Allee Posted February 25, 2004 Report Share Posted February 25, 2004 I bought a new (secondhand) board that came with a set of Burton bindings - I think they're Carriers? the ones with the pop up and slide adjustments on them. I did my first day on the hill last weekend with it, and while I like the board, the bindings are the pits. I have them adjusted up so tight I have to sit down and crank with all my weight to get them to lock on, and as soon as I come off at speed (which I do a lot) the front binding just spits the boot out. It's a really disconcerting feeling, it feels as if the board has broken, and then the board flops around all over the hill. I'm not that worried about the board, but I am about my knees ... When I adjust the bindings they feel like they click into place all right, and I can't move them by pushing them with my fingers. There's a wee bit of play in the front slider, but it's only millimetres, not enough to cause the boot to let go, I would have thought. The boots are Raichles, 223's. I have some old Oxygens on my other board (Hot Blast). I've come off that board a hell of a lot harder and I've never had the bindings let go on me ... Any ideas? Do I have them done up too tight, perhaps? I'd really like to use them, but at this rate, they might be headed for the recycle bin. Cheers, Allee. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Randy S. Posted February 25, 2004 Report Share Posted February 25, 2004 I use those bindings for my 9 year-old. I wouldn't recommend them for an adult. Heck, I had race plates and I pulled out of them once in a while. Use your other bindings on this board if you can. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mirror70 Posted February 25, 2004 Report Share Posted February 25, 2004 Have you adjusted the stop on the toeclip? If it's in or out too far, the clip won't align with the tongue on the boot at the proper angle, which could cause what you're describing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philfell Posted February 25, 2004 Report Share Posted February 25, 2004 Check what Mirror said above. Some raichles fit better in Burton bindings if you remove the plastic screw completely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted February 25, 2004 Report Share Posted February 25, 2004 Originally posted by philfell Some raichles fit better in Burton bindings if you remove the plastic screw completely. Amen - my wife used a pair of Carriers a couple times last year. Removing the plastic screw was a must in order to keep them from popping open - even in the living room! She has Raichle 225 (w/ a softer tongue) But they still had to be set tight enough to make it tough getting in and out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allee Posted February 26, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 26, 2004 The plastic screw things has gone, we'll see if they work better this weekend. Thanks guys!! ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheffy Posted February 27, 2004 Report Share Posted February 27, 2004 ---get rid of those Burton bindings----like the other posting said for kids not adults--i had burton race last year---broke so many bales that i got scared to ride fast anymore----got cateks this year no looking back.....THose bindings are DEATH TRAPS..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zcarver Posted February 29, 2004 Report Share Posted February 29, 2004 I agree Sheffy! At first I like the race plates, becasuse it was easy to turn the board. But as I got better and started riding steep and fast trails at Killington, it became a scary experience. I busted the bails 5 times and crack the plate twice. It is bad enough to worry about the people on the slopes when riding. The last thing I need to worry about is the bindings breaking on me. I put them away for good! I am using the old TD Bombers now and will never look back. However I just got back from 5 day trip from Okemo and I notice I crack the right heel support of my Raichle 325 boot! Ouch! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirk Posted March 1, 2004 Report Share Posted March 1, 2004 I'm sorry to hear that people have had bad experiences with this equipment. But I feel the need to put in my $.02 (probably all it's worth) as a counter to their comments. Not to be a fly in the ointment, this is just my own personal experience. I have a set of '98 Race Plates (bought 'em new), ridden them in all kinds of conditions, on race boards as long as 183 cm - never had a problem! No pulled inserts, no cracks in boot shell. I would say I'm a fairly aggressive rider and have been on plates for a lot of years. That being said, I only weigh about 155 lbs. Perhaps they are more appropriate for the lighter (not necessarily the younger) rider? But wait a minute, Klug rides these things and he's over 200 lbs. I've had the opportunity to receive some coaching from this guy and asked how his eqipment works for him. He indicated to me that they've never let him down. Was that a plug in for Burton from him? Probably, but there are people out there riding these bindings (no, not just kids) and they work. As far as stiffness and quality of materials, Bomber and Catek they are NOT. I'm sure there will be plenty of negative commentary to follow, but here goes: If ya have 'em and that's what's in your budget, ride 'em! Ride 'em tight and, like others have posted above, take the plastic screw out of them (especially with Raichles). It would be a good idea to inspect them every once in a while (as anybody should for ANY equipment). I admit though, I did just purchase a pair of Snowpros (Race LTD) last season because I got a good deal on 'em. Thought that a back-up pair of bindings would be necessary since I've been riding these race plates all these seasons and they would eventually get religion (perhaps myself along with 'em). Hasn't happened, so now I have TWO sets of binding that work great. I like the Snowpros a bit more for their ease of adjustability (the race plates can be a pain in the @$$ to adjust) - that's