Jack M

The small pins are supposed to rest on the <i>ramp</i> of the heel receiver, not the horizontal surface at the bottom. I don't see how they could exert any lateral force. The small pins are supposed to be the primary downward load-bearers. The large spring-loaded pins are only supposed to hold your boot down in the binding. When your tab broke, it allowed the boot to sit cockeyed in the binding, so all bets are off then. As Fin says, the micro-sizing should do away with the side-to-side play. I haven't tried that yet.

your bindings are way too loose then. there is significant lateral flex of the cuff.

how's that.

In theory yes. But then you would need lateral/medial BTS's too. Beckman is rocking this with some ski boots he's dremeled out to have free floating cuffs, and then he's made his own fore/aft lateral/medial BTS type things. Talk about frankenboots!

this whole carving thing is just a ruse for scoring hot carver beefcake, right? must be like shooting fish in a barrel for you chiquitas. ;) :D

everyone knows red is the fastest color.

The Fires were actually a bit stiffer than the T700s. The T700s are wider. They're pretty wide and high volume. The forward (and backward!) flex action of the T700s is a lot smoother and stiction-free, thanks to the BTS. The Fires were a great boot (with T-flex of course) if you like stiff.

Sorry guys, not sure how I missed these questions. Yes, I did notice a tiny side to side movement. 1mm sounds about right. However I haven't fiddled with the micro-sizing yet. I'm going to try that to see if it goes away. Not that it matters, can't feel it while riding. McD boots? naw. The Fires were great. They even had a quasi-BTS of their own.

There is lots of info in the links below to help you get going.

Me so confused. Wasn't Intuition the original OEM for Thermoflex? Whatever happened, the liners that came in my '09 Track 700s are not as good as my old gray Thermoflexes, which look a lot like Intuition "Alpine" liners. Deeluxe would be very wise to get back in with Intuition. The new liners are much softer and seem to take up less volume in the boot. They also don't seem to take as much of a good mold. The old ones become an exact negative of every nook and cranny of the inside of the boot (and your foot), the new ones don't look any different after molding than before. Luckily I had at least one more mold left in my old liners, so I'm running those now. They've transformed the boot for the better.

There are tips for getting started at carving in the links below. You might find "The Norm" helpful. Good luck!

I would think this could work pretty well if all the bolts except for the center ones were sliding in slots, but that doesn't appear to be the case.

Agreed all around, but he's using a point-n-shoot, and I think photography is not his concern on this trip. Except I must correct you sir, it's 18%. :p ;)

Hey, sorry to get that thread off on the wrong foot, I was in one of my wise-ass moods I guess. Not trying to put you down, just talkin' a little schmack. Welcome to the Coiler club! One of the best boards out there, IMO. Have fun. -Jack

challenge = fun. The blacks is where the real thigh, hip, armpit dragging happens. And higher g's.

I'm 99% certain I can't make it to the SQS :( I think the TD3-R will probably be a good comparison. It's funny... the guy who helped me with my carving thinks that TD2s with red e-rings are hopelessly flexy. He makes his own one-off TD2 look-alikes with his own Bridgeport mill.

I dunno, I'm just going on what people have said about the F2's being flexible side to side. I haven't ridden them. I have ridden Burtons after TDs, and those are scary. I'm not saying anyone doesn't know what they're talking about.

I rely on bindings for response. We make balance corrections by making subtle subconscious movements against the boot cuff. The less response we have from the boot cuff, the bigger the movement we have to make. And then it becomes less subconscious and more deliberate. I could make an argument in a similar vein as yours like "if you need slop in your bindings then..." but I'll get skewered again.

With all due respect, I want to ask how you are supposed to make precision moves and maintain balance with your foot wobbling side to side? I guess I'll see what the TD3-R is like, but I predict I won't like it.

ah yes, for a student budget you're doing very well! Enjoy.

Guilty. Something I've learned about photography is that the "accurate representation" is rarely the best picture. If you're not savvy with Photoshop, try Picasa for free. It's easy. http://picasa.google.com Edit - here's what Picasa can do: original: one click fix - "I'm feeling lucky": I'm feeling lucky plus one click color fix: I'm feeling lucky plus some fill light:

that's like putting all-seasons on a Ferrari. ;)

1991 PJ7 with bindings. Make me an offer I can't refuse.

Whatever position gives you the most balance wins. Seth Wescott gettin' it done in softies: Funny, we have an article with almost the same name here: http://www.bomberonline.com//articles/your_butt.cfm (there is more to this site than the forum!)