2025 Armada Declivity 82 Ti

As the narrowest of the Declivities, the 82 Ti has the most front side oriented character. This has been true over the years and will continue to be so for the foreseeable future. This ski blurs the line between front side and all-mountain and we never really know where to put it in this test. There are skis that are wider but are more angular and squarer, but there really aren’t many narrower skis that have this type of shape and style. As such, it kind of gets lost in the middle. Sometimes, that’s a great place to be because there’s not a lot of competition here. Armada has kept the shape and style of the ski for 2025 but has changed the construction of the core. This leads to a sturdier and a bit heftier feel and a higher performance ceiling.

While the outgoing ski used a light weight caruba core, the new one has a poplar core that delivers a smoother and more predictable snow feel. The stiffness hasn’t changed all that much, mainly due to the thicker profile of the new ski. We also still get Armada’s Articulated Titanal Banding laminate, and this goes a long way and does a lot of heavy lifting when it comes to vibration damping and overall power. Full sidewalls and a carbon reinforcement are all part of the process, and it all adds up to a weight of 1800 grams in the 174. This is an increase of about 125 grams over the old one, showing a dedicated move towards a sturdier ski. At the end of the day, if you’re looking for an all-mountain ski that absolutely rips on groomers, it’s tough to do better than the 2025 Armada Declivity 82 Ti. We wish more people knew about it and kept it on their radar because it’s so useful.

The shape has stayed the same over the years, and that’s a good thing. At 82 mm underfoot, it’s one of the narrowest all-mountain skis out there. Bookended by 128 mm tips and 110 mm tails, the ski produces a 15.9-meter turn radius. This is short and indicates that the ski is happier in lower radius carves than open and high-speed arcs. Tester Marcus Shakun notes on this topic that the Declivity 82 Ti has “nice quick edge to edge engagement” and makes “nice quick short turns but can lock into longer turns.” Marcus is a pretty tall skier at 6’5”, so it’s nice to hear that his experience goes beyond the stated radius. He also states that the ski “lives frontside but can handle more off-trail terrain compared to other skis in the category. It can do both because it has a nice short turn radius but can slide out turns and maneuver in the bumps.” Not a lot of skis in this range with metal can handle those mogul-shaped turns, so that’s a feather in this ski’s cap as to its off-corduroy capabilities.

Skier type gets a bit interesting because it’s got a big range for such a narrow ski. It’s easy enough to turn for an intermediate to enjoy, although experts who are looking for this specific ski will find plenty of capabilities. The shape is great for progressing and improving skiers while the build will hold up to some very aggressive use and has higher speed potential. This puts it in the mid-range, and that’s kind of the issue with appeal, but we’re trying to change that here! Just because it’s got a specific set of characteristics doesn’t mean it should be overlooked.