New (old) Fischer S Bound (red) for sale cheap...

[Rodbelan]

Just so that you guys know:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Fischer-new-te ... SwFdNfzTbe

Voilà.

[riel]

Those look like some old, old inbound crown skis, sidecut 68-60-64, a traction pattern that predates offscale crown, and I cannot tell from the pictures whether they even have metal edges.

In other words, they don't look too closely related to what are called S-Bound skis today.

[1EyedJack]

pic from the Fischer S Bounds for sale.
the specs on the ski includes "Stone Ground" --> metal edges

me so stupid. disregard my post.

[Woodserson]

The crown pattern is the tech crown sometimes called mountain-tech or turning-tech depending on what they were doing. Different from the Off-TRACK crown found in today's S-Bounds but still a very nice pattern and still used with some subtle tweaks and different name (tweaks were mainly in terms of aggressiveness, less aggressive forward, more underfoot). Fischer still uses in their Country-Crown series, called the Vario crown now. It is a positive pattern and far superior to the negative pattern that was used on some skis like the Rebound Crown. Some of the sought after pre-nordic rocker E99's used the tech/mountain crown, for instance. I think Cannatonic and bregroire are both big fans of this particular pattern.

Decent ski, would make a good E99 replacement for a shorter/lighter person. No metal edges, the "stone ground" refers to how they patterned the base at the factory. Sometimes metal edges aren't important and they are dog friendly.

Great find Rod! This is a solid deal for someone looking for a E99/Gamme/Eon ski in this length. Thanks for posting!

[RossB]

Those are the Inbound Crown. They have a sidecut of 68-58-64. They don't have metal edges and are probably made in the Ukraine. I only know because I own two pair and recognized them. That is the earlier model (maybe ten years ago?). I don't think they changed anything with the later generation (they seem to ski the same). They stopped making them, maybe because REI stopped selling them with that generation.

I really like the skis. I can drive them quite easily with regular SNS boots. They ski fine in the tracks and do a good job off track. Great for rolling hills, logging roads and that sort of thing (although I have used it in true backcountry conditions when the conditions are right). It is a light ski, although obviously not as light as something like the Motion Crown (which I also own, and use exclusively on the groomed areas). For a fairly light ski it has good sidecut and decent flotation; I can initiate turns and maneuver in a variety of conditions. It is my go-to ski. I have other skis (Atomic Rainier, Viole Vector) but it the ski I enjoy using the most, as I can use it with my most comfortable boots.

I don't know if Fischer makes skis like this anymore. Maybe they do. But the skis I've seen that look similar have metal edges, and I assume that adds weight, for something I rarely ever care about (if I'm skiing on ice for an extended period I want firmer boots).

For that matter, I don't know if they have much competition. Probably, but I don't know. Anyone know of a ski with a similar weight/sidecut/camber? (Sorry for the thread drift).