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When you need skins that are ultra-light and fast-gliding for your hut-to-hut trips and long backcountry tours, look to G3's Alpinist Climbing Skins. These skins’ low profile, pivoting hands securely fit any tip shape and G3's Tail connection system clips onto the tail of your skis, eliminating the ever-annoying skin that pops off your ski in the middle of a steep switch-back. The high-performance Alpinist Climbing Skins' plush synthetic fabric gives you a fast glide and great traction. An advanced waterproofing treatment keeps these G3 skins dry and free of wet, clumpy snow, so you can tour through changing climate zones without uninvited snow clinging to the bottoms of your skins. These skins are available in a range of lengths and widths, and come with a durable nylon bag, trim tool and skin savers. *Medium for 174-186cm, long for 183-195cm, and x long for 189-199cm.
Bottom Line: Get dependable, smooth-gliding performance out of G3 Alpinist Climbing Skins.
You shouldn't have a problem. I use a pair of the BD Ascension skins that have a similar tail clip on my twin tips. Occasionally the clip will slide off to the side, but it's never been an issue.
I'd recommend about 110mm width for full coverage on the Extremes. They are 118mm at the tip and a good rule of thumb is the widest part of the ski minus 10mm.
As for length, I don't really understand how G3 sizing works. It doesn't look like you can trim these down for length and the medium might be long (174-186cm).
The Alpinist is a great addition to the G3 line up, lighter skin, great hands that hold the skin on and best of all Great Glide. Glide is essential, the more you can glide uphill the easier it's going to be. Buy and enjoy!
I have a pair of 170 cm Black Diamond Verdicts measuring 132-102-118. Will a medium(171cm-181cm) still work with a 170 ski?? and what width should I be getting? I was thinking a 110mm. Thanks for your input.
I always say to go with a width that it is just about 5 to 10 mm less than your tip width, so 120 to 130 mm is what I recommend, as you want maximum coverage of your bases to prevent back sliding. i don't know if the length will work, but easy to tell right as soon as you get them and send em back to bc.com if they don't work!
Light, thin, foldable, with a fantastic tip attachment. Unfortunately, I had a lot of glue issues within the first year (not sticking consistently in temps of 0F -- 40F on the east side of the cascades). I swapped back to the old ascension stand bys, but secretly wished for the G3 skin and BD glue combo!
I ended up grabbing some 100 widths for my Scott Punishers which measure 130\90\116. Am I going to regret the purchase or will I have plenty of traction? I am 6'3" 180 lbf. What do you think? Is it worth it to pay full price for full coverage?
I choose to size skins at least as wide as the tail width (usually 10-15mm less than the tip width). If you have too much base exposed near the edges it may be hard to traverse slopes in less than ideal conditions (windpack, crust, etc). Ski crampons will solve this but may be overkill in many situations (and add more $$ than the wider skins.)
Once you pay a little extra for the right size, you will never look back. You may regret saving $10-20 by getting poorly fitting skins.
That being said, you can always pick a lower angle skin track, or carry your skis up the steep slopes. Any skin will help greatly for traveling over low angle terrain. XC wax can work too, but takes knowledge & skill to use effectively.
I bought these to go with my G3 Barons. It took me a couple of goes at making sure they mounted cleanly to make sure they were straight and aligned properly.
But once they were on properly, they're fantastic! They glide very smoothly and the traction is great, which I appreciate being 6'5'' and 220 pounds.
awesome skins, i like the hooks on the tip makes it easier to rip off and gives it a better hold. the tail clasp could use a protective rubber on it to keep it from damaging the ski with removel
Bummer, I think G3 will help you out. They might have a cosmetic blem they will sell you on the cheap. Give them a call toll free 1.866.924.9048. Or send them an email: service@genuineguidegear.com Good Luck.
Really like the tip attachment on my K2 Mt Bakers. Unlike the BD Ascensions, there is no way for the tip attachment to come unglued. Also they seem thinner / easier to pack than the BD's. Glide, climbing, etc seem all comparable.
If the front side of the skins are still in good shape, then you should reglue the skins. You can buy glue sets, and then follow the instructions from there. It can be a time/labor intensive endeavor so many people just opt to buy a new pair. When glueing, be sure to remove all the old glue first- as per the directions.
very awesome skins, compared to the black diamond ascension skins, not really a huge difference for me other than the way it attaches to the tip, which comes off a little bit easier (when loosened), not inadvertently, and definitely perform very well in the field
No not at all. It does not affect the base of the ski at all.---------Actually it does have a tendency to pull a little wax up, therefore you probably dont want to wax right before skinning to avoid getting too much wax on your glue.
Love the tips on these. I much prefer them to the traditional bar used in BD skins. The G3 clips are quicker to put on, lighter, fit more ski shapes, and center the skin better. The skin itself is a little lighter and more flexible than BD skins. Grip seems similar so far, although it's hard to say for sure without going up the exact same track with different skins. Oh, and the new G3 trimming tool is brilliant: no need to mess around moving the skin back and forth on the ski.
I would change two things: firstly, add a removable strip down the middle of the skin to make them easier to separate (just like the BD skins); secondly, the G3 tail clip just doesn't work at all on twin-tips: this needs to be fixed.
Bought these to replace my old Black Diamond ascensions. Grip while climbing is comparable. These skins are thinner, so easier to pack into a pocket to keep warm/dry. Had a few more problems with them unsticking from the skis though. The tip attachment was problematic on my old Dynastar Legends, as they have some silly metal on the ski tip. They work great though with my new Mt Bakers. Overall, recommended.
