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Cage Match Comparison 2021 Völkl Deacon 84 vs 2021 Völkl V.Werks 84

Philpug

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Völkl has been offering a halo V.Werks collection for about a decade, and this Cage Match pits the mainstream Deacon 84 against its well-heeled brother, V.Werks 84. Other mainstream brands have tried to compete with Völkl’s V.Werks in this segment with their own premium models but have succumbed to Völkl's momentum. Völkl’s Deacon V.Werks is not just a pretty face, the graphics really are a raw design highlighting the crossed carbon placements that stand out in their own subtle way.

The in-line Deacon 84 is a culmination of many generations of skis that Völkl has offered in this class, going back to the 724 of the early 2000s. Through the evolutions, Völkl swung the pendulum from the I-beam-stiff AC 50 to the zero-camber first-generation RTM 84. The Lowride XL binding allows a reactive feel and, combined with a thinner sidewall, gives the Deacon 84 a quick edge change. The Deacon 84 is one of the more serious skis in this class -- meaning it rewards good technique and is biased toward hard snow.

The V.Werks version of the Deacon is a different animal altogether. [everyone] "The V.Werks version of the Deacon is a different animal."[/everyone] With its carbon infusion, it feels like a much more tightly wound digital version of the regular Deacon. Think of the V.Werks as an AMG Black Edition of your favorite Mercedes, which offers unlimited power and refinement to an already stellar model.

Where I feel both of these skis, along with quite a few other Völkl models, are separating themselves from other offerings is their 3D radius sidecut, which is 21/15/24 in the reference 177cm model. It is easy to say that these offer a 15m radius, but that does not tell the whole story of how these will ski. It is the longer fore and aft radius that give the skis a unique connection to the snow.
  • Why choose the Deacon 84? You are willing to forgo the Nth degree of hard snow performance at the cost of versatility while saving a few Benjamins.
  • Why choose the Deacon V.Werks? While these are less expensive than some of the premium brand offerings, they are a great option for someone who wants a premium ski without the high price to match.
  • Insider tip: Where most brands offer their models in this range in 7-8cm increments, Völkl offers both of these models in 5cm increments for less chance to fall between sizes.
 

anders_nor

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Interesting, I was adviced against the v.werks by a friend who knows me/my style, and for my fairly tall/heavy build, still havent written it of thought, but think I need to demo it back to back against my current deacon 84s. Argument was that it was lighter and might not share my love for silly speed, especially in variable snow.
 

Rich_Ease_3051

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Hi guys. Has anybody compared the 84 and V Werks to the Deacon 80? Australian ski season coming up and I'm a first time buyer looking to buy a Volkl as my first pair.
 

jt10000

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Hi guys. Has anybody compared the 84 and V Werks to the Deacon 80? Australian ski season coming up and I'm a first time buyer looking to buy a Völkl as my first pair.
I can't answer your question, but was in your position a few years ago (assuming you are fairly new to skiing) - going from renting skis to purchasing. I got the Völkl RTM 79 (a little "less ski"than the Deacon 80) after a season on beginner skis. I think if I'd gone right to the RTM 84 it would have been a bit too much for my intermediate skills. BUT with the way I'm progressing I'm pretty sure I'll get a more advanced ski by the end of next season (my 3rd on the RTM79s). Actually I'd like a more advanced ski right now, but had massive childcare expenses due to the pandemic so have to wait.

So really the thing is what are you skiing on now and what is your size/skills?
 

anders_nor

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the deacon 84 is a very friendly "advanced to expert" ski with some rocker, dont worry about your level really, its not punishing, it makes you look good when you are not ;)

my gf can even ski my 182cm without any issues.

I have a friend who started skiiing in january, he bought the 84's after skiiing 4 to 5 times... and has loves them next 50+ times ;) he is finally able to actually carve them with edge angle instead of just skidding.

I've loaned out my regular deacon & vwerks 84 to I think 20+ people this year, some of them "I ski 1-2 times per year" and everybody has been amazed at how easy they are, and how good.
 

Rich_Ease_3051

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I can't answer your question, but was in your position a few years ago (assuming you are fairly new to skiing) - going from renting skis to purchasing. I got the Völkl RTM 79 (a little "less ski"than the Deacon 80) after a season on beginner skis. I think if I'd gone right to the RTM 84 it would have been a bit too much for my intermediate skills. BUT with the way I'm progressing I'm pretty sure I'll get a more advanced ski by the end of next season (my 3rd on the RTM79s). Actually I'd like a more advanced ski right now, but had massive childcare expenses due to the pandemic so have to wait.

