at Alfa as the conversion chart leaves me I'm usually puzzled, I'm wearing 43 and he tells me to take 41 so... what do you think of my choice? Thank you everyone!

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fisheater
Posts: 2509
Joined: Fri Feb 19, 2016 8:06 pm
Location: Oakland County, MI
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Favorite Skis: Gamme 54, Falketind 62, I hope to add a third soon
Favorite boots: Alpina Alaska, Alico Ski March
Occupation: Construction Manager

Re: Best All around gears.

Post by fisheater » Sun Dec 16, 2018 9:15 pm

Welcome HGC,
For your boots I would recommend that you go to the Community Ski Reviews section of this forum. There has been considerable discussion of Alfa boots including sizing. Secondly for the binding, there are supporters of both binding types here. For lighter gear there are probably more boot choices in NNN. Now the skis, you say that you ski on mostly fresh snow, would you consider a waxable ski? Wax really performs well on fresh snow! I am assuming you are in Europe, I doubt there are many waxless Nansen in North America. If you prefer waxless I would advise you to consider the Ingstad waxless, reviews are good for both cross country performance and downhill performance on the waxable version. Be advised that the Asnes X-skin are compatable with both waxless and waxable Nansen and Ingstad. I own a Falketind 62 it is basically single cambered, as if the reports I read the Nansen as well. The FT 62 is a joy to ski in soft snow, however on consolidated snow you experience some wax pocket drag. I would think you would experience something similar with the Nansen. The Nordic Rocker of the Ingstad has been reviewed here to give really good turn initiation and excellent cross country performance. As for the S-98, I own an S-112, I get better cross country and down hill performance from the Falketind 62. I doubt I will ever ski the S-112 again, it is now a ski I loan to friends. Another skier here owns the Storetind 68, he is even more enthusiastic about that ski which is now the Rabb 68.
So HGC I only offer some of my opinions and experiences. I responded because being new you deserve a response, and by bumping this back to the top hopefully a couple of guys with experience on more of these skis will respond.
Again, welcome good to have you



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bgregoire
Posts: 1511
Joined: Fri Aug 22, 2014 9:31 am
Ski style: Nordic backcountry touring with lots of turns
Favorite Skis: Fisher E99 & Boundless (98), Åsnes Ingstad, K2 Wayback 88
Favorite boots: Crispi Sydpolen, Alico Teletour & Alfa Polar

Re: Best All around gears.

Post by bgregoire » Sun Dec 16, 2018 9:40 pm

HGC wrote:Hi guys! I am looking to improve my backcountry ski equipment which is currently the Hok ski with the universal binding and the Salomon XADV89 ski with XA binding and the XADV8 shoes, I measure 1m75 for 83kg and I wear 9.5 US for the majority of brands. I ski 2 or 3 time a week around 10k each times mainly in conditions of fresh snow and off-track in the proportions 1/3 flat 1/3 uphill and 1/3 downhill, so I need a ski and shoes very versatile and will last in the time while being reasonably priced with a very good grip so the Madshus Epoch 68 175cm with the Alfa Guard Advance GTX would be interesting. Asnes Nansen Waxless or the Fischer S-Bound 98 are very interesting too but i don't know..I already try a fix Voile 75mm on my Hok with a Libero and for the descents the combo is very good but on uphill and on the flat I like it much less so I still wonder if a boot a little more supple but still have good ankle support would be the good choice of combo with the 75 mm for all my skis to have only one pair of boots, finally these the goal! But the fact that the 75mm does not let go when have falls leans me more towards a change for the NNN-BC and also I would like someone to tell me with certainty what size to order at Alfa as the conversion chart leaves me I'm usually puzzled, I'm wearing 43 and he tells me to take 41 so... what do you think of my choice? Thank you everyone!
HGC, first off, neither the NN (75MM) bindings or the NNN-BC will let go, or release, if you fall. Neither is designed for that.

You tried the Hok with a Libero, but can you try with an Excursion? that is a better compromise plastic shell boot.

