1 / 3Van Deer H-Power 78 Skis 2027
Pre-order · Ships September 2026
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At a Glance
Terrain
Ability Level
Description
The Van Deer H-Power 78 is the middle ski in Marcel Hirscher's H-Power line: a 78 mm frontside carver with enough width to leave the groomer. It keeps most of the hard-snow edge grip that makes the narrow H-Power 68 work, and spends its extra ten millimetres of waist on fresh snow, cut-up snow and side hits at the trail's edge.
Under the topsheet is an ash-poplar wood core between two layers of Titanal. Ash brings stiffness and edge power, poplar keeps it from feeling dead, and the metal damps chatter and pushes the edge into hard snow. Van Deer states two layers and no thickness, and publishes no camber or rocker profile, so the spec table stops where the brand's numbers stop.
For 26/27 it comes on a Marker FDT RACE PRO plate in khaki. The plate lifts the boot for more leverage into the edge and frees the ski to flex underfoot. Every ski also leaves the factory on Hirscher's own tune spec, not a generic grind, so it is meant to ski true out of the wrap.
Ski it if most of your day is on piste but you like to wander off it, and you want race feel without a specialist race ski. An ambitious intermediate will grow into it; a strong carver still finds ceiling above them. Do not start here as a beginner: it is firm and race-derived. And it pays for its range at both ends. At 78 mm deep snow will overwhelm it, so deep-day skiers want the H-Power 89 or the Freeride line; if you never leave hardpack, the 68 grips harder and turns quicker.
Length sets turn shape here, not just height: the radius climbs from 12.5 m at 159 cm to 18.5 m at 183 cm, so go short for quick, tight turns and long for speed and space. Ask us if you are between two. The plate is on the ski as sold at $1,600; the matching Marker COMP 13 binding (DIN 4-13) takes it to $2,000, and we mount it and set the release value.
Technical Specifications
| Feature | Specification |
|---|---|
| Product Type | All-Mountain Performance Skis |
| Model | H-POWER 78 |
| Color | Khaki |
| Available Lengths | 159 cm, 167 cm, 175 cm, 183 cm, 191 cm |
| Sidecut | 122-78-107 mm |
| Waist Width | 78 mm |
| Core Construction | Ash-Poplar Wood Core |
| Reinforcement | Dual Titanal Layers |
| Base | Race-Grade Base |
| Sidewalls | ABS Sidewalls, Ready to Tune |
| Configuration Options | Flat or Marker FDT Race Pro Plate |
| Compatible Binding | Marker Comp 13 FDT GW, Khaki |
| Recommended Use | Groomed Slopes / All-Mountain Skiing / Variable Terrain |
| Length | Radius | Weight per Ski |
|---|---|---|
| 159 cm | 12.5 m | 1950 g with plate |
| 167 cm | 14.5 m | 2070 g with plate |
| 175 cm | 16.5 m | 2200 g with plate |
| 183 cm | 18.5 m | 2430 g with plate |
| 191 cm | 20.5 m | 2440 g with plate |
Specs
- Waist Width: 78 mm
- Sidecut: 122-78-107 mm (all lengths)
- Turn Radius: 12.5 m (159 cm) · 14.5 m (167 cm) · 16.5 m (175 cm) · 18.5 m (183 cm)
- Core: Ash-poplar wood
- Construction: Two layers of Titanal (thickness not published) · race base · ABS sidewalls, ready to tune
- Profile: Hybrid camber/rocker (PTO assessment — Van Deer does not publish a profile for this ski)
- Weight: 1,950 g (159 cm) · 2,070 g (167 cm) · 2,200 g (175 cm) · 2,430 g (183 cm) — per ski with plate
- Plate: Marker FDT RACE PRO (included — system ski)
- Binding: Marker COMP 13 FDT GW, DIN 4-13 (sold separately; mounted and set by a technician)
- Factory Tuning: Marcel Hirscher factory tune, model-specific
- Available Lengths: 159 · 167 · 175 · 183 cm
- Colourway: Khaki
Pair It With
Compatible ski bindings.
Browse our recommended binding brands for this ski.
Details
- Type
- SKI
- Vendor
- VAN DEER
- SKU
- V25HP2512.159.01.PL
159cm R12.5 / Khaki / FDT RACE PRO Plate
Van Deer H-Power 78
By PTO Team, Based on Van Deer official specs; no independent on-snow test of this ski was found · Spec analysis on this ski
The take
“Race feel with ten millimetres of room to wander, and it pays for that range at both ends.”
