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Philpug

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The two hard-snow skis that go Head to ... umm ... up against each other here are the Head Supershape iTitan and Fischer's Curv GT. These two skis deserve a throwdown that the majority of readers will be interested in. They define what Cage Matches are all about: both are designed for the same skier, both sport a Tyrolia system binding, both have an 80mm waist, both are biased toward hard snow -- and both have unique personalities. And believe it or not, neither has ever been in a Cage Match.

You as readers actually don’t need me to do this Cage Match. Why? Because all you have to do is pick up these skis and you will immediately know how they are different and how they are similar. Let's start with the Head Supershape iTitan. The blue triangle on the tip is an indicator of how much rocker Head wants you to think the iTitan has, but don’t take the bait: it's just marketing rocker. It is barely there, which IMHO is a good thing. Sure it takes away a bit of the nervousness when you are transitioning from one turn to the next, but it is ever so subtle and does not do one thing to neuter or slow down the ski. The 80mm waist combined with a wide, flared tip and tail incorporates a 14ish-m turn radius and will bite into a turn and make beautiful S’s all day long. Even at a wider 80 mm underfoot, the iTitan is a purposeful ski -- that purpose is to make beautiful round turns in almost any condition.

The Fischer Curv GT has a cosmetic finish to its design that at least rivals if not surpasses Kästle, which I chose to leave out of this comparison. The milling of the topskin and the finish are jewel-like and worthy of a couple extra minutes of visual appreciation. On the snow, the Fischer is different than the Head. Where the iTitan has a tip that will bite into a turn, the Curv GT’s tip is long and gradual with the sidecut running past the running surface. This design allows the skier to initiate whatever turn he or she chooses. Stand relaxed and upright, and the ski will stay smooth and easy into the turns; but lay it over, and the magic happens. When you do this, the tip connects, the sidecut elongates, and the Curv GT rockets across the hill.
  • Why choose the iTitan? You like consistency. At the bottom of a manicured groomer you stop, look uphill, and compare every turn and how it mirrors the other.
  • Why choose the Curv GT? You like to mix up your turn shapes, yet when a beer is the reward at the end of the run, you can turn it up.
 

wallyk

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This appears to be the first gnarly cage match of the 2018/19 ski season and it looks like I'm the first to comment!!!!!! Possible bonus on two levels!!!!!

Have not skied either ski but discussed the Curve GT with the Fischer rep this summer, he was horrible biased when comparing the GT to a Kastle or Stockli product, as I've been looking for a on piste carver to fill a gap. Have been looking at the Stockli Laser GS, obviously totally different ski, but am thinking that either of these would be a compelling additions and would perhaps be a better or more appropriate solution/product than the Stockli.

Big shoes to fill when writing faintly comparing to a Kastle product and has certainly grabbed my interest.

If I may be so bold, could anyone offer advice about how would one of these skis, perhaps the Head product, could compare to a Stockli Laser GS or another product from Stockli or Kastle MX 84.....I currently have a Stockli SR 88, a Kastle MX74 and a Volkl RaceTiger SL, without that UVO thingy, for local racing.
 

Tony S

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I currently have a Stockli SR 88, a Kastle MX74 and a Volkl RaceTiger SL, without that UVO thingy, for local racing.

Um, sounds like you need a powder ski.
 

Brian Finch

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My take: the Titan was more all round & required a pilot; the Curv GT was a lot of ski to mana he & was less fun- YMMV, I’m 140#.
 

wallyk

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I gave up on a pair of Kadtle MX84's that I only had 4 days on after making only a couple of runs on the Curv GT's. I have become a serious fan of Fischer. Just love their feel

That's an interesting comment. How does the curve behave is cruddy snow or the type of lose granular snow that is pushed to the side of the trail by the end of the day? @Philpug describes the ski as having the ability to "mix up the turn shapes" and given the ability of the skier, has the capability to preform in a manner that the skier desires. How is the ski behave at different speeds? Is it fair to classify the GT as a all mountain GS ski or really an all mountain performance ski?
 

