Let's look at aftermarket running boards and what you get for your money

[m8magicandmystery]

I think I can safely say

Their Best is Yet to Come..

you have been saying that about the Yamaha's for several years...

seriously though,i have several skinz products,but I buy from my Canadian suppliers and they are good products...but Christopher it seems like you don't think there is room for more then one family in America to be a family business and be innovative and hardworking and honest. You sure seem to want to just give that part of America to Skinz.

ps...I like BMfabs rear board mounting way better

im not against Skinz at all but willikers there is ice on the lake and reading your posts I still smell something fishy..

 

[m8magicandmystery]

.

Be honest with yourself.
Skinz actually created something UNIQUE in the marketplace that did not previously exist. They INNOVATED.

Chris...the people who first figured one plus one equals two were the people that was the catalyst to put a man on the moon..

The first person who had a drill and drill bit and drilled a hole in the running board of his 1972 sled was the innovator of running boards...not Skinz...

 

[christopher]

Not saying Skinz or other aftermarket manufacturers have no future. But you have to admit items like the boards are going to take a hit when more and more upgrade to new sleds with stock boards like the 13 and 14 Pro have.

No argument.
The OEMs are finally catching up on that one item.

But even there you may yet be surprised at whats coming..

 

[christopher]

Chris...the people who first figured one plus one equals two were the people that was the catalyst to put a man on the moon..

The first person who had a drill and drill bit and drilled a hole in the running board of his 1972 sled was the innovator of running boards...not Skinz...

Your taking it to the Absurd and doing your argument a disservice.

 

[christopher]

you have been saying that about the Yamaha's for several years....

Thats a fact, and I stand by it.
Yamaha has begun to deliver new sleds.
More are in the pipeline.
As you know they take YEARS to surface.
I caught wind of them in the very early stages, I thought they would bring them to market sooner. I was wrong on the timing, but the products are arriving.

 

[live2beel]

This whole board debate is getting old. Lets start a who copied who on hood venting

 

[m8magicandmystery]

Your taking it to the Absurd and doing your argument a disservice.

I guess that's the difference in perspective...I don't see any argument at all..

 

[Lenny]

if you had the outer rail of either brand, one with the holes drilled and the other without, set them on something being supported by the ends, applied force, the ones with holes will collapse.

Maybe the increase in tube dia and ID was to prevent this exact thing. Personally I do not own either set but am in the market for a set but neither manufacture makes a set for a 2001 Yamaha Mtn Max.

I do not believe that there is much design specifics that make one less effective or appealing than the other. I have been into BMX all my life and the welds and fitment of B&M seem perfectly acceptable, as with the Skinz.

If we really want to compare strength, perfrom a test with downward pressure on the completed boards and see what happens. I would assume both would surpass our expectation and absorb most impacts we riders throw at them.

I would by either set as they both look satisfactory to me, with that said price comes into play so for me the B&M would be my first choise but none available so I'll fab my own and have a local weld them up.

 

[J-Tek]

Just a FYI for anyone reading this post , if you are looking for boards , I would consider either of these B&M or Skinz over the Z S brand !! I bought a pair of Z S boards because the Skinz were back ordered and after the first season they were bent and bowed , they would collect snow in the cross bars that would turn into ice so your feet wound slip ! They were $450 a set ! I called , sent pics , and emails to the manufacture with no response ! There is something to be said about companies that stand behind their products !!! I do not have the ZS boards as they were left on the sled when I traded it . This was my personal experience and my opinion to stick with a tested product and a company that will stand behind it !!! This will be my only post as I do not want to argue , just to tell my experience .

 

[Z-Man]

Looks like a good comparison except it failed to show one other thing. How does brand x compare to the stock running boards. Brand x looks substantially stronger to me than stock. Thicker and heavier is not always better. If the lighter boards are stronger than stock and no failures have been reported it seems to me they might be the better choice in a mountain sled. Either way both look well made and I don't see why there should be any problems with either.

