New to PNW requests skis to buy recommendations

Here's your chance to sell those Comforts Scotsman.

Yea , since I bought my ST's I'm definitely less happy with my Comforts. I just had to order my second set of volcanoes due to volcano splitting. No big deal but, I've always had trouble with twisting my comfort heel to higher settings and that may be due to the brake.
I found the ST's a big improvement over the Comforts and am thinking of selling them to upgrade to ST's or FT's.
Anybody want to make me an offer. Comforts with brakes, well used, new volcanoes installed???????

You've made a good choice, and can still look forward to buying your first pair of clown shoes.

See ya in the mountains,
-Kneel

Any of these from the "Sustainable and Green Series" would work if the Bakers disappoint. Also note the "Paradise Combi-Tool", lower right; perfect this time of year with smooth side down on the snowfield and wheels for the rest. The mega hardcore eco types have been known to cut their carbon footprint by riding the "PC-Tool" all the way to Longmire (road access and hitch-hiking up to Paradise required).

I found some other reviews online about the Bakers SL and they were all decently good, and the price was right, and the designs are Salish and I work with the tribes, so I went ahead and ordered them.

Now, can someone explain to me the difference in the various models of dynafits available?

Great choice! The Bakers will work well year-round.

I wish K2 had continued to select tribal art for their skis. The Chogori/Sahale design was one of the coolest recently mass-produced.

Dynafits are all functionally very similar, except for adjustment range on the speeds/classics. Beware any "race" bindings (normally they're not cheap), as they have no adjustment and must be mounted carefully. If you decide you're sure you would prefer brakes to leashes, the Verticals will have somewhat more user-friendly brakes. Speeds are great, but most folks these days seem to end up with the Verticals.

Comforts and Verticals have heel pins that are 2 mm longer. My first pair was Comforts, largely for this reason, but I've since bought two pair of Speeds and haven't noted a difference. Verticals have a longer toe pull tab, which is a welcome luxury for numb or weak hands.

The volcanoes on Verticals are better-engineered than those on Comforts. Careful usage of the volcanoes can mitigate the hazard of breaking them. It's easy to break them if you apply a torque in a way in which the binding cannot rotate. I've Van Halened my Comforts hundreds of times without breakage (at DIN ~7).

Depending on your needs, it may be worth a moment's thought to consider the G3 Onyx too. Dynafit's no longer the only player in the no-lifted-heel-weight game. The Onyx is adjustable in ways that Dynafits can't be, is portable between skis, and the toe retention is somewhat more elastic. The penalty is added weight.

The typical TAYer will tell you to get a supertrab 5000 xr ( 15 grams, 75mm waist). The fact that these skis are only suitable for 2 months of the season( June and July), the average TAYer will flounder through the deep snow of winter and the slush of spring clinging( and usually in the backseat) to his narrow skis while perversely waiting for the snow conditions to catch up with his ski choice.
Don't listen to them. Fat ( greater than 90mm in a woman's case) is the way to go for most of the winter and spring and make sure you get tip rocker. It's not a fad despite what many TAYers think; it actually physics and who can argue with Newton?

It is interesting to note that the winners of the Powder 8s at Crystal last year, Scotty Kingland and Bill Vlases were both on Mod Xs which are something like 78mm wide underfoot. Lightweight pow is easy to ski on nearly any ski, its the bottomless wet snow that is tough.

Scott Kingland could ski powder gracefully wearing snowblades.
Unlike most TAYers he knows how to ski.
That's not the point and I agree with you that low density  pow is fairly easy to ski even with skinny assed skis.
However as you point out we live in the PNW.

I am the prophet of phat surrounded surrounded by Philistines .