So really the thing is what are you skiing on now and what is your size/skills?

Thanks for the reply jt10000. On a good day, my skill is probably comparable to the guy in the video below skiing Zalis. That is, can ski a nice groomed corduroy run on a cold, blue bird day where the refrozen pack that's machined groomed in the morning turns to sugar snow midday to afternoon at the peak of winter. Anything warmer than that, like wet heavy snow or spring slush, I struggle.


Gender: male

Age: 44

Height: 5'8"/172cm

Weight: 182lbs/83kg

Skill Level: intermediate

Feet width: 105-110mm

Boots: 85 flex wide boots 27.5 mondo 104mm wide. Head Advant Edge 85

Previous skis: rentals. "Performance" ones but don't know what brand they are.

Years skiing: 3. About 7 days per year

Goals: to improve carving and ski steeper terrain

Terrain: On-piste only. I would describe my local resorts, Thredbo and Perisher, as refrozen pack that's machine groomed in the early morning that becomes dry sugar snow mid-day to late afternoon (in the winter) or slush (in spring). Most days are blue bird days and I rarely get days where there are fresh dumps. Fresh snow seems to happen mostly in the evenings or in days that I'm not in the resort, so I'm not looking for a powder ski or anything like that.



Here are videos of typical Australian resort conditions off youtube of Thredbo (1st video) and Perisher (2nd to 4th video). These 2 resorts are close to each other so conditions and snow quality are similar.


Thredbo longest run:


Zali's Perisher:


Mount Perisher:


Kamikaze in Perisher (steep black run):

 
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Rich_Ease_3051

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the deacon 84 is a very friendly "advanced to expert" ski with some rocker, dont worry about your level really, its not punishing, it makes you look good when you are not ;)

my gf can even ski my 182cm without any issues.

I have a friend who started skiiing in january, he bought the 84's after skiiing 4 to 5 times... and has loves them next 50+ times ;) he is finally able to actually carve them with edge angle instead of just skidding.

I've loaned out my regular deacon & vwerks 84 to I think 20+ people this year, some of them "I ski 1-2 times per year" and everybody has been amazed at how easy they are, and how good.

Thank you for replying ander_nor. My local resort, Perisher, is not having industry demo day this year, like last year, due to Covid.


So my only option for demoing is a ski shop in Perisher which carry a bunch of Salomon and Volkl skis.


As this is my first time buying skis, my plan is to just demo Volkl in all underfoot sizes and see what would best work form me. They have in the store:
Racetiger SC 70
Deacon 76
Deacon 80
Deacon 84
Kanjo 84
Kendo 88
Bash
Mantra

I will exclude the Bash and Mantra as they are a park ski and a wide (for Australia) >90 underfoot ski, respectivley, and not suitable for my ski goals.

The shop lets one audition 3 at a time for a demo fee (deducted on purchase of a ski) and my plan right now is to demo 2 x 3 skis just to get a feel for what different underfoot widths feel like:

First 3 on day 1:
Racetiger SC 70
Deacon 76
Deacon 80

Second 3 on day 2:
Deacon 84
Kanjo 84
Kendo 88

I guess my question is, given the above personal stats I provided to jt10000, what length do you think I should be demoing the 6 skis above?
 
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anders_nor

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deacon 84 172cm or 76, be done & happy

iirc deacon 76 has way more umph than the 80 which is kinda the middle child
 

GregK

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Deacon 84 has a titanal frame vs the Deacon 80 that uses a lighter and more forgiving fibreglass frame in that area along with lower quality base material used on the Deacon 80.
This is similar to the more “all mountain” shaped Kendo 88 that uses the titanal frame vs the lighter and softer flexing Kanjo 84 that again uses fibreglass instead of titanal.

The Deacon 76 would be another step above the Deacon 84 in stiffness and precision, so less forgiving.

Deacon will be the best on piste with the Kendo 88 and Kanjo 84 giving up some carving ability for more off piste performance. If you’re going mostly groomers, I’d be leaning towards a Deacon with the 84 being a pretty versatile model.

