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Kessler 168 __2021


Shred Gruumer

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  • 2 weeks later...

I put a long day in today on mine today and the carving was as good as it gets. I've always ridden longer boards (180-195) and thought that going "so short" with a 168 would be an issue seeing as I'm 6'4" tall. I expressed this reservation when I talked with Hans and he told me in essence that it would be fine and not to worry about it.

I'm in the custom bike biz and one of the tough things to deal with is a customer who feels that they know better even though I've been building frames for people for over 30 years....so I took my own advice and listened to the expert and went with the 168 and I couldn't be happier. I took Hans' advice and it paid off. The board never feels short to me and it has a surprisingly wide speed range where it's happy....it will make both tight round turns and high speed GS turns and leave you smiling.

You can't go wrong with a K168.

dave

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hey!  Has anybody ridden both the 168 and 162? @Jack M?  I’ve got a 162, and that board is without a doubt the best ride I’ve ever had.  But it is an SL board and when I’m at a bigger resort I would sometimes like a board that will run faster when still being driven hard.  The SCR on the 168 looks comparable with the 162, but does it ride like a bigger board?  What differentiates the ride qualities of the two boards?

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I sold my 162 because it was too stiff for me at 155lbs.  However I was able to jump on a 168 and ride the crap out of it with no problem at all.  They are very different boards.  I love the 168 and plan to keep it until I wear it out.

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22 hours ago, st_lupo said:

Hey!  Has anybody ridden both the 168 and 162? @Jack M?  I’ve got a 162, and that board is without a doubt the best ride I’ve ever had.  But it is an SL board and when I’m at a bigger resort I would sometimes like a board that will run faster when still being driven hard.  The SCR on the 168 looks comparable with the 162, but does it ride like a bigger board?  What differentiates the ride qualities of the two boards?

I haven't ridden the K162.  I own a F2 Proto 163 if that helps.  The K168 turns longer and will run faster.  It will still turn tight if you push it.  I won a USASA SL against some legit competition on my K168 once.  That said I won't use it for SL again now that I have this 163.

I recommend the K168 unequivocally.  If I could only own one board, that's it.  (however I'm going to see if Winterstick can meet or beat it)  In the unlikely event it's not for you, you will be able to sell it here easily.  i-carve.com has the best prices on Kesslers.

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  • 1 year later...

Back in 2013 I took a couple of runs on a lightly used K168 . Conditions were frozen groom and flat light, so not the best to get a feel for what it was capable of. It didn't feel any better than my new (at the time) custom sidecut (11-12) Donek Rev 175, so I passed on buying it. Based on all the reviews from K168 enthusiasts, I recently picked up a well used one to give it another try, just to see if it really was the Kessler unicorn. 

Having owned a custom K180 and a couple of custom 162's in the past (and demoed others), I was familiar with the super damp ride and great edge hold. While I like the ride, especially on ice, I never really liked the multi radius sidecuts, especially in carvable snow where the whole edge engages. If you only stay on your edge for 1-2 seconds, fluidly moving weight from nose to tail through the turn (like you're in a race course), it's smooth as silk. 

On the other hand, when holding a carve for more than a couple of seconds making complete turns across the fall line, I can feel the nose and tail trying to make different turns causing the board to pump as the nose catches and resets. I suppose the cure for this is to shift weight aft and not engage the full length of the edge.

I may keep it for riding ice as it was the dampest, most comfortable ride of all my boards on rough ice and bumpy frozen groom. ...or, maybe I should face the fact that riding ice just ain't that much fun?

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On 4/17/2022 at 10:25 AM, bigwavedave said:

Back in 2013 I took a couple of runs on a lightly used K168 . Conditions were frozen groom and flat light, so not the best to get a feel for what it was capable of. It didn't feel any better than my new (at the time) custom sidecut (11-12) Donek Rev 175, so I passed on buying it. Based on all the reviews from K168 enthusiasts, I recently picked up a well used one to give it another try, just to see if it really was the Kessler unicorn. 

Having owned a custom K180 and a couple of custom 162's in the past (and demoed others), I was familiar with the super damp ride and great edge hold. While I like the ride, especially on ice, I never really liked the multi radius sidecuts, especially in carvable snow where the whole edge engages. If you only stay on your edge for 1-2 seconds, fluidly moving weight from nose to tail through the turn (like you're in a race course), it's smooth as silk. 

On the other hand, when holding a carve for more than a couple of seconds making complete turns across the fall line, I can feel the nose and tail trying to make different turns causing the board to pump as the nose catches and resets. I suppose the cure for this is to shift weight aft and not engage the full length of the edge.

I may keep it for riding ice as it was the dampest, most comfortable ride of all my boards on rough ice and bumpy frozen groom. ...or, maybe I should face the fact that riding ice just ain't that much fun?

IDK... I have ridden the K168 for a few hours only and I have found it to be one of the best carving boards I've ever ridden. I could carve any type of turn from short to medium/large, pop the transitions or not, race/Bomber style, EC... I haven't tried it on ice or frozen groom, though. 

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49 minutes ago, BlueB said:

IDK... I have ridden the K168 for a few hours only and I have found it to be one of the best carving boards I've ever ridden. I could carve any type of turn from short to medium/large, pop the transitions or not, race/Bomber style, EC... I haven't tried it on ice or frozen groom, though. 

What's the next best carving board you've ridden?

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I thought the same thing when I rode a Kessler for the first time 10 yrs ago, best carving board by far and permanently displaced my previous favorite carving boards.

Then I rode Donek Rev, Coiler nirvana, SG frt, Oxess, etc, as they came up to speed with Kessler and found them to be equivalent in many ways and that the difference became a matter of taste. Just look at any podium.

I had a few custom Coiler and Donek Revs made with near radial sidecuts because I didn't like the race vscr for recreational carving. That was more to my taste.

Then I rode a Thirst and found the perfect carving board. But, that's a story for another thread.

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