 

[J-Tek]

Just a FYI for anyone reading this post , if you are looking for boards , I would consider either of these B&M or Skinz over the Z S brand !! I bought a pair of Z S boards because the Skinz were back ordered and after the first season they were bent and bowed , they would collect snow in the cross bars that would turn into ice so your feet wound slip ! They were $450 a set ! I called , sent pics , and emails to the manufacture with no response ! There is something to be said about companies that stand behind their products !!! I do not have the ZS boards as they were left on the sled when I traded it . This was my personal experience and my opinion to stick with a tested product and a company that will stand behind it !!! This will be my only post as I do not want to argue , just to tell my experience .

Sorry , forgot a critical bit of info . I only weigh 175 lbs ! They should Handel twice that weight !

 

[snowmobiler]

how about a wind tunnel test to get the drag factors.

 

[m8magicandmystery]

how about a wind tunnel test to get the drag factors.

ya...and I know who could do the blowing to create the wind for the Skinz wind test..hahaha..sorry Chris I just could not pass it up

 

[Pro-8250]

$.02

I have purchased Skinz products in the past and have been very satisfied. I have never purchased after market running boards though. And being that I am happy with my 2013 Pro RMK boards, I feel there is no need to. After all, In a recent magazine article by Snowest, CLASS ACT Volume 40, No.5 page 46. The Polaris Powder Trac running boards are the stiffest in the industry. Their words, not mine.
Anyway, good thread, very informative.

 

[MtnDoo]

One point all you keyboard-engineers are missing here is: How are these different designs (or as some may argue very similar designs) actually being tested?

Is one design better on Aspens and soft granite?

Perhaps the other is works well when gingerly bashing your buggy through lodge-pole pine or down bomb-fields of igneous rock?

Have there been any failures? Some one asked this; good point! Both look a little over-built.

Is there a positive/negative effect of having more or less weight so far out from the sled's Z-axis?

Lastly - this knurled paint thing tells me someone needs to continue testing. Had a pair of ARS-FX A-Arms with the textured paint and OMG….talk about ice build up. Much heavier than snow!

Both pipe-fitters are from Minnesota, so perhaps the testing is done in a field or on a lake-bed.
As with all good things aftermarket, if they're not patented to the hilt, the OEM's will pick them up. Ever wonder why sleds now cost $15k???

Just bought a set of Skinz, hoping for good results.

It's one thing to copy some else's original design, it's another thing to substantially improve on a working concept. As buyers, we should be glad we have competition, as vendors they have lawyers if things get too far out of line.

MD.

 

[Crossfire Ditchbanger]

Lastly - this knurled paint thing tells me someone needs to continue testing. Had a pair of ARS-FX A-Arms with the textured paint and OMG….talk about ice build up. Much heavier than snow!

MD.

Once again, the textured black powder coat is a color option that they offer. If you don't want it they offer several other colors at no additional cost!

 

[MtnDoo]

And, before either of these two aftermarket MFG's get too haughty over who's ripping off who…..BOTH OF YOU, AND THE OEM's ARE RIPPING OFF FABCRAFT'S ORIGINAL IDEA!!!

http://www.fabcraft.com/tunnels.php?sled=15

"We were the first with the Open Tunnel-Runningboard which was blatently copied."


Sort of reminds me of Apple accusing Microsoft of using a "mouse" and GUI, when Apple stole those exact ideas from Xerox PARC.

 

[christopher]

It's one thing to copy some else's original design, it's another thing to substantially improve on a working concept. As buyers, we should be glad we have competition, as vendors they have lawyers if things get too far out of line.

MD.

And that is the CORE of the original discussion in this thread.

 

[LPIdaho]

What grade of aluminum is used in both products?

This is a critical aspect that seems lost in all of this, aside from the fact that looking at just the outside tube is only a small aspect of the design.

 

[LPIdaho]

Some don't want to spend $475 on Skinz boards because they just want better snow evacuation and could care less about how they are constructed.
Some want the best "over built" original design and will spend the money to buy Airframes.

Serious question here because I see this type of comment all the time for all types of product..

Why would anyone want a product because it is "over engineered" or "over built", how is that a selling point?

All that does is add weight and cost over a product that is "actually engineered" and "properly built".