Ski recommendations for a XCD novice

[lilcliffy]

Hello Erik,
Just reading your original post now- and what follows-

I was thinking about Fischer's traverse 78. Would this be a good ski for someone how hasn't previously done turns on Nordic skis?

I don't know how to help you with this quesiton...
The Fischer 78 is a realtively straight, stable, cambered ski- tuned for covering distance on backcountry snow.
It is a crosscountry ski.
It is certainly not tuned for turning. It can be turned- but it is not tuned for it.

I have also been wanting a metal edged waxless ski for myself. I consider myself to be quite good at downhills, I have been using Fischer's adventure 62, which is double cambered and was wanting something slightly wider with a metal edge. would a pair of transnordic 66 skis be a good fit?

Rumor has it that the TN66 is the same design as the last-gen E99 Xtralite...
If it is the same- I know it well.
If it is not the same- please ignore my comments-
The E99XL (i.e. ~TN66) has a very soft, rockered shovel- coupled with significant poppy camber and resitance underfoot.
The E99XL (i.e. ~TN66) is more cambered and more resistant underfoot than the Fischer 78.
The Fischer 78 has a stiffer and more stable shovel than the E99XL (i.e. ~TN66).
Personally- I would not suggest that the 78 is easier to turn than the E99XL/TN66.
Both of these skis require traditional assertive technique to turn- especially if they are skied in a distance-oriented XC length.
Although the 78 is less cambered-resistant underfoot- the E99/TN66 has a shorter effective edge-
so, I wouldn't suggest that th 78 is easier to turn-
fully and assetively weighted- the E99/TN66 might even be easier to turn...
........
The 78 Crown is definitely grippier and a better climber than narrower more cambered E99/TN66.
The E99/TN66 offers more classic XC kick & glide performance.
The 78 is way more stable in deep and difficult snow than the E99/TN66.
........
As far as your interest in the Nansen WL-
I love the Nansen WL- it is just as good as the Fischer 78 in XC mode- but much better downhill.
If one regularly has snow that is ideal for scales- the scales of the Nansen WL are fine-
but, if you get extreme temperature fluctuations and much icy, refrozne snow- the scales of the Nansen WL will not be enough-
I use grip wax, kick wax, skins and scales on my Nansen WL- it is my late winter- early spring "secret weapon" touring ski- I love it:
- fresh snow overnight
- cold night and early morning
- melting snow in the afternoon, sometimes mixed with rain

[lilcliffy]

If one regularly has snow that is ideal for scales- the scales of the Nansen WL are fine-
but, if you get extreme temperature fluctuations and much icy, refrozne snow- the scales of the Nansen WL will not be enough-

Just came in from chores-
I must add-
in my local context the grippier scales of the Fischer 78 are often not enough either.

[telerat]

Regarding Åsnes Nansen; My wife has both Fischer E99 and Cecilie BC (female version of Nansen), both waxable, and she much prefer her Fischer E99s. She really liked her new Falketind 62s for a short mellow test tour we did this spring. It was 350m up and then the same down, 8,5 km total length. For that tour her Cecile BCs or E99 skis could also have been good options, but she wanted to test the Falketind 62s and her E99 doesn't have short skins, and neither turns as well as Falketind 62.

Below are some thoughts from what I've read at utemagasinet.no; Cecilie/Nansen is similar to old school telemark skis, and sounds like a better ski for more downhill oriented tours. The new Nansen has some rocker. I'd choose Falketind 62 instead then, or Ingstad for a more mixed tour in softer snow. Sverdrup/ Ousland/ Gamme looks like good all-round skis for tours not involving deep snow or steeper descents.

Fischer also has nice skis. I'd not very pleased with my E109 (~TN82) for flatter tours as they doesn't track straight well on firm/prepared snow and has some resistance when skiing deep snow (especially uphill). They are nice downhill though. I'd probably choose Traverse 78 instead of Transnordic 82 now for all-round tours, but I hasn't tested that ski. There are also some nice skis from Madshus and Rossignol.

The mix of waxless and short skins sound like a great option for mixed touring in varying snow conditions. I have waxless xc skis and like them on spring corn and with varying snow temperatures, but not in cold snow. Åsnes' waxless pattern is more suited to those with good ski technique as you need proper weighing of the ski to get grip, but if you manage that, you are rewarded with better glide. In deeper and loose snow the Fischer and Rossignol waxless pattern gives significantly more grip. I hope this helps. Good luck.

[Manney]

Three grip patterns for Fisher skis… one for contemporary Rossignols.

This is the one used by Fischer for recreational piste skis

These two are for Fischer backcountry and off piste skis

The Crown pattern is similar to Rossignols. All are positive displacement patterns, so they grip reasonably well.