more AT binding spray <or> freeride vs. dynafit

[swaterfall]

So I was all set thinking that I would go for a set of freerides on my new boards because they are 'beefy-er' than my trusty dynafits. I was checking out a pair on a friend of mine's skis and now I don't think so at all.

 

First off, I'm not sure that the locking mechanism that keeps the binding in alpine mode is all that sturdy. there are only two little tabs (I think they're even plastic)that keep it locked down.

 

Secondly, there seemed to be a milimeter or more of side-to-side play in the same part of the binding when it was locked down. That's not good.

 

I was hesitating on puting dynafits on my new boards because they are pretty fat and I thought that a sturdier binding would be appropriate, but I think overall the dynafits are just as sturdy as the freerides and are almost 3.5 lbs. lighter

 

Has anyone had similar problems with their freerides and managed to fix them?

 

Any problems with dynafits?

[cj001f]

First off, I'm not sure that the locking mechanism that keeps the binding in alpine mode is all that sturdy. there are only two little tabs (I think they're even plastic)that keep it locked down.

As opposed to the two tiny metal pins on the Dynafit which fit into a tiny metal platee screwed into the plastic of your boot? The slop problem can prolly be shimmed out.

 

In my mind the reasons to go for Fritschi's over Dynafits (I have both) are:

- Better Release Characteristics

- Step In/Step Out

I like many of the gaperish hordes use Freerides inbounds; I've not experienced any problems with them.

[swaterfall]

I've never seen any hordes in AT stuff on-piste. I have seen hordes of gapers standing-around under big risers and in the middle of steep groomers though.

 

I any event, good point about the dynafits. I just expected the freerides to have more of a contact area to hold the binding down since they weigh so much more.

[Gaper_Jeffy]

I actually hear of Fritschis breaking quite a bit, though I've never heard of broken Dynafits. I did break the toe of my Fritschis:

 

Even though Fritschis are less durable then Dyanfits, I think the ease of entry, arguable better realese and no de-camber issue outweighs the Dynafits durability for resort skiing. I have Fritschis on the skis I primarily use at the resort, and Dynafits on the BC skis.

 

Note this year's Freerides (and maybe the Explorers/Expresses?) I believe have a beefier toe.

 

Ugh, I feel sort of guilty responding to these posts. I'll try to stop gear sprayin' now.

[cj001f]

I actually hear of Fritschis breaking quite a bit, though I've never heard of broken Dynafits.

I've heard of broken Fritschis as well - mostly early generation Diamirs(several known problems) and recent Freeride users who ski them like they were an Alpine binding and huck big. Given the dominance of Fritschi in the AT binding market, and how few people use Dynafits in general(especially on piste), I'm curious if these statistics/impressions may change.

 

Oh, and you can put brakes on a ski wider than 85mm with Fritschis, not Dynafits.

[snoboy]

Any ski techs out there? I wouild love to see the results of putting dynafits and fritschis on binding release test machine...

 

The new Dynafits (comfort??) have longer pins in order to help with the de-cambering issue.

[Thrashador]

These binders look interesting:

 

They appear to have the step-inability of Fritichis plus the featherweightness of Dynafits. The price is something else: $475 Canadian at MEC.

To paraphrase a friend, the investment bankers must have gotten hip to the backcountry phenomenon. Nonetheless, I look forward to hearing more about the durability of Silvretta's new offering.

[Double_E]

when bought my first/only set of AT gear a few years back, the sales guy in one store said that the only drawback of Dynafits was that ice/snow gets crusted into the toe-holes, which I could totally see happening... also just in general they didn't/don't look very sturdy or beefy for some reason... dont seem like they'd grip yer boots well.

 

 

so i got Fritschis, which i liked 100% for a while, but then after about 8-9 days of use the heel started unclipping (went into touring mode) sometimes when it wasn't supposed to!! like when i would do something stressing the binding, like a turn in powder, etc. so for a while i was just thinking the bindings sucked, but then eventually i took em back to the store that installed them and it turned out that the moron who'd done so hadn't lined up the rear piece correctly, so it was all like cockeyed. (& this BTW was prettymuch unnoticable to me, but the shop tech realized it right away). they also said the guy who installed them no longer worked there, and hadn't been the greatest installer anyways. so i ended up getting a new pair of skis for free that day!! .... totally solved the problem.

[AlpineK]

You can either use your poles or cary something else to ream out the two holes on your dynafit boots.

 

Dynafit bindings don't look very burly but they are. I've cracked the toe piece on my fritchies, but I've never done anything bad to my dynafits.

 

Dynafits are harder to step into, but they are lighter, simpler, and hands down better than anything else out there.

[jon]

I think the Freerides are a bit overkill unless you plan on using them for resort skiing as well. They have a higher DIN setting then the Diamirs but who really needs a 13 setting.

[JayB]

I think that if you are buying a setup that is primarily or exclusively for backcountry use then there's really no need to debate the issue - get the Dynafit. After seeing Bronco crack off the plastic climbing "bar" on one side of his Dynafit setup, and break the mounting plate on the other while skinning in, and seeing other people futz around with the binding endlessly while trying to get their boots on in deep, wet snow - my only advice would be to keep their limitations in mind. They have many advantages, especially when it comes to weight, but IMO you sacrifice some of the convenience and durability in the process. But again - if you are looking at the set-up for touring purposes, I think that the pro's outweight the cons in a big way.

 

If you are doing a limited amount of touring, a considerable amount of which involves yo-yoing rather than touring, or you are spending a reasonable amount of time inbounds, then the Freerides start to look pretty good. I use them inbounds with DH boots, and the principal drawback to using them in this setting is their "flatness" vis-a-vis a full-on downhill binding, which is something that I actually notice on the slopes. I was not all that happy when I discovered the play in the heel-piece, but I honestly haven't noticed it affecting my skiing in a tangible way - although I am sure that is has some effect. I have used them in the moguls, abused them in the terrain park, etc, and they are still in one piece, so in my mind they score pretty highly in the durability department. Just plan on doing some extra training if you plan on keeping up with folks on the Dynafits on long tours.

[thelawgoddess]

seth, if you're going to start skiing like chris, get a pair of freerides or naxos.

i would think your skiing style (among other things) will matter more than the width of your skis when it comes to selecting the right binding. btw, have YOU ever had problems with your dynafits? why you don't you take your friend's freerides on a few runs and see what you think? are you going to leave your dynafits on your old skis? you could just have two setups - one beefy; one not so beefy. btw, from what i know of you i don't think 3.5 lbs are really going to slow you down much.

[swaterfall]

Hey TLG, do you really think chris is gonna let me use his skis?!?

 

Any way, I've never had a problem with my dynas but I've never ridden naxos or fitschis, so I can't really compare them. I spent 12 years on a snowboard with snow shoes in my pack for cryin out loud so all of this stuff seems complicated to my simple mind.

 

I'm definitly keeping my old set up (except the boots). It works great for spring conditions and I can actually get crampons for the skis. The new fat boyz are for hitting Red Mountain #1 powder (ASAP, oh yeah!!!), a few hut trips this winter and most likely less than 10 days on piste.

 

I'm still leaning towards dynas, but I really appriciate everyones' comments. They are giving me a lot to think about before dropping the $$$.

[cj001f]

$$$.

That would be the other advantage of Fristchi's. It's alot easier to find them for less $.