it. Good luck! Kirk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gdboytyler Posted March 1, 2004 Report Share Posted March 1, 2004 I also have had a good experience with my Burton bindings. I have 2 pairs of the Burton Step-in Race plates. Here’s a photo. <IMG SRC="http://members.cox.net/morfeeg1/Burton_stepin_raceplate.JPG" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="180" align="left" <FONT SIZE="1"><BR clear="all"></P></IMG> I’ve had both sets of bindings for 5 or 7 years. I had one set on a Burton Supermodel, and then moved that to a Donek Incline. The other set was on a Burton Alp, which then got moved to an Oxygen Proton. I’ve gotten off Burton boards, but the bindings still work great. I do ride aggressively, but I only weigh 130 lb. The only time I had problems with the bindings was when I was riding my Proton in 3” of powder. I hadn’t put a stomp on my board yet and I had a hard time cleaning the snow off the soles of my boots. On that day, I had to manually engage the bales. My thumb was sore at the end of the day. I’ve read plenty of horror stories about the toe clip on all brands of bindings popping loose. Because of the spring and cam in the Burton Step-in race, it seems highly unlikely that the bails would pop loose. Burton made the Step-in Race only for a few seasons. So I’d be interested to know the problems people had with that particular model. The Burton horror stories have gotten me a little worried. I don’t want to push my luck and keep riding the bindings until I do get a mechanical failure. So I probably will replace at least one set within the next year. I do like the flex in the Burton binding, so Phiokkas might be a good replacement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pepe Le Pew Posted March 1, 2004 Report Share Posted March 1, 2004 I haven't been too lucky with my Burton Race plate bindings: I crushed a set of cant disks (toe side on the back foot). The plastic was desintegrating (under my 210 pounds). They got lost during SES 02 and I didn't regret them for a minute. I've been riding TD1s ever since. Only one pop out at this point and it was my fault (improper adjustment after switching boots). Eric Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mirror70 Posted March 1, 2004 Report Share Posted March 1, 2004 I'm not sure how you crushed a cant disc on your Race Plates? I actually drove over mine and it survived w/o a scratch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AaronG Posted March 2, 2004 Report Share Posted March 2, 2004 GBT, I had the 1st generation of step ins that you have. I'm not sure of the changes they(burton) made to them but I was popping out of those bindings everytime the speed picked up and the loads increased. First time it happened the front foot popped out, not sure how it happened but it caught me by surprise. Second time it happened both feet popped out, not fun having the board flying around your head like a 'copter blade. I thought I had snow under the boot which wasn't allowing the binding to close all the way. I made sure I scrpaed every bit of snow off the boot before I stepped in, front foot popped again. I went to the repair station to reduce the bale distance cuz I thought my boots shrunk and the bindings bercame loose. The bindings fit so tight on the boots that I had to manually close the lever. That held for a few runs and the front popped again. I put the board away for the day and called Burton the next day. Burton told me to ship the setp-ins back asap and said they would get a pair of race plates out to me via next day air. I never asked what the problem was but they seemed to want those bindings back quick. BTW, I was probably 185 lbs at the time, it think that was around 96/97. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gdboytyler Posted March 4, 2004 Report Share Posted March 4, 2004 I posted my defense of Burton bindings a little too soon. I had just bought a used pair of Raichle 224 boots and I was adjusting my Burton step-ins to fit the boots. Lo and Behold, the heel bail on my front binding was broken. The bail must have broken when I was riding on Sunday (2-29). Where the bail broke, it was still able to provide some support to the heel, but once I unlocked the bail, it would no longer re-engage. Since the bail was on the front binding, I never unlocked the bail until the end of the day. I got lucky on that one. The binding that broke is not the set in the photo (mounted on Donek Incline). The binding that broke was mounted on my Oxygen Proton. Time to get a non-Burton plate binding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philfell Posted March 4, 2004 Report Share Posted March 4, 2004 I've seen broken parts from every binding on the market. If you put a material through enough stress cycles it will eventually fail. Check all binding parts often!!!!, even if you think your bindings are unbreakable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil Gendzwill Posted March 4, 2004 Report Share Posted March 4, 2004 Originally posted by sheffy THose bindings are DEATH TRAPS..... Yeah, but are they suicide raps? You gotta get out while you're young... cuz tramps like us, baby, we were born to run. Sorry, I feel better now. Neil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allee Posted March 4, 2004 Author Report Share Posted March 4, 2004 that's what riding bumps on a speed stick does for you. Rattles your brain cells and makes you sing bad Springsteen songs (although I do like Frankie Goes to Hollywood's version). Speaking off that, I highsided off the Blast on the weekend and gave myself concussion - but the bindings still didn't let go!!! (hee hee ...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil Gendzwill Posted March 4, 2004 Report Share Posted March 4, 2004 Hey, there are no bad Springsteen songs ... well maybe his version of "Santa Claus is Coming to Town". And as for the bumps... "no retreat, baybee, no surrender". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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