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ham_and_steeze

Member
SO I KNOW IM GONNA GET SLAMMED ON THIS ONE BUT...... FOR RAILS AND DURABILITY, SHOULD I GO WITH A SIDEWALL, SANDWICH, OR CAP CONSTRUCTION?? THANKS ALOT. 10/10 RATING FOR HELP WHICH = MAJOR KARMA.
 
where do you ski, cause cap is going to be the "durable" on rails, but if you ski the east coast you have to go through the ice to get to them - which is more difficult with a cap ski. Personally, I like sidewall skis, they seem to hold up just as well and they have better edge hold on ice.
 
oh, then cap construction should be more durable and cheaper (usually lighter too).
 
well no, from all my experiecne sidewalls are much more durable. I delam 2 pair of JO's a season for the past 2 years cause the edge would get pushed in and break the seal causing delam underfoot. but that may also be from the extreeme cold here in MN. But out at hood this summer i broke my bullets and my JOs were fine...could be a temp issue
 
side wall skis are more durable, no doubt. cap is cheaper (and for a good reason). lemme break down some ski construction for you:

cap construction is just a wood core with a base glued to the bottom and a plastic and fiberglass *cap* pressed on top under high pressure. the result is a light, cheap, evenly flexing ski.

sandwich/sidewall skis are essentially the same basic construction (wood core with same kind of base) but ABS or similar hard plastic sidewalls are added over the edge, and the press usually presses in four directions, resulting in a tighter fit to all the parts. this adds TONS of durability to the edges.

go sidewall unless you can afford to replace your skis after a season (or even during a season)

note: salomon and head offer skis that *look* like caps, but are again a slightly different ski construction, and i havent had any bad luck with those.

hope that helps man.

ms
 
all theory about this-ski-is-built-this-way and sidewall-is-better-for-this-but-cap-is-better-for-this, in my own personal experience (and i ski a lot of rails), sidewall has always held up better for me. not to mention they tend to handle less optimal conditions much better.
 
side wall no doubt .. even if u take a bit out of ya side wall it can be fixed but with cap it pushes in and gets messy when fixing dented edges go sidewall fo sho........
 
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