Has a ski shop messed up your mount?

cydwhit

cydwhit

Active member
Thinking about writing about ski shops and how unacceptable it is that they mess up ski mounts so much. Has this happened to you? If so, how did they mess up, and how did they go about making their mistake right with you? And have you noticed a difference between local ski shops and big box stores?
 
I know a guy who used to work at my shop that was stoned and mounted a pivot toepiece backward on one ski and mounted the entire other ski (Volkl Mantra) at +13. He was "encouraged to quit".

At the bigger shops in my town I've heard that they mostly just mount wherever they think is best for the ski, without taking into consideration the skiers preference.
 
Are you even a park skier if your mount hasn't gotten messed up/been scorned by shop techs for wanting certain mounts?

**This post was edited on Dec 7th 2020 at 7:43:22pm
 
I brought my skis in to get mounted and I went to all the trouble to mark out with a sharpie and masking tape how I wanted the midsole line mounted, who was like up at core center give or take- and they mounted them way back at recommended. I was like wtf is this?! And the cashier was like oh well I’m sure it will be fine but our tech isn’t in again until next week.

I was like well this was the 3rd set of holes in this skis so thanks for fucking me. I had prepaid and was set to leave on a trip the next morning so I just put up with it and didn’t shed a tear when they went out of business. ?‍♂️
 
When I got my last park skis mounted I specifically told them I wanted a center mount. They didn't mess it up just straight up refused to. I was like wtf, I'll just go somewhere else then. Course the only other ski shop in the area was closed and I needed them mounted for the next day, so I had to just go back to the first place and bite the bullet. Dumbest ski shop experience I've ever had
 
I've never had a shop mess up my mount but I still get nervous every time. Just got my new skis mounted at +2cm of rec and was so relieved to get them back properly done.
 
the key to dealing with retards who don’t understand simple instruction is to tell them like 50 times you want your skis mounted at true center and tape something to the skis that says mount at true center.
 
Had a brand new pair mounted a couple season back - one toe piece was a whole 1/2 inch too far forward. This was at the resort shop, I assumed they were pretty competent there. Guess I was wrong.
 
14208508:moist_velvet said:
Is this more of a Midwest/east coast thing?
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The only issue ive ever had was in Frisco CO lol

The shop didnt do anything for me except for get a bad review on google, which is the first review ive ever left about a company, cuz I didnt find out they drilled my skis twice until 1-2 seasons later
 
my local shop is notoriously biased against anything park/freestyle related..eg doesn’t carry full tilt anymore “because of durability problems”, tried to tell me a set of GOODE poles I was buying didn’t come with straps “because they were park poles”, borderline refuses to center mount, etc... Luckily the tech at the local hill is an absolute G so he gets all my work instead
 
I bought a jigarex and its the best decision I've made.

Worth it if you go through skis or buy/sell a ton. Or if you have a couple buddies that go in on it with you.
 
Does improper adjustment count? Two pairs of shifts with both forward pressure and AFD height way off, and a pair of attack 16s.

I always use masking tape and measure + mark, even if I'm mounting at recommended, mostly just to double check the marks are the same on both skis though.
 
Jigarex. Works pretty good, for those who have the means to buy it and ability to use it properly it's 100% worth it.
 
Never had mainly cause I usually mount them myself with a paper jig because it's easy, free, and faster than a shop. I usually practice on a 2x4 beforehand which settles my nerves and reduces mistakes.

When I have brought them to the shop I always end up having a ten minute conversation with the tech to make sure they know exactly what I'm asking for.
 
quite a few times, hence I mount my own, now I messed up myself recently, new jig, which was off, and so was topsheet! damnit!

my local big box had a pretty insane deal during spring time, basicly 10 cent SPX 12 with 200USD enforcer, so I jumped on it, yeah... way different heal adjustments to get forward pressure right, not a big thing, but.. yeah meh

The Jigarex is pretty cool, but has a few drawbacks, it doesnt flex with ski profile, so depending on camber profile and ski width, you will need to put a piece of flatbar at each end, to get proper centering.

Also the holes sit up high, and are floating.

With that said I have mounted a ton of skis with jigarex. but for like a CAST freetour toe with inserts I'll take a normal pivot jig

I think my favorite was a pair of skis I went 2 different places with, and BOTH mounted them on wrong lines, even I had a damn note taped to each ski, and the line drawn with permanent marker on topsheet AND sidewall. The instruction for 2nd mount was "if there is hole overlap or issues, go forward"... so yeah I got the BC100s mounted +1 instead of +4 or +5 for some reason, with that instruction. Note also said please call me! (didnt have jig for shifts)

**This post was edited on Dec 8th 2020 at 4:34:58am
 
14208579:CENTORE said:
my local shop is notoriously biased against anything park/freestyle related..eg doesn’t carry full tilt anymore “because of durability problems”, tried to tell me a set of GOODE poles I was buying didn’t come with straps “because they were park poles”, borderline refuses to center mount, etc... Luckily the tech at the local hill is an absolute G so he gets all my work instead
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To be fair a lot of the old full tilts did have durability issues. The buckles would just fly off those things. And you don't need a park boot to ski park.
 
