John Bell

Actually, I think it's totally OK when you're outdoors. I also think a lot of it has to do with how loud the person is talking and for how long. If someone's phone rings in the elevator, and it's a quick and hushed chat to coordinate with someone about where to meet, etc., then that's cool. But loud, blabby "Like, oh my GOD! I was, like, whatever!" conversations--yeah, that's when I wanna buy one of those illegal cellphone jammers. But I'm guilty myself of a quick call from the lift. To talk about my digestive problems, of course.

Good story, Boris! (BTW, I have nothing against long hair on men, and in my view, long hair in itself does not a hippie make. Maybe the latter has become to vague a term to be useful.) Smoking anything in a confined space with other people is up there with talking on your cellphone in the elevator or smacking your gum. I think there should be manners police, armed with cattle prods. It's just the broken-windows theory taken a logical step further.

Nice going! Another line that should work would be "Before you get on this gondola, you should know that I work for the DEA, and I am obligated to act on any evidence of drug possession that I may encounter." I don't care what people do in their own homes, but I don't wanna be stifled in an oregano haze by a bunch of reeking hippies. BTW, I ride in a ski bib. The only thing that keeps my a$$ from freezing on the lift. I used to have the Roby brand Stein Erickson-style polyester ski pants--but they, uh, shrank on me somehow.

Good point. I'll do that. Thanks again!

Looks like I must've had the flaps wrong on the right-foot liner. There's now a big crease running up the outside ankle. (Looks like the rule with the Deeluxes is "outer flap on top on either foot.") Do you guys think I should remold? This liner now has 3 molds on it (2 from me and one from the previous owner). I don't wanna wear out the liners, but then I don't wanna get out there and be in pain either.

Great advice there--esp. about the shopping bag, Pebu. I actually just used that tip--worked like a charm. (I'm sure the pantyhose would've worked, too--but believe it or not, I don't have a pair lying around just now.) Hey, Jim--do the shin buckles on your Suzukas tend to pop open if they're not totally tight?

I did manage to get the liner crammed in. Kind of unsure as to whether to do it with my hand or put it on my foot first; the latter was what worked. BTW, I used aluminum foil around my toes, with some scotch tape for extra adhesion. Worked great--no slippage. Also, I left the Superfeet liners in the boots--no prob there either. I put the liner on top of a Corning opaque (Pyrex-like) dish to keep it from scorching. What a great forum--when the only other person viewing at that time can be counted on to steer you away from your own stupid ideas.

Molding one of my Deeluxe Suzuka liners in the oven right this minute. Messing around with the other one, I realize it is way tough to get the liner into the boot. I'm a bit worried that when the other one comes outta the over in a few minutes, that I won't be able to cram it into the liner without ripping it to shreds. (These are the gray stock liners that came with the shells.) When I do the other liner, what would happen if I put it in the shell and put the whole boot in the oven (at 210-215, turned off, of course)? It seems like this would nix the risk of tearing the liner. But I have no idea if that temp is hot enough to melt the plastic shell or weaken it. Thanks for any thoughts. PS: Go ahead and give me s$$t if this is a stupid idea. I can take it. I also reheated a slice of pizza on an iron once, in a hotel room. And I have a design for a rocking toilet.

When you say it's cap construction, is it standard, traditional cap all the way around? The reason I ask is that Nidecker's site refers to "N concept construction" and then gives a very unhelpful explanation of what that is. I had surmised that maybe it was some sandwich-cap hybrid. Very curious about this board; thanks for any clarification.

I hated The English Patient. Just saw No Country for Old Men--QUASI-SPOILER ALERT--and it was great until near the end. That's all I'll say. I'd definitely rent it. I still give my buddy hell for recommending Chasing Amy to me. I didn't even finish it (which is his defense). Surprisingly good was Sense and Sensibility, which my wife forced me to go to. Not only was it entertaining, but I scored major spouse points!

