Advice Needed.. Line SFB vs Armada TST vs Nordica Patron

i've been skiing JJ's for 3 days now and i must say, i really like them. I was considering trying patrons today but they seemed a bit big for the conditions. i'd vote JJ, I had no trouble carving them at all. They're good in trees since they turn easily (i thought) cause of the rocker. they're nice in snow too, very little drag feeling in pow due to the shape. the TST's don't have tail rocker i don't think (i was holding a pair today) and they're mounted farther back than JJ's. I think the JJ's would be better than the TST's in trees.

I own the bacons and opus and have skied the JJ. Haven't been on the others. What follows will sound like a fanboy rant and maybe I'm a touch biased but I'll try to be as honest as possible. I got the opus early last spring and immediately fell in love with it. I honestly got it as a pow only ski with the intent to get a new park/all mountain ripper. I was blown away though by how well the opus handled everything. Groomers and all. It blasts through and over the choppiest crud and hardpack. Smears gorgeously in pow and holds an edge on groomers like a traditional all mountain ski. The two drawbacks for me though are the turning radius and their size. I only notice the size when I run em through the park (a little wide for tech grabs) and I only notice the turning radius on really bumped up groomers. They're still drive able. It just takes some effort to throw em around quick. But let's face it, that ski isn't designed for that so groomer performance is a bonus right? So I got a chance to ride a buddy's new bacons. A little narrower so grabs are easier and the turning radius is noticeably tighter than the opus. I bought a set of those after trying them. Amazing skis. Honestly the best ski I've ever ridden. Ever. And I've been skiing a long time. (in my 30s). Now a few weeks ago I was out with a friend of a friend who had the JJ. He wanted try the opus and I wanted to try the JJ so we swapped for half a day. It's a fun ski. There wasn't much fresh but I was ble to hit some side fluff with em. Mostly though I was on skied out trails and groomers. They're good. Totally skiable and pretty versitile. At speed in hardpack I did notice a little chatter in the tips. Nothing like your typical pow ski on hardpack but not as solid as the opus. They felt good in the side fluff a somehow felt a little more lively or bouncy in the tails than the opus. I got the impression that in deep snow the JJ would pop out of turns where the opus would kinda float/drive if that makes sense. Not a bad thing. Just different. So after riding all three I'd say for a pow only ski go JJ. For a pow/jibber I'd say opus. And for an everything slayer and I mean slayer go new bacons. Hope that helps.

I'm on TSTs as my every day driver/do everything ski. Like you I was between the TST and the SFB. Absolutely love this ski, and I haven't found anything it can't do. Ripped groomers for the first month and a half of the season because we had no snow and they were perfectly comfortable, then finally got them into some steep trees and pow last weekend and they killed it.

I'll note that I do have a true powder ski that I use for days it really dumps, but if its snowed and Im not sure exactly what the conditions are gonna be up on the mountain, I grab my TSTs.

Thanks mtnviper.. everything you shared was very helpful.  After reading other sites/reviews and your review I think I am deciding between the SFB and the OPUS.  How did the SFB's handle in powder?  Like I said, if the conditions are right I am spending my time in the bowls/trees/back country looking for pow.  I like the groomers, but really only hit those if the conditions arent right or my friends want to switch things up.

Should I consider the Bent Chetlers? 

Well the bacons rip pow better than most pow dedicated skis. That said, there's a big difference between the bacons and the opus in pow. The bacons float great and smear nicely. The tighter turning radius makes tight trees a breeze and the slightly stiffer flex makes groomers feel like a traditional ski. It is a true quiver of one and the only ski I've ridden that comes close is last years bacons. Last years are real similar to the opus though. I'm kinda at a bit of a loss of words to explain the difference between the bacons and the opus in pow without making either sound bad. Guess I'd say that if I was in a bowl I'd rather be on the opus. Tight trees the bacons. All in all they both float great. If you want something that's easier to throw around and fun on the groomers I'd say bacons. The same can be said for the opus too though. But the opus obviously floats better and smears better due to the increased width. Honestly ya can't go wrong with either. It's like choosing between two ferraris. Haha.

I just got the Kung Fujas and am going to get the opus for my pow skis

Hah.. I like that scenario.  I am really torn between the opus and the sfb.  I guess at this point I will look for the best deal.  Does anyone have experience on the Chetlers or Patrons? 

Just a quick question, are the bacons or tst stiffer?

skied all other than the tst and ive gotta say for me, the patron was the best. with the bacon close behind, just a bit too soft for my taste. hated the jj. i own 177 patron with jester pro mounted +4 from traditional and it is AWESOME. absolutely love it. does everything very well including hard pack. feels very light when skiing it and easy to throw around in the trees. i actually skied them today in the rain, they really do ski anything and are comfortable everywhere. highly recommend them!!

Own the TST but I've hand flexed the Bacons... I think the TST is stiffer

Thanks Condor.. One thing I have heard about the Partons is that they feel "surfy"?  Any experience with that?

Also, I can get them from a local store for $899 with FKS140 bindings mounted an waxed.  Do you think that is a good deal?

id say its surfy when you want it to be. ive only had one pow day with them this year and it was about 9'' or heavy snow and they were really nice in that. nice and playful, any size turn and smears incredibly well. id say thats a fair price for sure! i havent really looked at what they are selling for now but seems like a pretty nice deal. you might be able to find it a bit cheaper online but shop local for sure, pays off in the long run if you ever run into an issue.

ARMADA TST! Nordica Patron is pretty sick too. not sure about line

I've demo'd all those except the patron these past weeks and if you're open to a new suggestion, a ski I liked even more was the atomic blog. I love the equal rocker in tip and tail, it just makes you wanna slash turns all day in the pow, but it turns super quick on groomers too (and I had it set at -1 from center). But if you're limited to those original choices, the TST was super nimble and quick, but I wasn't a fan of the lack of tail rocker personally.

So I think I've got it down to the SFB and the Opus.. It seems like there are a lot of options out there (Caylors, BG, chetlers) but it sounds like I can't go wrong With either of these skis. Now about buying them. I live in DC and I'm headed out west for a ski trip late feb/march. Do you think I should buy them online or wait until I go west and see if I can find a shop with them in stock. Also, if it's feb/march maybe the local stores will be more likely to discount? What would you do?

I have SFB's and they are fucking amazing... I haven't had a chance to hit any real pow on them (East Coast = Beat Coast) but everything I've gotten out of them so far is superb. They hold edge like a motherfucker and have a really nice flex pattern that makes them fun and buttery but still stiff.

I would say the JJ, as the powder performance is better than the SFB and can probably carve groomers as well as them, futher the TST is just a slimmed down JJ with no tail rocker