Ski Builders Forum

I know there was some talk about using Basalt fiber instead of fiberglass, but I was wondering where you can find it in North America? The new salomon shogun is apparently using some basalt in the build (along with bamboo).

you can get it from some european suppliers like www.swiss-composite.ch or www.r-g.de
don't know any US suppliers though.

or try www.basaltex.com in belgium.

btw, do you know which type of basalt fiber (type of roving e.g. biax, triax, ud,... and what weight) to use best?

chrismp wrote: btw, do you know which type of basalt fiber (type of roving e.g. biax, triax, ud,... and what weight) to use best?

it`s pretty easy: use the one you get!
no, seriously, there aren`t many types of tissues. some 500g and some 200g tissues. unidirectional is hard to get, at least i didn`t found any by now, as is biaxial.
but basalt is really really nice. the only downside: it eats cutting blades, maybe even worse than carbon.

I'll keep looking. For a small amount shipping from Europe will be tough.

Also anybody using Bamboo fiberglass? I've been reading about it in surfboards, and thinking about trying it in my next ski. greenlightsurfsupplyDOTcom but it's only around 6oz.

Plywood - the Basalt was in the attila skis right? The color is a nice effect, how do you like the ride? Does the basalt "feel" different.

bamboo fibreglass sounds interesting. but the tissue they offer there may not be that ideal for skibuilding as the fibres go in all directions...i guess therefore it could lack of longitudinal stiffness.

jep, the attila have basalt on top and i just finished a second pair with basalt. the basalt i`ve got weights about 200g/m2 and is woven in twill (i hope it`s called like this, it`s a special style of weave on which the fibres run at 0° and 90°). on the attilas i used it mostly for optical reasons. i had a transparent topsheet and didn`t want to put "normal" cloth underneath so i searched for something that looks good and contributes to the flex of the ski at the same time. there i only used 1 layer of basalt. on the newest pair i didn`t use a topsheet and put 2 layers of basalt on the top.

the color effect is one advantage of basalt. if you only use one sheet of 200g the woodcore below still shines through. with 2 layers it turns completely dark and looks a bit like carbon.

if it feels different... hard to say. basalt is somewhere between fibreglass and carbon, regarding its properties etc. but as i only got twill tissue i can`t really compare it to carbon or fibreglass as i mostly used unidirectional or biaxial carbon/glass and never twill. probabely the basalt adds a little springyness to the skis, they snap back a little harder than with glass.

Check sollercomposites.com

They sell a 2" diameter basalt sleeve that is a 23oz. But I would give em a call and see if they can find you something...