This is just a great all around ski that will satisfy the needs of most expert skiers. Its primary strength is the ability to simply and effortlessly rail turns - but you must have the skills to really carve or you will get bucked around. As with many wider waist all mountain skis, you might encounter skidding on truly steep, icy conditions - think the upper pitch on Liftline at Stowe when you can see your reflection in the ice. But, if that is primarily what you ski, you need a Tigershark or a pure race ski. As far as powder goes, these will work great in all conditions, but are best sub 10 inches and in the crud. If you bring these skis out west and are lucky enough to get a 20 plus inch dump - rent something fatter. All in all though, these skis deserve all the accolades they get in the media.

such is the case in the ski world. I bought the AC40s last year, and they're sick. I can't imagine them being any better, but apparently the AC50s are. Ice? That was ice? It felt like butter. These things love to turn, but will hold on as long as you can in longer arcs. Fast, fast, fast. Don't forget to breath. I ski my AC40s at 170cm, volkl recommended 163. The longer ski is still effortless. I feel like I'm cheating at the sport. This may not be the best in the powder, but for most people, having a powder ski is like having expensive sunglasses in Kodiak. In my opinion, this is the one ski to have in your arsenal. You absolutely will not regret buying these. I actually skipped classes last year to ski these... and my grades improved!! Must have been the extra endorphines. For the record, I had a 12 year ski hiatus from 5 knee surgeries, then finished college. I'm 31 now, so if I can ski these, anyone can.

Caution: Mixing the Volkl AC50's with Iron Maiden blaring in your ears can be potentially hazardous to your health if you are not prepared for the consequences. These ski's rip. As any adrenaline junkie or ex-racer will appreciate, Iron Maiden during free skiing or training seems to make everything much more intense and fast. These ski's have the same impact to your skiing as the intensity of The Number of the Beast. While I haven't had them in deep powder, whether moderate powder, chop, crud, groomed, ice, these ski truly perform...stable, smooth, & powerful. If you ski these like they were meant to be, they don't carve, they launch you on rails. Hang on! I'm 5'7" and ski the 177 and find it performs extremely well at both long and short turns. You can turn the volumn down and have fun skiing on them at moderate speeds & turns, but the skis strengths definitely shine the faster and harder you ski them...in any terrain. Need a big dump out here to see how they do in deeper powder...

Wow, these are fast. If you want to rip down the mountain and love a long turn radius, these are your dream come true. Buy your ticket, climb aboard and rocket down the mountain.

On the other hand, if you're looking for a pair of groomer/bump skis and prefer slalom over GS turns (like me), I'd choose to the AC30s.

I'm 5'8" 155lbs and skied the 170s.

I've skied for 3 decades and after riding these big boys I'll probably be tearing it up for 3 more. They are simply amazing. You want power, you got it, you want to blast thru crud like a Sherman tank, you got it, you want to carve strong lines like Arnold, simply hold on.
Volkl has made me feel like that teenager that felt invincible so many years ago when I first fell in love with the mountain.
I'm a Volkl customer for life, get some and you'll feel the way Warren Miller feels about the snow.

I picked these up off tramdock last week and finally had a chance to go up to our local resort for some night skiing during the annual march dump here in the cascades. We had about 6" of cascade powder which had quickly turned into moguls. The skis did really well in the variable snow conditions. I can imagine they would do well in deeper powder .

They can carve on ice better than any ski I have had. I tend to ski with alot of short turns but these skis wanted to do large GS turns at high speed. They are pretty heavy for moguls but they do have a short turning radius so its not too bad. These skis are really good for steeps because it can get an edge on anything. You better be in good shape or they will kick your butt.