The Van Deer H-Power 78 is the middle width of the H-Power line, and the middle is what you are paying for: a 78 mm ski that holds most of the narrow 68's grip on hard snow and spends ten extra millimetres of waist buying the right to leave the groomer. Whether that is worth $1,600 depends on how honest you can be about your own ski day.
The H-Power 78 pays for that range at both ends, and it is worth being blunt about it. The narrower H-Power 68 grips harder and changes edge quicker on pure hardpack. The wider H-Power 89 and the Freeride line float better in soft snow. The 78 wins neither argument. What it does is refuse to be bad at either, which for a one-ski resort day is the entire point of it.
On hard snow the H-Power 78 behaves like a race ski with a little of the edge sharpened off. Ash and poplar under two layers of Titanal give it stiffness, edge power and enough damping to hold a clean arc when you drive it, and the extra width means it changes edge a touch slower than the 68 and asks a little less precision of you to get it around. A strong intermediate can ski it without World Cup legs; an expert can still lean on it and get race-grade grip back. Off the corduroy those same ten millimetres keep it honest in fresh snow, cut-up snow and side hits. Deep powder is the wall: 78 mm on a firm race build floats modestly, and a deep day will overwhelm it.
Independent on-snow tests of the H-Power 78 are thin, because Van Deer only began building skis in 2021, so this read leans on official spec and the logic of the line rather than a test consensus. One source note while you are comparing: the 26/27 print catalogue lists a poplar-beech core for this ski. That text is stale. The live official page says ash-poplar, and that is what we go with.
Size the H-Power 78 for the turn you actually make, not for your height. The radius climbs from 12.5 m at 159 cm to 18.5 m at 183 cm, so the short skis turn quick and tight while the long ones want speed and space. It is a system ski: $1,600 buys it on its Marker FDT RACE PRO plate, the matching Marker COMP 13 binding (DIN 4-13) takes it to $2,000, and a technician mounts it and sets the release value. DIN is an indicator, not a guarantee.
Bindings we'd pair with it
Mount point: System ski on a Marker FDT RACE PRO plate; the binding is mounted and its release value set by a technician. Our pick: Marker COMP 13 FDT GW (DIN 4-13).
- Marker COMP 13 FDT GW (DIN 4-13)The matched fitting binding
Van Deer's fitting binding for this plate system, in matching khaki. DIN is an indicator, not a guarantee; a technician sets and checks the release value.
The H-Power 78 is a system ski: $1,600 buys the ski on its FDT RACE PRO plate, and the matching Marker COMP 13 binding brings it to $2,000. It is not a self-mount ski.
Common Questions
- What is the difference between the Van Deer H-Power 68 and the H-Power 78?
- Ten millimetres of waist, and what those ten millimetres buy. The 68 runs a tighter radius and grips hardpack harder; the 78 is wide enough to follow you off the piste into fresh snow and side hits. Pick the 68 to carve, the 78 for range.
- Is the Van Deer H-Power 78 good in powder?
- Not in deep powder. At 78 mm on a firm race build it floats modestly: it handles fresh snow and cut-up snow off the side of the groomer, but a deep day will overwhelm it. For real float, step up to the H-Power 89 or the Freeride line.
- What is the difference between the $1,600 and the $2,000 H-Power 78?
- Same ski. $1,600 is the ski on its Marker FDT RACE PRO plate; $2,000 adds the matching Marker COMP 13 binding (DIN 4-13). If you do not already have a binding for this plate system, you want the $2,000 build.
- What binding does the H-Power 78 use, and can I mount my own?
- It runs the Marker FDT RACE PRO plate with a Marker COMP 13 binding (DIN 4-13). Plate-and-binding systems like this are set up and the release value adjusted by a qualified technician. DIN is an indicator, not a guarantee, and this is not a self-mount ski.
- What size Van Deer H-Power 78 should I get?
- Size by turn shape. The radius climbs with length: 12.5 m at 159 cm, 14.5 m at 167 cm, 16.5 m at 175 cm, 18.5 m at 183 cm, and 20.5 m at 191 cm. Short skis give quicker, shorter-radius turns; long ones give faster, more stable arcs. Size to the turns you actually make, not just your height.
- What wood core does the H-Power 78 use?
- Ash-poplar, between two layers of Titanal. The 26/27 print catalogue prints a poplar-beech core for this ski, but the live official product page says ash-poplar; the catalogue text is stale. Van Deer states two Titanal layers and no thickness, so we do not quote one.