Can't find this anywhere: Does your kid actually have to be born already in order for you to start a 529 on his/her behalf? (We're going have some in the next few years most likely, but I'd like to take the most advantage of compound interest by starting as early as possible.) BTW, Chubz, you wouldn't want to do a Roth IRA for your kids' college. I believe that to use one for a non-retirement purpose (e.g., first-time home purchase, educational expenses, major illnesss, alpine snowboard--haha), you'd have submit a slew of documentation to the IRS. I think the 529 would afford the same tax break but do so more simply.

He should have told me about it. That's the point. Does the seller get to decide unilaterally whether something is relevant or not? I don't think so. And again, it's damage that Sean said is likely from a problem in manufacturing the core. The core is pretty important. Whether this problem affects the lifespan or the performance, only time will tell. But I would have preferred not to take the risk. And that decision is mine to make--not the seller's. And then there's the gouge and the rust. One was described inaccurately, the other not at all.

Just now saw all the replies; thanks for the helpful responses. If Sean Martin says it's likely not a customer repair, then I believe him. He should know. (It is, however, a structural defect—epoxy where there should be wood or ABS.) But for me the main point is that whether it ultimately will affect the performance or not, I had a right to know the blemish/repair was there. I also had a right to know about the rust, the scratch in the base, and the fact that if I were to keep this board, I’d forever have some other guy’s name on it. Thus the seller should not have said it was in "awesome" and “barely ridden” condition. If he meant “decent for a 2-year-old board with a factory blemish," then that’s what he should have written. I'm not saying there's no way I'd have bid on the board--but I definitely would have bid way less. I've seen all-mountain boutique-maker boards (Priors, Doneks, Coilers, Madds) in this condition (i.e., well used with dings) for $300, shipping included, right here on BOL. And I could’ve bought a new Donek Incline for another $105. Also: Lim's claim here that he paid the shipping to me is erroneous. I paid $345 for the board plus $30 shipping, for a total of $375. But more than the money I overpaid, it's the feeling of having been misled that bothers me. This guy has indeed offered a refund, but he refuses pay the return shipping. I should not have to pay it, because the omissions in his ad were his fault--not mine. But I'm pursuing this through other avenues and will very likely prevail. As to the point that racing boards may often have cosmetic blems: I’ll take your word for that. But that amazes me, because when you buy other new high-end sports equipment (e.g., a racing bike), it doesn’t have noticeable cosmetic damage to it (e.g., a huge gouge in the paint). Still, I would note that this blem or user damage or whatever it is (since it is in the core of the board, via the sidewall), may in fact turn out to hurt the performance. I also note that this isn’t a racing board. But the greater point is that I had a right to know all of these blemishes before buying the board. If I sell you an item with a problem I consider to be minor, would you want me to keep that from you? Or would you want the right to decide yourself whether the problem is significant?

Wow--I may just try doing it myself, then. Great info--thanks again, QQ! I'm assuming you just used a regular oven (rather than a convection oven), right? BTW, the best bacon I have ever eaten was cooked in a convection oven. Wish they were more common. Convection ovens, I mean--not bacons.

Jose--thanks for the info, man! Glad to hear the folks in VT got you fixed up. I just got back from a hellacious work trip and am only now reading my e-mails.) I might still try Surefoot out, since all I need is to have the liners molded. Take it easy! John

Beautiful board! Interesting article, too. Thanks for sharing the experience.

Three things that make me side with you on this: 1. The rip will not affect usability of the boots, I don't think. 2. It's completely understandable that you would not have seen the rip (unlike in my case, where there was a sidewall repair to the board, which the seller claims he never noticed despite buying it new and riding it for two seasons). Once a person has molded their liners, would they ever have a reason to remove them again? 3. He got a super deal on the boots. When one is paying $50 for a used pair of footwear, and there turns out to be a cosmetic defect the seller didn't notice, I think one should be understanding. I can understand how he might feel like he was hit with an unpleasant surprise, but then I think he should've given you a chance to explain. Conscious omission I would be pi$$ed at, but as I said, I can see how it'd be hard to know about this tear. His reaction I think would be appropriate in the case of someone truly cheating him, but if the intent was obviously not to do so, then his canceling his check was rash and unfair.

