Review: Altai KOM 174cm

[Lhartley]

i'll fork out the cash when there's a 40-50% off sale, i just dont want to have to buy hard boots as that's probably the only way they can be used

Plastic telemark boots can be had for very little if you keep an eye out on used marketplaces, decent t2's can be as little as 20 to 30 dollars and make a world of difference. Imo

[blitzskier]

i;ll keep an eye out for them , but i love the light weight of a pair of 3 pin leathers and cables..

[aclyon]

do y'all think these would pair well with 22 Designs Axl bindings, or is that overkill? I just got some T4's, have the Axl's lying around in a box, and I'm feeling with Koms I would have a great hybrid set up for laps in the back country or some fun in the resort.
Thoughts?

[Inspiredcapers]

Ended up going with a TTS Transit binding and the TXPros on these. The grip is better than I’d expected going up (there’ve been stretches I’ve booted it- wish I’d remembered my skins). Helluvalotta fun coming down (except for the sled tracks). Liking the big tip, kept me from snagging on branches n’ stuff (snow still kinda lacking). The scales sure sing on icy stretches. Hit a mixed bag of conditions (some decent powder up high, the hated sled tracks, icy crust at the bottom (not fun). Hockey stops are insanely easy.

The Pros n’ TTS are a powerful combo, pretty great for a day of playing near home. I’ve got other skis for touring but to get out for a couple of hours the Kom/TTS/Pro combo is pretty great. Not gonna say they’re fast but they get me up and down with minimal fuss.

The guys skiing these on leathers- wow, you got big ones. I wouldn’t want to hit some of the stuff I was in yesterday with a leather boot. I’ve been staying in walk mode coming down, felt hellaciously secure. The Pros bellows are already feeling a little more flexible from use- I guess the 220 pound oaf pressing that forefoot down has much to do with that. Not much for knee dropping opportunities where I was at (steep n’ narrow) but the few I got in were sublime. Still kinda favouring the broken side but the last couple of days have been big confidence boosters.

[lilcliffy]

@Inspiredcapers
Very cool!
Thank you for the report on this excellent ski!

I do use leather boots on this ski- but only for shuffling around on ideal snow and gentle terrain with my son-
Although I certainly can ride this ski downhill in leather touring boots in ideal conditions- I certainly cannnot hold it on edge and carve a turn.
I use Scarpa T4 boots with this ski if I want to charge downhill with them.
I don't see how any human could possibly hold this ski on edge with a leather touring boot- it is too wide underfoot.

[Theme]

Snatched a pair for -70% in 174 cm length, having read these reviews. Only thing is the boot/binding combo I am wondering what to do with.

Folks here typically use the Altai/OAC skinbased style "skis" for shuffling around on daytrips with the universal bindings, with little to no control. Recently seen a hike up in amounts of BC bindings on them. Still not very skiable but much better than the plastic bindings. Some have mounted Xplore.

I might follow that suit, as I would basically never take them on any kind of solid surfaces, have other tools for that. Pi Pro/Fischer BCX Traverse may be just enough to get some turns in on soft snow? Honestly no idea, and something like the Voile Transit seems intriguing. Then it just would be even more sternuous/clunky to do any distance, which, for some reason, in out context is what people use these for (probably being scared of 250cm+ skis that would do the job much more efficiently)

Forest skis for the win if doing any distance on soft snow, and for more turns I now have the Nosi 76 XP. And distance on hard snow has its own quiver. It was never my intention to get a ski in this class, but what do you know I am a sucker for a deal to have a chance to try it out. ~85mm under foot has still been proven to work with stiffer XP boots in ideal conditions, would want to try that, but am wondering if the 98mm underfoot is just too much? Basically would only use these for laps up and down some local forested hills

75mm and T4 sounds fun, but I would have to wait a while to find used boots and bindings for the job

[aclyon]

well, i did it-- 174 kom, 22d axls, scarpa t4.
it is my first plastic boot telemark set up that i've owned (have demo'd stuff a few times). free pivot with plastic is a bit of a new feeling for me for touring/uphill. i've taken them out twice-- once for a back country lap at local waterhouse peak, and once at the resort.

waterhouse-- i don't have skins for these yet, but i'll certainly be getting some. the <2 mile/1850 ft climb killed me on the fish scales, but i managed, stepping out of the skin track often to make my own edging traverses. snow wasn't anything special that day, not full crust but something between crust and corn. i got down with parallel turns for the most part, it was far too steep for my first slope on this set up to be honest, but i like to bite off more than i can chew. they climb incredibly considering the plastic boot, i can imagine with leather this thing would be a climbing beast (though no clue how you'd get edge hold going down). still, with a setup this "heavy" i think i'll trade glide for glue in the form of skins.

resort-- i like to take my backcountry skis to the resort, as i've discussed in my other thread about XCD gear on hard pack groomers. it's a great place to practice, and practice i did. there is definitely a learning curve to this set up, it's not like it magically makes the t-turn so easy compared to soft boots and s-bounds. but by the end of the day i was getting a pretty solid tele-carve on green piste. and just in general, learning the "feeling" of a t-turn with an *active* binding, which really is quite different. i will say that just as i've experienced with my s-bounds, fish scales absolutely suck at the resort. because you slow down dramatically at all the run outs, and straight lining doesn't have the same effect. it's annoying. also hate not being able to ski backwards, but i'll get over it. it's worth it for the practice.

we've got a storm right now and i'm really eager to try them in any kind of soft snow with depth. had a few moments with them over corn at the resort where they slarved and slipped in a beautiful, surfy way.