G3 Alpinist Climbing Skin - 2009 BCS

Best looking skin around. The tip attachment is the best I've seen for not dragging in the snow or having any buildup. Its so low-profile there is no resistance. Easily packable because they are so supple, but that could also be a problem because the thin plush doesn't grip as well as the thicker plush found on some skins (such as Black Diamonds).

Best looking skin around. The tip attachment is the best I've seen for not dragging in the snow or having any buildup. Its so low-profile there is no resistance. Easily packable because they are so supple, but that could also be a problem because the thin plush doesn't grip as well as the thicker plush found on some skins (such as Black Diamonds).

Great skin the design just is so practical in every way. Have trusted these skins and been able to get up steeper inclines than any other skin I have had before.

I have toured these skins in everything from cold clear December days in Roger's Pass (-20 C), standard cloudy powder days somewhere in the -10 range, to t-shirt soaking Southern CA corn harvests (+20?) and they hold me like glue. They glide and grab extremely well, and stay clump free - I have never had any problems. Though I do agree with one gripe that they stick to themselves extremely readily since they are thin compared to BD skins - but it's not so bad that it has ever been frustrating. Cutting and fitting is a breeze, as with any skins. The tip attachment is bomber, I thought it might turn out to be finnicky in the BC but it has never come even close to slipping off. Now slap em on, and earn those turns!

These were my first skins so far for being the first pair, they work pretty good. I went with the longs and they fit just right for a pair of 176 twin tips. The only thing is I recommend getting the twin tip connector. I have had the tail slip off just a few times. Now go earn some.

I really love these. They are super easy to trim using the provided tool (at least it was provided when I bought them). Far superior in traction to the BD's I have used. Maybe less glide when rolling a brief descent, but let's face it, we'd rather they climb well right? The tails have never fallen off either (unlike the BDs).

But that's about all they have going for them. I find they don't stick to the snow as well as Black Diamond skins, They don't go on skis or come off skis as well as Black Diamond skins. These skins will get you to the top of the hill, but they'll require just a little more effort than necessary. So I say, meh... get the BD skins.

The biggest problem for me was the adhesive. Three trips (6ish hr trips with many laps/transitions) in a row these 130mm skins slipped from the ski and allowed for snow buildup between skin and ski. Yep, you can warm them up by putting them in your jacket, or you can use red straps to hold them to your skis....but then you are cold, wet, and slow.
No reason to buy these when BD has better ones for sale.

Borrowed a pair of these over the weekend to fit on the teles and they worked great for what we were doing. I felt that the glide was just a little bit better than the full nylon BD skins I normally use, which was nice on some of the flatter spots. These also packed down smaller than the nylon ascensions. However I did notice that these did not grip as well on steeper sections. I kind of expected this after noting that the plush isn't nearly as thick as the all-nylon BDs, but the grip was more than adequate for most of the terrain we were on. The snow conditions were generally wetter and heavier, so these probably perform differently in colder and drier snow.
The glue was ok, but not as sticky as BD glue. Some may like that, some not; it was fine for me. The one thing I didn't like was the stopping of the rip strip early before the tip and tail. This made for variable resistances when pulling the skins off. While not a huge deal if you take your skis off to transition, if you keep them on the skin didn't release in one fluid motion that I'm used to with a skin that has a full length rip strip. This is just me nit picking really. I'm sure I would get used to transitioning if I used these regularly.
All in all, nice skins that save on weight and pack space if you're worried about that sort of thing.

I have a pair of G3 alpinist skins, and a pair of BD clipfix skins. I by far prefer the BD skins. They're stiff and easy to use in the cold. G3 skins are just too floppy. They both stick well, and I like G3's tip attachments, but what I want in a set of skins is quick, easy use. The BD skins will come right apart when I'm putting them on, and slip right off when I'm ready for the down. The stiffness of the BD skins increases the ease of use at the top of the hill when folding them together; I've not been able to get the G3 skins to stick together evenly easily at all- it's a fight.
If you're like me at the top of the hill, you just want to peel 'em and squeel 'em. Fighting your skins at the top of the hill before a run, is no fun at all.

great skins, easy to cut (included tool makes it a breeze) tip clips adjust to anything, bomber tail clip makes these super secure even when the glue gets cold or wet. the grip isn't quite as good as other's like climbingskinsdirect.com or Black Diamond's but the sleek design more than makes up for that.

I like these a lot so far. I like that they are flexible which allows me to fold them up more tightly in my bag. They definitely aren't as sticky as my BD skins, but I haven't had any trouble with them coming off my skis and it does make pulling them apart easier. I find the grip a little less strong than my BDs, but barely. The glide is definitely better. My only complains are with the tip and tail attachments and they are minor. I had to widen the tip connectors to fit onto my DPS's and I found that fairly difficult. The tail clip, while fine, can be a bit tricky in the cold as the rubber is harder. I definitely prefer the BD tail clips.

These skins have a really nice and sleek low-profile front attachment. The rear attachment is pretty good, but not quite as secure as the BD rear attachment. The precut dimensions are really nice and make trimming a breeze. The skins seem to get good traction in semi-soft snow, not sure about harder conditions. They skins are nice just not quite as durable as the BD's.

