New School Ski Companies....

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bigpimpinalberta

Member
Ok talk to me ppl.My first post here mainly cause i'm still @wakeskating.com but ya. How are we feelin' on the new companies that are commin up and have been established for a couple of years? 4frnt, armada, liberty, faction, ninthward, prior and such... ur favs?company/ski/team rider and why they bring fresh steeze to the 100+ft table...
 
It looks like my bro could get me some Liberty skis for $300. I'm also looking the last years K2 Public Enemy's, also $300. Which would you recommend? I mostly ski the mountain, but I'm looking to start going into the park.

Advice??
 
I got the same deal. I'm getting the SB180s. They are made for all-mountain, but a Liberty team rider tells me they rip in the park.
 
4frnt makes the most durable skis. their skis handle the best of any independent ski company. Plus they have vinny, eric hjorleifson, steele, niklas karlstrom and some other cool cats. what more could you ask for?
 
my advice is to NOT go with liberty.

9thward is shady, but they do make pretty good skis.

i favor 4frnt, armada, and line.
 
Genereal consensus to me seems to be that Armada and K2 are the companies that most people on this board are willing to give their hard earned money. Now don't call K2 new school if you don't want to, but in terms of catering to the type of people that ski on twintips, k2 has done a really good job. Armada, obviously kills it, has a sick team, and manufactures some of the sickest skis out there. they have a ski for every situation and each one rips.
 
Eeven though I don't like K2s, they have done a good job of taking a piece of the market by offering their skis for dirt cheap. I honestly think their prices are the main reason for their success.
 
I'd have to agree with this. I own a pair of Armadas myself and I love them... worth every cent. They have awesome skis for nearly every application... reliable and durable... great graphics and a sweet team. I don't own any K2 skis nor have I even ridden any, but from hanging around this board I can tell that they are definetly solid in the freeskier market. They have Seth... what more is there to say?

I'm pretty surprised that people are leaving out Rossignol. Again, I don't own a pair of Rossis... but from what I've heard from this board, they are also very solid in the twip-tip market... especially with this seasons Scratch FSs and BCs. Rossis are a conservative bet, and I'm assuming that's why people are reluctant to name them... but they are a great brand nonetheless.

4frnt is also up there... and 4frnt MSPs are the next skis I plan on buying. I've seen numerous people complain about 4frnts, but for the most part, it seems to be minor complaints like a peeling top-sheet. Honestly, I'm not the most aggressive rider, so I'm not too woried.
 
Some of K2's skis are very affordable, but for the most part, I think their prices are comparable to other company's.

On another note, K2 also makes some of the most solid skis on the market, and any difference in price between them and their competitors is because of they are a big company, not because they make poor skis.
 
No way. K2s cost a lot less than most other brands. Look at the Fujis. The 05/06s are $300. That's really cheap for a quality ski.
 
Line continues to make diffrent skis, but quality. I like how they try new things, unlike say...salomon, which havnt changed their sidecut or anything about their pocket rocket/gun in like 5 years.

Armada is fairly good too. i dont like all of the gangsta park rats thinking they are all cool and "just like tanner" cus they got his skis and theyre armadas...but hey, not the companys fault (although i suppose they could dump tanner) nevertheless, kick ass skis. i also resepct them so much more now that they have a true big mountain ski out, the ANT. props to them.

4frnt i really have no clue about, never ridden their skis, but i like where there going. theve made it in the ski world, but theyve kept a small ski manufacturer logo. kinda like line, still small, but definitly making it.

K2 is still great. Even though they are a large company, theve done well with their image, unlike large, but crappy imaged salomon(at least they were last year, i think theyve stepped it up this year) the only complaint i have is they have no real hard charging freeride specific ski. the Seth Pistol has evolved more into a all-mountain jibbing ski to me. its gotten softer. and when your haulin ass, you dont want soft. same with the made'n. still one of THE sickest skis made, but not exactly made for fast moving, big mountain.

Salomon is getting better. ill put it at that. i was somewhat pleased with my Pocket Rockets. they could have been stiffer, and they woulda been a dream. but theyve really stepped it up on their image. they introduced the Foil, which is a better park ski. it also follows the trend in which freestyle skiing is moving, something that salomon hasnt done much of lately considering theyr gun and flyer have been the same for quite some time. glad they got some good skiers up there on their team.

Volkl has really impressed me this year. they have alot of new people on their line up, probably one of the best teams, rivaling Armadas team. with the introduction of the park ski, the dogen has upped their image alot. i also like their freeride skis almost as much as Armadas. their Sanouk is arguably one of the best freeride skis ever made along with the Gotama.

well, thats what you get when you have a bored kid in AK with 2 inches of snow barely on the ground. im tired, i felt like writing. im going to bed now. and yes, i probably forgot a company. dont bitch.
 
They couldn't dump Tanner, he's one of the owners and the most famous freeskier in the world today! And also, if you've ever seen UP 1, UP 1.2, Armada team at the Orage Masters, or just checked out the news section of their website, you'd know they weren't trying the gangsta approach. They're all about having fun and making good skis.
 
I'll second that. Tanner is the biggest name in freeskiing today... and even putting that aside, he co-founded the damn company... he has a pro-model and everything. I'll admit Tanner's "steeze" is pretty annoying... and all the park rats that try to copy him is even more annoying... but I don't think Armada is synonymous with a "gangsta" image. That's Tanner's image... not the rest of the team. Just look at JP... does anything at all about that guy scream "gangsta"?!
 
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