What is wrong with the XADV8 shoes? If you'd want to go cheap, you could just swap that binding onto a new ski. Personally, I have nothing positive to say about the XADV89 ski, unfortunately.

These days us TTalk bums have been raving lots about Asnes and Alfa. We've been around for a while and tried lots of skis, so these days we are focusing more on the cream of the sport. However, these are premium brands for us in NA. That doesn't mean you can't build a great setup with equipment more readily available and affordable!

of the 3 (1/3 flat 1/3 uphill and 1/3 downhill), which one do you privilege most? It all about compromises!

Can you telemark? How dependent are you on gear (stiff boots, bindings, lots of sidecut) for the downhill? The more dependent you are on gear that is adapted for downhill, the less you will appreciate the flats on that same gear.

Tell us more about your ski area, steeps, woods, snow conditions, etc. Peeps here will then have more info with which to recommend equipment.

Don't forget the Alpina Alaska. Its a great boot too.

For the Alfa sizing, what is you foot length in mm?

N'hésites pas à répondre en français! Ça ferait du bien! N'est-ce pas gang? ;)
I live for the Telemark arc....The feeeeeeel.....I ski miles to get to a place where there is guaranteed snow to do the deal....TM



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Mountain Mitch
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Location: Kootenays, BC

Re: Best All around gears.

Post by Mountain Mitch » Mon Dec 17, 2018 11:33 am

Well, of course, there are releasing NN Bindings available:
31C7BD68-6460-4A0E-BE29-1483183ED901.jpeg
Now, those are out of production but can still be picked up occasionally. And there are others if you google.

I’m not saying these would suit your needs but may be worth looking into if you want a releasing binding.



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satsuma
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Location: Walla Walla, WA
Occupation: retired(?) chemical engineer

Re: Best All around gears.

Post by satsuma » Mon Dec 17, 2018 2:14 pm

I have a pair of Voile 3pin cable bindings (old style) mounted on Voile realeaseable plates which I don't and don't expect to use. My boot size is a little longer than yours, you would have to cut the cable iif you bought them.



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bgregoire
Posts: 1511
Joined: Fri Aug 22, 2014 9:31 am
Ski style: Nordic backcountry touring with lots of turns
Favorite Skis: Fisher E99 & Boundless (98), Åsnes Ingstad, K2 Wayback 88
Favorite boots: Crispi Sydpolen, Alico Teletour & Alfa Polar

Re: Best All around gears.

Post by bgregoire » Mon Dec 17, 2018 8:18 pm

HGC wrote:But the fact that the 75mm does not let go when have falls leans me more towards a change for the NNN-BC
Guys, I'm pretty sure the OP is thinking about moving towards NNN-BC because to him, 75mm bindings do not release. Of course, releasable 75mm bindings do exist, or used to exist, but he seems much more interested in an all around touring setup. Releasable bindings seem overkill to me in the case?
I live for the Telemark arc....The feeeeeeel.....I ski miles to get to a place where there is guaranteed snow to do the deal....TM



User avatar
HGC
Posts: 5
Joined: Sun Dec 02, 2018 10:43 am
Location: Vinland
Ski style: Nordic backcountry touring
Favorite Skis: Fischer SB98 179 - Alta ski Hok 145
Favorite boots: Alico-Ski march boots
Occupation: Millwright/Machinist\Carpenter

Re: Best All around gears.