Pretty good skin. First skin, Wasn't a fan of the tail clip, so I just chopped it off to save weight. Wore out fast in my opinion but as I said they were my first skin. Had trouble with snow sticking to bottom, so make sure to pick up some skin wax. Adhesive also wore off pretty quickly.

This is my first AT skin, I was slightly nervous about having to trim the skins by hand ect... Relax it is a piece of cake! Attaching the skin to the ski is easy as well. Just be sure you're in a clean area when trimming or anytime your skin's glue is exposed (VERY STICKY STUFF). Skinning up a mountain adds a whole new demension to skiing! I will keep you posted on their durability.

Pros: durable, smart/low profile tip connection, light, glide
Cons: cold affects glue more than BD, not as much traction as BD, tail hook needs to be longer for better leverage,

Summary: if you give em a few minutes to dry in the sun while stowing the rest of your gear and/or grabbin a scooby snack they stick pretty well. Tip doesn't catch snow and they take some abuse. They just don't grab that well on steeper ascents.
Mine are for sale.

These are the first pair of skins I have owned. I thought they were very easy to work with. Loved the trimming tool. It trimmed the skins perfect so just the edge of the ski is exposed. Thanks for another great product.

I haven't had the same issues with grip that some have stated. Althought they don't grip as well as the BD they are more than adequate. I did find them to improve after a few outings so the nap may loosen a bit to improve them. I also don't mind the thickness. Yes, they do get blown around at the summit but I like the flexibility and lack of bulk when I am stashing them in my jacket on quick laps. My issue has been with the adhesive. I did have an occasion where I did get a bit of snow on the adhesive side. I needed to duck tape them back on for the second lap. This has only happened once but wasn't lots of fun. Oh...I really don't care about the graphics I am not sure why anyone cares what they look like when they are on the snow most of the day.

These are very well designed skins that don't need to be trimmed length wise and have the best front tip hook system. The hooks are well thought out with minimal contact area and flush metal hooks that prevent the other skis popping skins out. The trimming was pretty easy.

The trim tool that comes with the G3 skins makes sizing a breeze.

So far I have been happy with the grip the skins provided, definitely an upgrade from my old skins (that were a transplant from my old skis and narrower than my current ones).

Since I bought the skins I have been out only a couple of times, so I cannot report on durability.

These go on easy, stay on tight, and grip like I couldn't believe. I kept finding steeper inclines and these things motored right up. Straight up. Amazing skins. Way to go G3. 10 out of 10 for sure. I have 189 K2 Pontoons, 140mm wide skins, trimmed to fit.

light yet strong going up the perfect combination.

Easy to put on, great traction on steep ascents, comes with a great tool for cutting them for your skis, and for storing them. Flawless in my opinion. Greatly reccomended!

These were incredibly easy to cut with the trim tool that is provided by G3, and not by Black Diamond. I've never used or cut Black Diamond skins before, but my friends who have, said it's a pain in the ass and takes a while. Well it didn't with the G3s. I also love the tip connector pieces that connect it to the top of the ski, they make it easy to take off and on and line the skins up with the shape of the ski. From the three times I've used them so far, they work just fine. Some may argue the material is not as thick, and may not catch as well as some of it's thicker competitors, but I didn't notice. They held going up hill just as well as my buddy's BD's.

My other two skins are the BCA Low Fat (on some skinny Karhu XCD) and Climbing Skins Direct simples (on K2 Shuksan). I've always had trouble skinning up very steep degrees with those skins, and these seem to be a bit better (however, they're also considerably wider). Regarding the features, I am quite happy with the low bulk/weight design. The tip clips are effortless and make it easy to center the skin on the ski and the tail clip stays put and comes off on demand. I've had significantly less icing-up problems with these as compared to the CSD skins--due, I'm sure, to the factory waterproofing treatment. I have not experienced the "floppy" effect others here have complained about, but that could be because I bought the 115mm size and use them, uncut, on my 116mm waist skis.

This is definitely a quality skin. The innovative tip attachment piece works great. Don't let it scare you away. I haven't had any problems with it yet. There is another model by G3 that is the female version, don't get those two confused. All around quality skin!

Despite other posts, I have found that these skins not climb slopes greater than 25 degrees well. On slopes equal or greater than these, I am often slipping backwards regardless of the snow conditions. In comparison, my friends, with BD skins, have no problems on these pitches.

I guess G3 designed these skins for alpinists whom climb slopes with gradients less than most freeway on-ramps.

https://www.backcountry.com/store/content_upload/review/GGG0126.html#

At the beginning of this season, I purchased these skins and I couldn't be happier. The glue is the perfect stickiness, the attachments on the front and the back keep the skin locked in place, and the mesh liner really aides in removing the skins while on steep slope.

Buy these and you can't go wrong.

This is my first pair of skins. With that said, the cutting tool was great and they fit very well. They climb well but seem to stick quite a bit on downhill. The clips on the top also come off occasionally, as do the clips on the back.

I found these skins fine when breaking trail in powder but on steep,packed down switch backs I lost traction a would slide backwards,where my buddies with BD skins had no issues.I personally wouldn't buy them again.