Have you or a loved one had your skis fucked up by a stoned/retarded shop tech? You may be entitled to a FREE PAIR OF SKIS! Call the NS BlueName Legal Team at 1-800-956-1042, we will fight for you.
 
Back in HS had two friends take their new skis into the shop at the same time and the shop swapped the bindings so each person had the other persons bindings mounted on their skis. The only solution offered was a remount to put the correct bindings on the skis they should have been on initially.
 
I wanna be part of this complaining thread but everytime i get a mount im stuck with some competent ass shredder who asks me if i want them mounted suggested or if i want true center or if i have a specific preference.

I wish they would just fuck up so i could be cool on the internet and trash their profession.
 
I’ve only been to bentgate recently and as far as I can tell they never mess up, call you if there are any possible idiosyncrasies to your mount, and generally do a spectacular job.
 
One time when I bought new skis my dad mounted them for me for christmas(hes a rental technician) and instead of using my better bindings from my last pair he used a pair of spare rentals...
 
14208696:katrina said:
Never underestimate someone's ability to fuck your shit up
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My current job is as CTO, I've seen so much stupid stuff its amazing, I was just wondering how you would do it from a technical perspective ;)

The people I manage give me all sorts of interesting scenarioes.
 
14208678:Guy_Ski said:
One time when I bought new skis my dad mounted them for me for christmas(hes a rental technician) and instead of using my better bindings from my last pair he used a pair of spare rentals...
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This is one of the most brutal abs hilarious things I’ve ever read on this website. Thank you for sharing.
 
They could’ve fucked it up if he has a really big boot on a smaller ski. This would mean on the heel piece if you screw through it would be on a thinner part of the ski. There for causing the dimples.

14208708:anders_a said:
My current job is as CTO, I've seen so much stupid stuff its amazing, I was just wondering how you would do it from a technical perspective ;)

The people I manage give me all sorts of interesting scenarioes.
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I've had a couple of skis where they didn't chamfer the hole and there is a little bit of volcano-ing causing the binding to be lifted off the ski a couple mm. Never worth actually making them fix it as it doesn't really have a noticeable affect and the only time it was really bad I just unscrewed the bindings, removed the excess material, and carefully re-installed with wood glue. Also have had a mount where the holes were either not pre-drilled deep enough or not cleaned out before installing the screws causing a little bit of mounding showing at the base material, but they were rock skis so I just dealt with it myself.

Pretty shitty how common ski mount fuckups are when a mount is $50-$75 at most shops. I mount skis myself now with paper templates.
 
14208718:Poindexter. said:
Current shop tech, I've messed up two or three in mounts over the past almost decade of work. It happens. Ive never tried to hide it though and have always owned up to it.

Usually it happens because 6 different salesman dump 2 setups each on my bench without labeling anything and often will move what I always already working on away. Not really a good excuse but what ever, shit happens and you can tell at me if it makes you feel better
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That's a solid record!

And to be clear, I think it's generally the shop's fault, not necessarily a specific tech's fault. For some reason the whole infrastructure is not as dialed as it should be.
 
before u complain to your shop about your vishnu wacks 154cm being mounted a few cm back remember to specify to your tech whether you want "true" and "core" center.

oh shit? There's more than one type of center mount? comment section on instagram just told me to tell the scary basement ski tech man to ask for center mount and i'll be a better skier. okay so whats the difference?

True center means 50% of the ski is to the front of your binding and 50% of ski is behind your binding. This is good for symmetrical skis where you want the ski to be perfectly balanced.

Core center is the center of the skis carving arc / the center of the sidecut. If the ski is non symmetrical core center will be a bit further back from the true dead center of the ski - imo you will be able to carve better / have a better feel and traction of the snow and your skis turning radius at the core center of the ski.

from my experience working in shops - if you don't specify that you want true center mounts the tech will air on the side of caution and mount core center, or towards the factory recommended mounting position.

gear and tech heads correct me if i'm wrong + add ur wisdom

**This post was edited on Dec 8th 2020 at 10:58:47am
 
been thankful in this regard to work with shops locally who do good work for us and our ski team kids. Only time I had issues at my local shop was with a newer inexperienced ski tech who fucked up a remount on a pair of skis i needed to change out the pivots on and went a size too small and my heel didn't fit in binding at all. It was an "oh shit" moment for them when he eventually realized it as I was picking the skis up but he felt terrible. No need for scolding him cuz the dude he works under that I normally get stuff mounted with probably gave him a good talking too on how not to fuck up. Wasn't a massive deal for me cuz they were a used pair of skis mostly but I can imagine some Dad from Dallas or racer parents absolutely coming unglued on those guys for that.
 
14208587:mystery3 said:
Does improper adjustment count? Two pairs of shifts with both forward pressure and AFD height way off, and a pair of attack 16s.