Your 85 flex boots would be a concern for your size(more a beginner flex) and getting some properly fitted boots aimed at an advancing intermediate would be my first step. Then you’d get better control and performance out of your new skis.
 

Rich_Ease_3051

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Deacon 84 has a titanal frame vs the Deacon 80 that uses a lighter and more forgiving fibreglass frame in that area along with lower quality base material used on the Deacon 80.
This is similar to the more “all mountain” shaped Kendo 88 that uses the titanal frame vs the lighter and softer flexing Kanjo 84 that again uses fibreglass instead of titanal.

The Deacon 76 would be another step above the Deacon 84 in stiffness and precision, so less forgiving.

Deacon will be the best on piste with the Kendo 88 and Kanjo 84 giving up some carving ability for more off piste performance. If you’re going mostly groomers, I’d be leaning towards a Deacon with the 84 being a pretty versatile model.

Your 85 flex boots would be a concern for your size(more a beginner flex) and getting some properly fitted boots aimed at an advancing intermediate would be my first step. Then you’d get better control and performance out of your new skis.

With our local conditions, the corduroy quickly gets powdered in the first hour or two after opening. It's still hard packed underneath, but with dry sugar powder on top from all the skiers criss-crossing the slopes throughout the day.

As our slopes are east facing, they remain dry and fast during winter peak as the afternoon sun doesn't get an opportunity to melt the sugar powder. So the ski conditions, say, from 10-11 AM until close can be described as hard packed underneath with about an inch of dry sugar powder from skiers criss crossing the slopes and from snow making machines. The dry sugar powder develop into little moguls from about 2PM from skiers kicking the sugar powder around.

I'm thinking the softer Deacon 80 might be more suitable given the majority of my skiing is in this hard packed that's buffered by dry sugar snow. Also, with my aging knees, I don't see myself doing hip-to-the-ground moves in corduroy majority of the time. I rather like carving the hard packed with little sugar moguls buffering my moves.

Given this, does it make sense to keep my soft boots and pair it with the softer Deacon 80? Or will I benefit from stiffer boots even if I decide to go with the softer options like the Deacon 80 or Kanjo?
 
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Rich_Ease_3051

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deacon 84 172cm or 76, be done & happy

iirc deacon 76 has way more umph than the 80 which is kinda the middle child

How about the V Werks? It's not available at the Perisher shop, but I'm thinking of going blind and importing it from an online shop. I'm thinking the slightly lower weight will help my aging knees in that I don't have to expend more effort trashing around a lighter carbon ski? Thoughts?
 
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Philpug

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How about the V Werks? It's not available at the Perisher shop, but I'm thinking of going blind and importing it from an online shop. I'm thinking the slightly lower weight will help my aging knees in that I don't have to expend more effort trashing around a lighter carbon ski? Thoughts?
The V.Werks is a really nice ski with a huge performance range but as mentioned before your boot will be the weak link. Imagine getting a new Porsche 911 and having the least expensive discount store tires on it and what it would cost in performance. You will get more performance from the Deacon 80 and a better boot than a V.Werks and your current 85 flex. The better boot will also help your knees to a point in that you will not have to exend so much energy controlling the ski.
 

GregK

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As @Philpug mentioned, the boots will improve your progression as well as making skiing easier regardless of the ski used. There would be no “wasted energy” when using a properly fitted and matched boot.

The Deacon skis sound perfect for your conditions and you actually get more vibration dampening on the slightly heavier Deacon 84. The lightest ski you’re considering, the Kanjo 84 will be the easiest to swing around in tight spots but the heavier Kendo 88 will smooth out the variable afternoon snow and track better though it with less work. Heavier skis are usually more damp and weight is your friend in resort skis. Improper technique, ill fitted boots and misadjusted bindings will all waste energy and heavy skis just highlight those issues more.

I’d still demo all those skis after getting some new boots just to experience the difference between them. I’d maybe wait on the Racetiger and maybe the Deacon 76 until you’re a bit more advanced as they won’t be as forgiving of mistakes as the Deacon 80/84 or the Kendo 88/Kanjo 84.
 

Jim McDonald

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When I first saw your post, @Rich_Ease_3051, I considered suggesting better boots but refrained as I knew that more knowledgeable members would make that plain.
Listen to them!
 