Ron

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Would be curious to see a 3-way comparison between these two skis and the Stoeckli Laser AX, though I suppose we already had a 2-way between the Laser AX and the Curv GT.

having demoed all 3 and I own the AX. I'm in the same camp as @Brian Finch on the Curv. YMMV, but I wasn't enamored with the Curv whereas I love the Titan's consistency, predictability and power. That said, the Stockli Ax is more versatile; I use it as a all mountain ski, has a better feel, (supremely damp but smooth with excellent skier feedback) with plenty of on-demand power all wrapped in a flex pattern that is dialed; not too stiff with an even flex pattern but plenty of power underfoot. The softish tip works extremely well in chop, slop,bumps and a few inches of fresh . The Ax is also quite happy to be skied slowly. Its just more fun, The Titan is a bit more precise in tip engagement though but marginally.

edit: I thought Tony posted that.
 
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Mendieta

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My take: the Titan was more all round & required a pilot; the Curv GT was a lot of ski to mana he & was less fun- YMMV, I’m 140#.

I found this comment interesting, in part because it rings a bell. The first thing that comes to mind when I think about my Rallies is fun. Of course, a little narrower, but same family as the Titan. It also shares that need for constant attention, without being an "experts only" unforgiving ski.

But if I get what you mean, the CurveGT was actually more demanding? It seems to me that @Philpug found it more versatile and relaxed ... which would be kind of the opposite experience. Did I get this right, Brian?
 

Brian Finch

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I found this comment interesting, in part because it rings a bell. The first thing that comes to mind when I think about my Rallies is fun. Of course, a little narrower, but same family as the Titan. It also shares that need for constant attention, without being an "experts only" unforgiving ski.

But if I get what you mean, the CurveGT was actually more demanding? It seems to me that @Philpug found it more versatile and relaxed ... which would be kind of the opposite experience. Did I get this right, Brian?
Yes, but to be fair, I owned the titan and used it as a reference ski for testing for one year.

I only got a few runs on the curve & who knows how dialed in the center mount or the tumors.
 

Andy Mink

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I didn't ski the Titan but have skied the Rally. Also test drove the Curv. I recall not being as stoked about it as many of the other skis I got to test over two days. Could have been the conditions (but I doubt it, it was beautiful), could have been the tune. Could have been me and what I was expecting. It just didn't feel as connected as some of the other skis in its class. On that day. In those conditions. :huh:
 

Uncle-A

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I get confused by the various Curv models:
RC4 the Curv
Curv GT
Curv Ti
Curv DTX

Need to figure that out. Gets even more complicated for some folks when they try to figure out the four Head SuperShape models {I.speed, Rally, Magnum, Titan}

I'm sure all great skis. Lots of them!
Some companies do this and you would think they would know better not to confuse the public. At least the SuperShape line uses names (Magnum, Rally, Speed, & Titan), the Curv uses letters and yes some of the letters are common like GT but what are they doing TEXTING.:huh:
 
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Philpug

Philpug

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I get confused by the various Curv models:
RC4 the Curv
Curv GT
Curv Ti
Curv DTX

Need to figure that out. Gets even more complicated for some folks when they try to figure out the four Head SuperShape models {I.speed, Rally, Magnum, Titan}

I'm sure all great skis. Lots of them!
I find myself going to the Fischer catalog more than any other brand for clarification. Head is one of the most straight forward with their collections. It is just a matter remembering which ones are trimmed in red, blue, green or yellow.
 

Erik Timmerman

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But if I get what you mean, the CurveGT was actually more demanding? It seems to me that @Philpug found it more versatile and relaxed ... which would be kind of the opposite experience. Did I get this right, Brian?

I have been on the Curv GT for two years. For the first year or so, I found it to be very demanding. I'd be like "I'm not so sure I want to do this" when looking at a bump field. I would have said very much a hard snow only ski, and to @wallyk I'd call it more SL than GS. Then this other thing happened and I got a pair of Fischer Freeride boots with Gripwalk soles. When I adjusted the binding for Gripwalk, the AFD went down, and effectively reduced the bindings delta. Since it was my only Gripwalk compatible ski, I ended up using it as an all-mountain ski last season. It was really transformed which I guess just shows how much binding delta can matter. Maybe it matters more on a stiff demanding ski. It is every bit as stiff as the RC4 Curv, and if I'm honest, I think it's odd that it ships with a system binding. It would make sense for it to have the same race plate as the Curv does. Or if it is aimed at more of a "consumer" level for it to have the construction of the DTX. As compared to the Titan, I haven't skied that ski a lot, but one thing that I do know is that it does not hold a candle to the GT for edge hold. Back to back runs on Stowe's Hayride made that quite clear to me.
 

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