New Head Monster i. M 82 for 2006/7

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New Head Monster i. M 82 for 2006/7

Postby Mr. T » Mon Jan 16, 2006 8:16 am

We hardly had the time to tell each other how good the new Head Monster i.M 88 introduced in 2005/6 is that Head has already introduced the new Head i.M 82. You can find a picture on the following site:

http://www.princetonoutdoor.com/browse.cfm/4,9607,0.htm

It appears as if the ski is already for sale at a decent price and, a little puzzling to me, that it is already labelled as the Like its predecessor, the i.M 88, this ski will soon become a living legend on the freeride scene. With Twintip Technology, the i.M 82 is now cutting an even more impressive figure in the backcountry. Despite its wide footprint, the Monster i.M 82 also performs impressively on hard pack thanks to Intelligence Technology and Liquidmetal. Dimensions: 122-82-108 Radius: 17m

Now it is all good for me (although I do not like too much the colors), but you wonder if the i.M 88 was this amazing ski, why Head felt the need to replace it already in the middle of its first season. Maybe the kudos are wrong and the i.M 88 will see more action. Nevertheless, it seems that the i.M 82 is a direct competitor to the i.M 88. :roll:
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Not replacing the iM88

Postby Jim Ratliff » Mon Jan 16, 2006 9:54 pm

I don't think the iM82 is replacing the iM88, just another ski in the lineup.

Seems like Head thinks they need to have a ski inserted in every 5mm of waist width (xrc 67-68, im72, im77, im82, im88, supermojo 102)
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Re: Not replacing the iM88

Postby ginaliam » Tue Jan 17, 2006 11:37 am

Jim Ratliff wrote:I don't think the iM82 is replacing the iM88, just another ski in the lineup.

Seems like Head thinks they need to have a ski inserted in every 5mm of waist width (xrc 67-68, im72, im77, im82, im88, supermojo 102)



This ski has come up on other forums and the question is generally the same--is there any point to this ski (i.e what's 5mm get you that wouldn't be better served by the im77 or the im 88 depending on your tastes-especially considering how versaltile those two skis are)?

Just wondering,

LLiam
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IM82

Postby gostan » Tue Jan 17, 2006 1:29 pm

Skiing the various skis will be the only way to determine what Head's new 5CM pyramid scheme will provide to the average skier on the slopes.

I will have the IM82's for a week at Alta-Snowbird beginning 1-22. Will report back the following week.
Stan
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The real question for Head is

Postby Jim Ratliff » Tue Jan 17, 2006 4:46 pm

I think the real question for Head would be "how have you cut your cost of developing skis so low that you can proliferate sizes and test and maintain quality and still make money."

One of the Liquid Metal advantages was that you can cast it like plastic rather than needing to stamp it like normal metals. I wonder if this is somehow holding down their costs dramatically.

From a business perspective, the advantage of having lots of models is that it positions a Head ski very close to anything else you may be looking at. That's the plus, capture of more business from competitors. If you are taking some business from other Head models, that's not too bad, except that the price per ski goes up as the number of pair that are built goes down.

For example, most manufacturers would rather sell 35,000 of one model (numbers are imaginary) rather than 20,000 of two. Seems like Head feels they can make reasonable money even with the model proliferation.
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