Skibrain usually starts a thread like this, but haven't seen one lately.

I came across what appears to be screaming deal on an '08 HO Burner 67" here . Private sale so usual cautions apply, but he appears to be an ongoing member of the forum. Also it may not include bindings.

Also, if you want a little cheap protection for your slalom or even combos: O'brien Slalom Ski Sock Shipping was $7.50 for me and was the same if I bought 1, 2 or 3. I bought 3.

Those are good deals. Still looking for a decent deal on a semi-wide combo set.

Sorry to disappoint. Sort of quiet on the skiing chat as of late.

Good used combos are a bit harder to find. They typically don't get traded or upgraded as frequently as slalom skis - people hold onto them. Wett Doggggggg, what would you consider a "decent deal" ?

At garage sale prices, shipping a pair of skis can double your investment.

Limited selection, but basspro.com has a 33% off sale on all towables, skiis, kneeboards, and wakeboards.

Good call JasonB. I was going to mention that the big-box stores that want to shed seasonal inventory can have great late summer sales.

Those appear to be very good prices on tubes. Dick's has the O'brien Super Screamer on sale at $139.99 vs $107.19 at Bass. I know b/c my neighbors just bought one after riding our similar HO Bomber. Bass ProShops is a pretty far drive for us, plus they had a coupon for Dick's so not too bad for them.

I'm almost tempted to grab one...shipping is a reasonable $12.95. We are on our 5th or 6th season w/ the HO. It's held up great and still looks good, but how many years can it last? O'brien is a good name but it would make sense to stay w/ HO given the good history.

RE: Big box...I always make sure I cruise Dick's a few times in late season. Near the end, if you hit it right, the deals are great. I got my 1st slalom there, my combos, ski and tube lines, HO Power Board, some life vests, swim snorkel & fins all from Dick's late season...did the same at Sport's Authority for my kids trainer skis and kneeboard. I got my last slalom off Craigslist.

I ordered an HO Sports Neutron Kneeboard. Normally $159, picked it up for $105 + $12 shipping. ordered Monday, arrived Thursday.

As for tubes, we have a nearly 10 year old Obrien screamer/super screamer that, outside being a bit faded, is in excellent shape. I give it two thumbs up for value. It's first 3-4 years were with some late 20 somethings trying our best to throw each other off at 30 mph.....

SB...nit sure what a "decent deal" is. I have been cruising craigslist hoping to find someone dumping all their boating stuff.

What do you think of these at this price? H.O. Sport Team Combo Skis

They look nice. Not the wider profile you mention.
I am not that aware of what is out there with combos right now - to me it often looks like the price-point stuff must be two or three manufacturers with the same mold but different top graphics: O'Brien, HO, Body Glove, Gladiator... not to say there is anything wrong with that, they just look very similar.

For a while HO combos being sold had very little curve up on the tip....maybe that different now, but they were nearly flat and looked to me like you'd bury a tip in the wake on your first crossing.

SB...thanks for the advice on the past HO models. I have no clue either. Having not been a recreational skier for 18 or so years. I figured a wider ski would help me as well as others if they would want to give it a try. I also though learning to slalom again would be easier on a little wider ski. Once I get that down...then I can look into getting my own slalom ski.

Opinion on these...Body Glove. My local Dunhams has these on clearance last fall for $99 and I did not pull the trigger.

Since you plan to use these combos to transition into slalom I would recommend getting a pair that have decent bindings and a pad under both the rear toe plate (RTP) and the front bindings. I have the HO Blast which are on the wide side, have the removable bar for complete beginners and I've a lot of success with many just learning skiers (w/ the bar) as well as those that haven't done it since they were in their 20's skiers (w/o the bar). Usually even beginners, if they have the leg strength they can remove the bar once they get the "feel" of it.

What I don't like is the bindings are nothing special and there is no pad under the front bindings. This isn't a big deal when skiing combo, but does make some difference when using one as a slalom. I don't always throw in my dedicated slalom, depending on the plan, but keep the combos on the boat. I'd like to use the combo slalom some evenings on the way home, but have pretty much given up on it b/c of the poor binding and no pad to grip...my foot just moves around too much.

