What Metal?

[krp8128]

What kinds of metal are people putting into their skis, and how thick? Any specific problems/fixes you have found (adhesion, delams)? I'm wondering how spring steel would affect the performance of the ski.

[jja]

I see that you posted this a while ago but nobody answered, I'll give it a shot! I've been looking at metal for 4 years. what I've learned is that they use Titanal(aluminium, titanium alloy). In snowboarding we use a 0.3mm thickness. In skiing it depends on the discipline; slalom 0.4mm, in gs 0.6, in super-g 0.8 and downhill up to 1.2mm. They use multiple layers of metal sometimes one on top of the other. Generaly the idea is that it gives you a better distribution of torsional flex. In snowboard racing it revolutionized the sport. For adhesion I spoke with people that have given me some nice tips, but it can be tricky and there's a lot to it. write back if you think I can help with any of your concerns.

[endre]

there's no titanium in titanal (it's a 7000 something alloy)
though some actually use titanium grade 5 or 22 or whatever (like blizzard) in their skis. It's pretty expensive to get in small quantities, but i guess it has very good adhesion properties

[Truckee Joe]

I am very interested because i want to start to put this in my foam ski to help with torsional flex, what do i need to buy and how do i prepare for layup?