Winter equipment, read on its published figures
The flex index describes the boot,
and the waist width is the part that decides the snow.
Skis for the piste, for the skin track and for the loipe, boards, snowshoes and skates — then the boots, bindings, helmets and goggles, and the skins, wax, lenses and straps bought every season after. Compared on the lines that decide whether a purchase was worth making: what waist width a ski really has, whether a binding's brake will pass over it, which sole standard a boot carries, and what light a lens was made for. Priced on the Amazon store in your own country.
- Categories covered
- 46
- Products reviewed
- 151
- Accessories & spares
- 167
Every family, from the ski to the wax that goes on it
Start from the snow you actually ski
20 families bought once and kept for years on end, 26 that wear out, run out and get bought again. Each hub compares one family and opens with a direct answer to “which one should I buy?”, followed by the published specification most often misread when buying it.
- Alpine skis Length, and the binding that almost always comes with it
- Touring skis The lightest ski here, and the only one that walks uphill
- Cross-country skis Sold as a complete set, and sized on your weight
- Snowboards Length, flex and the stance the board is drilled for
- Snowshoes Frame size in inches, and the weight it is rated to carry
- Sledges Wood, plastic or steered — and whether it has a brake
- Ice skates Figure or hockey — two blades that do opposite jobs
- Ski boots Flex, last width in millimetres, and Mondopoint
- Snowboard boots The lacing system, and how stiff the boot really is
- Ski bindings DIN range and brake width — two numbers, no approximation
- Snowboard bindings Strap, rear-entry or step-on — three ways in
- Ski helmets Shell size in centimetres, and whether a visor replaces goggles
- Ski goggles Filter category, and whether they fit over spectacles
- Avalanche transceivers Three antennas, and the range the maker publishes
- Airbag backpacks Cartridge or fan, and what the pack weighs empty
- Edge sharpeners The angle it sets, and whether the file is included
- Boot dryers Warm air or gentle heat, and whether it runs on a timer
- Hockey sticks Flex, curve and hand — three numbers on every shaft
- Skate sharpeners A hollow, not an edge — and what it cannot do
- Ski poles Length, shaft material, and the basket at the bottom
- Ski carry straps Two euros of webbing that holds a pair together
- Goggle lenses A second filter category, and whether it clips on
- Wrist guards A splint, and whether it goes under a glove
- Avalanche shovels An aluminium blade on a shaft that packs — not a car shovel
- Avalanche probes Length in centimetres, and how fast it assembles
- Climbing skins Cut to your ski, and glued or gecko-backed
- Ski crampons Width in millimetres, and it must match the binding
- Stomp pads Grip for the back foot, between the bindings
- Ski vises Three clamps, and whether it holds a snowboard too
- Glide wax The temperature band on the packet, and how it goes on
- Grip wax For the kick zone of a classic ski, and nothing else
- Scrapers and brushes Plexi thickness, and three bristles that do three jobs
- Ski bags Length, padding, and whether poles go in too
- Boot bags A helmet compartment, and straps that make it a rucksack
- Ski racks Pairs held, stated load, and whether it is a ski rack at all
- Ski gloves Waterproof membrane, insulation weight, and glove or mitten
- Ski socks One thin pair, merino, and padding only where it belongs
- Neck warmers Merino or fleece, and whether it fits under a helmet
- Hand warmers Rechargeable or disposable, and how long the heat lasts
- Skate guards Soaker, hard guard or wheels — three ways to cover a blade
- Ice grips Spike count, stainless steel, and a harness that stays on
- Ski locks Cable length, code or key, and what it will actually stop
- Snow brushes Length, a telescopic handle, and bristles that do not scratch
- Impact shorts Hip, tailbone and thigh pads, and whether they stay in place
- Ski tuning files Teeth per centimetre, a diamond grit, and a guide with an angle
- Waxing kits What is in the box, and whether the iron is the real one
How this site works
Three rules this site keeps on every page
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Ordered on published figures, never on what a sale would pay
Commission has no say in where anything ranks. When the mid-priced binding is the sensible buy because its brake widths are still stocked in four sizes, the page says so plainly — and when a dearer goggle earns its cost because the maker publishes the filter category of the spare lens in the box, the page explains exactly that.
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The figure that decides, in the unit its maker chose
A waist width given in millimetres rather than by adjective; a flex index kept beside the fact that it is not comparable between makers; a wax band kept beside the snow temperature it refers to, not the air; a DIN range named as a range the binding covers, not as a setting for anybody. Each appears in the maker’s unit with its source named. A figure no maker published is marked as missing, never filled in.
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Sent to the Amazon store that can actually deliver it
A press opens the same reference on the Amazon store for wherever you are reading, priced in your own currency. Where a model has no offer on that store — and a two-metre ski is stocked, shipped and priced very differently from one market to the next — the page says so instead of sending you to a listing that has gone.