Rich_Ease_3051

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Thank you all Greg, Phil, and Jim noted re: boots too soft. Will see a boot fitter tomorrow.
 

anders_nor

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How about the V Werks? It's not available at the Perisher shop, but I'm thinking of going blind and importing it from an online shop. I'm thinking the slightly lower weight will help my aging knees in that I don't have to expend more effort trashing around a lighter carbon ski? Thoughts?

its more of a wallet thing, I prefer the v-werks deacon 84, to the regular deacon 84, but I have skied 100+ days on the deacon 84 non v-werks.... so yes I like the regular one as well.

(I have both)

As other points out, your boots will probably be the weakest link, but not unskiiable weakest link style, just not get the full potential out of the ski.

all my porsche buddies has the v-werks, the bmw guys has regular (not even kidding)

I have never started off my friends in anything softer than a 110 flex for grown adult men for beginners, and then 130, most female friends at 110-115 as well.

your kinda thinking about the knees thing wrong for frontside groomers, heavier skis you just roll side to side carving takes little toll on knees as they smoothen the ride. weight on the groomers = your friend usually. And the rocker makes them very friendly if you wanna bleed some speed.
 
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Rich_Ease_3051

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its more of a wallet thing, I prefer the v-werks deacon 84, to the regular deacon 84, but I have skied 100+ days on the deacon 84 non v-werks.... so yes I like the regular one as well.

(I have both)

As other points out, your boots will probably be the weakest link, but not unskiiable weakest link style, just not get the full potential out of the ski.

all my porsche buddies has the v-werks, the bmw guys has regular (not even kidding)

Will definitely upgrading boots tomorrow.

Regular Deacon 84 retails for about AUD$1,500-$1600 at the moment here in Sydney with lowride bindings. An imported Deacon V Werks with lowride is about the same price (about 950 Euros or around AUD$1500) even with delivery fee from a site like snowcountry.eu. But they only have 167 and 172 lengths at the moment.

Unfortunately the VWerks is not available locally. New stock usually comes in in May and I haven't seen indication that locals will be stocking it.

I'm tempted to just import the 172 VWerks cosidering there's not much difference in price with a locally bought Deacon 84. The only thing holding me back is this is my first ski and I have never really demo'd a whole bunch of different underfoots in my whole life.

I might just wait til I demo. Hopefully, the VWerks will still be availble to purchase by then. I'm not even sure if 84 will be the right underfoot for me. We'll see.
 

jt10000

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I have never started off my friends in anything softer than a 110 flex for grown adult men for beginners, and then 130, most female friends at 110-115 as well.
You're saying non-beginner men of average size or more should all be on 130 or more? Interesting.
 

anders_nor

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Will definitely upgrading boots tomorrow.

Regular Deacon 84 retails for about AUD$1,500-$1600 at the moment here in Sydney with lowride bindings. An imported Deacon V Werks with lowride is about the same price (about 950 Euros or around AUD$1500) even with delivery fee from a site like snowcountry.eu. But they only have 167 and 172 lengths at the moment.

Unfortunately the VWerks is not available locally. New stock usually comes in in May and I haven't seen indication that locals will be stocking it.

I'm tempted to just import the 172 VWerks cosidering there's not much difference in price with a locally bought Deacon 84. The only thing holding me back is this is my first ski and I have never really demo'd a whole bunch of different underfoots in my whole life.

I might just wait til I demo. Hopefully, the VWerks will still be availble to purchase by then. I'm not even sure if 84 will be the right underfoot for me. We'll see.
a buddy who hasn't skied in 35 years (only snowboarded) got the v-werks this season, he was rippin carves his first outing, dont worry, its not too much ski. With that said I dont think you will fully appreciate the ski for a few seasons, for just how good it is. Doing a demo is of course always fun, but if you like the regular 84s and can get the v-werks for the same price, its a nobrainer. Here in Europe, norway, we pay almost double for the v-werks over the regular, when both are on sale.

snowcountry has been very good to me, bought quite a lot there, given them 3-4000 euros just this season :eek:
 

anders_nor

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You're saying non-beginner men of average size or more should all be on 130 or more? Interesting.
after loaning out, or getting buddies to buy a proper fit 130 boot, not a single one has ever skied their 110 again.

Unless your drunk at après more than you ski, I dont see the thing with a 110.
 

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