Post by HGC » Mon Dec 31, 2018 1:05 pm

Hi guy's! Thanks for the fast answers! Yes i think the releasing NN binding is over kill due to the weight and that't not i really need, like Ben says what i search is the best all around touring setup..Most lightest and durable boot with a good ankle support but with a flex, the best fix that can do everything without broke and the lightest ski with the better grip the wax base is not an option for me and a good shape for deep snow and not too width for have a good speed on flat too..A setup like the Alfa Guard Advance GTX 41, Rottfella NNN-BC fix and Asnes Ingstad Waxless 175cm gonna be a good choice for me..If i want to go cheaper i know i can get something good with Alfa Kikut Perform and Madshus Epoch 68 setup for maybe $200 less.. In that case maybe that's a better idea to put that bucks right now and don't need to reinvest 5 years after because the kikut broke or something..La convertion d'un 9,5 US a un 41 de la charte ALFA est fiable? Je n'ai pas envie de commander et d'être obliger de retourner la paire de botte!.. Je ski dans des sentiers de VTT qui se situe en terrain montagneux et dans des champs en pente donc les fractions d'utilisations c'est pas mal 1/3 mais si j'avais une préférence ces certains que la flottabilité et la manoeuvrabilité des skis est prioritaire mais je ne veux pas couper sur les performances de montée des écailles ni la légèreté de ceux-ci!..Je ne connais pas Asnes mais avec ce que je peu lire sur eux je dirais que c'est le top..Le ingstad est a ce que je peu lire le plus polyvalent de leurs skis sans cirage..Quelqu'un connais un équivalent dans d'autres marques?



User avatar
HGC
Posts: 5
Joined: Sun Dec 02, 2018 10:43 am
Location: Vinland
Ski style: Nordic backcountry touring
Favorite Skis: Fischer SB98 179 - Alta ski Hok 145
Favorite boots: Alico-Ski march boots
Occupation: Millwright/Machinist\Carpenter

Re: Best All around gears.

Post by HGC » Sun Jul 21, 2019 8:49 pm

Hey guy's! Nobody have and idea on that? Right now after some research i found that a ski like the Madshus Epoch 68 175mm and a Rottefella NNNBC magnum with a Crispi Stetind GTX look perfect for what i do and it's avalaible in few local store at Rimouski..The price for the Madshus look a little bit high( 450$ CAD) someone have a good place to order it?!



User avatar
HGC
Posts: 5
Joined: Sun Dec 02, 2018 10:43 am
Location: Vinland
Ski style: Nordic backcountry touring
Favorite Skis: Fischer SB98 179 - Alta ski Hok 145
Favorite boots: Alico-Ski march boots
Occupation: Millwright/Machinist\Carpenter

Re: Best All around gears.

Post by HGC » Sun Jul 21, 2019 8:53 pm

All Crispi backcountry line gonna be avalaible at Gendron Sport shop and The Madshus line at Vélo plein air shop located in Rimouski, Québec.



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bgregoire
Posts: 1511
Joined: Fri Aug 22, 2014 9:31 am
Ski style: Nordic backcountry touring with lots of turns
Favorite Skis: Fisher E99 & Boundless (98), Åsnes Ingstad, K2 Wayback 88
Favorite boots: Crispi Sydpolen, Alico Teletour & Alfa Polar

Re: Best All around gears.

Post by bgregoire » Mon Jul 22, 2019 10:21 am

Salut HGC,

Contact me via PM if you'd like to chat sometime of go for a ski. I live in Rimouski.

Sounds like you want scales. The Madhsus Epoch you mentionned might work for you but so might the Fischer excursion 88 or the Sbound 98. The Ingstad scale might be good to but I doubt their scales are very agressive.

It's really hard to recommend a type of ski from the information you have provided.

Keep in mind NNN-BC bindings are NOT RELEASABLE!

For mountaneous terrain, I personally would stick with NN 75mm boots. Real leathers. Something like this:
https://en.aventurenordique.com/andrew-rifugio.html

You can swap with your liberos then.

I am happy to hear Gendron will be holding the Crispi line. I doubt they will carry all models though.

Alfa 41EU is more like a 8US-8.5US. For a 9.5US, a 42EU might work. Unfortunaly, their EU to US conversion chart is BONKERS and they have not confirmed it over email so i doubt it will get fixed.. They have the proper converted sizes on the labels in their boots...if you have the opportunity to check them out first hand.

Did I answer your questions?
I live for the Telemark arc....The feeeeeeel.....I ski miles to get to a place where there is guaranteed snow to do the deal....TM



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