I always use masking tape and measure + mark, even if I'm mounting at recommended, mostly just to double check the marks are the same on both skis though.
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The last time I got skis mounted in a shop they didn't adjust the AFD height and I didn't notice until I was standing on top of the ridge and could rock my toe up and down in the binding, made it down the sketchy early season chute and got to a bench with a screwdriver and saw that the FP was incorrect as well.
 
14208729:Emma_Watson said:
before u complain to your shop about your vishnu wacks 154cm being mounted a few cm back remember to specify to your tech whether you want "true" and "core" center.

.

gear and tech heads correct me if i'm wrong + add ur wisdom

**This post was edited on Dec 8th 2020 at 10:58:47am
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Sorta. This used to be way more of a thing, but shouldn't ever have been. If you ask for a center mount, that always means "true" center. Put the line in the middle of your boot over the line in the middle of the ski. Ski brands will often mark what you're calling "core" center as the "recommended" line. Which, also, don't trust markings on topsheets, only trust lines on sidewalls, topsheets can shift and be inaccurate. I had a pair of icelantics where the topsheet marks were 1.5 cm off from each other on the two skis.

It only should get complicated if you're asking for a mount in front of or behind either of those lines, then you need to specify which line you want to measure off of. Either way, it's on you, as the customer, to clearly mark on the ski where you want the middle of your boot. What's wild to me is when people do that and still get messed up mounts.
 
Bought my first pair of park skis as a young lad, took em to the local ski shop and asked to have them mounted core center. Ya know, because they're park skis. They mounted them somewhere around -5 behind the center of the ski, not super ideal for a park ski. I had never gotten skis mounted before so I was a little naive and didn't say anything, ended up having to pay to get them remounted correctly.

In terms of local/big box stores, can't say I notice much of a difference when it comes to mounting/tuning skis in my experience. Local stores are more inclined to give you some deals if you go in there alot, plus I think its important to support local, but it does seem like big box stores have their stuff figured out more when it comes to processing orders and general business professionalism.
 
Yes. Had one boot mounted center an the other 2cm back. I was pissed. But I was young and I just let them re drill it . Looking back I should have demanded a new set of skis.
 
14208761:cydwhit said:
Either way, it's on you, as the customer, to clearly mark on the ski where you want the middle of your boot. What's wild to me is when people do that and still get messed up mounts.
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this
 
14208651:pinkcamo1000 said:
To be fair a lot of the old full tilts did have durability issues. The buckles would just fly off those things. And you don't need a park boot to ski park.
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You're totally right, and i mean as my 85+ year old grampa is fond of saying it's not the arrow it's the Indian. Those were just a few examples of comments I've heard over the years. Told my younger cousin a couple weeks ago he wouldn't be able to hit rails if he got head attack bindings.
 
A few years ago I moved to a town (Santa Cruz, CA) with a single shop that I absolutely do not trust with my gear. It's one of those weird, bargain-basement spots that sells patio furniture in the summer. With no other option I did my first paper template self-mount that season. It's a little nerve racking at first, but at the end of the day it's not that hard...and you'll only have yourself to blame if you fuck it up.
 
Go to ERIKs. mine called me asking if i wanted my honeybadgers center or recomended. they did a great job mounting the binding too, no volcanoeing.
 
14208723:No.Quarter said:
I've had a couple of skis where they didn't chamfer the hole and there is a little bit of volcano-ing causing the binding to be lifted off the ski a couple mm.
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This has happened to me too. It makes me nervous, epecially on Pivots (which have a short mouting pattern), that the binding being further off the ski can get more leverage and create more torque on the screws and possibly pull out easier. I did get it fixed for free but not without hearing a bunch of grumbling and explanations about "mm level tolerances" and whatnot
 
14208486:wyld_stallyns said:
When I got my last park skis mounted I specifically told them I wanted a center mount. They didn't mess it up just straight up refused to. I was like wtf, I'll just go somewhere else then. Course the only other ski shop in the area was closed and I needed them mounted for the next day, so I had to just go back to the first place and bite the bullet. Dumbest ski shop experience I've ever had
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it would be hilarious if they were a high cost pair of racing skis
 
The first pair of skis I ever bought were mounted incorrectly. I was a jerry so I didn't notice till well over a year later that one of my skis was mounted a whole cm+ back from where the other one was. I got them mounted at REI and they refunded the price of the binding and mount and were very apologetic about it. I put that money towards buying some K2 Kung Fuja's from them in return, but I think I bought bindings and a mount somewhere else just to be safe.

I also had a marker schizo heel piece rip out but I don't know if that was a mounting error or not, I still wasn't a very good skier at this point so it seems unlikely that it should happen to a 130lb girl. They were like pretend tele skis since that adjuster middle piece kept everything together, I got that mount for free back when I had a good relationship with my local shop though so I didn't complain, I was tired of skiing the heavy schizos anyways.
 
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