12/3/2023 0 Comments Ski tuner mx iv machine images![]() ![]() To start, the factory finish on most race skis has improved dramatically in the last 10 years, but still leaves a fair amount to be desired. C’mon, the factory finish on my skis is great! I can just maintain things by hand, right? Look at that price! I can get a lot of bevel guides, files, stones, and clamps for that amount of money. What about the actual tools themselves? Surely there has to be one that outshines all others. So, with a pretty clear level of superiority for machine tuning, the questions and comments start flying. Just like hand tuning, personal preference dictates how much gummi stone work is done to detune the tips and tails. For sure technicians at the highest level will polish the machine finish to a finely honed point but for junior athletes and weekend warriors, the machine finish can be ceramic stoned (two passes) and then ‘broken’ lightly with a leather stropping, paper towel, or a chamois. No technician is capable of producing such a defined, precise, and sharp edge by hand as quickly as can be created with a machine. However, all that hand tuning to get edges sharp and smooth takes time, which is another gold star for handheld machines. While not necessarily applicable to junior athletes, this is a reminder that skis can be prepared to the highest level by hand. In fact, on the World Cup circuit many super-G and downhill technicians have moved away from the machines so they can customize the sharpness for the course and snow conditions. ![]() While sharpness is not entirely binary (sharp or not), it is possible to get a ski sharp by hand. Score one for any cynic who says that you can get a ski just as sharp by hand as you can with a machine. Moving beyond the advantage that machines provide with uniformity, the next issue becomes edge sharpness and quality. “Score one for any cynic who says that you can get a ski just as sharp by hand as you can with a machine.” Even the steady hand of a seasoned shop pro quickly becomes dicey: stones and files wear, spring clamps loosen, and tools flex … the end result being inconsistency. While some naysayers might argue that they prefer the ‘feel’ of doing the work by hand, the plain reality is that tuning by hand offers too many moving parts for the non-professional technician to do so uniformly day in and day out. With consistency and reliability in mind, advocates (this writer included) will point out that each machine available shows distinct advantages over hand tuning by the average coach, parent, or athlete. Regardless of your definition or reason, the aim should be consistency in your tuning. Success is subjective it could be qualifying for a regional championship or toughing out a day in Vermont when it rained the previous night and froze hard in the morning. While the application can vary (parents: the majority of you are probably not trying to eek out a tenth of second which each run) the goal is the same – to eliminate or minimize equipment as a variable in the success equation. So, after a collective deep breath, we can dive into an analysis of the tools, talk about the pros and cons, and arm you with the information to make an informed decision about what is best for you.Īs a starting point, it is important to keep in mind why we tune skis. TRIone Side Edge Sharpening Too l ($2499) With all of the options, including the traditional method of tuning solely by hand, it can seem overwhelming when trying to figure out which machines to consider. While you might get a different opinion about which tool is best depending on whom you ask, the mere idea of using a handheld edging machine remains polarizing. Given the apparent advantage of these tools, it did not take long for coaches, parents, and athletes at the non-national team level to start paying attention.įast forward to today – there are no less than six tools of this type on the market, at varied price points, and each with a cadre of fans and opponents. These new tools offered a result the technicians were accustomed to, but they required far less time to get there. Technicians were heard discussing razor sharp and butter smooth edges, and doing so outside of the ski room, which was unusual given their typical workload. Starting with national team technicians at spring camps, the TRIone and Snowglide were the talk of the town. In 2006, two new ski-tuning tools made a grand entrance into the ski racing world.
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