Skin Glue Failures... — Jediah Porter

2003 skin glue failure. And human skin also not yet as ravaged…

As in, when the glue on your skins transfers to your skis. This is miserable. Dangerous even.

I've got all kinds of thoughts and learnings from the years of skiing and testing skins (for Outdoorgearlab.com). In no particular order:

Pretty much all brands of skins are vulnerable. I've had glue transfer to ski bases on Pomocas, BD, Contour (non-hybrid), BMSP, G3, Kohla. That I can think of off the top of my head. Can't think of problems I've had with Coll-Tex or Montana brand skins. But I also have less experience with those.
- We hear lots of Pomoca horror stories lately, but we also see and use Pomoca's more than others…
- Silicone "glue" is very inert. Hard to imagine glue peeling from this kind of skin. But, they don't stick to your skis like you wish they would. Many companies have tried this silicone solution and eventually moved on. Likely with good reason.
- The skins that are most resistant to glue delam while also sticking to your skis well enough are the Contour "Hybrid" skins. No one likes this perennial recommendation of mine, as these Contours are heavy, bulky, and require cleaning on a very regular basis. On the other hand, it is hard to imagine glue delam of any sort. I have a pair that has been in service for 6 seasons...
- On the inherent vulnerability of skin glue: think of what we ask of this "technology"... It's gotta stick to your ski, but let go. It's gotta stick to the fabric more than it sticks to your ski. It's gotta stick to itself, but not as well as it sticks to the fabric. And do all this in a cold, wet, shearing environment. Not apologizing for the failures, but its also a tall engineering order; BC skiing as a business isn't big or old enough to have figured all this stuff out yet. Someone could fix the mousetrap and get moderately rich; get on it!
What about prevention? For one thing, I'm reasonably confident it doesn't have much to do with ski base maintenance; I am the sloppiest/laziest ski waxer and don't think I have more or fewer problems than others. Skin abuse (put away wet, let get hot) will definitely cause problems. But poor maintenance isn't the only cause (see above note on all we ask of skins...).
What about refreshing skin glue? Multiple sources suggest ironing your failing glue with parchment paper and/or the slippery paper they come with. This can work, for a little while. There's also the method of direct ironing. Just for fun, tonight, I ironed my failed skins each with a different method; one skin with paper, one with no paper. I'll report more later. I bet I won't find a difference...
What about field treatment? This was my other project today... I tested multiple solvents at home. For removal of glue from ski base. "Citrasolv" is, hands down, the best of what I tried (alcohol, citrasolv, goo gone). So, I made a little kit for my repair kit. Weighs exactly an ounce. Citrasolv soaked rag in a heat-sealed baggie. I bet I'll have to try it out in the coming days, as I'm sure my ironed skins will fail again sooner rather than later.
I've never had any luck with complete reglue of skins.
Moral of the story? I can't think of anything better than getting new skins with increased frequency.