Mounting Point --> DPS Pagoda 112

[Flyguy712]

Hi all. I've recently purchased some DPS Pagoda 112s in 184cm. I bought them from someone on FB Marketplace (never used before) and turns out that person had a smaller foot than me, so I ultimately realized that the bindings would need to be re-mounted. I took them into EVO and got them done at about -6cm from the manufacturer recommended mount point, which I understand is already in the roughly -12cm range due to DPS skis being more "traditional" in form factor. I already knew this about the DPS skis going into it, and the tech assured me that the additional -6cm or so would really not be that noticeable. Well, I skied them for the first time yesterday, and have to say they felt substantially different than my Line Blade Optic 96 (also in 184cm), given that the Line has a much more modern (i.e. centered) mount point. Now to be clear, I'm not freaking out or complaining. What I'm hoping to learn from this group is how I should approach skiing these DPS skis given where I have them currently mounted. When I rode them yesterday, I hiked a ridge and got some deep fresh and it was a dream, they floated so well (especially for my weight at 220lbs). I also noticed that they are fairly easy to turn (thanks to the 15m turn radius). However, once I got into some of the steeper powdery tree runs, I often times would "wash out" because I was expecting more support from the back of my skis. They also tended to be a bit "squirrlier" if I wasn't careful. Is this just something I need to get used to, or do I need to be more intentional with keeping forward pressure on these skis at all times? Any tips would be appreciated! Thanks.

 

[silverback]

I'm not sure I understand your logic to mount them 6cm behind the manufacturers recommendation. First, you are correct, these skis are designed to be mounted at a more traditional, rearward point. That is the recommended line. They were not designed to be mounted rear of that. Second, 6cm is A LOT! Most people notice as little as 1cm or less when going forward or back of recommended. What were you trying to accomplish in going against the DPS's design and testing? This ski has been made for more than 15 years with regular updating on the construction and is a very popular model and well sorted. My experience with them in soft snow is that it is pretty much impossible to bury the tips and that they ride way out of the snow in most conditions, even if you are forward on them. My 2011 pair mounted on the line were amazingly good carvers if you ignored the massive tip flapping.

 

[Flyguy712]

Thanks for the reply @silverback. A couple clarifications...

First, I accidentally wrote 6cm instead of 6mm. Hopefully that makes more sense. I'll see if I can correct my original post for that, since it is an important distinction.

Second, the reason that I had to even consider mounting behind the manufacturer recommended point is that the person who owned them before me had them mounted in a way that was too small for my boot (I tried adjusting the bindings, but couldn't quite make them big enough to fit my boot). So in order to maintain "full strength" in the new mount to accommodate my bigger boot, the shop tech said that I had to choose to either mount forwards or backwards of the recommended point... Which is a bummer, but I didn't think it would be a huge deal.

 

[Jski123]

You are comparing a line blade optic which has a mount point of around -5.5cm and a sheet of metal to a 45% rocker powder ski with a mount point of -12cm. Of course the line ski will feel more stable and have more of a tail. The DPS skis are also 16mm wider. They should feel very different. You will need to get used to the vastly different characteristics of the 2 skis.