I was at Dick's tonight and didn't see the Body Glove ones, but saw a different brand that had the exact same shape (like Skibrain said), and they had cheap looking bindings and no pads. The ones in your pic appear to be different bindings however, so maybe Body Glove upgraded them. I don't see a RTP pad in the pic though. I would check. I did see some HO Xtras that looked nice. They were up high, so I'm not 100%, but it appeared they had padding under the RTP and both front bindings. The bindings looked pretty adjustable too...they used velcro straps. Maybe worth a peak. They were on the wide side, similar to mine, but not as wide as the Body Glove ones (or at least the similar ones at Dick's).

http://www.dickssportinggoods.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3453922

ath, What is in your ski locker these days? You had a wide HO for a while and a Connelly FX or something? Can't believe you're opting for the combo/slalom.

When it comes to combos I'm sort of a quantity over quality kind of guy. Our collection covers the gamut from 10-40 yrs old. Sports Authority wide-body O'brien cheapies, to really nice, but $35 used HOs, to a bunch of old wood dogs that still work just fine. Seriously, BROWN vinyl bindings? Very 70s.

As long a you asked!

How about white vinyl bindings! From right to left:

Sea King Trihedron bottom woodie. This is from the late 60's or very early 70's I think. My Dad found it on the shore of a lake, it was evidently the lost ski from a drop. He changed the rear fin and added the RTP. His only "slalom" ski ever as far as I know. We sold the boat in the mid-70's.

HO Radius V bottom...69" and very wide. The V bottom is supposed to help w/ straight on stability they say. This thing is super easy to get up on, a great cruiser and makes nice smooth turns. If you try to lean too far though, it simply slips out from under you. I don't think HO even makes it anymore, the widest they have now is the Rival. Dick's closeout special...2004ish.

Kidder Parabolic...69 or 70", tunnel bottom but not quite edge-to-edge. Still has some width so nice to get up on. Holds an edge much better than the Radius. My neighbor absolutely loves this ski. Looks just like the Connelly Outlaw to me. Craigslist last year, not sure age.

Connelly F1X...67", pretty close to edge-to-edge full tunnel bottom. The F1X is a bit wider version of the F1 tournament ski. I love the way it cuts and turns...and is still remarkably solid and stable feeling. At my weight I should've gotten the 69" though. This sucker needs some speed to really come "alive". Its a 2007 bought on eBay in 2008. I eBayed the front binding from the too narrow for me Connelly Draft, to a large Wiley.

Liquid Force Omega w/ Alpha boots...139cm. The boots would be comfortable for someone w/ skinny feet. They are a pain for me and I should've eBayed them long ago. The board is nice, we've removed the center fin to make switches easier. It still has two small molded fins on each end. I'm embarrassed to say I paid up for this in 2005 after the wife made me return a reasonably priced O'brien w/ questionable graphics! It doesn't get a lot of use as wakeboarding in general isn't great for our adult backs and the face plants got old. My nephew like it when he visits.

Our combos, as mentioned are the HO Blast. On the wide side, have the removable bar and so-so bindings. One neat thing they have are removable weight plates for the rear of each ski. You can add 1 to 3 plates. For newbies or those w/ weak legs, it helps skiers keep the skis aligned parallel and tips up while getting ready to start. Some newer plastic skis are very "floaty". They really work.

That's quite a collection you have there Skibrain! The only reason I've skied my combo slalom, is if we are out and I don't have a slalom w/ us. Sometimes we stay out longer than expected and the lake calms down nice for the ride home. My combos stay on the boat. I don't keep any slaloms on the boat b/c it is at a community dock. The larger 2 don't fit in the ski locker b/c of their curve and even if they did it would be very hard to replace any of them for what I paid, so they probably wouldn't get replaced any time soon. I never lock the ski locker or glove box...that seems to be just asking for destruction. We don't have many issues, but it seems an organized "hit" happens at least once every year involving multiple boats on the same night. Fortunately, I've never had anything stolen, and I usually have the combos and 1 or 2 tubes on board.

This year I've split my time between the Radius and the Kidder, more lately on the Kidder as we've started take some runs at the course. Next time out I'm taking the F1X as I've managed to actually drop a few pounds lately and I'm feeling more confident so can amp up the speed a bit.