Has any company ever tried to make plastic skis?

jcsnyds

jcsnyds

Member
Not sure how well they would ski, but I think I can make them for $30 each, should weight half what a traditional skis weighs. Maybe some noodle beaters for urban?
 
Even with my limited knowledge of ski design I can almost assure you they would suck balls. I would definitely cop for like $50 tho just for fun.

What kinda plastic would you use
 
14560302:BLandz said:
Even with my limited knowledge of ski design I can almost assure you they would suck balls. I would definitely cop for like $50 tho just for fun.

What kinda plastic would you use
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Nylon, same material as lacrosse heads, they can take a pretty goody beating.
 
The original Salomon 1080s and Pocket Rockets were foam core skis. They were really light but the foam would break down after about 2 seasons and they turn into noodles.
 
14560308:jcsnyds said:
Nylon, same material as lacrosse heads, they can take a pretty goody beating.
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Cool idea, but stability is my first concern. The way lacrosse heads flex when facing off would happen if you get off balance in any direction. Also warping would be a problem.
 
14560310:SuspiciousFish said:
The original Salomon 1080s and Pocket Rockets were foam core skis. They were really light but the foam would break down after about 2 seasons and they turn into noodles.
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Came here to say this

plenty of ski companies have made plastic skis and you can certainly find them today. They will try to fool you by calling it a “composite material” or something like that
 
14560335:maaattt said:
Yes but they're those "skis" and "snowboards" that you find in the same isle as sleds
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Saw a whole family show up to the hill with those snowboards when I was an instructor. Our ski school director intercepted them before they dropped a few hundred on tickets.
 
14560310:SuspiciousFish said:
The original Salomon 1080s and Pocket Rockets were foam core skis. They were really light but the foam would break down after about 2 seasons and they turn into noodles.
Click to expand...
14560352:hi_vis360 said:
Came here to say this

plenty of ski companies have made plastic skis and you can certainly find them today. They will try to fool you by calling it a “composite material” or something like that
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Since when is foam the same thing as solid nylon? carbon fiber and resin reinforced fiberglass are composites, although just calling it composite is definitely more vague. Epoxy resin is plastic. Doubt OP can made a decent plastic ski for $30 but a solid nylon ski with molded in edges and carbon stringers doesn't seem like the worst idea out there tbh.

I do fiberglass repair on boats for a living and in my experience, a plastic boat is way more durable than a fiberglass boat of the same size. Fiberglass is brittle, and when it cracks, it tends to delaminate far from the initial impact point.
 
14560668:jompcock said:
Since when is foam the same thing as solid nylon? carbon fiber and resin reinforced fiberglass are composites, although just calling it composite is definitely more vague. Epoxy resin is plastic. Doubt OP can made a decent plastic ski for $30 but a solid nylon ski with molded in edges and carbon stringers doesn't seem like the worst idea out there tbh.

I do fiberglass repair on boats for a living and in my experience, a plastic boat is way more durable than a fiberglass boat of the same size. Fiberglass is brittle, and when it cracks, it tends to delaminate far from the initial impact point.
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I want to 3d print initial prototypes, I dont see them being terribly durable, but if I can prove the concept I'd like to look into injection molding. I used to work as a mold maker and have access to CNCs so I should be able to produce my own molds at a relatively low monetary cost. $30 would be purely material costs, I'd like the end product to ideally be in the low $100 range.
 
14560673:jcsnyds said:
I want to 3d print initial prototypes, I dont see them being terribly durable, but if I can prove the concept I'd like to look into injection molding. I used to work as a mold maker and have access to CNCs so I should be able to produce my own molds at a relatively low monetary cost. $30 would be purely material costs, I'd like the end product to ideally be in the low $100 range.
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3d printed skis lmao hope you got a long ass print bed and x axis
 
14560673:jcsnyds said:
I want to 3d print initial prototypes, I dont see them being terribly durable, but if I can prove the concept I'd like to look into injection molding. I used to work as a mold maker and have access to CNCs so I should be able to produce my own molds at a relatively low monetary cost. $30 would be purely material costs, I'd like the end product to ideally be in the low $100 range.
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please have something to reinforce the mount area if you do this. Nylon does not hold screws very well. I think this is a silly idea but if you're bored and it's cheap enough it sounds fun enough
 
14560700:jompcock said:
3d printed skis lmao hope you got a long ass print bed and x axis
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Gonna custom build the machine, the print bed will match the contour of the ski, so the layers are all continuous, conformal to the camber and rocker.
 
14560706:TOAST. said:
please have something to reinforce the mount area if you do this. Nylon does not hold screws very well. I think this is a silly idea but if you're bored and it's cheap enough it sounds fun enough
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Definity has crossed my mind, I'm thinking that some good size brass inserts should do.
 
14560731:jcsnyds said:
Gonna custom build the machine, the print bed will match the contour of the ski, so the layers are all continuous, conformal to the camber and rocker.
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sounds like a good use of your time for a proof of concept. You should CNC solid stainless steel skis. Durable af
 
14560920:BreknridgeKid said:
Where do I buy, I want to commute to school with these. If under 200$ buying em straight
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Looks like they got sued buy backcountry.com and went out of business, but I've talked with some angel investors and plan on pitching plastic skis in the near future, Ideally have prototypes available mid-winter
 
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