Miltie

Hey Gary! Hope you are well. Your kids must be all grown up by now. Got my kids (5 and 7) on boards now. May be heading to Mammoth this weekend. No snow in forecast. It has been colder so maybe the conditions are holding up. Hope to see you up there sometime. Take care, Tom

That is Kentaro Yoshioka who is currently a member of the Japan National Team. He was on F2 last year but switched to SG. That video was taken in Austria where he is training for this season.

Brian, That new board and plate combo looks sick! (in a good way) . Nice collection of Tinklers! Hope you have fun on all of them. Tom

Anyone up there for the weekend of 12/3-12/4? If so, what are the conditions like? Thanks in advance! Tom

JT, You might consider the Donek plate. Sean has new hardware this year and the price point is nice. The ride and effectiveness are quite good. It is a little heavier than the BBP, but still very functional. The BBP is definitely a great product. I had a chance to see Fin's production set-up this fall and it is quite impressive. The carbon fiber looks very cool and the lighter weight is a plus. This might sound crazy... based on the fit/finish and all the processes the industrious Bomber elves put into it, I can't believe he is only selling for $749. The ride and functionality are also amazing. I have yet to try either Plate with softboots but plan to do so this winter. Have Sean building me a special board for this purpose now and will post up once I get to try a Plate on it. Tom

I have both the Bomber BBP and Donek plates with 4X4 and UPM hardware. Both plates work well and the hardware for both articulates smoothly. My preference is the UPM hardware for the simplicity in mounting. One limiting factor for the 4X4 hardware is the inserts in the board you are mounting to – sometimes you can’t quite get the axles where you want them. Donek will have new 4X4 hardware this year with what looks like more adjustability. If your funds are limited, go with the Donek plate. If you have a bigger budget, get the Bomber BBP – it is a thing of beauty. Riding a plate takes a bit of getting used to. Ride it somewhere you are familiar with and preferably on non-crowded day. Watch your speed once you get the hang of it.

RJ, I am sure there is a shop somewhere in OC that can do it. Just couldn't easily find one. That's why I went to SkiNet Sports. I too have cooked my own liners several times with decent results. Needed footbeds so that is why I went to SkiNet Sports. Decided to have them cook the liners while I was there. It was a 2 man process for them and they really made sure there where no pinches and my Fintec cables were behind my ankles. Definitely turned out better than doing it myself. Take care, Tom

Thanks Boostertwo! Cool video!

Scooby, The 4mm BBP is thinner than the 5mm available last season. The 4mm version offers a little more flex. I have the 5mm and would like to try the 4mm. I weigh about 155-160 lbs and think the 4mm might feel a bit better especially at lower speeds where I need to pedal a bit (slowing for lift lines, cat tracks or traffic areas). Regarding the 4 notch adjustment.... All my other TD3s are only 3 notch. Regards, Tom

Fin, Just bolted up a set of the new TD3 BP lower assemblies. Nice work my friend! Just love the feel of snugging down the bolts - it all just goes together like butter. Looking forward to some snow so I can try them out. Thanks for keeping us gear junkies supplied with new goods every year. Also looking forward to the Bomber Secret Plates for my softboot ride. Still trying to convince my wife that I really need a 4mm BBP (so far she isn't buying it). Thanks again and glad you got the podiums at the RTC! Take care, Tom

Jack, I have the SG 163 Full Race from last year. It is a sweet ride. You will definitely enjoy yours. I believe the sidecut is a VSR. Looking at the SG Japan site it only lists one radius as well. Think it is the radius in the tail section. Have fun!! Tom Scooby the waist is 20.3 cm.

