OGASAKA KS-CX
By PTO Ski & Snowboard, Based on OGASAKA's official specs and catalog, one third-party on-snow test report and one rider's demo-day note · Spec analysis plus the two on-snow reports that exist on this ski
The take
“The shortest radius on OGASAKA's adult table for 2026-27, on the lightest ski KEO'S builds — and no aluminum to settle it down.”
The OGASAKA KS-CX and the KS-CV are the same ski from the sidecut out — 119-66-104 mm on both, which OGASAKA says outright. The core, the length run and the price differ. The KS-CX takes the lightweight version of the NF wood core and comes out at 788 g/m against the KS-CV's 903. The KS-CX runs 145 to 165 cm, the KS-CV 150 to 170. The KS-CX is $820 flat, or $1,000 as the system ski PTO stocks; a KS-CV package is $1,135. The choice is not the shape but how much ski you want underneath — and OGASAKA points the KS-CV, not this one, at skiers aiming to pass the Level 1 exam.
No aluminum goes into the KS-CX. The KS-AP2, KS-UP and KS-XX carry an A7178 sheet — 1,018, 1,012 and 1,044 g/m — and metal is what damps a carver as speed climbs. So the missing sheet explains this ski's ceiling. It does not explain the weight or the price: the KS-CV is metal-free too, yet heavier and dearer. The lightweight core is what gets the KS-CX to 788 g/m, and no source explains why it is priced below the KS-CV. On the KEO'S ladder it sits at the bottom: $820 flat, under the $1,135 KS-CV package, the $1,250 KS-AP2 and KS-UP, and the $1,670 KS-XX. Widen the frame and the superlative dies — the U-PC is $785 flat and it is an adult UNITY ski, not a junior one.
On snow the KS-CX has a public record of two rides. The substantive one is a Japanese retailer's staff tester at 70 kg who took the 150: he found a light, quick ski with real edge bite, a tip that catches snow early and turn entry he called sharp and smooth. In the same comment he called that length short for him, said the ski chattered, and asked to try something longer; his own five-point scores placed edge bite above stability. The other is one line from a demo day on the 145, enjoying how small the radius is. Those two agree on the quick, tight turn. On stability the demo rider says nothing at all, and behind neither is an English-language review or a long-term test.
Sizing is where the KS-CX asks for care. Radius climbs from 9.5 m at 145 cm to 12.5 m at 165 cm, so length sets the shape of the turn. The instinct to size down on an arc drawn this tight is what that single test argues against — the tester wanted a longer ski, not a shorter one. Note how little is published — no flex index, no camber profile, no per-length weight, not even the wood species — so radius, waist and grams per meter carry most of the paper case. If versatility is the real question rather than the short turn, this is the wrong ski: UNITY is 81 mm underfoot, and OGASAKA recommends the U-PC to skiers with less power.
Bindings we'd pair with it
Mount point: System ski — supplied with the Tyrolia SLR11GW mounted on the JOY SLR base. The flat KS-CX, at $820, is a separate product. Our pick: Tyrolia SLR11GW + JOY SLR BASE (the package OGASAKA builds for this ski).
- Tyrolia SLR11GW + JOY SLR BASEThe configuration PTO stocks
OGASAKA's own package for the KS-CX: DIN 3-11, 255-338 mm of sole adjustment, 1,080 g per half set including the base plate. Made in Austria.
The binding comes with this listing, and its DIN range is 3-11. A DIN setting is an indicator scale, not a measured release torque — we set it from your height, weight, age and boot sole length. Note the sole adjustment: 255-338 mm, where the PRD11GW on the KS-CV and the PRD12GW on the KS-AP2 and KS-UP both reach 378 mm. A large boot should be measured against that window before the order goes in.
Common Questions
- What is the difference between the OGASAKA KS-CX and the KS-CV?
- The sidecut is identical: 119-66-104 mm. The KS-CX uses a lightweight core — 788 g/m against the KS-CV's 903 — runs 145 to 165 cm rather than 150 to 170, and turns from 9.5 m rather than 10.2 m. Neither ski contains metal.
- Does the OGASAKA KS-CX have metal in it?
- No. Its materials line names a lightweight NF wood core and special F.R.P, while the KS-AP2, KS-UP and KS-XX add an A7178 aluminum sheet. The lightweight core is what makes the KS-CX the lightest ski in the KEO'S line, not the missing aluminum: the KS-CV has no metal either and still weighs 903 g/m.
- Is the OGASAKA KS-CX a beginner ski?
- OGASAKA names beginners and skiers with less leg strength among its targets, yet files the ski in its technical KEO'S line with the same Multi Arc Jointed Curve and Dynamic Tail as the KS-CV, KS-UP and KS-AP2. Read it as the accessible entry to a carving line rather than a beginner ski from a beginner range.
- What length OGASAKA KS-CX should I get?
- Radius climbs from 9.5 m at 145 cm to 12.5 m at 165 cm, so the length you choose sets the shape of the turn. The one detailed test on record — a 70 kg skier on the 150 — found that length short and prone to chatter and asked for a longer ski. Weigh that against any instinct to size down.
- Is the OGASAKA KS-CX cambered or rockered?
- OGASAKA publishes no profile for this ski: no chart, no camber statement, no rocker figure. What it does state is that the KS-CX carries F.F.S, which OGASAKA defines as a front rocker shape putting the tip's contact point a few percent closer to the boot center than conventional designs. Camber underfoot and the tail go undescribed.
