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Splitboard skins made of mohair, nylon or mixed material
The side of the skin which is turned towards the snow is either made of mohair or synthetic material. Here, the fibers are woven to make them all face the same direction. Very much liked are also mix materials of mohair and nylon. Mohair, consisting of the hair of the angora goat, is known for being lightweight and robust. Nylon on the other side, is not as expensive as mohair.
Mohair skins, their pros and cons: This natural product has very good gliding and breaking capabilities, it is water repellant and stays the same even in freezing temperature. Also, colder temperatures do not in any way change the skin being flexible and soft. Still, mohair is a nature product, making it a bit less durable than synthetic materials and if you are looking for a good mohair skin, you will have to be ready to pay a bit more.
Nylon skins, their pros and cons: More durable and a bit cheaper. The great grip capabilities remain the same, even in coldest temperatures. But compared to mohair skins, the gliding abilities are a tiny bit weaker and the skins may become stiff when it is really really cold. Also, it tends to absorb more moisture, leaning a bit more towards clustering and catching snow. But there is lots of research happening in this field.
Mixed material – the best of both worlds: These skins are a mix of mohair and nylon. Consisting of about 70% nature produce and 30% synthetic material. These splitboard skins are both durable and robust, water repellant, flexible and preventing clustering of snow. No wonder these are getting more and more popular!
©Splitboard skins in the ascent by K2 + Maximilian Prechtel
Glue or vacuum – how do I make my skins stick to the splitboard?
To guarantee the best gliding and breaking abilities, the skins need to stick perfectly to your board.
Glue skins: Thanks to glue, the skins stick to your splitboard. This glue is fixed onto one side of the skins in a way, that when being pulled off, there are no residuals left on the base. An issue that tourers have with this type of skin however, is the fact that these skins themselves can easily stick together. Especially when being detached during very strong wind, this can easily happen. To prevent the skins to stick together when being stores, they have to be put unto foil or nets, which come with the skins.
Vacuum splitboard skins: These skins do not need any glue. Instead, they use a specific coating, making them attach themselves to the base of your board. The great advantage with these is clear: The skins will not stick to one another when being pulled off or stored. However, they generally do not stick as well in some conditions as glue ones do.
©Taking off splitboard skins by G3
What about precut or trim yourself splitboard skins?
Together with the skin manufacturers, most splitboard brands offer specific skins to fit their boards perfectly. These are already cut to suit the length, width and shape of your board and also have the suiting attachments to fix them onto the board. But these skins are not always available, and sometimes, you might want a different kind of material or adhesive layer. Therefore, there are trim skins. As the name already tells, you have to cut these yourself. As there are a bunch of different things to pay attention to when doing so, we have experts at Sport Conrad to take care of this for you! Also, you can find some advice on how to do this in our blog. You will also need the rest of your splitboard equipment: board, bindings, clips and boots. We recommend you to buy these as a set, which will be cheaper! Also, do not forget your safety gear, before heading into the backcountry you need your avalanche transceiver, shovel and avalanche probe!