Evan answered my question, but I accidentally "tweaked" it off the page. If you're interested he said he uses the mesh for long term storage, but its to much to take them backcountry. So he just slaps the sticky sides together for quick storage.
I bought 130mm for my Scott Missions which are 130-96-117. They were a cinch to trim, but you could save some dough, and probably get close to the same climbing grip buying a size that fits the narrowest dimension of your ski and running them straight instead of cutting them to the perfect fit. That said, the tip clips work great, the tail clip is fine (so what if it scratches your skis a little) the skin saver sheets are a cinch, and they climb like a Billy Goat,
Just bought the G3s. They're my first pair of skins. They came with a mesh liner to protect the glue when I'm storing them in my house. But how should I store them in the field when I take them off to descend? That glue weirds me out.
I like the skins... nice and light. However, I iced up worse than some friends on black diamond or assention skins, but I was out on one of those warm powder days... and I didn't use skin wax. The tip clips are a cool idea, but I definitely don't like the tail fixture. The clip is loose on the tail, and it is hard to get on (or off) easily. Not easy for taking skins off without taking off the skis first. I haven't really given them a good test on steep winter skin tracks yet, and that is the true test of a good skin.
Clearly you're new to this. The glue doesn't dry on skins, it just stays sticky so you can put them on and pull them off. You can use them as soon as you stick them on.
I was replacing my BCA Low Fat skins with a Alpinist 130MM, cut to fit for my Ravyns mounted with NAXO bindings. The skins climb great, steeper than I though, with confidence. Glide was OK considering the skis base is covered side to side, tip to tail. I can't compare lightness as my gear is heavy to begin with. They climb well, and do what I wanted them to do.
I got the 115 Long's for my 189 K2 Hippy Stinx. Sizing guide says the longs go up to 190cm, however these are absolutely maxed out on the Hippy Stinx, I can get the tail clip on but barely. Is this how they are supposed to fit or should I get the X-Long's instead? Thanks!
I have used these on several tours now and especially after using the Black Diamond ascensions, these are the best skins on the market. They stick on some of the steepest grades and glide great.
That being said, there is still improvement in the attachment to the skis. The tail hook is hard to get the skins tight. It is also made of metal without any protective material so they can dig into the base of the skis. Most of the skins suffer from this problem. When wet, these skins do not stick at all to the bottom of the skis and if you are doing a spring tour, watch out for needles, as they like to stick to the skins and are almost impossible to get off. These seem to excel in cold temperatures but are miserable in warmer temperatures. Just remember they are great but not perfect.
G3 always goes to the top looking for the best line down. These skins took ten minutes to throw on the skis and cut to fit! Easy on/off and very grippy too. Look to last as long as my skis.
What size would you recommend for a ski with these dimensions-187cm 136-107-126Also-What are the basic differences between this, and the g3 expedition skins?
The answer is it depends, check out this link: http://www.genuineguidegear.com/telemark_skin_pf.htmlBut either the 115 or 130 would work for you IMO. As far as the differences, looks like the expeditions are heavier and have different tip connector.
Looks like there is a typo in the sizing chart. The XL's should would fine with the Megawatts.Based on the chart linked below, you should go for the Long. http://www.genuineguidegear.com/telemark_alpinist_skin.html. The brackets are 70mm apart, which should sit quite high on the 188's meaning you will be near the end of the tail strap though.
I've just bought a set of the new K2 obsethed skis (179cm) with Marker Duke bindings. Would these be the best skins for these skis. If not can anyone reccomend what I should get. Cheers
The G3 Alpinist skins are cutting edge for skin technology - non toxic glue, innovative tip attachment, unmatched glide (in a synthetic skin). I do work for G3 but I have used many different types of skins and none match the Alpinist on all accounts. They also pack up nicely so if you put them in your coat pockets on the way down, you don't look like the Stay-Puffed marshmallow man in your buddies photos!I like Black Diamond and you will find that most people do. I actually like G3 and feel they work equally as well as Black Diamond. I would recommend the G3 Expedition Climbing skins for your set up though. It will be a easier to fit and easier to deal with. Just put in GGG0104 in the search bar at the top of this page and they will pop right up.
Yes, but the tail kit system would be a little more finicky than say the BD STS kit to crank down on the raised tail, but should work okay. Too bad you can't put the G3 skin tip with the BD tail kit!---2nd answer: I've had the same issue with the G3 clips on full twintip skis: they keep slipping off. I've also found that the BD clip works better.
For Volkl Mantra's (sidecut 133-96-116) does it make sense to cut all the way down from 130 width skins, or would it work as well to start with 115's? It seems like there's not much of the ski that's any wider than 115 -- maybe the top quarter?
I disagree with what has been said here - although there is no true right and wrong for skin width sizing. I use a 115 Alpinist on a 128 tip ski with no trouble whatsoever. I have also used a 100mm skin on a 105 wasted ski and also had no issues. I do live on the West Coast but I have used this set up in a variety of snow conditions. Most of your skin stick comes from the middle third of your ski (like a wax pocket on a nordic ski). So long as you have full coverage through that middle portion, you should be good to go. If you have trouble with this sizing then chances are your skin tracks are too steep - remember that you are more efficient setting a lower angle track than simply going straight up. Don't believe me? Ski with an accredited guide and let me know if you climb a steep skin track.If you cut down from 130, you'll have most of the ski covered, whereas if you go with the 115 it'll just be a strip down the center. If you'll be hiking a lot of powder (Rockies) then you'll need all the surface area you can get, so I'd go for the 130. If you'll be skinning on harder snow (glaciers, East Coast, the NW), then go narrow and save yourself the work.-Saving $10 is not worth the frustration man....trust me...go as big as possible!
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