Armada JJ sizing predictability

T

TheGrudge

Member
Hi guys

I've just done all the shops here in St Anton, Austria and so far only found one shop that has Armada JJ's. Sadly, they only have a 175 in rental, and only the AK JJ for sale.

I am demoing the for sure (as well as 180 Line SFBs) but I am wondering if I can ever buy the right size without having tried that exact size. How much will it change? I've never bought a ski of the sort before.

I am about 184cm tall (just over 6ft) and weigh in at roughly 82kg (about 180 lbs) so a fairly big guy, the 175 will almost certainly be too small but it's going to be a tough call deciding between an 185 and the massive (and stiffer/wider) 195 AK JJ I think...
 
Keep in mind that with an early rise ski like the JJ, you always want to run a bit longer than usual. If you ride a 180 normally add 10 or 15 cm and go with the AK JJ. I know that 195 seems massive but they actually ride super short. I have a 205 Folsom Custom that is the same as a JJ and they ride way shorter than my 186 park boards. So all in all, heres the deal. If you consider yourself to be a fairly experienced skier, go with the AK. If you are new to the sport and still an intermediate, simply wait to find a 185 cm. Whatever you do, don't go 175 cm. That will be way too short.
 
i think you will love the 195 ak jj.

being taller a 185 is going to feel short once you get used to it. i have a 185 jj, I am about 5'11'' and 180.

i find it to short at times, i ski really really aggressively though.

i would recommend getting the bigger, they arent that much stiffer and depending on how you ski it shouldnt matter to much.
 
I'm fairly experienced, but no experience to speak of in the side/backcountry... I do intend to take at least a couple days in the skischool with a powder group (or what's left of it with all this sun) and then either more of that if bank account allows it (98 euro per day is quite steep) or the cheaper "lesson" pack where they mix technique with some offpiste

I realize these skis will ski super short, I'd never consider the 175. But with 20cm difference and the AKs being stiffer, it kind of scares me a bit. I guess it will allow me to charge a bit harder though...

Apparently, they had 2-3 pairs of 185s in rental stolen, and 2 AKs, just this season. Pretty sick. The others are sold out, but I might ask if putting the AKs into rental if I don't like them is an option, though I don't know how that would work out if they've mounted them for me
 
i'm about your size (a little shorter and skinnier) and i think the AK JJ would be a sick ski for me ....sounds like a point and shoot kind of ski, just like i like it :)
 
Given you're in Austria, I'm going to assume you'll get the chance to ski a lot of big alpine terrain. I'd recommend the AK JJ as the 185 is going to feel less stable on bigger lines. The 185 would work better in tighter trees, but with the amount of rocker on the 195s, you won't have too much difficulty. If the glading is well spaced, the 195s will be fine in the trees.

To put this in perspective I'm 6'1", I weigh 70-75kg, I ski a 194cm 151-135-145 on deep days and it's definitely not too much ski for me. You're heavier than me, so you won't have an issues.
 
To be fair, I'm not sure how fast I'll be skiing those super big lines, despite it being Europe... maybe a bit later on, but for now I think it will mostly be sidecountry and some trees

that said, I do like the sound of just bombing through anything... I suppose they will do well on crud too?

my parents are visiting here too, so tomorrow will mostly be spent around them. Good time to try it in slushy spring conditions on the slopes (even though its only the 175)

monday is powder day (or whats left of it)

stoked!
 
Unfortunately if you are thinking of getting a hard charging crud blasting go-for-broke ski, the AK JJ is not that. It is not damp enough to plow through crud, and the exaggerated shovel rocker is not good for chopped up snow either I have found. The 185 is a great all-mountain ski with good powder performance, the AK JJ is great for deeper conditions with speed, but neither the 185 or AK JJ handle crud particularly well. I would say the 185 sounds more your cup of tea, but the AK JJ will be great if you think you will progress into a more advanced skiier. If you want a hard charging crud blasting all conditions ski with great powder performance, the 4FRNT Renegade would be a great option for you, but would require much more work on the ski and boot to get it to do what you want, but it is worth it for it's awesome performance.
 
By sidecountry I mean offpiste skiing that does not involve hiking anywhere remotely, usually still skiing more or less lift to lift but out of bounds
 
I'm just going to take this opportunity here to promote a company that I've done some work for. They're called Down Skis (http://www.downskis.com) and they just started selling skis this year.

I have two pairs of prototypes from last season - the Countdown 1 (the 194cm pow ski I was talking about in my earlier post) and the Countdown 2, which is a 'fun shape' ski like the JJ, but way more stable and able to charge a lot better. Check out the specs here: http://www.downskis.com/ski-specifications/countdown-2

It's a 190 twintip, right inbetween the lengths you were thinking of, and it has decent tip and tail rocker with a moderate sidecut. Low rise tips to cut through chop and plane more evenly in powder and a 25m turning radius on groomers. These things are some of the chargiest skis I've ever been on, but they're great for playing around as well because of the taper on the tips and tails.

They're on sale at the moment for 325 Euros with free shipping anywhere in Europe - it's an absolute steal. I can highly recommend these skis and I think you'd love them if you're considering the AK JJ. :)
 
Honestly, I'm a bit afraid of buying skis of "unknown" companies, because I'm worried about quality. That, and the fact that the 25m radius is a bit much for me.

Pretty much decided on the JJs, although I'm giving the Bacons a try tomorrow (probably the only somewhat deep day I'll get this week). Rode them down 1 lift to get from shop to home, and almost washed out on several occasions on the ice - something the JJ didn't do AT ALL. Those JJs are amazing, they do all piste conditions "good enough" to very good for a ski its size, they're kinda poppy in my (short) experience, and they float like a boss. Easy pivoting, playful, ... this ski has it all, by far my most favorite ski ever

The shop got some 185s today apparently, tried to reserve them until tomorrow evening but some dude already asked the same. Now I'm wondering if I should try and get these, or keep renting ($$$) and buy next year's when they're available.

dillemma...
 
I'm a 5'5" 130lb female and I ride the 185's so... I think you would be fine stepping it up to the 195's. Again, it's all about riding style/ability though.

I see you're pretty stuck with the JJ's but I would recommend trying Rossi S7's too. They're very similar but the S7 is a bit more solid of a ski... Has more float and will probably have more stability. I ride both and personally like the S7 better for charging...

Can't go wrong with the JJ though, great ski! =)
 
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