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2013 AM33 by Radar


Ed_Johnson
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RTM might not be the right term. I was referring to the process of pulling in the resin with a vacuum on the mold. It is my assumption that is a more consistent process.

 

Either way, sounds like an exciting relationship for both. I want to try the AM, but I've trying to get more consistent on my current ride first. Stradas are already great. It would be interesting if this would improve their existing process / performance.

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What was wrong with the hollow core? Why did Adam Cord leave? Where did he go? Was it RTM or not? why is it after all this time their website doesnt have any products? Why do Goode skis still dominate? Are they profiting from all those phone in orders that they're so busy with that they cant set up an online ordering form? They went independent to take things to another level. Is he going back to Radar to take things to another level again? Where's the level cap?
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Rumor has it that Adam Cord is working with Adam Caldwell on potentially another ski project....so I hear. Interesting that the AM Ski is going away from the hollow core. So does that mean that AM Skis will not be manufacturing any skis out of Orlando. I guess they will just use that eqquipment to make proto types and test the design there and let Radar figure out the manufacturing?
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so now he's not doing a hollow core? Man, if there's one thing I've learned about this its to not get hyped and not assume that the greatest skier ever who has been designing skis for years can deliver me a ski until there is a ski in front of me.

 

So are they taking it up another level, or are they deleveling?

 

They took it to a new level here.

Wow that gets more informational every time I watch it. Andy mapple explains every part of the ski, how it works and why its good as well as the manufactuging process. Although those HO vids are better presented this Elite video is by far the most informative.

 

According to Chris Parrish its a different level; Adam Cord a whole nother level and Andy Mapple a whole new road.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_UuUISRpDU

 

Im not sure what is happening or what happened at AM skis, all I know is that its been nearly a year and I still dont have a ski and few people do. They never really opened up. It seemed that they were more interested in levels, and roads and being recognized for that, instead of selling skis built from all their experience. Look, I was sold on the Elite since the first time I rode it and I was sold on this knowing the same people were behind it and they could test the ski nearby leading to a much faster product developement cycle. They never lost me as a consumer because I love their previous ski so much, they just failed to get my money.

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It is interesting that the pvc core flexes/recovers differently than the polyurethane core, so having no core suggests that core type isn't a major factor on performance? That doesn't make sense to me, but I am no mechanical/structural engineer..
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@AB - I don't think you can make that conclusion. PVC vs. PU is a matter of having a ski with dimensionally identical cores, with laminated fiber product and resin wrapping it. In the hollow skis, there is still something inside. In the case of AM I think what they were doing is assembling a ski rather like a boat is made.

 

Your boat has an outer hull, inner webbing "stringers" and then a top deck.

 

I think the AM ski is an outer lay up forming the bottom "hull", a "stringer" system instead of a core, this stringer provides the mechanical/structural element, and the design of the "stringer" gives you most of the mechanical properties of the ski, and then a top deck.

 

A foam core you have the same system, but the "stringer" is the core, and you cannot modify the performance of a solid foam core that is machined in the same way that you could a matrix of carbon.

 

That is atleast how I think he is building the ski, until someone mails me a hollow AM to cut in half on my bandsaw....

 

Also I think if you take a chunk out of any modern ski, you probably don't want to patch it up with some bondo and take it back on the lake.

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A stringer system would be more rigid than a foam core of any type, wouldn't it?

 

Take the Senate vs Strada, poly vs PVC. One costs quite a bit more and is supposed to provide more shape recovery after flexing. I wonder what the key attributes are of the stringer system? I'm not saying one is worse than the other, just saying I don't know, and would like to know. But, marketing sometimes causes confusion or contradictions. The issue with torsional flex has been 180 degrees with at least one manufacturer, more is better and now less is better. It boils down to try it and see for yourself.

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I believe stringer is a little misleading...The two halves went together, with a small brace or bracket that went from side to side, in approximately the middle of the ski...Sort of like a rib in a wing...This also helped to hold the two halves together.
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@Bracemaker I was referring to the whole AM and radar thing. I have seen one cut open the way the rib system was designed I remember seeing it was fully supported.

 

If you have a 66 and want to get rid of it let me know.