George, They charge $50 per hour for boot fitting. Much cheaper than the labor rate for my line of work. I was there 1.5 hours for the liner cooking and footbeds so it came to $75. Take care, Tom

Went to SkiNet Sports yesterday to have some new Track 700T's fitted. As Nekdut and Hey John posted earlier in the thread, they did a great job. Claude definitely knows his stuff and is very passioned about boot fitting. Also had him make me a set of custom footbeds which turned out nice. Eric and Gary in the shop were also very knowledgeable and fun to chat with. Highly recommend these guys if you need boot fitting. Tom

The board is going to Slopestar. Thanks for the emails! Tom

Have an older Prior WCR 185 that I would like to pass on to someone local here in SoCal. Waist = 21cm (built for someone with big feet) Camber = 13mm Sidecut – my guess is around 12 - 13m Top-sheet condition is OK with usual binding marks and scuffs – definitely not a 10 out of 10. Tail had delam on LH side which was repaired with epoxy before I got it (still holding up – see photo). Base and edges are good shape with a coat of storage wax currently applied. This board has still a lot spring and serviceable life left. My estimate that this is from about 2001 to 2002 vintage. I bought years ago from a fellow BOL member and my buddy used as his first longer carving deck. Need to thin the herd now. Local pick-up only (Huntington Beach) – I do not have the time to box it up and ship anywhere – Sorry! If you are interested, please shoot me a PM via BOL. Thanks! Tom

Front axle under ball of front foot. Rear axle under rear heel. Mark the original binding center locations on the board (near side wall) and then approximate axle locations with the boots in the bindings (also mark near sidewall). This will help you lay out where the axles should go. Once you have the plate mounted on the board per instructions. Mount the bindings with in same positions as previously marked. Been using this process for BBP and Donek plates and it has worked well. You may find the limiting factor is the locations of the inserts in the board. This set-up is a good starting point for freeriding, however, I have heard the racers are now using narrow axle spacing. Hope this helps! Tom

Terry, Thanks much for the info. Been looking for a place here in SoCal to get a decent base grind. Thanks! Tom

Matt, Welcome! I too have a few forgiving boards and extra bindings you are welcome to try. Have some mondo 26 boots available but that may be a little small for you. Between all of us from the SoCal BOL crew, we should be able to hook you up with something to try. As mentioned, many of us ride June and Mammoth so keep on eye on the SoCal Ride Board. Hope to see you on the mountain! Tom

Not mine. Found on eBay tonight while looking for something else. These are Mondo 27 so someone here might be interested. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dee-Luxe-Unisex-Snowboard-Boots-/250915475249?pt=US_Snowboard_Boots&hash=item3a6bba4f31

Thanks Jack! Very cool link. Lot's of memories from my college years in Utah. I had that mag and started riding hard boots the following year.

Hey Fin, Hope your summer is going well and you are on top of the seasonal production rush. Any update on the Soft Binding Adapter Plates? :) Thanks in advance!! Tom

Nice board Ben! I have several custom boards from Sean and think you will be even more stoked once you ride it. What sidecut did you go with? I am pondering a similar board in about the same length from Sean to run through the afternoon crud with softboots. Thanks! Tom

Tried a plate on my SG Full Race 163 last year for freeriding. I coupled that with Sidewinders. The overall combo seemed a bit heavy for freeriding at my 160 lbs. You could definitely feel benefits of the plate (better edge feel and smooth ride) but it was a lot of work. If I was racing and in primo physical condition then it might be a different story. My mental notes that day were to skip the plate next time and just run the Sidewinders on that board. I really like plates on boards over 170 cm and at resorts with long wide-open runs where you can really let the board go. I also switched to running TD3-SI bindings on the longer boards since the plates isolate things so well. Just my 2 cents.

Semi-thread jack - sorry! Slopestar, I am in the process of moving back into my place in HB. Give me a few weeks and I might have some Raichle SBs for you (boots are in storage currently). They are 26 but have thermo liners. Shoot me a PM and we can discuss offline. Thanks! Tom

Mondo 27 boots should work no problem. I used several sets of similar TD1's with size 26 boots for years. Good deal at $85 and they look clean!