Tex, I agree with you on eBay sales. Carevedog, sorry to hear about that. Unless the rip was so huge as to make the liners unusable, that guy was definitely in the wrong. ($50 for boots is a super deal!) I don't think anyone who is new here should expect a seller to accept a personal check without waiting for it to clear before they send the goods. I think folks would like to know who this person is, lest they end up in a similar situation. However, I posted a warning about an eBay seller yesterday, and it was removed. Not sure why. It's not libel (or slander) if you can prove that it's true.

I agree completely. But someone has to "go first" and take the risk. I think that should be whoever can offer less objective assurance of honesty. For example, right after I joined BOL, I bought my boots from another member. To make sure it wasn't someone who would rip me off, I looked at his other posts and people's responses to him. He was/is an active member, and I could tell he was well respected. And he'd sold stuff to people here before. But he had no way of knowing I was legit--so I sent the money. The boots arrived just as promised; everybody's happy. He had every right to expect me to send the money first because I was an unknown, but I had some kind of indication of his integrity. But then there are people who come on to BOL and post things for sale--and you realize that not only have they never sold or bought anything here, but they've hardly even posted anything. No one knows them from Adam. There are times I've been tempted by the gear, but what would stop such a person from just keeping the money and not sending the gear (or offering gear for sale they don't have)? Or not being honest in their description? I will say this: I've so far had a LOT better luck buying stuff on BOL than on eBay.:)

:biggthumpI'm right behind you (well, by 5 years, but it goes by fast). Hope it's a great one.

Queequeg--Thanks for the thorough analysis--and the encouragement. I would love to just take it out on the hill, but I don't want to jeopardize my chance at recourse via eBay. He did intimate there was a scratch on the base, but if you look again at the questions, he said nothing about the sidewalls at all. He's still claiming to me that he didn't notice this--on a board he supposedly bought new, in a custom size. How many people would not notice this after paying $715 for a new board and riding it 10-15 times, as he said? Gord--Thanks for the insight into the repair. Bruce is obviously beyond being a stand-up guy to repair a board by another maker. If the guy had only been up front about all this stuff, he probably still would've gotten a fair price for the board. OK, enough about this from me. Thanks again, guys. I'll make the best of it, however it ends up.

His BOL name--he's only posted a few times--is muymal, and his real name is Michael Lim. I just talked to him on the phone; he said he knew nothing of the repair but asked that I send him photos. He said he's worried that Prior might have sent him a blemished board, rather than the custom he ordered, back in March '06. Seems odd to me that he would not have noticed this--pretty glaring in my view. The middle photo below is of the unrepaired side. In the top photo, my finger is covering up the left end of the repair, but on that end, it tapers into the white, unlike the right-hand end.

Here's the link, btw: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=190190433064#description I'm definitely gonna give the guy call here in a bit. I'd like to think I'm wrong, but when I look at this sidewall, i see white, then four inches of translucent yellow with the white ramping down under it before it emerges on the other side of the 4-inch strip. Definitely a repair, right? I'm really surprised; the guy works for a major software company, so he probably makes lots o' money and isn't desperate to unload the board. Plus his e-mails were polite and articulate. Not sure what recourse I'll seek; I could ask him to repay me some of what I paid, but that sorta feels like blackmail. Sending it back would be a PITA, and he might refuse to send me the postage for doing so.

What do you guys think? I mean, I did get it at what is now less than half price. OTOH, it's also well used (though not in BAD condition). But the guy left out a lot of information that I had specifically asked for.

The guy on the phone--who was very cool; he actually went downstairs and asked Chris Prior--told me they come out 1.2-1.4, so the 7-8 mm on my used '05-06 is normal, having reduced by about half. Background here (for those who are curious) is that the board I bought on eBay, listed as in "awesome" and "barely used" condition, just arrived with a scrape in the base (which the seller had said was only in the wax) and apparent epoxy repair (about 5 inches long) to the sidewall on the side of the nose--which was not mentioned at all. It also has the original owner's NAME, in addition to the specs, written on the topsheet. (He mentioned the specs, but not the name. Grrr.) Not sure what I'll do. I got a good deal on it ($345 plus shipping), but I'm pretty steamed that the seller basically lied about the condition--or exaggerated at best. And he had 100% feedback. I think I'm going to call him and see what he has to say before I leave a "neutral."