D3 ARC Mid Review

[sfriis]

ooops 55 kmh - 34mph

[sfriis]

7 th set on blue - best ski I ever had - really helps me - and no fin tuning yet. Damn why are we close to end-season....

[LeonL]

@sfriis you owe it to yourself to try @Horton's numbers. Real ski changer. After making this change, please report back on this thread what you think.

[sfriis]

@LeonL thanks, I love the ski right now - "spaciest" 35 off ever - I already moved the binding forward - which setup do you refer to ? Horton used 2 different settings - both actually very close to factory:

(9 dgr wing sounds a lot - don't think I would like the ski to be slower)

 

 

 

[GaryWilkinson]

@Horton so John, yellow/blue, or Vapor lithium? Which is better at -32, -35.

 

What say you oh goggled one?

[LeonL]

@sfriis actually they are pretty close to factory, however I started out with numbers from Paul Crawford instead of factory numbers. What Paul gave me are 2.450, 6.950, .745. The horton 1 numbers are what I'm using now. You may not experience much change except .019 is quite a bit on depth. However I changed a good deal. Those figures may work for Paul or somebody else, not so good for me.

[ripa38]

@jdarwin and @jimbrake did either of you try a 67 yellow before settling on a 68? I am right on the edge between the two at 195 lbs. I skied on Horton's 67 yellow before he reviewed it and liked it, but have not tried a 68. Your thoughts would be appreciated.

[jdarwin]

I'm 210 and did not attempt to try the 67". The 68" did not feel big. I have a fellow skier who is 190-195 and tried both and settled on the 68", FWIW.

[ripa38]

Thanks @jdarwin that helps. I need @Horton to put on 20 lbs and start reviewing 68 inch skis so @rico and I can test them.

[Horton]

No

[Bruce_Butterfield]

@ripa38 I'm about 195 and rode a yellow 67, yellow 68, then a blue 68.

 

Sizewise, I could ride the 67 just fine but the 68 felt more comfortable and was easier with more margin for mistakes.

 

I rode the yellow 68 for a few weeks until I was comfortable with settings, then setup the blue 68 the same way. I was surprised at the difference between the 2. The blue is much smoother completing the turn and a tad more forgiving. I struggle to think that 4lbs difference in the tip flex can account for this, so my theory is that D3 mixes Parson's baking powder in with the blue paint.

[ripa38]

@Bruce_Butterfield thanks for your insight that is very helpful. I like the idea of a little extra margin for error (just in case I happen to commit one on the ski). What numbers did you settle on with the 68 yellow ARC?

[jimbrake]

@ripa38 - nope, never tried the 67. Came off of a 67 Quest which was good in cool water, but too small in very warm water (>85 degrees). At 195 - 199 (not 200, shut up) I feel like I'm at the "tipping point" for a 67. 68 yellow ARC can rip a turn fine. It never has felt "too big". Now @Bruce_Butterfield has me thinking I should try the blue again. Damn it.

[ripa38]

@jimbrake Thanks, are you still running the same numbers from your earlier post.

[Bruce_Butterfield]

@ripa38 I played around and ended up at

30.5

6.923

2.465

0.765

8 Deg

 

However the last few sets i have been playing with deep/ short and it seems to fit my style better

 

30.375

6.784

2.504

0.731

9 Dec

 

Remember this is still a D3 - you can make pretty significant changes to the setup and only get subtle changes on the water - and the changes yield consistent results

 

Again, the long/shallow vs short/deep setup is more dependent on the skier's style than the ski. I tend more toward short/deep.

 

@jimbrake you're welcome;)

[jdarwin]

@Bruce_Butterfield - like you, I'm finding deeper is better. At 2.455, I was getting tail slide almost to the wake. 2.460 resolved and the ski feels more connected behind the boat and creates more space.

[jimbrake]

@ripa38 - pretty much. Have moved around some, but am back there now. Our water cooled significantly in the past 3 weeks or so (low 60s now) and I'm not feeling the tail slide as much as I'd like. My fin is pretty shallow at around 2.445. I don't see going much shallower, so could maybe shorten and see if smaller fin area helps. Only skiing one set per week now and about to stop for the winter.

[disland]

@jimbrake whats winter, Here in Texas its been incredible. mid 80's every day for 2 weeks and counting

[gmut]

@jimbrake maybe try pushing it forward a little also

[jimbrake]

@gmut - that's a good idea.

[sunvalleylaw]

May I ask please @Horton @jimbrake , for a little description on what is meant by over aggressive coming out of the turn in the context of this statement? Horton: "Blue to me seems smoother exiting the buoy. I think skiers who are over aggressive might find yellow to be better." Jimbrake: "bingo. I'm the poster child (or poster old dude) for over-aggressive skiing and the yellow is WAY better for me than the blue."

 

I, myself, really want to clean up my turn completion, and avoid reaching early, learn to be stacked a little better over the front foot, keep a lighter line, etc.

[Horton]

@sunvalleylaw The yellow can be pushed a bit more and the blue is better when you push less. Does that make sense?

[sunvalleylaw]

@Horton I think so. I do not have the smoothest technique coming out of the turn, and probably try to push sometimes. Certainly I can tend to reach too soon. But am striving to improve that. We shall see what, if anything, shows up in a couple days.

[LeonL]

It skied both and sometimes the best commentary comes from the driver. He said I was much smoother at the connection at the end of the turn on the blue.