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RTM I,m not so sure, there were some good ski,s produced before RTM, ski,s that broke records, D3 still produce a good quality product, with good consistency, surely the consistency has to come down to, personnel, facilities, and good procedures, in any industry if I pay low money to personnel, in a low tech enviroment, and expect them to bang out a certain number of skis a week, the chances of producing a consistent, quality product are going to be low, other manufacturers are producing good ski,s, for me the RTM ski,s, always feel different, under foot, they are really hard on my feet, I prefer the non RTM ski, for some reason they do not hurt my feet.

Please Note: Only My Opinion, No Offence To Any Ski Manafacturer, Intended. I Understand People Have To Make Profit To Exist And Continue R&D.

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To be fair RTM just means you assembled the dry parts in an expensive mold and pressed resin into the mold.

 

Does it make a consistent product? Surely.

 

Is it a cheap method? Nope. Will you want to retool every year for ski updates or make one ski for years?

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I have to say that I cannot stand the censorship. We used to be able to post whatever opinion we wanted on this site as long as we didn't name call or attack other people personally.

I think it is terrible what is happening. Example

You post something that someone else does not like or agree with. They email, call or text Horton. If it is a sponsor. You get nasty email from Horton. Post deleted.

End result is people don't want to share their opinions here.

Sometimes you will be wrong. Others may change your opinion after you read theirs. It is a discussion. You should not have to apologize for your opinion. If they enlighten you and you change your opinion, that is great.

CENSORSHIP IS BAD

Just my opinion. Don't worry I won't get angry or upset if you don't agree with me.

 

Edit

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@Dirt I agree...our opinions as consumers help nurture and shape industry, shared opinions open people's minds to others views or change ones own views, all aspects of society have grown from this, we would still be in the dark ages if thoughts and opinions were stifled...@JohnCox you have no reason to apologize in my opinion, a legit concern, spending good money on a product you may not get warranty if the need arises, in reality from a business perspective, no one should have to call Andy and find out if warranty will be honored, as a businessman he needs to step up and reassure potential consumers and those that have supported him about the product and the future of his company, open communication goes a lot farther than silence, one definitive paragraph of honesty on their website would be all it would take...
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I would never complain or ask for a post to be deleted. If you post stuff and don't like others opinions about it, then you know what they say about the kitchen... Even when people are irritating, like guys who have been banned, they add something or another perspective to discussions that I might not normally consider. The personal attacks are somewhat fruitless and gutless, just arrange to meet a guy in a parking lot and figure it out...and when they are relentless in personal attacks, then that is when I feel the moderator should step in, which Horton has. Not sure about the deleted posts. I don't remember what they were. In the grand scheme of things, probably dosn't matter so much anyway. It won't help me lose 50 pounds, which is my biggest challenge!
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Nah ! No "Ski Fly" for me, I like "Ball Of Spray" good bunch of Guy,s & Gals, with lots of knowledge to share, and willing to do so, can't get better than that.

Horton does a great job, the amount of hours he must put in, must be on a least 1 dollar an hour, ask yourself, would you work for that ?

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nobody did anything wrong or not ethical at am skis i'm sure but i can see how a early customer would be unhappy if a different company took over construction after he bought one of the first ones off the line. it maybe hard to sell later on or whatever.
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Yes, getting warranty work on a defunct ski might be quite a bit different than a quality defunct boat company. Take Toyota inboard, they stashed away a bunch of parts, including entire engines when they stopped production. I know, my old company handled the Dealer fulfillment and stored the parts. I would think that AM would still fix problems to maintain a good reputation if they were still trying to sell product though. If they are completely out of the market, that may be a different story.

 

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Not sure why the Down side talk of production being moved to another manufacture. I read somewhere on here that several ski manufactures produce their ski in the same factory side by side . Can't remember which ones but HO and Connelly comes to mind. I would have no prob owning an early run AM ski. Most likely the man himself will lay hands on what ever needs to be fixed with them. 2013 runs in the RadaR factory may get sent back there for repairs/replace. Also a good thing i would think considering rave reviews on their costomer service.
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I've owned a couple of early run Mapple skis and also the production version of the same ski. I liked both skis, but liked the original better! John, you have a unique ski! I don't know Andy but it seems to me that he'd stand behind his product/labor of love.

If you want to sell it, I'll out bid Matt! Sorry Matt! (Just kidding)

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