I am 5'8" 170 lbs and ski the 177's. These things are super fast and are super fun if you open up on them. Would not recommend buying unless you can ski

I took these out on demo @ Vail yesterday. It had been 3 days since fresh powder so the back bowls were a little cruddy with chewed up bumps. These suckers cut through them with style and felt smooth as butter. Don't even mention the black groomers...HANG ON TO YOUR BREATH! At 40 MPH + they remained super stable and FAST! Put them into the powder bumps and they'll tear it up too. The only weak spot would be the tight bumps...but I like to avoid those anyhow. They provided the best skiing experience in 25 years. I happened to be skiing with a 25 year Vail ski instructor all day who was using the same ski. His comments were identical. FUN FUN FUN. I am 6'1" 205 lb and used the 170s. They held just fine and felt like I was skiing a 195.

After Demo'ing the AC40's last year, I did not think Volkl could produce something significantly better in such a short time-frame. They did. These ski's are simply amazing. Excellent handling, and cornering, even at high speeds. These skis are not for the faint-of-heart, you need to be an expert skier to handle these bad-boys. For those with the skills, these skis will take you to the next level.

I'm a former racer who is just getting back into skiing after a 6 year hiatus. As a long-time Volkl fan, I ended up on a pair of AC50s after hours of online research, but no actual time on the skis. Long story short, after only a few days on the snow I am confident saying mine was a wise decision! I ski mainly the bullet-proof snow of northern MN and these skis grip harder than anything I have ever been on. They lay down beautiful arcs, but are likely not the choice for those who favor shorter, lower speed turns. The AC50s definitely shine at higher speeds and require someone willing to stay focused on the task at hand... take a moment to admire something other than your next turn and they'll end up skiing you. I can't wait to take them out west and test their abilities in softer snow, if they're half as good as they are on hard stuff I'm going to have my best ski trip to date.

crud, fresh, ice, steep, all over...these are the real deal. Get them on edge and charge thru anything the mountain can give you. Easier on the legs than the Head monsters. I've got the 184's w/ the marker wide ride 14's. I'm smitten...Skiied them in OR, WA, BC.

I have skied these all over the mountain. The only place they do not perform with flying colors is in tight bumps. But then again, I do not go looking to ski just bumps anymore. You can really lean into this ski, but if you do you will be grinning from ear to ear with excitement. No matter the conditions, these skis will not disappoint.

A ski better than the AC 40? Incredible! I'll have to demo a pair as soon as I get to CO next week. With that said, I scored a pair of AC 40's last February for $600.00! Probably one of the best deals I've ever gotten. Skied them 20+ days before the season ended and then spent a week+ on them in August in Chile! These ski's can ski anything as long as you can handle them. I'm 49, 5'9" and 175 pounds and ski the 170's.

I bought the AC 40's at the beginning of this year, and Instantly fell in love with them. They hold an edge on anything, have decent float and power through the crud. The only weakness is tight, icy bumps; they're a little too stiff to maneuver well when its really icy. I have skied them at Winter Park and Copper and haven't had a bad day on them, I only wish that there had been more powder days in Colorado this year. The AC 40 and AC 50 are virtually the same, except the AC 50 is 3mm wider under food.

Previously riding on a pair of 194cm Salomon Super Mountains for powder and a pair of 180cm Fischer RX8 FTi's for GS and groomers. It is time to put them both away!!

Bought a pair of 177cm AC 50's and they smoke both in the powder or on the hardpack / ice. They lack some responsiveness when doing slow short radius turns and don't like hard tight bumps. But turn up the speed, lay 'em over in a turn and these things grip like no tomorrow and dare you to go faster! In the powder, the AC50's have a wonderful even flex, great rebound and make riding the deep stuff a ton of fun. Finally, want to point these down the fall line through soft bumps and powder? Go for it; you will be howling.

Lastly, just did three days in Vail and cranked out over 75,000 feet of vertical. I am 55 and not once did my legs feel beat up. Dream skis folks!!

I have a pair of 177 AC 4's , I love those skis. I love the 50's , but you can not day dream on these skis. you have to stay totally focased on these sticks !!