Frequently Asked Questions

Maherajah has been building water skis since 1950 and has been the primary innovator of the sport. We have pioneered and developed industry standard features such as the high wrap binding, drop through fin, tunnel concave bottom, beveled edge, and the stiff ski. We continue to innovate and are constantly testing and redesigning. Maherajah has dominated water ski racing for decades- it’s not unusual for more than half of the top 10 finishers in national and international races to be riding our skis. Maherajah currently manufactures longboard racing water skis and a line of Fastback water skis for training, recreation and fun.

Factory direct pricing. Maherajah skis are made from a variety of domestic and exotic wood. This material gives our skis superior dampening- your ski will return to its original shape quickly and smoothly. Fiberglass and foam-core skis tend to have poor dampening and decrease in stiffness over time. You want a stiff ski that does not change its shape while you’re riding. Over the last 57 years, we have found that our wood skis outlast all other skis on the market.

Maherajah water skis are the one brand of ski that appreciates over time. Our older skis are being sold for two or three times their original value.

We are sorry, but we are not able to put a dollar value on your old MAHA. There are just too many variables for us to appraise your old ski.

Old Maherajah skis do appreciate if they are taken care of. A ski built in the mid 1970's that cost approximately $150 might bring $300-400 on eBay. The best way to find out is to give it a try, or to search eBay's completed and current auctions.

We do not recommend refinishing an older ski. If the ski has been badly damaged or neglected we don't recommend using it. If you intend on using it, you can touch up the spots where bare wood is exposed by lightly sanding the spot and applying an exterior urethane based product, isolating the bad spots with masking tape.

We have found that refinishing a ski makes it thinner, more flexible, and more likely to break. Old skis are already more brittle than their newer counterparts.

As far as performance is concerned, our older skis do not perform nearly as well as our newer models. We have made numerous innovations in the last 40 years and continue to do so.

We are constantly learning, experimenting, and improving upon our already world class skis and 50+ years of experience. Our skis have become thicker with an improved rocker. Ski edges, fins, and the finish have also been improved throughout the years. Our newer skis outperform those built in earlier years. We consider our Fastback line of skis to be the best ever built.

The life expectancy of a well used Maherajah Longboard Racing Ski (and similar skis from other manufacturers) is about 5 years. Nicks and scratches in the outer layers of the ski will allow the absorbtion of water, which can make the ski heavier over time. This additional weight affects the ski's performance. Older skis aquire more flex which will cause porpoising and increased drag.

We believe that these changes due to age and and use, as well as the the aluminum plate construction of many racing bindings create shear points. Of the approximately 1,500 Longboards we have built, we know of only 2 skis that have actually broken. We attribute this to the shear points just in front of the forward binding, between the bindings, and just behind the rear binding.